Meet Homo ergaster (also known as African Homo erectus), specifically specimen KNM-ER 3733.
How cool is this? We think very cool. This is the same fossil you see a photo of all over the net. It’s amazingly different when students can actually hold a print in their hands, and study it. And after that, you realise how unsatisfactory diagrams are.
This is a very old piece of our human (hominin) history. Our ladyfriend ergaster here (the skull is thought to be of a female) is one of the oldest of her kind ever found, and approx 1.8 million years old.
Mind you, this particular print we did is only half-size (by X/Y/Z, not volume) but the detail is fantastic. On the second photo you can clearly see some teeth and yes you can actually feel them!
While the skull is fossilised and filled-in, the zygomatic arches on the side are still there (they’re missing in many specimens) and with the right slicer settings (including scaffolding) the printer has no problem creating a beautiful print. It just takes a while…
This skull print and some others have already been used by Claire Reeler (archaeologist) for a project at Grovely State School. The kids had a great time, an awesome hands-on learning experience, and we hope to publish the materials here soon so you can use them too.
The program reduces my planning time as I only have to plan and research for one integrated unit.
Trent Perry, Teacher