New human teeth from Middle Stone Age deposits at Klasies River, South Africa.

Since 1984, the main site at Klasies River has been re-investigated. Human remains, animal bones and stone artefacts have been collected from the LBS, SAS and other stratigraphic members, and these discoveries help to establish the antiquity of anatomically near-modern populations practicing a Middle Stone Age way of life on the southern coast of Africa. Several teeth found in the lower SAS levels in 1989-1991 can be matched in recent South African populations. Two complete upper molars representing one individual have crowns that are relatively short mesiodistally. These specimens are small in comparison to black South African homologues, but MD and BL dimensions fall close to the averages for San burials. This evidence confirms that several of the Klasies individuals have very small molars, while others have cheek teeth that are close to the upper limits for size variation in recent Africans. The new material is in keeping with the view that sex dimorphism within this Middle Stone Age population may be pronounced. Copyright 2001 Academic Press.