Homo sapiens and Neanderthals interbred around 50.000 years ago

Around 300.000 years ago, the earliest known Homo sapiens appear in Africa

The oldest fossils clearly assigned to Homo sapiens were found at Jebel Irhoud and are about 300.000–315.000 years old.

These individuals had:

• faces similar to modern humans
• smaller jaws
• more human-like teeth

but still had some older traits:

• longer skull shape
• heavier brow ridges

Around 50.000 years ago, Homo sapiens and Neanderthals met again and interbred, which is why many people today still carry 1-2% Neanderthal DNA.