Challenges in Making Paleoanthropological Knowledge Relevant to Ethiopians

Despite the plethora of paleoanthropological sites worthy of UNESCO inscription, there are major challenges in making the knowledge and benefits of these sites accessible and relevant to researchers and the public. Paleoanthropological research is faced with difficulties in reaching wider audiences in Ethiopia. Major issues to overcome are a lack of public awareness or interest in paleoanthropology, minimal collaboration between government and researchers, inadequate recognition of research efforts, and insufficient promotion of scientific discoveries. As a result, local communities have yet to benefit from the results of palaeoanthropological finds. Open science, with a particular emphasis on science communication and social media, is argued to be necessary in order to begin addressing these problems. Scientific communication, particularly social media, can be a powerful tool as it provides a platform for global conversation and engagement among academicians, as well as between researchers and the public. These tools can be mobilized by a variety of stakeholders including researchers, institutions, universities, schools, and the media. Scientific knowledge can be disseminated through podcasts, radio, storytelling, performing arts, and publications, while social media provides easy access to active dialogue and debates between scientific researchers and society. As a result, the Ethiopian public at large will benefit from increased educational resources, stewardship, and sustainable tourism. Adults, in addition to children and students who are the future of the country, will gain access to knowledge and become inspired by paleoscience research

in the process of publishing

Surface scatters provide a way to investigate hominin behaviors over broad spatial scales. However, the behavioral relevance of such assemblages is heavily dependent on the influence of the post-depositional processes. Continued development of geospatial technology and unmanned aerial systems (i.e. drones) provide new ways to better characterize and describe the role of geomorphic processes on the formation of surface assemblages. In this study, we examined the null hypothesis that the compositions of surface assemblages reflect modern geomorphological processes as opposed to hominin discard patterns. To do so, the formational history of lithic surface assemblages from the Koobi Fora Formation, Kenya were characterized using aerial photography, 3D photogrammetry, and GIS techniques. Subsequently, regression analysis was used to determine the correlation between variables such as artifact condition (i.e. preservation), scatter density, mass, and geomorphic surface characteristics such as slope and erosional potential for two localities from the Okote Member (FxJj 34 and FxJj 46). The lack of significant or strong correlations between artifact variables and present geomorphic conditions suggests that patterning in mapped distributions of stone artifacts reflects hominin discard behaviors rather than the outcome of hydrological processes. These assemblages have likely undergone some processes of winnowing and deflation of surrounding sediments. However, the horizontal association of these artifacts remains relatively undisturbed and therefore reflects past landscape scale behaviors

Seminew Asrat

The Early Medieval Period in Italy was represented by crucial economic, political, and socio cultural transformations. Socio-cultural assimilation and interactions of different groups of populations, including the Longobards, Goths, Franks, Anglo-Saxons, and Vandals, as well as nomadic Huns, took place. The Longobards were one of the most important people who moved from Northern Europe and established a kingdom in Italy from 568 to 774. The subsistence strategy and socio-cultural changes of these people at Castel Trosino in the Marche region of central Italy remains poorly explored. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses were carried out to get insights into their dietary patterns, economy, and changes in consumption patterns through time. A total of 19 human bone samples dating between the 6th and 8th centuries AD, from the collection housed in the Museum of Anthropology “Giuseppe Sergi” at the Sapienza University of Rome, underwent stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis. All the samples were analyzed except one individual (CT1948) with poor collagen quality. The isotopic results of carbon analyses (δ13C) show the consumption of dominant C3 plant resources with limited access to C4 plants. Likewise, the nitrogen isotopic values (δ15N) suggest a terrestrial-based diet with variations within individuals who could probably have an access to different protein sources. We argued that the lower 15N isotope value of an adult female (CT1955), who was affected by porotic hyperostosis, could be due to stress-related to a pathological condition. The comparison of isotopic values from coeval sites of Longboard culture shows that Longobards might have consumed a variety of dietary resources during the Early Medieval Period. Unlike the previously accepted assumption of dietary shifts to C4 plants from the Late Roman period to the Early Medieval Period, the isotopic data at Castel Trosino (hereafter CT) reveals that the dietary habits appear not to have shifted

δ13C and δ18O enamel isotope insights into the paleoecology of MSA foragers from Gotera, southern Ethiopia

Ecological and climatic changes are thought to have driven cultural and cognitive developments including dispersal and vicariance, adaptation and resilience, and symbolism and ornamentation of modern humans within and beyond Africa during the late Pleistocene. However, more refined studies on the regional and local paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic context of late Pleistocene MSA foragers are hampered by site-based research lacunas. This poster presents the carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) stable isotope analysis of mammalian tooth enamels from the Gotera MSA site dating to the MIS3, rich lithics and faunal assemblages. C and O stable isotope analysis of mammalian tooth enamel has become a well-established proxy for the understanding of the paleoecology and environmental contexts of hominins

XXI INQUA (International Union for Quaternary Research) Congress- time for change

The preservation of in situ open-air archaeological contexts is often rare, especially for arid landscapes. In East Africa erosion caused by environmental phenomena is one of the principal events that make difficult the preservation of organic and, sometimes, inorganic remains. Moreover, these phenomena may affect the conservation of archaeological stratigraphies making extremely hard the analysis of human occupations. For this reason, when found, organic remains in arid eroded landscapes represents an extremely important proxy for the reconstraction of past human behaviour and occupation dynamics. However, it is still difficult to combine the data with the lack of a secure stratigraphic archive to compare with. The site named GOT10, in the Gotera area, southern Ethiopia, shows a stratigraphic deposit located in a depression of modern savannah environment rich in artefact and faunal remains in primary deposition in association with fireplaces, dated to MIS 3 (ca. 45-42 ka, AMS). The analysis of the GOT10 archaeozoological record - one of the few open-air sites that have faunal remains fairly conserved in the savannah environment - is fundamental to include Ethiopia in the broader debate about site functionality and seasonality, mobility, and environmental exploitation during the late Pleistocene. The faunal remains from GOT10 site come both from the stratigraphic layers (2018 and 2022 fieldwork) and from the collection of surface material (2017, 2018 and 2022 fieldwork) within the Gotera area. Despite the difficult conservation of the faunal remains due to the weathering and the surface contexts, the state of preservation of these materials is good. We propose the case study of GOT10 faunal assemblage for the reconstruction of past human occupation dynamics in a problematic context characterized by both deposits in situ and surface eroded materials

16th Congress PAA (Pan African Archaeological Association for Prehistory and Related Studies)

The aim of this research is to test the hypothesis concerning the presence of refugee areas in East Africa during MIS4, when the climate becomes unstable, and the following MIS3, through the investigation of faunal remains from Gotera, Southern Ethiopia. This paper analyses the faunal remains collected during the excavation of the GOT10 site; the site presents an archaeological sequence carrying in situ lithics and faunal remains in association with fireplaces dated to the MIS3. This area is rich in archaeological data, possibly suggesting population continuity even during the strong climatic fluctuations characterizing the period. The faunal assemblage is composed of about 2500 fragments and has been identified and classified through the classical method of archaeozoological analysis. It shows a high bone fragmentation, with a low degree of preservation but the possibility to determine the presence/absence of certain species relevant for the environmental reconstruction. The sample analyzed shows the presence of several species of herbivores and carnivores, lagomorphs and rodents, birds and turtles have been identified so far. The taphonomical and isotopic analyses are ongoing. This field and laboratory-based research are expected to lay foundations to open up new research avenues on human behavior and the exploitation of its associated environment

Contribution to Longobard dietary studies: Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope data from Castel Trosino (6th-8th c. CE, Ascoli Piceno, central Italy)

International audienc

New insights into the late Pleistocene paleoecology using δ13C and δ18O enamel isotope evidence from Gotera, Southern Ethiopia

The origin of behavioral modernity, geographic dispersal, and technological development of Anatomically Modern Humans (AMH) coincided with the profound late Pleistocene stadial, and interstadial climatic episodes might have impacted human adaptation and resilience. It has been argued that tropical eastern African highlands with locally available resources such as water, landscape setting, precipitation, and highland forests were potential refugia during the Late Pleistocene environmental and climatic stresses. Nonetheless, this aspect becomes obscure in Ethiopia where site-specific environmental and climatic records of MSA sites remain poorly studied. Here, we present the result of δ13Cenamel and δ18Oenamel stable isotopic analysis of bulk and sequential samples (n=62) of mammalian teeth enamel from Gotera. The newly discovered MSA site of Gotera in southern Ethiopia dated to the Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3) provides fresh data about the ecological context of AMH in the region. We discuss the new insights into the environmental and climatic contexts as well as the subsistence strategies of AMH in southern Ethiopia

δ13C and δ18O enamel isotope insights into the paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic context of MSA humans from Gotera, southern Ethiopia

The origin of behavioral modernity, geographic dispersal, and technological development of Anatomically Modern Humans (AMH) coincided with the profound late Pleistocene stadial, and interstadial climatic episodes might have impacted human adaptation and resilience. It has been argued that tropical eastern African highlands with locally available resources such as water, landscape setting, precipitation, and highland forests were potential refugia during the Late Pleistocene environmental and climatic stresses. Nonetheless, this aspect becomes obscure in Ethiopia where site- specific environmental and climatic records of MSA sites remain poorly studied. Here, we present the result of δ 13 C enamel and δ 18 O enamel stable isotopic analysis of bulk and sequential samples (n=62) of mammalian teeth enamel from Gotera. The newly discovered MSA site of Gotera in southern Ethiopia dated to the Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3) provides fresh data about the ecological context of AMH in the region. We discuss the new insights into the environmental and climatic contexts as well as the subsistence strategies of AMH in southern Ethiopia

The Middle Stone Age site of GOT10, Gotera, southern Ethiopia, in its cultural, chronological, and environmental contexts

This research reports new data on the GOT10 site, located within the Gotera area, southern Ethiopia. The site is characterised by robust evidence of high-density human exploitation during the MIS3, where the presence of human groups is scattered in an area of more than 2 km2. The Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 3 in East Africa is a period of critical technological changes within the Homo sapiens groups. From the archaeological point of view, this period is significant for the presence of a transitional phase, reflected in the progressive decrease of MSA technological traits and the increase of elements characterising the Later Stone Age (LSA). The discovery of the GOT10 site, an open-air stratified sequence with the evidence of lithic artefacts and faunal remains in situ discovered in 2018, shed new lights on an almost unknown area, which is placed far away from the Rift border, where the primary archaeological evidence is located. The spatial analysis of the association between lithic artefacts and faunal remains with fireplaces allows determining the nature of the site occupation. These new data constitute the basis for a regional-scale study to be integrated within the general pattern of human occupation and dispersal dynamics in the Horn of Africa during the MIS3. Through comparative analysis with other archaeological contexts using quantitative multivariate statistics, it will be possible to better understand the causes and modalities of the MSA/LSA transition in the Horn of Africa region