Britannica
Sources used in this answer
Where was the fossil skeleton known as Lucy discovered?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
The fossil skeleton known as Lucy was discovered at the Hadar site, a paleoanthropological excavation area located in the lower Awash River valley within the Afar region of Ethiopia.12
The discovery was made on November 24, 1974, by American paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson and his research assistant, Tom Gray, during a survey of the region. The skeleton, which is approximately 40 percent complete and dates back 3.2 million years, is classified as Australopithecus afarensis.231