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Mechta-el-Arbi race
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Mechta-el-Arbi race

hominid race
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Quick Summary

The "Mechta-el-Arbi race" refers to a group of people associated with the Ibero-Maurusian industry, a stone-tool industry found across North Africa dating back to approximately 16,000 years ago. This industry is characterized by numerous small-backed blades.1

The Ibero-Maurusian industry is believed to have originated from a Nile River valley culture called Halfan. Human remains found with these artifacts suggest they belonged to the Mechta-el-Arbi people, who are considered a North African branch of Cro-Magnon man. This contrasts with the Arago site in France, which yielded hominin remains dated to 300,000 to 200,000 years ago, often classified as Homo heidelbergensis.12

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2 Britannica Sources
  1. Arago
  2. Ibero-Maurusian industry

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