Peters, Joris

English

Universität München: Elektronischen Publikationen

4 Ζ 8 9 . 351 
Preistoria e storia del Sahara 
Prehistory and history of the Sahara 
Prehistoire et histoire du Sahara 
Centro Studi 
Luigi Negro 
Novembre November Novembre 
1988 
Sommario Contents Sommaire 
Editoriale — — — 4 
Avant-propos — — - 5 
*s Jean Vercoutter 
Le Sahara et l ' E g y p t e pharaonique 9 
William Y. Adams 
The Ni l e Trade i n Post Pharaonic T imes 21 
Achilles Gautier 
The F i n a l Demise of Bos ibericust 37 
FranQois Soleilhavoup 
Decouvertes archeologiques exceptionnelles au sud de ΓAhaggar 49 
Joris Peters 
The palaeoenvironment of the Gi l f Kebir -Jebe l U w e i n a t 
area d u r i n g the f i r s t ha l f of the Holocene: The latest evidence — — 73 
Louis Chaix A _ 
Le monde animal ä K e r m a (Soudan) — 77 
Daniel Stiles 
Desert i f i cat ion i n Prehis tory : the Sahara — 85 
Note brevi Brief notes Notes breves — —— - 93 
Peter Rowley-Conwy < 
E a r l y radiocarbon accelerator dates f o r camels f r o m Qasr I b r i m , E g y p t i a n N u b i a 93 
Mark Milburn 
On the i d e n t i t y of T u a r e g and Moors 93 
Documenti rupestri Documents of rock art Documents rupestres 95 
Jürgen Kunz 
U n site ä peintures parietales de l O u e d T i rehar t -Tass i l i n ' A j j e r 95 
Aldo e Donatella Boccazzi 
A l c u n i g r a f f i t i della parete occidentale del G i l f K e b i r — 96 
Alfred Muzzolini 
Figurat ions rupestres de chars avec atte lage, de p a r t et d 'autre 
du Tenere ( A r k a n a et Oued Taguei , N i g e r ) . L ' ex tens i on des "Libyco-berberes" au Djado 99 
Note della redazione Editor's notes Notes de la redaction 101 
Paolo Graziosi 101 
Congresso Internac iona l " E l Estrecho de G i b r a l t a r " — 101 
Documenti preistorici Prehistoric documents Documents prehistoriques 102 
U n betyle de la reg ion de Tabelbalet 102 
Une ronde-bosse de l a region de Γ e r g Tihodäme —— 102 
Rivista delle riviste Review of reviews Revue des revues 103 
Libri ricevuti Books received Livres re?us 
106 
Recensioni Reviews Compte-rendus 107 
The palaeoenvironment 
of the Gilf Kebir-Jebel Uweinat 
area during the first half of the Holocene: 
The latest evidence 
Joris Peters * 
Riassunto 
Fino a una decina di anni fa, gli studio-
si ipotizzavano che nella regione Gilf 
Kebir - Uweinat prevalessero durante 
la prima metä dellOlocene condizioni 
ambientali di savana di tipo saheliano. 
Recenti studi di paleobotanica, sedi-
mentologia e archeozoologia evidenzia-
no condizioni di clima arido t ra i l 9500 
e i l 6000 BP, con una precipitazione in­
feriore ai 100 mm/anno, e una modera-
ta ariditä durante il sesto millennio, 
con una probabile precipitazione annua 
tra i 100 e i 150 mm. 
Summary 
Until a decade ago, scientists postulat-
ed that Sahelian-savanna living condi-
tions prevailed in the Gilf Kebir-Jebel 
Uweinat region during the first half of 
the Holocene. Recent palaeobotanical, 
sedimentological and archaeozoological 
studies point to arid climatic condi-
tions between 9500 to 6000 BP with a 
rainfall below 100 mm/year, and to a 
moderate aridity during the sixth mil-
lennium,, very likely with a yearly pre-
cipitation of some 100 to 150 mm. 
Resume 
Jusqu'il y a une dizaine d'annees, les 
chercheurs postulaient que Tenvironne-
ment qui prevalait dans la region du 
Gilf Kebir-Uweinat pendant la premie­
re moitie de l'Holocene etait celui d'u-
ne savane sahelienne. Mais de recentes 
recherches paleobotaniques, sedimen-
tologiques et archeozoologiques met-
tent en evidence des conditions climati-
ques arides entre 9500 et 6000 BP, 
avec des precipitations inferieures ä 
100 mm/an, suivies d'une periode d'ari-
dite moderee pendant le 6eme millenai-
re BP, accompagnee de precipitations 
d'environ 100 ä 150 mm/an. 
* Institut für Palaeoanatomie, Dome-
stikationsforschung und Geschichte der 
Tiermedizin. 
Schellingstrasse 10/11, D-8000 München, 
Germany B.R.D. 
The Gilf Kebir, a massif sandstone mesa rising 200 to 300 m above the 
surrounding plains, is situated in southwestern Egypt in the heart of the 
Libyan desert (Fig. 1). This plateau is intersected by numerous wadis, the 
largest being the Wadi A r d el Akhdar and the Wadi el Bakht. Today, i t 
is considered one of the most arid regions of the world with an estimated 
precipitation of less than 5mm/year (Kröpelin, 1987). Vegetation is almost 
absent except for some woody species such as Acacia, Balanites and Mae-
rua, though most of the trees are apparently dead (Neumann, 1987). Ne­
vertheless, after the extremely rare precipitations, a very scattered vege­
tation of not more than fifteen species of ephemeral grasses and shrubs 
may appear in certain parts of the Gilf area (Neumann, ibid.). 
Jebel Uweinat is a relatively small tabular mountain mass which lies 
over 70 kilometres to the southwest of the Gilf Kebir plateau. I ts height 
ranges from 600 to over 1900 meters above sea level, which makes i t high 
enough to attract a l itt le extra local rainfall and to maintain a poor vege­
tation (Bagnold, 1941; Leonard, 1971). The present day fauna of the Gilf 
Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area is not well known, but the animals recorded 
from i t are well adapted to very arid l iving conditions: dorcas gazelle, 
slender-horned gazelle, Barbary sheep, Rüppell's sand fox, fennec, striped 
weasel, jerboa and two gerbil species (Peters, 1987). 
The Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area remained unexplored unti l the 
middle of the 1920's, when pioneers such as Hassanein Bey (1924a, 
1924b) and Newbold (1924) managed to visit this part of the Libyan De­
sert. Afterwards, the region became the target of many explorers and 
scientists, not in the least because of the fact that ancient human occupa­
tion in the area was illustrated by numerous rock paintings (Winkler, 1939; 
Rhotert, 1952; Van Noten, 1978). These suggested that the animal world, 
known to the prehistoric inhabitants of the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat re­
gion included giraffe, Barbary sheep, scimitar-horned oryx, antelopes, lion 
and ostrich. Furthermore, the numerous scenes depicting people wi th 
SAHARA 1/1988 73 
herds of cattle implied that they were typical pastoralists. On the basis of 
the ecological requirements of the animals figured in rock art , and the 
needs of present-day African pastoralist tribes l iving in arid environments, 
such as the Peul, Jies and Turkana, McHugh (1974) assumed that the Gilf 
Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area must have received a yearly precipitation of so­
me 200 to 600 mm at the time of its occupation by prehistoric man. 
Unt i l a decade ago, only a few small scale excavations had been carri­
ed out in Wadi el Bakht at the eastern side of the Gilf plateau (Bagnold 
et al., 1939; Wendorf et al. , 1976; McHugh, 1982) and in Karkur Talh, 
located at the northern side of Jebel Uweinat (Bagnold et al . , ibid.; de 
Heinzelin et al., 1969). From 1980 onwards, archaeological sites in Wadi 
A r d el Akhdar, Wadi Bakht and elsewhere in the Gilf were systematically 
investigated by a multidisciplinary research group, led by R. Kuper (1981) 
of the University of Cologne. The results of this research group are not 
published in full yet, but two very interesting papers dealing w i t h the pa-
laeoclimate of the area during the early to mid-Holocene appeared last 
year (Kröpelin, 1987; Neumann, 1987). This coincided w i t h the publication 
of our study of the faunal remains, collected by the Bagnold-Mond expedi­
tion in 1938 (Peters, 1987). 
K. Neumann (1987) analysed samples of charred wood remains from 
prehistoric sites in Wadi A r d el Akhdar and Wadi el Bakht. The woody 
species recorded include plant of the genera Acacia, Ziziphus, Maerua, 
Tamarix and Balanites, all of which belong to the modern Sahara flora. 
Tamarix wood remains occur in all samples and suggest an arid climate 
with precipitations not exceeding 100 mm/year around 7700 BP and bet­
ween 5700 and 4000 BP. Most likely, the drier phases of this period wi t ­
nessed a comparatively sparse tree cover, whereas, during the moister 
phases, the vegetation may have consisted of dense stands of tamarisks 
in the lower parts of the wadis. Such concentrations of tamarisks occur 
today under an average rainfall of 50 to 100 mm/year. The second domi­
nant species in the samples, Ziziphus lotus, is a low, spiny bush. I t is 
known today from the northwestern Sahara, where i t survives with a 
mean annual rainfall of 30-40 mm. The Gilf samples also contain Acacia 
wood, but its occurrence is rather low. Nevertheless, the isolated presen­
ce of Acacia albida, dated at 6150 + 180 BP, indicates slightly moister 
climatic conditions at that time, because a minimum requirement of this 
species is a yearly precipitation of 100 to 150 mm. Summing up then, the 
floral evidence points to arid climatic conditions w i t h annual precipita­
tions not exceeding 100 mm between ca. 8000 and 4000 BP, and wi th a 
slightly moister period of unknown duration in between. 
S. Kröpelin (1987) investigated the sediments of early to mid-Holoce­
ne playas in valleys of the Gilf Kebir plateau. From his observations, i t 
becomes clear that the playa-formation in the Gilf area is due only to sur-
ficial run-off, although favourable local circumstances have added conside­
rably to their formation. Among these, Kröpelin mentions the combina­
tion of W-E trending valleys w i t h trade winds blowing roughly N-S and a 
source of sand in the north (in this case the Great Sand Sea). The blocka­
ge of Wadi el Bakht and Wadi A r d el Akhdar, creating the conditions ne­
cessary for playa formation, most likely occurred, or at least begun, befo­
re ca. 9400 BP. A t that time, the climate seems to have been more arid 
than today, since actual dunes are not able to cause total blockage of the 
valleys of Wadi el Bakht and Wadi el Akhdar. However, different non-
climatic boundary conditions may have prevailed, causing for example an 
increased supply of sand. 
The blockage of the wadis was followed by a period of uneven, dis­
continuous sedimentation. This points to an arid climate, lasting roughly 
from 9000 to 6000 BP. Between 6000 and 5000 BP, continuous sedimen­
tation of pelitic layers suggests a moderate aridity, w i t h an estimated an­
nual rainfall of 100 mm. Not long after c. 5000 BP the deposition of playa 
sediments stopped in Wadi el Bakht and in Wadi A r d el Akhdar, suggest­
ing that the dunes blocking both wadis were breached during this period. 
Most likely, this was due to an unprecedented, exceptionally high water 
pressure or level, pointing to a climatic optimum w i t h comparatively high 
precipitation or a unique millennial rainfall event. Afterwards, no more 
playa sediments were deposited and therefore, no evidence of the subse­
quent increase in aridity could be observed. Our work dealt wi th the fau­
nal remains, recovered from archaeological sites in the major wadis of the 
74 SAHARA 1/1988 
Fig. 1. L o c a t i o n of the s i tes d iscussed in the 
text . ( 1 ) W a d i el B a h k t ; (2) W a d i ( A r d ) el 
A k h d a r ; (3) K a r k u r T a l h . 
Gilf and in Karkur Talh at Jebel Uweinat (Peters, 1987). We re-identified 
the faunal remains collected by the Bagnold-Mond expedition in 1938 and 
evaluated critically the faunal lists, given by other authors of bone sam­
ples from the same or related archaeological deposits. Among the animal 
remains, the presence of the following species could be established wi th 
certainty: Ostrich, striped hyaena, rock hyrax, giraffe, addax, dorcas ga­
zelle, dama, Barbary sheep, cattle and goat. Faunal material collected by 
Kuper's team in the Gilf area furthermore produced remains of scimitar-
horned oryx (W. Van Neer, pers. comm.). 
As to the ecological requirements of the species mentioned, most of 
the wild animals feed on grasses as well as on foliage of trees and shrubs. 
Giraffes, however, are predominantly browsers, utilising a wide range of 
food plants. Cattle, on the other hand, are typical grazers and need good 
quality pasture, whereas goats are much less particular about their food 
requirements. A l l wild mammals are almost completely independent of 
water, obtaining their moisture requirements from their food plants. How­
ever, the two domestic species, and especially cattle, definitely need sur­
face water to survive in arid climates. 
What does the faunal spectrum learn us about the palaeoenviron-
ment? I f we accept on the basis of the best archaeological evidence that 
our picture of the fauna is representative for the main settlement phase 
in the area, that is between ca. 6000 and 5000 BP (Kuper, 1981), then the 
spectrum obtained suggests arid l iving conditions in the Gilf Kebir-Jebel 
Uweinat region. Consequently, we can imagine a floral pattern in the 
area consisting of seasonal grassy plains, most likely w i t h a disjunct 
ground cover, but no doubt wi th concentrations of trees and shrubs at 
more favourable places such as wadis. Precise estimates of the annual 
SAHARA 1/1988 75 
precipitations cannot be based on wild mammals such as dorcas gazelle, 
dama, addax or oryx because these animals undertake large scale migra­
tions i f food becomes rare. On the other hand, livestock is not of much 
use either for palaeoclimatological reconstructions. Indeed, present-day 
pastoralists l iving in arid regions are forced to undertake large scale mi­
grations to provide their flocks with the necessary amounts of pasture 
and water. The inhabitants of the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat region were 
most likely there on a temporary basis, their presence depending on the 
availability of good grazing and surface water. 
The only faunal element that can be used to say something about the 
palaeoclimate appears to be the giraffe. These animals do not migrate 
over considerable distances, although they are great wanderers because 
their food is generally well dispersed (Kingdon, 1979: 329). As a conse­
quence, their home ranges can be very extensive especially during the 
rains when the animals start wandering (650 k m 2 ; Kingdon, ibid.) During 
the dry season the animals remain in a relatively small area (in Tsavo Na­
tional Park 160 k m 2 ; Leuthold, 1977: 44). We therefore consider the Gilf 
Kebir remains of giraffe to be derived from a local population. Such a po­
pulation no doubt also existed at Jebel Uweinat, as the rock art indicates. 
The food requirements of giraffe suggest a minimum annual precipitation 
of ca. 200 mm in the plains around the two mountain masses. However, 
both the Gilf Kebir and especially Jebel Uweinat may have received mo­
re rain because of their altitude. Since i t is known that in mountain sy­
stems the deeper parts of the relief act as water collectors, i t can be 
expected that the wadis of Gilf Kebir and Jebel Uweinat received decide­
dly more moisture than the surrounding plains. Because this may have 
resulted in more favourable conditions for plant growth and animal life, 
i t is not inconceivable that our estimate of 200 mm/year for the plains 
may be too high. 
Summing up then, the earlier views of Sahelian-savanna living condi­
tions in the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area during the f irst half of the 
Holocene are contradicted by recent palaeobotanical, sedimentological 
and archaeozoological studies. These suggest for the period between ca. 
9500 to 6000 BP arid climatic conditions wi th an annual rainfall below 100 
mm. In the sixth millennium BP, the area witnessed a more moderate ari ­
dity, very likely wi th a yearly precipitation of some 100 to 150 mm. 
BAGNOLD R.A., 1941. The physics of 
blown sand and desert dunes. Lon­
don: Methuen and Co. L t d . 
BAGNOLD R.A., O.H. MYERS, R.F. P E E L 
& H.A . W I N K L E R , 1939. A n expedi­
tion to the Gilf Kebir and Uweinat, 
1938. The Geographical Journal, 93: 
281-313. 
HASSANEIN B E Y A . M . , 1924a. Through 
Kufra to Darfur. The Geographical 
Journal, 64: 273-291 and 353-366. 
HASSANEIN B E Y A . M . , 1924b. Crossing 
the untraversed Libyan Desert. Geo-
graphic Magazine, 46: 233-278. 
H E I N Z E L I N J . (DE), P . HAESAERTS & F. 
V A N N O T E N , 1969. V I . Geologie re-
cente et prehistoire au Jebel Uwei­
nat. I n : Expedition scientifique bei­
ge dans le desert de Libye - Jebel 
Uweinat 1968-69. Africa-Tervuren, 
15: 120-125. 
KINGDON J . , 1979. East african mam-
mals. Vol . I I I B . London: Academic 
Press. 
KRÖPELIN S., 1987. Palaeoclimatic evi­
dence from early to mid-Holocene 
playas in the Gilf Kebir (Southwest 
Egypt) . Palaeoecology of Africa and 
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76 SAHARA 1/1988 


The palaeoenvironment of the Gilf Kebir-Jebel Uweinat area during the first half of the Holocene

Open Access LMU

4 Ζ 8 9 . 351 Preistoria e storia del Sahara Prehistory and history of the Sahara Prehistoire et histoire du Sahara Centro Studi Luigi Negro Novembre November Novembre 1988 Sommario Contents Sommaire Editoriale — — — 4 Avant-propos — — - 5 *s Jean Vercoutter Le Sahara et l ' E g y p t e pharaonique 9 William Y. Adams The Ni l e Trade i n Post Pharaonic T imes 21 Achilles Gautier The F i n a l Demise of Bos ibericust 37 FranQois Soleilhavoup Decouvertes archeologiques exceptionnelles au sud de ΓAhaggar 49 Joris Peters The palaeoenvironment of the Gi l f Kebir -Jebe l U w e i n a t area d u r i n g the f i r s t ha l f of the Holocene: The latest evidence — — 73 Louis Chaix A _ Le monde animal ä K e r m a (Soudan) — 77 Daniel Stiles Desert i f i cat ion i n Prehis tory : the Sahara — 85 Note brevi Brief notes Notes breves — —— - 93 Peter Rowley-Conwy < E a r l y radiocarbon accelerator dates f o r camels f r o m Qasr I b r i m , E g y p t i a n N u b i a 93 Mark Milburn On the i d e n t i t y of T u a r e g and Moors 93 Documenti rupestri Documents of rock art Documents rupestres 95 Jürgen Kunz U n site ä peintures parietales de l O u e d T i rehar t -Tass i l i n ' A j j e r 95 Aldo e Donatella Boccazzi A l c u n i g r a f f i t i della parete occidentale del G i l f K e b i r — 96 Alfred Muzzolini Figurat ions rupestres de chars avec atte lage, de p a r t et d 'autre du Tenere ( A r k a n a et Oued Taguei , N i g e r ) . L ' ex tens i on des "Libyco-berberes" au Djado 99 Note della redazione Editor's notes Notes de la redaction 101 Paolo Graziosi 101 Congresso Internac iona l " E l Estrecho de G i b r a l t a r " — 101 Documenti preistorici Prehistoric documents Documents prehistoriques 102 U n betyle de la reg ion de Tabelbalet 102 Une ronde-bosse de l a region de Γ e r g Tihodäme —— 102 Rivista delle riviste Review of reviews Revue des revues 103 Libri ricevuti Books received Livres re?us 106 Recensioni Reviews Compte-rendus 107 The palaeoenvironment of the Gilf Kebir-Jebel Uweinat area during the first half of the Holocene: The latest evidence Joris Peters * Riassunto Fino a una decina di anni fa, gli studio-si ipotizzavano che nella regione Gilf Kebir - Uweinat prevalessero durante la prima metä dellOlocene condizioni ambientali di savana di tipo saheliano. Recenti studi di paleobotanica, sedi-mentologia e archeozoologia evidenzia-no condizioni di clima arido t ra i l 9500 e i l 6000 BP, con una precipitazione in­feriore ai 100 mm/anno, e una modera-ta ariditä durante il sesto millennio, con una probabile precipitazione annua tra i 100 e i 150 mm. Summary Until a decade ago, scientists postulat-ed that Sahelian-savanna living condi-tions prevailed in the Gilf Kebir-Jebel Uweinat region during the first half of the Holocene. Recent palaeobotanical, sedimentological and archaeozoological studies point to arid climatic condi-tions between 9500 to 6000 BP with a rainfall below 100 mm/year, and to a moderate aridity during the sixth mil-lennium,, very likely with a yearly pre-cipitation of some 100 to 150 mm. Resume Jusqu'il y a une dizaine d'annees, les chercheurs postulaient que Tenvironne-ment qui prevalait dans la region du Gilf Kebir-Uweinat pendant la premie­re moitie de l'Holocene etait celui d'u-ne savane sahelienne. Mais de recentes recherches paleobotaniques, sedimen-tologiques et archeozoologiques met-tent en evidence des conditions climati-ques arides entre 9500 et 6000 BP, avec des precipitations inferieures ä 100 mm/an, suivies d'une periode d'ari-dite moderee pendant le 6eme millenai-re BP, accompagnee de precipitations d'environ 100 ä 150 mm/an. * Institut für Palaeoanatomie, Dome-stikationsforschung und Geschichte der Tiermedizin. Schellingstrasse 10/11, D-8000 München, Germany B.R.D. The Gilf Kebir, a massif sandstone mesa rising 200 to 300 m above the surrounding plains, is situated in southwestern Egypt in the heart of the Libyan desert (Fig. 1). This plateau is intersected by numerous wadis, the largest being the Wadi A r d el Akhdar and the Wadi el Bakht. Today, i t is considered one of the most arid regions of the world with an estimated precipitation of less than 5mm/year (Kröpelin, 1987). Vegetation is almost absent except for some woody species such as Acacia, Balanites and Mae-rua, though most of the trees are apparently dead (Neumann, 1987). Ne­vertheless, after the extremely rare precipitations, a very scattered vege­tation of not more than fifteen species of ephemeral grasses and shrubs may appear in certain parts of the Gilf area (Neumann, ibid.). Jebel Uweinat is a relatively small tabular mountain mass which lies over 70 kilometres to the southwest of the Gilf Kebir plateau. I ts height ranges from 600 to over 1900 meters above sea level, which makes i t high enough to attract a l itt le extra local rainfall and to maintain a poor vege­tation (Bagnold, 1941; Leonard, 1971). The present day fauna of the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area is not well known, but the animals recorded from i t are well adapted to very arid l iving conditions: dorcas gazelle, slender-horned gazelle, Barbary sheep, Rüppell's sand fox, fennec, striped weasel, jerboa and two gerbil species (Peters, 1987). The Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area remained unexplored unti l the middle of the 1920's, when pioneers such as Hassanein Bey (1924a, 1924b) and Newbold (1924) managed to visit this part of the Libyan De­sert. Afterwards, the region became the target of many explorers and scientists, not in the least because of the fact that ancient human occupa­tion in the area was illustrated by numerous rock paintings (Winkler, 1939; Rhotert, 1952; Van Noten, 1978). These suggested that the animal world, known to the prehistoric inhabitants of the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat re­gion included giraffe, Barbary sheep, scimitar-horned oryx, antelopes, lion and ostrich. Furthermore, the numerous scenes depicting people wi th SAHARA 1/1988 73 herds of cattle implied that they were typical pastoralists. On the basis of the ecological requirements of the animals figured in rock art , and the needs of present-day African pastoralist tribes l iving in arid environments, such as the Peul, Jies and Turkana, McHugh (1974) assumed that the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area must have received a yearly precipitation of so­me 200 to 600 mm at the time of its occupation by prehistoric man. Unt i l a decade ago, only a few small scale excavations had been carri­ed out in Wadi el Bakht at the eastern side of the Gilf plateau (Bagnold et al., 1939; Wendorf et al. , 1976; McHugh, 1982) and in Karkur Talh, located at the northern side of Jebel Uweinat (Bagnold et al . , ibid.; de Heinzelin et al., 1969). From 1980 onwards, archaeological sites in Wadi A r d el Akhdar, Wadi Bakht and elsewhere in the Gilf were systematically investigated by a multidisciplinary research group, led by R. Kuper (1981) of the University of Cologne. The results of this research group are not published in full yet, but two very interesting papers dealing w i t h the pa-laeoclimate of the area during the early to mid-Holocene appeared last year (Kröpelin, 1987; Neumann, 1987). This coincided w i t h the publication of our study of the faunal remains, collected by the Bagnold-Mond expedi­tion in 1938 (Peters, 1987). K. Neumann (1987) analysed samples of charred wood remains from prehistoric sites in Wadi A r d el Akhdar and Wadi el Bakht. The woody species recorded include plant of the genera Acacia, Ziziphus, Maerua, Tamarix and Balanites, all of which belong to the modern Sahara flora. Tamarix wood remains occur in all samples and suggest an arid climate with precipitations not exceeding 100 mm/year around 7700 BP and bet­ween 5700 and 4000 BP. Most likely, the drier phases of this period wi t ­nessed a comparatively sparse tree cover, whereas, during the moister phases, the vegetation may have consisted of dense stands of tamarisks in the lower parts of the wadis. Such concentrations of tamarisks occur today under an average rainfall of 50 to 100 mm/year. The second domi­nant species in the samples, Ziziphus lotus, is a low, spiny bush. I t is known today from the northwestern Sahara, where i t survives with a mean annual rainfall of 30-40 mm. The Gilf samples also contain Acacia wood, but its occurrence is rather low. Nevertheless, the isolated presen­ce of Acacia albida, dated at 6150 + 180 BP, indicates slightly moister climatic conditions at that time, because a minimum requirement of this species is a yearly precipitation of 100 to 150 mm. Summing up then, the floral evidence points to arid climatic conditions w i t h annual precipita­tions not exceeding 100 mm between ca. 8000 and 4000 BP, and wi th a slightly moister period of unknown duration in between. S. Kröpelin (1987) investigated the sediments of early to mid-Holoce­ne playas in valleys of the Gilf Kebir plateau. From his observations, i t becomes clear that the playa-formation in the Gilf area is due only to sur-ficial run-off, although favourable local circumstances have added conside­rably to their formation. Among these, Kröpelin mentions the combina­tion of W-E trending valleys w i t h trade winds blowing roughly N-S and a source of sand in the north (in this case the Great Sand Sea). The blocka­ge of Wadi el Bakht and Wadi A r d el Akhdar, creating the conditions ne­cessary for playa formation, most likely occurred, or at least begun, befo­re ca. 9400 BP. A t that time, the climate seems to have been more arid than today, since actual dunes are not able to cause total blockage of the valleys of Wadi el Bakht and Wadi el Akhdar. However, different non-climatic boundary conditions may have prevailed, causing for example an increased supply of sand. The blockage of the wadis was followed by a period of uneven, dis­continuous sedimentation. This points to an arid climate, lasting roughly from 9000 to 6000 BP. Between 6000 and 5000 BP, continuous sedimen­tation of pelitic layers suggests a moderate aridity, w i t h an estimated an­nual rainfall of 100 mm. Not long after c. 5000 BP the deposition of playa sediments stopped in Wadi el Bakht and in Wadi A r d el Akhdar, suggest­ing that the dunes blocking both wadis were breached during this period. Most likely, this was due to an unprecedented, exceptionally high water pressure or level, pointing to a climatic optimum w i t h comparatively high precipitation or a unique millennial rainfall event. Afterwards, no more playa sediments were deposited and therefore, no evidence of the subse­quent increase in aridity could be observed. Our work dealt wi th the fau­nal remains, recovered from archaeological sites in the major wadis of the 74 SAHARA 1/1988 Fig. 1. L o c a t i o n of the s i tes d iscussed in the text . ( 1 ) W a d i el B a h k t ; (2) W a d i ( A r d ) el A k h d a r ; (3) K a r k u r T a l h . Gilf and in Karkur Talh at Jebel Uweinat (Peters, 1987). We re-identified the faunal remains collected by the Bagnold-Mond expedition in 1938 and evaluated critically the faunal lists, given by other authors of bone sam­ples from the same or related archaeological deposits. Among the animal remains, the presence of the following species could be established wi th certainty: Ostrich, striped hyaena, rock hyrax, giraffe, addax, dorcas ga­zelle, dama, Barbary sheep, cattle and goat. Faunal material collected by Kuper's team in the Gilf area furthermore produced remains of scimitar-horned oryx (W. Van Neer, pers. comm.). As to the ecological requirements of the species mentioned, most of the wild animals feed on grasses as well as on foliage of trees and shrubs. Giraffes, however, are predominantly browsers, utilising a wide range of food plants. Cattle, on the other hand, are typical grazers and need good quality pasture, whereas goats are much less particular about their food requirements. A l l wild mammals are almost completely independent of water, obtaining their moisture requirements from their food plants. How­ever, the two domestic species, and especially cattle, definitely need sur­face water to survive in arid climates. What does the faunal spectrum learn us about the palaeoenviron-ment? I f we accept on the basis of the best archaeological evidence that our picture of the fauna is representative for the main settlement phase in the area, that is between ca. 6000 and 5000 BP (Kuper, 1981), then the spectrum obtained suggests arid l iving conditions in the Gilf Kebir-Jebel Uweinat region. Consequently, we can imagine a floral pattern in the area consisting of seasonal grassy plains, most likely w i t h a disjunct ground cover, but no doubt wi th concentrations of trees and shrubs at more favourable places such as wadis. Precise estimates of the annual SAHARA 1/1988 75 precipitations cannot be based on wild mammals such as dorcas gazelle, dama, addax or oryx because these animals undertake large scale migra­tions i f food becomes rare. On the other hand, livestock is not of much use either for palaeoclimatological reconstructions. Indeed, present-day pastoralists l iving in arid regions are forced to undertake large scale mi­grations to provide their flocks with the necessary amounts of pasture and water. The inhabitants of the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat region were most likely there on a temporary basis, their presence depending on the availability of good grazing and surface water. The only faunal element that can be used to say something about the palaeoclimate appears to be the giraffe. These animals do not migrate over considerable distances, although they are great wanderers because their food is generally well dispersed (Kingdon, 1979: 329). As a conse­quence, their home ranges can be very extensive especially during the rains when the animals start wandering (650 k m 2 ; Kingdon, ibid.) During the dry season the animals remain in a relatively small area (in Tsavo Na­tional Park 160 k m 2 ; Leuthold, 1977: 44). We therefore consider the Gilf Kebir remains of giraffe to be derived from a local population. Such a po­pulation no doubt also existed at Jebel Uweinat, as the rock art indicates. The food requirements of giraffe suggest a minimum annual precipitation of ca. 200 mm in the plains around the two mountain masses. However, both the Gilf Kebir and especially Jebel Uweinat may have received mo­re rain because of their altitude. Since i t is known that in mountain sy­stems the deeper parts of the relief act as water collectors, i t can be expected that the wadis of Gilf Kebir and Jebel Uweinat received decide­dly more moisture than the surrounding plains. Because this may have resulted in more favourable conditions for plant growth and animal life, i t is not inconceivable that our estimate of 200 mm/year for the plains may be too high. Summing up then, the earlier views of Sahelian-savanna living condi­tions in the Gilf Kebir - Jebel Uweinat area during the f irst half of the Holocene are contradicted by recent palaeobotanical, sedimentological and archaeozoological studies. These suggest for the period between ca. 9500 to 6000 BP arid climatic conditions wi th an annual rainfall below 100 mm. In the sixth millennium BP, the area witnessed a more moderate ari ­dity, very likely wi th a yearly precipitation of some 100 to 150 mm. BAGNOLD R.A., 1941. The physics of blown sand and desert dunes. Lon­don: Methuen and Co. L t d . BAGNOLD R.A., O.H. MYERS, R.F. P E E L & H.A . W I N K L E R , 1939. A n expedi­tion to the Gilf Kebir and Uweinat, 1938. The Geographical Journal, 93: 281-313. HASSANEIN B E Y A . M . , 1924a. Through Kufra to Darfur. The Geographical Journal, 64: 273-291 and 353-366. HASSANEIN B E Y A . M . , 1924b. Crossing the untraversed Libyan Desert. Geo-graphic Magazine, 46: 233-278. H E I N Z E L I N J . (DE), P . HAESAERTS & F. V A N N O T E N , 1969. V I . Geologie re-cente et prehistoire au Jebel Uwei­nat. I n : Expedition scientifique bei­ge dans le desert de Libye - Jebel Uweinat 1968-69. Africa-Tervuren, 15: 120-125. KINGDON J . , 1979. East african mam-mals. Vol . I I I B . London: Academic Press. KRÖPELIN S., 1987. Palaeoclimatic evi­dence from early to mid-Holocene playas in the Gilf Kebir (Southwest Egypt) . Palaeoecology of Africa and Bibliography the surrounding Islands, 1 8 : 1 8 9 -2 0 8 . K U P E R R., 1 9 8 1 . Untersuchungen zur Besiedlungsgeschichte der östlichen Sahara. Vorbericht über die Expedi­t ion 1 9 8 0 . Beiträge zur allgemeinen und vergleichenden Archäologie, 3 : 2 1 7 - 2 7 5 . LEONARD J . , 1 9 7 1 . Apercu de la flore et de la vegetation du Jebel Uweinat (Desert de Libye). Resume. Mittei-lungen der Botanische Staatssam-mlung München, 1 0 : 4 7 6 - 4 7 7 . LEUTHOLD W . , 1 9 7 7 . African Ungula-tes. Zoophysiology and Ecology 8. Berl in: Springer Verlag. M C H U G H W.P., 1 9 7 4 . Cattle pastora-lism in Africa - A model for inter­preting archaelogical evidence from the Eastern Sahara Desert. Arctic Anthropology, 1 1 - Supplement: 2 3 6 -2 4 4 . M C H U G H W.P., 1 9 8 2 . 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A desert Odyssey of a thousand miles.

African Ungulates. Zoophysiology and Ecology 8.

Apercu de la flore et de la vegetation du Jebel Uweinat (Desert de Libye).

Archaelogical in vestigations in the Gilf Kebir and the Abu Hussein dunefield.

Cattle pastoralism in Africa - A model for inter preting archaelogical evidence from the Eastern Sahara Desert. Arctic Anthropology, 11 - Supplement:

Libysche Felsbilder.

Middle Holocene vegetation of the Gilf Kebir/SW Egypt - A reconstruction.

Rock Art of the Jebel Uweinat. Graz: Akademische Druck und Verlagsanstalt.

Rock-drawings of Southern Upper Egypt - II. London:

The faunal remains collected by the Bagnold-Mond expe dition

Untersuchungen zur Besiedlungsgeschichte der östlichen Sahara. Vorbericht über die Expedi tion 1980. Beiträge zur allgemeinen und vergleichenden

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The palaeoenvironment of the Gilf Kebir-Jebel Uweinat area during the first half of the Holocene

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