Colloquium " Les héritiers de Lucy / Lucy's Heirs "

Colloquium in tribute to Yves Coppens organized by Professor Jean-Jacques Hublin and the Fondation Hugot of the Collège de France, withthe support of the Musée de l'Homme and the Société des Amis du Musée de l'Homme. June 15 and 16 2023 in the Marguerite de Navarre amphitheatre at the Collège de France (Marcelin Berthelot site).

Les héritiers de Lucy / Lucy's Heirs

The death of Yves Coppens on June 22 2022 has caused a stir in the paleoanthropology community and far beyond. This extraordinary personality had a profound impact on his discipline, not only through his exceptional scientific contributions, but also through his unrivalled impact on a very wide public. In tribute to her, the Paleoanthropology Chair at the Collège de France, with the support of several partners, is organizing an exceptional symposium entitled " Les héritiers de Lucy ". It will be held in the Marguerite de Navarre amphitheatre at the Collège de France on June 15 and 16 .

Since the discovery of the famous " Lucy ", discoveries have followed one another on the African continent at an ever-accelerating pace, including the discovery of several previously unknown species of fossil Hominins. Methodological innovations have also been numerous, leading to sometimes radical reinterpretations of existing data. Today, these spectacular advances present us with a completely new landscape. We have gone from a linear vision of human evolution to a long-unsuspected diversity of now-extinct hominin forms.

The " Les héritiers de Lucy " symposium will bring together the best international specialists in ancient Hominins. It will take stock of the many advances made since Yves Coppens' first work in Chad and Ethiopia. Several generations of researchers will be able to compare their results and points of view on a crucial period in our evolution, which saw the emergence of the Homo genus and thus bears the seeds of true Man.