(CNN)Neanderthals, meet modern humans. Modern humans, say hello to Neanderthals. Now would you two care for a date? That was possible some 55,000 years ago in modern-day Israel, archaeologists announced this week -- a find that they say could be significant, since it could shed light on when and how our modern-day ancestors moved from Africa into Europe and Asia. It's all based on the discovery of portions of a skull (including the top but not the jaw) in Manot Cave in western Galilee detailed in a study published Wednesday in Nature. The specimen "is unequivocally modern" and is "similar in shape to recent African skulls as well as to European skulls," according to the report from a team of researchers from the University of Tel Aviv, Ben-Gurion University, Israel Antiquities Authority and elsewhere.
@highlight
Experts announce the discovery of a modern human skull in what's now Israel
@highlight
It dates back 55,000 years, which is also when Neanderthals were in area
@highlight
Study co-author: "This is the first specimen we have that connects Africa to Europe"
Without DNA tests, it's impossible to say if the adult whose skull was found was a pure descendant of the modern humans who came from @placeholder, or had a bit of Neanderthal ancestry mixed in.