An upper paleolithic human mandible and a first cervical vertebra from Afontova gora II

Remains of two individuals, a mandible and an atlas, from a stratified Upper Paleolithic site Afontova Gora II, dating to 16-12 ka BP, are described. The mandible was of a 14-15-year-old female. Certain nonmetric traits indicate its anatomical modernity, whereas the dimensions are closer to those of modern adolescents than to those of Upper Paleolithic individuals of similar age. The mandible of the Predmosti-5 female, while being close in biological age, shows a much greater projective length and a higher and wider ramus. Mandibles of Upper Paleolithic children from Sungir are more robust and show a larger intercondylar width and a higher and wider ramus. The fact that the dimensions of the Afontova Gora specimen match the modern standards can be due to a diachronic tendency toward gracilization. Dimensions of the atlas suggest that it belonged to a female aged 20-25. The paucity of data on the first cervical vertebrae of Upper Paleolithic humans makes it impossible to evaluate the taxonomic status of that find.