5 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

A Sunken Land of Life and Intelligence: The Lost World of Homo Erectus Resurfaces After 140,000 Years

Archaeologists discover ancient human fossils and extinct megafauna on the seafloor of the Madura Strait, revealing that Homo erectus once thrived in a vast land now buried beneath the ocean.

An ancient world long swallowed by the sea has come back to light—along with clues about one of humanity’s earliest ancestors. Researchers have uncovered fossilized remains of Homo erectus, along with dozens of extinct animal species, from the bottom of the Madura Strait between Java and Madura islands in Indonesia.

The fossils, dating back approximately 140,000 years, were discovered during dredging operations and include two Homo erectus skull fragments, bones with cut marks from butchering tools, and evidence of deliberate hunting behavior. The find sheds new light on early human life in Sundaland, a now-submerged landmass that once connected much of Southeast Asia.

“This discovery paints a vivid picture of a thriving ecosystem and an intelligent, adaptive Homo erectus population,” said Dr. Harold Berghuis, lead archaeologist from Leiden University.

A Sunken Land of Life and Intelligence

During the last Ice Age, global sea levels dropped by over 100 meters, exposing vast lowlands. What is now ocean between Indonesia’s islands was once a savannah-like region filled with elephants, rhinos, crocodiles, river sharks, Komodo dragons, and early humans.

Map of the Madura Strait north of Surabaya showing the locations of the sub-bottom profiling sections (red lines labeled A–C) and deep drilling sites (red circles) used in this study. The dotted area indicates the estimated position of the sand-filled ancient river valley (paleovalley). Credit: Berghuis et al. (2024), Quaternary Environments and Humans.
Map of the Madura Strait north of Surabaya showing the locations of the sub-bottom profiling sections (red lines labeled A–C) and deep drilling sites (red circles) used in this study. The dotted area indicates the estimated position of the sand-filled ancient river valley (paleovalley). Credit: Berghuis et al. (2024), Quaternary Environments and Humans.

The excavation site—a buried river valley now beneath the sea—has preserved this ecosystem remarkably well. Archaeologists recovered remains from 36 different vertebrate species, many of which are now extinct or endangered. Among them: The Asian hippo (extinct), Early forms of Komodo dragons, Ancient bovids and elephants, Carnivores and scavengers, likely hunted by Homo erectus.

“This was not a barren or remote outpost,” Berghuis explained. “It was a lush, resource-rich environment where early humans thrived.”

Homo Erectus Was Not Isolated—They Adapted and Hunted Strategically

Previously, many scientists believed that Homo erectus lived in isolation on Java, cut off from the rest of the Asian continent. But these new findings challenge that view.

The presence of butchered animal bones and shellfish remains suggest that Sundaland Homo erectus actively hunted, fished, and processed food in sophisticated ways. The cut marks on turtle shells and cracked bovid bones point to organized hunting and marrow extraction, behaviors typically associated with more modern hominins.

Some researchers even propose that Homo erectus in Sundaland may have interacted—or interbred—with other hominin species from mainland Asia.

Researchers show fossils of vertebrate species found in the Madura Strait, East Java. Credit: Berghuis et al. (2024), Quaternary Environments and Humans.
Researchers show fossils of vertebrate species found in the Madura Strait, East Java. Credit: Berghuis et al. (2024), Quaternary Environments and Humans.

“We see behaviors here that weren’t previously linked to early Java hominins. It may suggest some level of contact or cultural borrowing,” said Berghuis.

A Fossil Trove Heads to the Museum

The fossils are currently housed in the Geological Museum in Bandung, Indonesia. Plans are underway for a public exhibition to showcase the discovery, with possible traveling displays to other institutions around the world.

The full research findings were published in the journal Quaternary Environments and Humans, co-authored by experts from the Netherlands, Indonesia, Australia, Germany, and Japan.

Why It Matters: Rewriting Southeast Asia’s Human History

This discovery is reshaping how scientists view the prehistoric world of Southeast Asia. For decades, the narrative surrounding Homo erectus in this region was one of relative isolation—an early human species confined to the island of Java, evolving independently and cut off from the broader currents of human development across mainland Asia. But the fossil evidence retrieved from the seabed tells a far more dynamic and interconnected story.

Aerial photo of the Madura Strait. Credit: Berghuis et al. (2024), Quaternary Environments and Humans.
Aerial photo of the Madura Strait. Credit: Berghuis et al. (2024), Quaternary Environments and Humans.

These remains suggest that Homo erectus was not a static, isolated population, but rather a geographically mobile and ecologically adaptable species. The presence of butchered animal bones and evidence of strategic hunting indicates not only intelligence and survival skills but a capacity for behavioral complexity far beyond previous assumptions. They were exploiting a rich and diverse environment, adjusting to changing landscapes and possibly interacting with other hominin groups—either through contact, cultural exchange, or even interbreeding.

Moreover, this discovery opens a previously invisible chapter in both the biodiversity and cultural history of the region. The now-submerged land of Sundaland was once a thriving habitat—comparable to the African savannah—home to large mammals, river systems, and early human life. That it now lies underwater underscores how much of our shared human story may still be concealed beneath rising seas.

“This is just the beginning,” says Dr. Berghuis. “We are likely standing at the edge of an enormous, underwater archaeological archive. There’s so much more to discover—entire landscapes, ecosystems, and lifeways that time and tide have hidden for millennia.”

Leiden University

Berghuis, H. W. K., Veldkamp, A., Adhityatama, S., Reimann, T., Versendaal, A., Kurniawan, I., Pop, E., van Kolfschoten, T., & Joordens, J. C. A. (2024). Fossil vertebrates and Homo erectus from the Madura Strait, Indonesia: A unique window on Sundaland 140,000 years ago. Quaternary Environments and Humans. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.qeh.2024.100073

Cover Image Credit: Leiden University

Related Articles

Viking Gold Treasure Unearthed on Isle of Man by Veteran Metal Detectorist

2 June 2025

2 June 2025

A remarkable piece of Viking gold has been unearthed on the Isle of Man, shedding new light on the island’s...

A Rare Roman-Era Bronze Filter Discovered in Hadrianopolis, Türkiye

11 February 2025

11 February 2025

Archaeologists excavating at Hadrianopolis in Karabük, Türkiye, have unearthed a 5th-century AD bronze filter used in Roman and Byzantine times...

Army Museum Worker Discovers Early Medieval Sword While Swimming in a Polish River

19 December 2024

19 December 2024

The collection of the Army Museum in Białystok, Poland has been enriched after renovation with a unique relic of great...

Royal-Memorial Inscription Attributed to King Sargon II Discovered in Western Iran

25 April 2021

25 April 2021

In western Iran, Iranian archaeologists discovered a part of a royal memorial inscription attributed to the Neo-Assyrian king Sargon II....

The 3,200-year-old perfume of Tapputi, the first female chemist in history, came to life again

24 July 2022

24 July 2022

One of the scent formulas written in Akkadian on clay tablets by Tapputi, known as the world’s first female perfumer...

Ancient gypsum furniture was discovered in a fire temple in the ancient region of Vigol in Iran

1 June 2021

1 June 2021

Sets of gypsum furniture, including a carved table and chairs, were discovered during an archaeological dig in central Iran. According...

Archaeologists Find the “Lost” House of the Last Anglo-Saxon King Depicted on the Bayeux Tapestry

28 January 2025

28 January 2025

A team from Newcastle University and the University of Exeter have uncovered evidence that a house in England is the...

Radiocarbon dating shows that the Roman settlement of Karanis survived in Egypt until the Arab Conquest in the 7th century AD

13 May 2024

13 May 2024

New research results are rewriting the history of Karanis, an ancient Greco-Roman agricultural settlement in the Fayum oasis in Egypt....

A First! This Study on Pregnancy in the Viking Age Illuminates Warrior Women and the Fate of Babies

14 May 2025

14 May 2025

A groundbreaking interdisciplinary study by Viking experts from the Universities of Nottingham and Leicester has shed new light on the...

3,400-Year-Old Jade and Stone Workshop Site Discovered at Sanxingdui Ruins

26 July 2024

26 July 2024

Archaeologists have uncovered a jade and stone processing site that dates back over 3,400 years at the Sanxingdui Ruins in...

Human blood proteins were found in the red paint on a 1,000-year-old gold mask from Peru

27 October 2021

27 October 2021

Traces of human blood have been discovered in the red paint that decorated a gold mask found on the remains...

A Small Sandstone Carved With A Viking Ship May Be Oldest Picture Ever Found In Iceland

16 June 2023

16 June 2023

Archaeologists in East Iceland have found a sandstone carved with a Viking ship that may be the oldest picture ever...

Neanderthals used glue to make stone tools 40,000 years ago, a new study suggests “Earliest evidence of a multi-component adhesive in Europe”

22 February 2024

22 February 2024

More than 40,000 years ago, Neanderthals in what is now France used a multi-component adhesive to make handles for stone...

“Last Rhodes shipwreck” of Roman period found in Turkey’s Fethiye

5 March 2022

5 March 2022

Turkish researchers, a Rhodes shipwreck from the third century A.D. was discovered in the depths of the Gulf of Fethiye...

A new study reveals the Achaemenid Kingdom paid its workers silver

21 September 2021

21 September 2021

A new study on inscribed clay tablets that were used in the treasury archives of the Achaemenid Empire revealed that...