Peking Man fossils vanish during WWII transport from China. Nearly 200 ancient human fossils of Homo erectus were discovered starting in 1929 at Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian cave near Beijing by paleontologist Pa Wang Jang The fossils belonged to people who lived over 700,000 years ago In November 1941, researchers packed the fossils into two military footlockers for transport to the US

ðŸĶī ~40 Homo erectus fossils from Zhoukoudian (Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian), Beijing — dating to roughly 500,000–780,000 years ago — vanished in late 1941 when their transport failed amid rising tensions with Japan. An 85-year search continues. A 2010 tip suggests they may be buried under a parking lot near Qinhuangdao. Still unrecovered.

Key Facts

  • Nearly 200 ancient human fossils of Homo erectus were discovered starting in 1929 at Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian cave near Beijing by paleontologist Pa Wang Jang
  • The fossils belonged to people who lived over 700,000 years ago
  • In November 1941, researchers packed the fossils into two military footlockers for transport to the US
  • The ship SS President Harrison was forced to ground by Japanese warships and never arrived
  • The fossils disappeared and were never recovered; the search lasted 85 years
  • In 2010, a former US Marine's son reported his father Richard Bowen found a metal box containing human skulls buried at Camp Hulcom near Qinhuangdao in 1947
  • The site where the fossils may be buried is now covered by warehouses and a parking lot

Related site: Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.

Source: 5 Ancient Artifacts America Raced the Nazis to Find by Dark5 Ancient Mysteries