smaller than the adult dimensions of Peking Man or Java Man. The Chenchiawo mandible was the most complete mandible from Pleistocene of China at the time, preserving most elements except for pieces of the rami (the ascending portion which connects with the skull). Woo considered the specimen an elderly female based on size and wearing of the teeth. The mandible is mostly consistent with that of Peking Man, except the rami ascend at a smaller angle, the mental foramen is placed lower, the rows of molar teeth have significantly larger angles, and the teeth are larger than what would be expected for a female. Pathology The Chenchiawo mandible is missing the third molars, probably a genetic disorder, the first such case for an extinct human species. The right cheek teeth, especially the first molar, feature deterioration and abnormal thickening, which are indicators of gum disease. The first premolar was also lost, probably as a result of this. Nonetheless, none of the teeth developed cavities. Culture Palaeoenvironment The Loess Plateau is a fossil-rich area; the mammal assemblage indicates it has broadly remained a mild grassland throughout the Pleistocene. Gongwangling sits at the base of the Qinling Mountains, which today is a natural barrier separating northern and southern China, forming plains to the north and forest to the south, but at the time may not have posed such an insurmountable wall. Consequently, among the 41 other mammalian species unearthed, Gongwangling also comprises several fauna typical of South China: the giant panda, the elephant Stegodon orientalis, the tapir Tapirus sinensis, the giant tapir, the chalicothere Nestoritherium sinensis, the tufted deer, the mainland serow, and the snub-nosed monkey. Other forest-going creatures (not typical of the south) are: the Etruscan bear, the pig Sus lydekker, and the deer Cervus grayi and Sinomegaceros konwanlinensis. More common were grassland and open-habitat creatures including: badgers, the giant hyena Pachycrocuta, the Zhoukoudian wolf, the tiger, the leopard, the cheetah-like Sivapanthera, the saber-toothed Megantereon, the horse Equus sanmemiensis, the rhino Dicerorhinus, the bovid Leptobos, and several northerly rodents. This assemblage indicates a mild and semi-humid climate, featuring plains adjacent to forest mountains. Chenchiawo features the dhole, the Asian badger, the tiger, the Asian elephant, S. lydekkeri, Sinomegaceros, and C. grayi, in addition to seven species of northerly rodents, which are consistent with a warm, semi-humid to semi-arid grassland to bushland environment. Technology The stone tool technology of China was long