Homo erectus (Dubois, 1893) - fossil hominid skull (cast) from Indonesia + Indochinites (black) - tektites from China and Cambodia + Early hominid tools from Africa

From exhibit signage:

Splash Form Tektites - Indochinites

These specimens were formed from molten impact glass as it spun and cooled while falling through the atmosphere ~800,000 years ago. The black color comes from reduced iron in the glass. The indochinites are part of the Australasian Tektite Field.

Tektites are comprised of glass formed from asteroid impacts or meteoritic aerial fireballs that caused widespread melting of the Earth's crust. The Australasian Tektite Strewn Field formed 800,000 years ago, and covers 10% of the Earth's surface. No associated crater has yet been found.

Some researchers posit that the huge area of the strewn field was the result of a massive, poorly consolidated asteroid (rubble pile) breaking apart in the atmosphere, generating multiple fireballs and impacts. The highest concentration of the glass is in southeastern Asia (indochinites).

A Bad Day for Homo erectus?

Homo erectus hand-axes were found in southeastern China buried with Australasian tektites (meteoritic impact glass) and evidence of a widespread forest burning event dated at ~800,000 years (Yamei et al., 2000). This event must have devastated life in southeastern Asia. The Homo erectus cranial cast (Sangiran 17) in the display comes from that time interval in Java, Indonesia (within the tektite field). In the display, the tektites, referred to as indochinites, are from China and Cambodia, and the Acheulean hand axes are from North Africa.

Reference cited: