Scientist Peter Brown photographs the skull of Homo floresiensis, a species of human that is new to science.

This encounter between a modern human and Homo floresiensis (the 18,000-year-old skull) may have had ancient precedents. Some researchers believe that, because the hobbit-like humans lived at the same time and in the same general region as modern humans for at least 20,000 years, the two species may well have met face-to-face. Local legends on Flores mention tiny people who live in caves.

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Photo gallery by Chelsea Lane-Miller