After that discovery, researchers kept sifting through thousands of bone fragments in the cave, many of them from animals, until they found one that seemed like it could be from some kind of human relative. It turned out to belong to a young female who lived 90,000 years ago, whom they call Denisova 11.
Now they have sequenced her genome, and as they announced in Nature on Wednesday, they found something quite surprising: She had a Neanderthal for a mother and a Denisovan for a father.
The Bible and other ancient sources tell us that there were once hybrid humans before the Flood known as “Nephilim” that mated with normal humans and even produced offspring.
Could it be possible that we now have solid scientific evidence that confirms this?
The bone fragment that is stunning scientists was originally discovered in 2012, but it is only being revealed to the public right now…
Denny’s surprising pedigree was unlocked from a bone fragment unearthed in 2012 by Russian archeologists at the Denisova Cave in the Altai Mountains of Siberia.
Analysis of the bone’s DNA left no doubt: the chromosomes were a 50-50 mix of Neanderthal and Denisovan, two distinct species of early humans that split apart between 400,000 to 500,000 years ago.
This is a monumental discovery, and yet only a handful of mainstream news outlets have reported on it.
At one time, it had been believed that Neanderthals, Denisovans and modern humans were so genetically different that they didn’t have that much to do with one another. But now, researchers have become convinced that Neanderthals and Denisovans “interbred much more often than we thought”…
“The very fact that we found this individual of mixed Neanderthal and Denisovan origins suggests that they interbred much more often than we thought,” said Slon.
Paabo agreed: “They must have quite commonly had kids together, otherwise we wouldn’t have been this lucky.”
And it turns out that some of the DNA from Neanderthals and Denisovans can still be found in humans today. Here is more from NPR…
The proof is in the genes of modern humans: Many people have Neanderthal or Denisovan DNA in their genomes, and it’s a genetic contribution with real consequences.
“There are genetic variants from these groups that influence your propensity to get diabetes or blood clotting or even things like depression,” he says.
So instead of going “extinct”, it may be accurate to say that the progeny of the Nephilim are still running around today.
In fact, in some areas of the world the percentage of Neanderthal or Denisovan DNA found in modern humans can be up to 5 percent…
About two percent of DNA in non-Africans across the globe today originate with Neanderthals, earlier studies have shown.
Denisovan remnants are also widespread, though less evenly.
“We find traces of Denisovan DNA — less than one percent — everywhere in Asia and among native Americans,” said Paabo.
“Aboriginal Australians and people in Papua New Guinea have about five percent.”
The more time goes by, the more science tends to confirm what we already know from ancient historical sources.
The truth is that the ancient world was not a simple place. It was a wild, crazy place filled with adventure and deep mysteries, and we will be investigating many of those mysteries on this website.
This article originally appeared on Unexplained Mysteries. About the author: Michael Snyder is a nationally syndicated writer, media personality and political activist. He is publisher of The Most Important News and the author of four books including The Beginning Of The End and Living A Life That Really Matters.