Graecopithecus fossil map
Where fossils of Graecopithecus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 5 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 5 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Early mammals |
|---|---|
| Lived | 11.63–5.333 million years ago (Tortonian to Messinian) |
| Periods | Neogene |
| Family | Hominidae |
| Named by | von Koenigswald 1972 |
| Fossil records | 6 occurrences at 3 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Greece, Türkiye |
| Rock formations | Tuglu, Nea Messimvria, Pikermi |
About Graecopithecus
Graecopithecus is an extinct genus of hominid that lived in southeast Europe during the late Miocene around 7.2 million years ago. Originally identified by a single lower jawbone bearing teeth found in Pyrgos Vasilissis, Athens, Greece, in 1944, other teeth potentially belonging to this taxon were discovered from Azmaka quarry in Bulgaria in 2012. With only little and badly preserved materials to reveal its nature, it is considered as "the most poorly known European Miocene hominoids." The creature was popularly nicknamed 'El Graeco' (word play on the Greek-Spanish painter El Greco) by scientists.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Graecopithecus (revision 1375294740), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q5592170.
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