Compared to Neanderthals, Denisovans are a relatively recent discovery. But evidence suggests they are among our closest extinct relatives, and now we may finally have a face to put a face to a Denisovan’s name. Last month, research teams based primarily in China reported the discovery of Denisovan remains that shed light on their geographic distribution, as well as their biology, diet and social practices. Yesterday, a different team involving many of the same researchers published new analyzes in Nature of a collection of 20 fossils from Xujiayao, a paleoanthropological site in eastern China. From protein analysis, the team claimed that the remains, which date back to between 138,000 and 199,000 years, were Denisovan. Additional investigation of the physical characteristics of the fossils allowed the team to guess what these ancient humans might have been like; hence the illustration above. According to the study, Denisovans had a low cranial profile, rectangular eye sockets, a huge eyebrow ridge, flat cheekbones and a slightly protruding jaw. Overall, Denisovans shared some characteristics with Neanderthals, but were different in several important ways, according to a statement (translated via Google) on findings from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The Denisovan tradition The first fossils recognized as Denisovans were discovered in 2008 in Russia’s Denisova Cave, and DNA results from 2010 indicated that the remains belonged to a “totally unknown ancient human species,” according to a blog post from the UK’s Natural History Museum. Since then, discoveries (mainly in Asia) have increased evidence that Denisovans were a genetically distinct species from Neanderthals. That said, their newness to scientists meant that researchers didn’t know as much about Denisovans as they did about Neanderthals, the CAS explained. According to the CAS, molecular evidence has expanded our knowledge of Denisova distribution, but the academic community had not yet agreed on common physical characteristics that would help “rapidly identify” Denisova remains. A Protein Check Proteomic analysis, which takes advantage of how small fragments of ancient proteins preserve enormous amounts of data, is an increasingly popular (and successful) technique in paleoarchaeology. This is how a research team found sacred plants in ancient Egyptian glue. This is also how the researchers involved in the latest work identified the Denisovan remains in Bianfu Cave in last month’s discovery and, of course, the Xujiayao bones as well. In a comment to Nature News, Sally Wasef, a paleogeneticist at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, explained that although DNA provides more detailed information, ancient proteins survive longer and still reveal valuable information about an individual’s genetic background. Wasef was not involved in the new study. The genetic genetic test? For the latest study, the team highlighted an amino acid change that has so far only been observed in fossils confirmed as Denisovans. Importantly, this protein variant has not been observed in samples of modern human or Neanderthal remains. In other words, this could be used as a molecular marker to reliably identify Denisova’s remains, according to the CAS. A diagram showing the locations of fossil discoveries and digital reconstructions of the remains. © Fu et al., 2026 But to be more certain, the team studied the morphology of the Xujiayao skull fragments in more detail. To do this, the researchers also gathered approximately 200 remains from different human species to more clearly define the unique physical characteristics of the Denisovans. For Nature News, Qiaomei Fu, corresponding author of the study and geneticist at CAS, explained that this exercise can be useful when classifying other fossils that we do not yet know are Denisovans. A “chaotic” Middle Pleistocene That said, both the team and outside experts agree that more samples would help validate the new findings. Fabrice Demeter, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, noted that Denisovans lived over a wide geographic range for hundreds of thousands of years, so variations in morphology within the same species are likely. The CAS added in its statement that previous studies have shown how Neanderthal genetics changed as a result of mixing with other early human species, so it would not be surprising if the Denisovans experienced something similar. Still, the latest findings challenge the view that East Asia was a “chaotic” region in genetic terms during the Middle Pleistocene (between 129,000 and 774,000 years ago), the CAS explained. The latest study “fundamentally improves this situation” by providing more clarity about the identity of the Denisovans, or at least the Denisovans who occupied present-day Asia. So, as is often the case with these types of finds, the jury is still out on how accurate the interpretations are and whether a Denisovan would love or hate that portrait above. But at least we can be sure of this idea: ancient humans were as distinct and genetically diverse as the humans walking the Earth today.
