Paranthropus Enamel

Naturally fractured enamel surface of an early hominin Paranthropus robustus molar from Swartkrans, South Africa, ca 1.5-2.0 m.y.

Imaging deep to the surface reveals incremental enamel microanatomy; striae seen from upper left to lower right, across which course the enamel prisms..Overlain on this image is a color relief map of the actual 3D topography of this surface; superficial orange and blue to green regions somewhat deeper.

Original width 450 μm