A South African woman celebrated her 118th birthday on Saturday.
Margaret Maritz, born on 27 September 1906, may now be the oldest person in the world.
A small party was held at the retirement home where she lives, about 180 km northeast of Cape Town, to mark the occasion. Her fourteen children attended the celebration.
A copy of her identity card was shown to journalists at the event. However, the document could not be independently verified.
If the birthdate is accurate, Maritz is older than the current record-holder, Tomiko Itooka of Japan. Itooka was born on 23 May 1908 and is recognised by the American Gerontology Research Group as the oldest living person.
The record for the oldest person ever is held by Jeanne Calment of France, who died in 1997 at the age of 122 years and 164 days.
The Guinness World Records website notes that many people claim to have lived longer, but definitive proof is often lacking.
