The archaeology of rock art in Northern Africa

The first reports on the rock art of north Africa were written in the mid-nineteenth century. Since then, rock art has become a key area of African archaeological research. Commencing with a short background on the environmental setting, this chapter reviews past research and major theoretical perspectives through to the present, highlighting contributions to wider debates. The main geographical, temporal, and archaeological frameworks of north African rock art are summarized in broad chronological order, beginning with late Pleistocene engravings up to ‘Camel art’ of more recent, historical age. Despite current hurdles faced in today’s research environment, rock art studies are of great importance in north Africa, especially when undertaken by African scholars. This precious, irreplaceable, nonrenewable cultural resource is of great educational value, and its preservation, teaching, and dissemination may contribute to a renewed awareness of the cultural value of rock art for future generations

Book review, From Lake to Sand — The Archaeology of Farafra Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt, edited by Barbara E. Barich, Giulio Lucarini, Mohamed A. Hamdan and Fekri A. Hassan. Sapienza University of Rome, Dipartimento di Scienze dell’Antichità; Ministry of Antiquities, Egypt; Firenze, All’Insegna del Giglio, 2014, 503 pp., ISBN 978-88-7814-520-7.

Book revie

Alle origini del pastoralismo africano: riflessioni su alcune forme di gestione animale nell’antico Olocene.

Pastoralism is a well-adapted form of African economic organization. Climatic fluctuations, droughts and even famine seem to affect agricultural yields much more than animal by-products. The phenomenon seems to testify a long-lasting tradition, probably rooted in the continent's prehistory. In this paper I discuss some of cultural traits (experimentation, innovation, reorganisation) at the basis of the emergence of such a strategy and examine the theoretical and methodological assumptions surrounding the concept of domestication. The study is a first attempt to integrate environmental data, archaeological features, linguistic evidence and ethological information on the Early Holocene hunter-gatherers of North Africa. In particular, I stress here the in-depth knowledge of the animal universe shown by hunter-gatherers in such marginal environments, which provides the basis for the full affirmation of a food-producing economy in this part of the world

Multidisciplinary analysis of wild cereals from the Holocene archaeological site of Takarkori (central Sahara)

Pollen and plant macroremains from central Sahara archaeological sites give information about the environmental conditions during the Holocene and the adaptive strategies of human groups living in the area . Wild cereals have been exploited for long time and are the prevalent taxa among those selected and transported to shelters and caves. The extraordinary state of preservation of the organic materials found at Takarkori allowed the morphological and molecular analyses of seeds/fruits belonging to the Poaceae family

Wild cereals from Holocene central Sahara archaeological sites: aDNA and archaeobotany from the Takarkori rockshelter

Both pollen and macroremains recovered from archaeological sites point to a long-time exploitation of wild cereals and to the prevalence of these plants among those selected and transported to shelters and caves of central Sahara (southwestern Libya)(1). Spikelets, florets and grains of Panicoideae (Brachiaria, Cenchrus, Echinochloa, Panicum, Setaria, Urochloa, Sorghum) are the most abundant plant remains in these sites. The archaeological excavation of the Takarkori rockshelter by the Italian-Libyan Archaeological Mission in the Acacus and Messak (Central Sahara), Sapienza University of Rome (directed by S. di Lernia), exposed a surface of c. 120 m2 in extent. The 1.6 m thick deposit includes stone structures, fireplaces, plant accumulations, dung layers and a burial area. Layers were deposited during hunter-gatherer and later pastoralist occupational phases. Chronology ranged from c. 9000 to 4200 BP, and was based on stratigraphy, radiocarbon dates, and archaeological materials (2). Systematic morphological analysis was carried out on 200 spikelets/florets selected as representative of different chronological contexts. The records of Panicum, Echinochloa and Sorghum showed homogeneous typology and fairly uniform size in each genus. aDNA extraction confirming the morphological identifications of the three taxa was obtained by Olmi et al. (3). aDNA was successfully performed using several methods (4, 5) and then assayed using PCR with a primer set for the rbcL gene. New aDNA extraction was obtained from Panicum spikelets and the analysis of matK, trnH-psbA and trnL barcode regions may help to identify the records at species level

Prehistoric and historic monumental funerary structures in the “Chott el Jérid” area (Southern Tunisia). The importance of photogrammetry for rapid and complete documentation in Saharan contexts

As part of the Tunisian-Italian archaeological joint mission to the Sahara, a research project (survey and excavation) has focused since 2015 on the study of the funerary archaeology of the prehistoric and historical communities of southern Tunisia. The surveyed area, located along the southern and eastern edges of Chott el Jerid (governorate of Kebili), was selected, after scrutinizing the information collected by the “Service Géographique de l’Armée Française” during the early 20th century about the funerary structures. In this paper, we present two main archaeological funerary contexts and the methodology applied for the photogrammetric documentation of the architectural features of the structures. Then we present the post-processing of the point clouds carried out to obtain a complete data-set for the remote analysis of the excavation sequence of each tumulus. By adopting a multi-scalar approach, from GIS remote analysis to photogrammetric documentation of individual funerary structures, we have tried to optimize the chances of fieldwork activity, taking into consideration whilst so doing the contingencies due to the fluctuating socio-political situation that characterizes some countries of North Africa in recent years

Earliest direct evidence of plant processing in prehistoric Saharan pottery

The invention of thermally resistant ceramic cooking vessels around 15,000 years ago was a major advance in human diet and nutrition(1-3), opening up new food groups and preparation techniques. Previous investigations of lipid biomarkers contained in food residues have routinely demonstrated the importance of prehistoric cooking pots for the processing of animal products across the world(4). Remarkably, however, direct evidence for plant processing in prehistoric pottery has not been forthcoming, despite the potential to cook otherwise unpalatable or even toxic plants(2,5). In North Africa, archaeobotanical evidence of charred and desiccated plant organs denotes that Early Holocene hunter-gatherers routinely exploited a wide range of plant resources(6). Here, we reveal the earliest direct evidence for plant processing in pottery globally, from the sites of Takarkori and Uan Afuda in the Libyan Sahara, dated to 8200-6400 bc. Characteristic carbon number distributions and \u3b4(13)C values for plant wax-derived n-alkanes and alkanoic acids indicate sustained and systematic processing of C3/C4 grasses and aquatic plants, gathered from the savannahs and lakes in the Early to Middle Holocene green Sahara

Mitochondrial DNA variation of southern Tunisian populations

Due to its complex history of migrations and colonization of African, European and Asian people, the Tunisian territory is an ideal area to study the effects of cultural change on the genetic structure of human populations. We investigated the mtDNA genetic variation of Tunisian populations in order to detect the possible impact of recent historical events on their gene pool. Two Arab and three Berber communities were analysed using a comparison dataset of 45 other populations including African, Arabian, Asian, European and Near Eastern groups. The results obtained were compared with those produced using a large panel of autosomal SNPs. We observed a slight but important difference between the populations that inhabit the southern and central-northern areas of the country. Furthermore, robust signatures of genetic isolation were detected in two Berber populations (Nouvelle Zraoua and Tamezret) and in the seminomadic Arab group of the R’Baya. Our investigation suggests that the genetic structure of investigated southern Tunisian populations retains signatures of historical events which occurred between 7th-17th century, particularly the trans-Saharan slave trade and the emigration of Berbers in remote areas of the south during the Arab conquest

Inside the "African Cattle Complex": Animal Burials in the Holocene Central Sahara

Cattle pastoralism is an important trait of African cultures. Ethnographic studies describe the central role played by domestic cattle within many societies, highlighting its social and ideological values well beyond its mere function as 'walking larder'. Historical depth of this African legacy has been repeatedly assessed in an archaeological perspective, mostly emphasizing a continental vision. Nevertheless, in- depth site-specific studies, with a few exceptions, are lacking. Despite the long tradition of a multi-disciplinary approach to the analysis of pastoral systems in Africa, rarely do early and middle Holocene archaeological contexts feature in the same area the combination of settlement, ceremonial and rock art features so as to be multi- dimensionally explored: the Messak plateau in the Libyan central Sahara represents an outstanding exception. Known for its rich Pleistocene occupation and abundant Holocene rock art, the region, through our research, has also shown to preserve the material evidence of a complex ritual dated to the Middle Pastoral (6080-5120 BP or 5200-3800 BC). This was centred on the frequent deposition in stone monuments of disarticulated animal remains, mostly cattle. Animal burials are known also from other African contexts, but regional extent of the phenomenon, state of preservation of monuments, and associated rock art makes the Messak case unique. GIS analysis, excavation data, radiocarbon dating, zooarchaeological and isotopic (Sr, C, O) analyses of animal remains and botanical data are used to explore this highly formalized ritual and lifestyles of a pastoral community in the Holocene Sahara

Climatic changes and social transformations in the Near East and North Africa during the ‘long’ 4th millennium BC: A comparative study of environmental and archaeological evidence

This paper explores the possible links between rapid climate change (RCC) and social change in the Near East and surrounding regions (Anatolia, central Syria, southern Israel, Mesopotamia, Cyprus and eastern and central Sahara) during the ‘long’ 4th millennium (∼4500–3000) BC. Twenty terrestrial and 20 marine climate proxies are used to identify long-term trends in humidity involving transitions from humid to arid conditions and vice versa. The frequency distribution of episodes of relative aridity across these records is calculated for the period 6300–2000 BC, so that the results may be interpreted in the context of the established arid episodes associated with RCC around 6200 and 2200 BC (the 8.2 and 4.2 kyr events). We identify two distinct episodes of heightened aridity in the early-mid 4th, and late 4th millennium BC. These episodes cluster strongly at 3600–3700 and 3100–3300 BC. There is also evidence of localised aridity spikes in the 5th and 6th millennia BC. These results are used as context for the interpretation of regional and local archaeological records with a particular focus on case studies from western Syria, the middle Euphrates, southern Israel and Cyprus. Interpretation of the records involves the construction of plausible narratives of human–climate interaction informed by concepts of adaptation and resilience from the literature on contemporary (i.e. 21st century) climate change and adaptation. The results are presented alongside well-documented examples of climatically-influenced societal change in the central and eastern Sahara, where detailed geomorphological studies of ancient environments have been undertaken in tandem with archaeological research. While the narratives for the Near East and Eastern Mediterranean remain somewhat speculative, the use of resilience and adaptation frameworks allows for a more nuanced treatment of human–climate interactions and recognises the diversity and context-specificity of human responses to climatic and environmental change. Our results demonstrate that there is a need for more local environmental data to be collected ‘at source’ during archaeological excavations