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IMPORTANT NOTE: We have maintained the originally published taxonomic designation for each specimen despite the fact that many of these specimens have been reclassified since.  We chose to follow this protocol because of the difficulty in keeping up to date with all of the taxonomic groups, and our hesitancy to make a judgement call on taxonomic debates.  As such, please search the database with this in mind, perhaps using higher level taxonomic classifications for your query.

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410 specimens found
Image Spec # CODI Database ID Arch. Locality Geo. Locality Elements Preserved Excavation Date Repository Bed Level Stratigraphic Horizon Bibliographic Information Curatorial Notes ID By ID Date Research Team In Situ Sediment or Matrix Adhering Class Order Suborder Infraorder Superfamily Family Subfamily Tribe Genus Species Subspecies Taxonomic Notes Taxonomic Problems
OLD-594 12744 R-MAX-f, M (2) 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-594 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-592 12742 MAX-f, M (2) 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-592 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-589 12740 R-MAX-f, M, d-M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-589; R-MAX-f with M1 and d-M4 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-586 12737 R-MAX-f, M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-586; R-MAX-f with M3 and roots of other molars and teeth Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-570 12729 MAX-f, M (3), P 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-570; MAX-f with M1, M2, M3, and P; possibly associated fragment found in drawer Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-551 12714 L-MAX-f, M 114 - Natural History Museum UK II -- OLD-551; L-MAX-f with M2 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Suina Suoidea Suidae Kolpochoerus olduvaiensis No
OLD-530 12697 L-MAX-f, M (2) 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-530; L-MAX-f with M1 and M2 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Bovinae Bovini No
OLD-48 11915 MAX-f , M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-48; maxilla fragment with molar Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Hippopotamidae Yes
OLD-403 12585 MAX-f, M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-403 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-402 12584 MAX-f, M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-402 Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Tethytheria Behemota Elephantoidea Hippopotamidae No
OLD-355 11392 M , MAX-f 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-355; molar with adhering maxilla fragment; found in hippopotamus drawer Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Hippopotamidae Yes
OLD-350 11387 MAX-f, M (2) 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-350; maxilla fragment with 2 molars Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Hippopotamidae Yes
OLD-331 11918 MAX-f , M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-331; maxilla fragment with molar; found in hippopotamus drawer Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Hippopotamidae Yes
OLD-328 12555 MAX-f, M 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-328 Unknown Mammalia Perissodactyla Hippomorpha Suidae No
OLD-291 11426 M , M , MAX-f 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-291; 2 molars with adhering maxilla fragment Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Hippopotamidae Yes
OLD-175 12465 MAX-f, P (2) 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-175 Unknown Mammalia Perissodactyla Ceratomorpha Tapiromorpha Rhinocerotoidea Rhinocerotidae No
OLD-130 12422 MAX-f 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-130; maxillary fragment in carbonate nodule all anterior teeth present Unknown Mammalia Perissodactyla Equidae No
OLD-117 12407 MAX-f with teeth 114 - Natural History Museum UK -- OLD-117; based on note with specimen, may not be from Olduvai Unknown Mammalia Rhino or Hippo Yes
OLD BK 264 100 10 - BK MAX 1955 104 - Unknown II upper Leakey LSB. 1965. Olduvai Gorge 1951-1961, Volume 1: Fauna and Background. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. This specimen is pictured in plate 20. 130 - L.S.B. Leakey 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Perissodactyla Hippomorpha Equidae Equinae Stylohipparion sp. No
OLD 69/S.133 DC II 8073 30 - DC MAX, TOOTH-f, CRA-f 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania II -- Maxilla with tooth fragments and partial cranium. Enclosed card states "Glamour Boy". Very fragmentary, fragments very small. Needs preparation. Fragments of this specimen (a maxilla with M3) in bag with OLD 69/S.89 SHKE (cranium). 2012/07/25 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae Cynocephalinae Simopithecus No
OLD 69/S. 133 DC 8071 30 - DC MAX, ZYG, R/L-I, L-C, R/L-P, R/L-M 1969 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania -- Maxilla with left I2-M3, left I1 is absent. Right I1-2 present. Roots of right P3-4, M1-2 present, some partially so. Right palatine is almost complete. Fragments of right and left zygomatics present, left zygomatic includes arch. Card in bag with specimen does not match specimen. Packed in National Museum in Nairobi, Kenya in box 188 or 189 labeled "Cercopithecidae" for transport to National Museum of History, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 2012/07/23 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae No
OLD 68/S.9 opp. S.C. IV S ? IV. C KNM 2.4.3 8066 22 - SC CRA-f, R-ZYG-f, L/R-MAX, R/L-M, R/L-P, R/L-C-f 1968 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania IV Surface? -- Packed in National Museum in Nairobi, Kenya in box 188 or 189 labeled "Cercopithecidae" for transport to National Museum of History, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Partial cranium: Left and right maxillae and right zygomatic fragment present. Right and left M1-3, P 3-4, and canines present. Crown of left canine broken off. Only root of right canine is preserved. Incisors not preserved. Left M3 crown broken off. Buccal side of left M2 crown broken off. Distal portion of buccal side of left M1 crown broken off. Needs preparation. 2012/07/23 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Y Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae No
OLD 63/3101 DK I 8090 24 - DK MAX-f 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania I Strip II L/Z -- Maxilla fragment with P3-4, probably same individual as 2.31, 2.27. Also same individual as 3000? 8283. 2012/07/26 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae No
OLD 61/5170 OKIB + SCREE 8087 24 - DK L-MAX-f, P, M 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania I -- Fragment of left maxilla with PM 4 and M1-3. Pleistocene. 2012/07/26 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae No
OLD 1963/105 DK I 8088 24 - DK L-MAX-f, M 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania I L/Z strip -- Fragment of left maxilla with second molar. Specimen may be same individual as KNM 2.27. 2012/07/26 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae No
OLD 1962 067/5608 MCK II Simo. Lt.Max 8167 80 - MCK L-MAX, P-f, M 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania II -- Left maxilla with fourth premolar (roots) and first molar to third molar. 2012/07/31 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae Cynocephalinae Simopithecus No
OLD 1957/622 SHK II 8208 19 - SHK L-MAX-f, P, M 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania II -- Fragment of left maxilla with third and forth premolar and first molar. In BM loan collection. Card in bag with specimen states "Canine socket suggests male". 2012/08/03 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea No
OLD 160 ?F Ha S 194111 8047 MAX, R/L-M 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania -- Packed in National Museum in Nairobi, Kenya in box 188 or 189 labeled "Cercopithecidae" for transport to National Museum of History, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Specimen label reads 'OLD160 ?F Ha S194111'. Label is unclear. Maxilla with right M2-M3 and left M1-M3. 2012/7/20 264 - Leakey family expedition Unknown Y Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Cercopithecoidea Cercopithecidae No
OLD 15740 10156 6 - FLK NN PMAX I Layer 3 Brodkorb P., Mourer-Chauviré, C. 1984. Fossil owls from early man sites of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. Ostrich; Journal of African Ornithology 55:17-27. PARATYPE. "Paratypes: The following specimens are from layer 3 of locality FLK NNI and can be attributed to the same individual as the holotype: 15740, premaxillae; 3301, lower part of right coracoid. 15364 and 15473, proximal and distal parts of left femur; 16377, distal part of right femur; 15701, distal part of left tibiotarsus; 15776, left fibula; 16262, proximal part of right tarsometatarsus; 15730, distal part of left tarsometatarsus; 15942, 15946, 16050, 16171, 16174, 16176 to 16180, pedal phalanges. Place of conservation of the material: The fossils are currently on deposit at the University of Florida, Department of Zoology, and will later be returned to Tanzania" (Brodkorb and Mourer-Chauvire, 1984:17, 19). Image notes: (Scale = 2 cm) A-B: Left coracoid, holotype, OLD 15802, FLK NNI, layer 3, A anterior face, B posterior face. C: Right tarsometatarsus, proximal part, paratype, OLD 16262, FLK NNI, scree, anterior face. D: Left tarsometatarsus, distal part, paratype, OLD 15730, FLK NNI, layer 3, anterior face. E-F: Left femur, proximal half, paratype, OLD 15364, FLK NNI, layer 2+3, E anterior face, F POSterior face. G-H: Left femur, distal part, paratype, OLD 15473, FLK NNI, layer 3, G anterior face, H posterior face. I: Left tarsometatarsus, almost complete, OLD 11574, FLK NI, layer 1, anterior face. J-K: Left femur, lacking the distal part, OLD 11586, FLK NI, layer 2, J anterior face, K posterior face. Unknown Aves Strigiformes Strigidae Bubo leakeyae No
OH 65 3780 82 - 64 MAX , TOOTH 1995 127 - National Natural History Museum, Arusha, Tanzania I Middle/Upper Blumenschine, R. J., Peters, C. R., Masao, F. T., et al. 2003. Late Pliocene Homo and Hominid Land Use from Western Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. Science 299, 1217-1221. Author describes specimen as "complete maxilla with all teeth and lower face of adult". Specimen is pictured in images 1-11. (Images from R. Clarke 2011). Yes Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Hominoidea Hominidae Homininae Hominini Homo habilis Large habilis No
OH 5 3713 5 - FLK 283 - 45 CRA , MAX , M , I , C , P 17 July - 6 August 1959 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania I Middle (Zinj.) 22 feet below the upper limit of Bed I (Tuff IF), approximately 20 feet above basalt. Leakey, L. S. B. 1959. A new fossil skull from Olduvai. Nature 184:491-493. Holotype. Almost complete cranium. Adolescent. One reconstructed fossil found at House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Specimen previously housed at National Museum of Kenya. Additional pieces from NMK unpublished. 142 - M. D. Leakey 264 - Leakey family expedition Yes Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Hominoidea Hominidae Zinjanthropus boisei Holotype. This specimen was reclassified as Paranthropus boisei by Robinson (1960). No
OH 13 3728 27 - MNK 287 - 88 "Skull Site" MAN , MAX , CRA-f 1963 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania II Lower Middle IIB 5 feet above chert horizon Paratpye. "This consists of a sub-adult skull, probably female, with the third molars coming into wear. It is represented by the greater part of the mandible, including the complete dentition, although the crowns of the incisors are damaged and the left ascending ram us is not preserved; the greater part of the maxillae, represented by two fragments both lacking the anterior portions; the greater part of the occipital; the right parietal and temporal; parts of the left parietal and temporal; together with a few frontal fragments and approximately fifty additional pieces which it has not been possible to fit together" (Leakey MD, 1971:231). Specimen previously housed at National Museum of Kenya. 5 pieces found at House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 130 - L.S.B. Leakey 264 - Leakey family expedition Yes Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Hominoidea Hominidae Homininae Hominini Homo habilis Paratype No
OH 12 3727 18 - VEK 286 - 86 OCC , L/R-PAR , L/R-TEM-f , CRA-f , L-PAL , L-MAX , TOOTH-f 1962 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania IV? a Surface. Found on eroded slope of Bed III. L-TEM-f from just below marker Tuff IVa. Leakey, L., and Leakey, M. 1964. Recent discoveries of fossil hominids in tanganyika: at Olduvai and near Lake Natron. Nature 202:5-7. Crowns of teeth not preserved. Bed IVA determined on basis of matrix adhering to L-TEM-f and PAL. Specimen previously housed at National Museum of Kenya. 264 - Leakey family expedition No L-TEM-f & PAL found with matrix adhering. Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Hominoidea Hominidae Homininae Hominini Homo erectus No
OH 11 3726 24 - DK 285 - 13 PAL , L-MAX-f , TOOTH-f 1962 122 - National Museum and House of Culture, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Ndutu Lower Found in stream bed at bottom of gully near DK excavations. See curatorial notes for details. Leakey MD. (1971) Olduvai Gorge, Vol. 3: excavations in Beds I & II 1960-1963. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. Left half of palate and maxillary arch, crowns of teeth not preserved. "It is thus impossible to assign to any stratigraphic level, although the condition of the bone, which bears a pinkish tinge, is similar to that seen in fossil bones from a conglomerate at the head of the DK gully belonging to the lower Ndutu Beds" (Leakey MD, 1971:230). Specimen previously housed at National Museum of Kenya. 154 - Leakey and Leakey 264 - Leakey family expedition No Mammalia Primates Anthropoidea Haplorhini Hominoidea Hominidae Homininae Hominini Homo sp. No
MNK Skull Site 89 1182 57 - MNK Skull MAX 104 - Unknown Gentry, A. W., and Gentry, A. 1978. Fossil Bovidae (Mammalia) of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. Part I. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History): Geology 29:289-446. 137 - A. Gentry Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Alcelaphinae Alcelaphini Indet. This specimen is from a smaller alcelaphine than Parmularius angusticornis or Damaliscus niro. No
M. 22383 1518 MAX-f, MAN-f 1960 106 - Natural History Museum UK (?) Gentry, A. W. 1966 Fossil Antilopini of East Africa. Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History, Geology. 12: 43-106. 9 pls. The author lists these as either mandibular or maxillary pieces. 137 - A. Gentry 273 - Reck expedition Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Antilopinae Neotragini Phenacotragus recki No
M. 22382 1517 MAX-f, MAN-f 1960 106 - Natural History Museum UK (?) Gentry, A. W. 1966 Fossil Antilopini of East Africa. Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History, Geology. 12: 43-106. 9 pls. The author lists these as either mandibular or maxillary pieces. 137 - A. Gentry 273 - Reck expedition Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Antilopinae Neotragini Phenacotragus recki No
M. 22381 1516 MAX-f, MAN-f 1960 106 - Natural History Museum UK (?) Gentry, A. W. 1966 Fossil Antilopini of East Africa. Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History, Geology. 12: 43-106. 9 pls. The author lists these as either mandibular or maxillary pieces. 137 - A. Gentry 273 - Reck expedition Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Antilopinae Neotragini Phenacotragus recki No
M. 22380 1515 MAX-f, MAN-f 1960 106 - Natural History Museum UK (?) Gentry, A. W. 1966 Fossil Antilopini of East Africa. Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History, Geology. 12: 43-106. 9 pls. The author lists these as either mandibular or maxillary pieces. 137 - A. Gentry 273 - Reck expedition Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Antilopinae Neotragini Phenacotragus recki No
M. 22377 1514 MAX-f, MAN-f 1960 106 - Natural History Museum UK (?) Gentry, A. W. 1966 Fossil Antilopini of East Africa. Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History, Geology. 12: 43-106. 9 pls. The author lists these as either mandibular or maxillary pieces. 137 - A. Gentry 273 - Reck expedition Unknown Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Bovoidea Bovidae Antilopinae Neotragini Phenacotragus recki No