Famous fossil Lucy makes a final stop at Bowers

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When: Through April 28

Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Sundays


Call: 714-567-3600

Online: bowers.org
















Other displays explain human evolution over the centuries, comparisons of human versus ape and chimpanzee anatomy, and Australopithecus afarensis' distant connections to Homo sapiens.

A case contains prehistoric tools hominins probably used for food and shelter, and another display explains various dating techniques, including the argon-argon radiometric dating of volcanic ash used to estimate Lucy's age.

"By looking at Lucy, you can actually look at how we became who we are today through the process of evolution," said Zeray Alemseged, senior curator of anthropology at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. "Being dated around 3.2 million years old, she is halfway between the common ancestor of humans and apes today. So, she has played a pivotal role, not only in our understanding of the very first upright walking species, but also as a comparative model."

Since Lucy's discovery, older hominin fossils have been found, some as ancient as 6 million years. In 2000, Alemseged himself discovered a skeleton older than Lucy, another Australopithecus afarensis about 3.3 million years old. Alemseged's discovery has been nicknamed "Selam," or "Lucy's child."

However, despite subsequent discoveries, Lucy remains critically important.

"Whenever you find a specimen now," Alemseged said, "you'll say it's older than Lucy. It's younger than Lucy. Shorter than Lucy. Taller than Lucy. So Lucy is basically a benchmark in the history of human evolution."


Most California school kids encounter Lucy in sixth grade. That's when human evolution is discussed in the state curriculum, usually in science classes.

The Bowers is finalizing a teacher's guide to help instructors lead discussions about Lucy and aid in field trips to see her in person. The guide should be online next week at bowers.org/learn.

Nancy Warzer-Brady, vice president of education at the Bowers, said screenings of several Lucy-related films are also planned, along with lectures and scholarships for tours, art classes and transportation.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see Lucy and have science and history come alive because when the exhibition closes, Lucy will go back to Ethiopia and rest in her home," Warzer-Brady said. "It could be transforming to a young person who is interested in the sciences. It helps answer the question: Who am I?"

Many adults may be asking that question – and finding answers – as well.


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