The Link

Uncovering Our Earliest Ancestor

Scientists have raced to unravel the human family tree, grappling with its complications for over a century. Now, with an astonishing new discovery, everything known about primate origins could change.

Lying inside a high-security vault, deep within the heart of one of the world’s leading natural history museums, is the scientific find of a lifetime—a perfectly fossilized early primate, older than the previously most famous primate fossil, Lucy, by 44,000,000 years. A secret until now, the fossil—'Ida' to researchers who have painstakingly verified her provenance—is the most complete primate fossil ever found. 47,000,000 years old, Ida rewrites assumptions about early primate origins. Her completeness is unparalleled.

Much of what we understand about evolution comes from partial fossils & even single bones, but Ida’s fossilization offers much more than that, from a haunting skin shadow to her stomach contents. Remarkably, knowledge of her discovery & existence almost never saw the light of day. With exclusive access to the 1st scientists to study her, the award-winning science writer Colin Tudge tells the history of Ida & her place in the world. A cutting-edge scientific detective story followed her discovery.

The Link offers a wide-ranging investigation into Ida & our earliest origins. At the same time, it opens a window into our past & changes what we know about primate evolution &, ultimately, our own.