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Science & Medicine

Oldest skeleton in the Americas

Diver Susan Bird works at the bottom of Hoyo Negro, a large dome-shaped underwater cave on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. She carefully brushes the human skull found at the site while her team members take detailed photographs.

Diver Susan Bird works at the bottom of Hoyo Negro, a large dome-shaped underwater cave on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. She carefully brushes the human skull found at the site while her team members take detailed photographs.  (Paul Nicklen /National Geographic)

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Scientists have discovered the oldest skeleton in the Americas. It belonged to a girl who lived 12,000 years ago.

Underwater find

Divers Alberto Nava and Susan Bird transport the Hoyo Negro skull to an underwater turntable so that it can be photographed in order to create a 3-D model. Researchers detailed their analysis of the oldest, most complete, genetically intact human skeleton discovered in the New World in a paper published Thursday in the journal Science.   (Paul Nicklen /National Geographic)

Hoyo Negro

Divers Susan Bird and Alberto Nava search the walls of Hoyo Negro, an underwater cave on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula where the remains of “Naia,” a 12,000- to 13,000-year-old teenage girl, were found.  (Paul Nicklen /National Geographic)

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