states: [ethiopia]
category: cultural
year: 1980
location: Afar region
region: Africa
latitude/longitude: 11.1000600000, 40.5793900000
unesco id: 10
world heritage site: 10
Copyright © 1992 - 2025 UNESCO/World Heritage Centre. All rights reserved.
The Lower Valley of the Awash, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Ethiopia, is renowned for its exceptional paleontological significance, offering critical insights into human evolution through fossils dating back over 4 million years. The site gained global fame with the 1974 discovery of "Lucy," a 3.2-million-year-old Australopithecus afarensis skeleton, one of the earliest known bipedal hominids. Ongoing excavations continue to uncover a wealth of hominid and animal remains, solidifying its status as a key location for understanding humanity's ancient origins.