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''Oreopithecus bambolii'' was first described by French paleontologist [[Paul Gervais]] in 1872,<ref>Paul Gervais, 1872, "Sur un singe fossile, d'espèce non encore décrite, qui a été decouvert au Monte-Bamboli (Italie)", ''Comptes rendus de l’Académie des sciences''. '''74''': 1217–1223</ref><ref>Gervais, P. 1872. "Coup d'oeil sur les mammifères d'Ialie, suivie de la description d'une espèce nouvelle de singe provenant des lignites du Monte Bamboli". ''Journal de Zoologie'' '''1''': 219-235</ref> after the discovery of a juvenile mandible by Professor Igino Cocchi in a lignite mine at Montebamboli in 1862. In 1890, nearly a dozen new specimens were reported by Guiseppe Ristori, among them an upper jaw.<ref>Ristori, G. 1890. "Le Scimmie fossile italiane". ''Bollettino del Reale Comitato geologico d'Italia''. '''21''': 178-196, 225-234</ref> In 1898, a left lower jaw was described by Felice Ottolenghi.<ref>Ottolenghi F. 1898. "Nota sopra una scimmia fossile italiana". ''Atti della Società Ligustica di Scienze Naturali e Geografiche'', '''9''': 399-403</ref> In 1907, Giuseppe Merciai reported four maxillae and a lower jaw from the Grosseto mine at Ribolla.<ref>Merciai G. 1907. "Sopra alcuni resti di vertebrati miocenici delle ligniti di Ribolla". ''Atti della Società Toscana di Scienze Naturali, Memorie, Serie A'', '''23''': 79-86</ref> During this period there was no consensus whether ''Oreopithecus'' was a monkey or an ape.<ref>Delson, E. 1986. "An anthropoid enigma: historical introduction to the study of ''Oreopithecus bambolii''". ''Journal of Human Evolution'' '''15''': 523–531</ref>
From 1949 onwards, Swiss paleontologist [[Johannes Hürzeler]] began to restudy the known material.<ref>Hürzeler J. 1949. "Neubeschreibung von ''Oreopithecus bambolii'' Gervais". ''Schweizerische Paläontologische Abhandlungen'', '''66''': 1-20</ref><ref>Hürzeler, J. 1952. "Contribution à l'étude de la dentition de lait d' ''Oreopithecus bambolii'' Gervais". ''Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae'' '''44''': 404-411</ref> In 1954, 1955 and 1956, he claimed ''Oreopithecus'' were a true hominin—based on its premolars, short jaws and reduced [[Canine tooth|canines]], at the time considered diagnostic of the hominin family.<ref>Hürzeler J. 1954. "Zur systematischen Stellung von ''Oreopithecus''". ''Verhandlungen der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft (Basel)'' '''65''': 88–95</ref><ref>Hürzeler, J. 1956. "''Oreopithecus'', un point de repère pour l'histoire de l'humanité a l'ère Tertiare". ''Problèmes Actuels de Paléontologie'', pp. 115-121. Paris: CNRS</ref> This hypothesis was immediately hotly discussed by his fellow palaeontologists.<ref>Koenigswald, G.H.R. von, I955, "Remarks on ''Oreopithecus''". ''Rivista di Scienze Preistoriche''. '''10''': 1-11</ref><ref>Viret, J. 1955. "A propos de l'Oreopithèque". ''Mammalia'' '''19''': 320-324</ref><ref>Remane, A. 1955. "Ist ''Oreopithecus'' ein Hominide?" ''Abhandlungen der Mathematisch-naturwissenschaftlichen Klasse, Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur zu Mainz'' '''12''': 467-497</ref><ref>Loren C. Eiseley, 1956, "Oreopithecus: Humunculus or Monkey?", ''Scientific American'' '''194'''(6): 91-104</ref> On 2 August 1958, it seemed to be confirmed when he discovered a complete skeleton in [[Baccinello]] which he interpreted as a [[Bipedalism|biped]] because of the short [[pelvis]] was closer to those of hominins than those of [[chimpanzee]]s and [[gorilla]]s. Hominin affinities claimed for ''Oreopithecus'' remained controversial for decades until new analyses in the 1990s reasserted that ''Oreopithecus'' was directly related to ''[[Dryopithecus]]''. The peculiar cranial and dental features were explained as consequences of [[Island|insular]] isolation.
This new evidence confirmed that ''Oreopithecus'' was bipedal but also revealed that its peculiar form of bipedalism was much different from that of ''[[Australopithecus]]''. The [[hallux]] formed a 100° angle with the other toes, which enabled the foot to act as a tripod in erect posture, but prevented ''Oreopithecus'' from developing a fast bipedal stride. When a land bridge broke the isolation of the Tusco-Sardinian area {{mya|6.5}}, large predators such as ''[[Machairodus]]'' and ''[[Metailurus]]'' were present among the new generation of European immigrants and ''Oreopithecus'' faced quick extinction together with other endemic genera.<ref name="Agustí"/><!-- ref for para, mostly pp. 197–199 -->{{efn|A parallel to the [[Great American Interchange]] two million years later.}}
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