nyame akuma issue 007

8/10/2019 Nyame Akuma Issue 007

1/59

NYAME KUM

No. 7 O c to b e r 9 7 5

NEWSLETTER OF THE SOCIETY O FR [CANTST ARCHAEOLOGISTS N MKRLC

E d i t e d b y P.L . S h in n ie an d i s s u e d f rom th e D ep a rtme n t o f A rc h a e o lo g y, T heUn iv er s i ty o f Ca lg ary, Ca lg ary, A l be r t a T2N 1N4, Canada.

S l i g h t l y b e f o r e Nyame Akuma No. 6 was p u b l i s h e d t h e S o c i e t y( a b b r e v i a ti o n SAAAM) whose name now ap pe ar s abo ve was founde d a t t h em e et in g i n B o st on h e l d i n A p r i l 1 97 5. Nyame Akuma now becomes t h e o f f i c i a ln e w s l e t t e r of t h e S o c i e ty b u t f o r t h e t i me be in g e d i t o r i a l l o c a t i o n a ndp o l i c y r e m a in t h e s am e. t w i l l c o n ti n u e t o b e i s s u ed f r e e of c h a r ge , a tl e a s t f o r t h e i mm edia te f u t u r e .

Because of t h e n a t u r e of t h e f i n a n c i n g of t h e j o u r n a l t h e d i s t r i b u t i o na t p r e s e n t i s i n t e n d e d t o b e f o r i n d i v i d u a l s , who n e ed n o t b e members o ft h e S o c ie t y , i n t e r e s t e d i n t h e s u b j e c t m at t e r . t i s n o t i n t e n d e d f o ri n s t i t u t i o n s and l i b r a r i e s , t ho ug h h av e u se d my d i s c r e t i o n i n making i ta v a i l a b l e t o some. h av e h ow eve r b e en r e j e c t i n g r e c e n t r e q u e s t s fr oml i b r a r i e s , a nd e ve n more s o t h e pe r e m pt o r y demands f r om some o rg a n i z a t i o n sth a t ma k e i t a v a i l a b l e t o a l l t h o s e em ployed by s u c h o r g a n i z a t i o n s .h ave g iv e n p o l i t e r e f u s a l s . I f and when a c ha rge i s made then i t w i l l b ea v a i l a b l e w i th o u t r e s t r i c t i o n t o a l l t h o s e who p ay. I n t h e meantimep e r h a p s r e a d e r s w o u l d b e m i n d f u l o f M r R o b e r t s o n s r e ma r ks c o n c e r n i n g t h ef a i l u r e of t h e c u l l i n g o p e r a t i o n ; i f anyone do es n o t w is h t o c o n ti n u e t o

r e c e i v e t h e n e w s l e t t e r would b e g r a t e f u l f o r t h a t in f o r m at i o n.

t had be en my i n t e n t i o n t o p u b l i s h a b s t r a c t s o f p a pe r s g iv e n a tB o st on h a ve t o d a t e o n l y r e c e i v e d tw o. S p ac e c a n b e f o un d f o r o t h e r si n Nyame Akuma No. 8.

T h i s number p u b l is h e s f o r t h e f i r s t t im e some r a t h e r l o n g e r r e p o r t s ,s e e e s p e c i a l l y th e Ghana s e c t i o n w h ic h sh ow s much a c t i v i t y h i g h lya p p r o p r i a t e i n view of t h e name of t h e n e w s l e t t e r . s h a l l c e r t a i n l y b ehappy t o c o n t in u e t h i s p o l i c y and p u b l i s h l o n g e r r e p o r t s , and i f d e s i r e d ,l i n e d ra wi ng s.

The l o c a t i o n o f t h e 19 77 m e et in g of S A M i s n o t y e t d e c i d e d ,i n v i t a t i o n s h av e b e en r e c e i v e d f ro m B e r k el e y a nd C al g a ry. The S t e e r i n gC om mittee (S am pso n, L u b e l l , M i l l e r ) a r e c o n s i d e r i n g t h e m a t t e r.


2/59

M in ut es o f t h e S o c i e t y o f A f r i c a n i s t A r c h a e o l o g i s t s i n Am eri ca

The o r g a n i z a t i o n met i n B o st on A p r i l 27-29 1 97 5 h o s t e d b y t h eA f r i c a n S t u d i e s C e n t e r of B o s to n U n i v e r s i t y . The b u s i n e s s m e e t in g w ash e l d t h e e ve n in g o f A p r i l 28 a t t h e C e nt er .

The f i r s t i t e m on t h e a g e nd a was a u na ni mo us an d e n t h u s i a s t i cv o t e o f t h a n k s t o P r o f e s s o r C r e i g h t o n G a be l o f B o st on U n i v e r s i t y a n dP r o f e s s o r C h a r l e s N e ls on o f t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f M a s s a c h u s et t s a t B o st o na l on g w i t h Su sa n W hi te an d o t h e r g r a d u a t e s t u d e n t s an d a s s i s t a n t s f o ro r g a n i z i n g s uc h a n e x c e l l e n t m e et i ng . The p r e p a r a t i o n s w e r e w e l lc o o r d i n a t e d a nd f i v e f o r m al s e s s i o n s of p a p e r s c ov er ed a s e r i e s of b r o a dt o p i c s . I n a d d i t i o n t h e C e n t e r a l s o h o s t e d SAAAM m embers f o r r e f r e s h -m e nt s c o c k t a i l s a nd a n o u t s t a n d i n g b u f f e t d i n n e r .

Members had be en g i v e n w i t h t h e i r r e g i s t r a t i o n m a t e r i a l s c o p i e sof t h e C h a rt e r of SAAAM pro po se d by a Committee s e l e c t e d f o r t h e t a s k

a t t h e D a l l a s m e et in g i n 1973. D i sc u ss i on of t h e v a r i o u s a s p e c t s of t h ep ro po se d C h a r t e r co nc er ne d two i t e m s i n p a r t i c u l a r . On t h e i s s u e o fmembership a v a r i e t y o f p o s i t i o n s c om pe te d; i t was f i n a l l y ag re ed t h a ti n t e r e s t i n t h e f i e l d s ho u l d b e t h e o n l y d e f i n in g c r i t e r i o n f o r member-s h i p . The o t h e r i t e m t h a t of c o s t s of t h e o f f i c i a l n e w s l e t t e r NyameAkuma was l e f t f o r t h e p r e s e n t as i t s t a n d s . SAAAM members an d i n t e r -

s t e d p a r t i e s who a s k t o b e on t h e m a i l i n g l i s t w i l l r e c e i v e t h e p u b l i -c a t i o n a t n o c o s t t o t he ms el ve s o r t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n t ha nk s t o t h eg e n e r o s i t y o f t h e E d i t o r P e t e r S h i n n i e a nd t h e D ep ar tm en t o fArchaeo logy a t t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f C a lg a ry . I f i t b ec om es n e c e s s a r y t os e t a f e e f o r t h e n e w s l e t t e r t h e c o s t w i l l b e d et er mi ne d by t h e E d i t o rand t h e S t e e r i n g Committee of SAAAM.

t t h e e nd o f t h e d i s c u s s i o n t h e p ro po se d C h a r t e r w a s a d o p t e dby unan imous vo te .

On b e h a l f o f t h e B e r k e l e y members P r o f e s s o r G ly nn I s a a c i n v i t e dt h e S o c i e t y t o m eet i n B e rk el ey i n A p r i l 1 97 7. T h is g en er ou s i n v i t a -t i o n w as f a v o r a b l y r e c e i v e d by t h e m em be rs hi p p r e s e n t . H ow ev erd i s c u ss i o n i n d i c a te d t h a t i t w ou ld b e a d v a n t a g e o u s t o m e e t i n t an de mw i t h some o t h e r m a j or o r g a n i z a t i o n s o t h a t members c o u l d ha v e t h ea d va n ta g e o f a t t e n d i n g two m e et i ng s f o r a s i n g l e t r a v e l e xp e ns e . S i n c et h e d a t e s a nd p l a c e s o f o t h e r o r g a n i z a t i o n m e e t in g s f o r 1 97 7 w e re n o t

immediately knowni t

was d e c i d e d t h a t t h e S t e e r i n g C om mi tt ee s h o u l dp u b l i s h a s e t of s e v e r a l p o s s i b i l i t i e s i n Nyame Akuma and a s k t h em em be rs hip t o m a i l i n v o t e s f o r t h e m os t c o n v e n i e n t . T h i s s h o u l d o c c u rp ro mp tl y s o t h a t a o ne y e a r a dv an ce n o t i c e o f t h e m ee t in g c an b e g i v e ni n a c co r da n ce w i t h t h e r e c e n t l y a d op t ed C h a r t e r .

f u r t h e r i s s u e wh ic h o c ca s io n ed a c t i v e d i s c u s s i o n was t h e p ro -p o s a l o f t h e S o c i e t y f o r A me ric an A rc ha eo lo gy t h a t a l i s t o f o f f i c i a l l yr e g i s t e r e d a r c h a e o l o g i s t s i n Am er ic a b e o r g a n i z e d an d m a i n t ai n e d .S i n c e t h e r e w as n o w r i t t e n p r o p o s a l i n t h e h a n ds o f SAAAM members a t t h em e et i ng t h e r e was c o n s i d e r a b l e c on f u s io n a s t o t h e i n t e n t a nd m ec ha ni cso f t h e pr o p o se d l i s t The pr i m a ry p u r p o s e s e em ed t o b e t o a s s i s t U .S.government a g e nc i es i n s e l e c t i n g q u a l i f i e d p r o f e s s i o n a l s f o r c o n t r a c ta r ch a eo l og y p r o j e c t s . What c r i t e r i a would b e u s ed f o r a c c e p t a n c e o n t o


3/59

t h e l i s t a nd who w ould make t h e c r i t i c a l d e c i s i o n s r em a in ed i n q u e s t i o n .A n ot he r p o i n t o f c o nc e rn was t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p o f s u c h a l i s t t oa r c h a e o l o g i s t s who w ork p r i m a r i l y o u t s i d e t h e U n it e d S t a t e s . W he th er o rn o t t h e l i s t wo uld b e c o n s u l t e d by o f f i c i a l s of o t h e r c o u n t r i e s when

re q u e s t s we re made fo r p e r mi t s t o e x c a v a t e t h e r e w as a ma jo r i s s u e . Whenth e members p re se n t were a s ke d t o v o t e o n s u p p o r t i n g s u c h a l i s t t h er e c o rd wa s: 1 7 y e s 4 n o s 6 a b s t a i n . P r o f e s s o r A r t J e l i n e k was a s ke d t ocon vey t h e d e c i s i o n a nd t h e s e v e r a l s e r i o u s c o n c e r n s of t h e members o fSAAAM t o t h e Board o f SAA a t t h e i r ne x t mee t in g .

I n a cc o rd a nc e w i t h t h e r e g u l a t i o n s of t h e C h a r t e r t h e S t e e r i n gCommittee which w i l l a c t u n t i l t h e 19 77 m e e t in g was e l e c t e d . The newChairman i s P r o f e s s o r C Garth Sampson. A t t h a t p o i n t h e t oo k o ve r t h eg a v e l f ro m P r o f e s s o r S h e r y l M i l l e r who ha d c h a i r e d t h e b u s i n e s s s e s s i o n .The two members o f t h e S te er in g Committee were then e l e c t ed . They a r eP r o f e s s o r M i l l e r a nd P r o f e s s o r D av id L u b e l l.

F o l low in g a d d i t i o n a l w ords o f t h a n k s t o t h o s e who ha d be e nr e s p o n s i b l e f o r th e mee t ing and th os e who had s ta ye d on t l l t h e e n dth e C ha irman d e c l a r e d t h e me e t in g a d jo u rn e d .

The f o l l o w i n g a r e t h e o n l y t wo a b s t r a c t s of p a p e r s r e a d a t B os to nt o h a v e b e en r e c e i v e d .

J . Bower E a r ly Lower P a l e o l i t h i c t o o l s o f s u b-S ah a ra n A f r i c aD a ta h a ve b e e n g a t h e r e d on a s e r i e s of a t t r i b u t e s of c h o pp e rsand scrapers from Oldowan and Lower Acheulean assemblages.Mean va l ue s f o r t h e a t t r i b u t e s h ave been s t a t i s t i c a l l ycom pared w i t h a v ie w t o wa rd c l a r i f y i n g t a xo n om ic r e l a t i o n -s h i p s among t h e a s se m bl ag e s an d i d e n t i f y i n g c r u c i a l a s p e c t sof v a r i a b i l i t y i n t h e in d u s t r i e s .

A u g u s tu s S o rd in a s A V i s i t t o t h e T a s s i l i Summer 1 9 74A s h o r t a nn ou nc emen t p r i ma r i l y t o e mp h as iz e t h e c ompa ra -

t i v e l y e a s y a c c e s s t o t h e p l a t e a u v i a t h e Aroum P a s s a nd av i s i t t o t h e J ab ba re n f r e sc o e s The re a r e e x c e l l e n to p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r e c o l o g i c a l s t u d i e s a r c h a e ol o g i ca l re-s e a r c h o r s im p ly e d u c a t i o n a l t r a v e l . The g e n e r o s i t y a nde n th us ia sm d i sp l a y e d by t h e A lg e ri a n a u t h o r i t i e s a t t h eo a s i s of D j an e t i s s t r e s s e d . I n q u i r i e s s h ou l d b e a d d re s se dt o Messrs. S a i d H a l i l o u o r Z amaki Mo kh ta r a t D j a n e t f o r t h es e c u r i n g o f c o mp e te nt g u i d e s l a n d - r o v e r s a nd s u p p l i e s .T h es e a r e r e s p o n s i b l e g o ve rn me nt r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s a n damong o t h e r t h i n g s w i l l g u a r a n t e e t h e p r o t e c t i o n of t h es i t e s f ro m p i l f e r in g o r v a n d a li s m. On th e w h o le a mosts t i m u l a t i n g e x p e r i e n c e t h a t c an e a s i l y b e o r g a n iz e d on aC o- op er at iv e b a s i s by s e v e r a l u n i v e r s i t i e s .


4/59

NEWS IT MS

An e v a l u a t i o n o f t h e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l r e s o u r c e s o f e a s t e r n

Botswana has r e c e n tl y been completed by Pr of es so r Morgan Tamplin

from Tren t U n iv e r s i t y i n P e t e r b orou g h, Canada . sp ec ia l

r e s e a r c h g r a n t e n ab l ed P r o f e s s o r Ta mp li n t o r e c o r d a r c h a e o l o g i c a l

s i t e s i n Botswana and make recommendat ions on t h e i r p res er va t io n

and development. The archaeo logy o f t h e ar ea was a ls o evalu ated

i n t e r m s o f s p e c i f i c r e s e a r c h p ro bl em s.

The su rv ey was u n d er tak en by Tren t U n i v e r s i ty a t t h e r eq u es t

of t h e Nat ion al Museum of Botswana. The involvement of t h i s

U n iv e r s i t y i n su ch a p r o j ec t came ab o u t b ecau se o f Tr en t s

l on g- st an di ng i n t e r e s t i n e s t a b l i s h i n g l i a i s o n w i th a n i n s t i t u t i o n

i n a de v el op in g A f r i c an co u n t r y. Such a f f i l i a t i o n c o ul d b e

w i t h a u n i v e r s i t y o r o t h e r e du c at i on a l i n s t i t u t i o n , a museum

or an government agency.

L o ca l s u p p o r t an d d i r e c t i o n was g i v e n by t h e D i r e c t o r o f t h e

Na tio na l Museum of Botswana, Alec Campbell. spa ce i n t h e

museum was p rov ided fo r th e o r ga n i za t io n o f equ ipment , n o t es ,

and c o l l ec te d ar t i f a c t s and t h e museumrs Land-Rover was used

d u r in g t h e su rv ey. B ecau se o f h i s l o n g ex p er i en ce w i th an d

i n t e r e s t i n t h e a rc ha eo lo gy o f t h e c o u nt r y, M r Campbell

p r ov i de d i n f o rm a t i o n o n most o f t h e s i t e s v i s i t e d a nd d u r i n g

t h e l a s t week of t h e p r o j e c t , he p e r s o n a l l y g u id ed t h e s u rv e y t os i t e s i n t h e n o r t h ea s te r n p a r t o f t h e c ou nt ry .

A l t o g e t h e r P r o f e s s o r Tam plin s p e n t s i x weeks r e c o r d i n ? s i t e s

i n e as t e rn B otsw an a w i th i n an a re a co v er in g ap p ro x im ate ly 5 0,00 0

o f t h e co u n t ry s 2 30 ,0 00 sq u are m i l e s . An es t im a ted 2 ,00 0 m i l e s

w ere d r iv en w i t h in B o tswana , m o s t ly o n g ra v e l ro a d s and d i r t

t r ac k s , and an o th e r 5 00 m i l es were cov ered v i s i t i n g im p o r t ant

s i t e s i n a d ja ce n t c o u n t r i es . Over 40 s i t e s were seen i n Botswana,


5/59

most of which had been previously discovered but not formallyr e c o r d e d . The v a s t m a j o r i t y o f t h e s i t e s a r e I r o n Age, h oweversome l a t e , m idd le , and e a r l y S tone Age s i t e s w ere f ou nd i n c l u d i n gan unmixed Oldowan pebbl e t o o l s i t e on a h i g h t e r r a c e n e a r K anye.

t i s b el ie ve d t h a t t h i s i s t h e f i r s t re co rd ed i n s t a n c e of s uc ha s i t e i n B otsw an a and i s u n do ub te dl y o f v e r y g r e a t a n t i q u i t y.

S ton e-w a ll ed I ro n Age s i t e s w ere fo un d o n m ost o f t h e h i l l t o p sv i s i t e d i n t h e su rv ey . I n t h e so u th er n r e gi o n, s i t e s i n t h eK en ye, L o b a t s i , B eron es and Mo lep o lo le a r ea a r e o f t h e s to n ew a l l r i n g v a r i e t y , s i m i l a r t o s i t e s i n t h e n o rt h er n Orange F r eeS t a t e an d n o r t he r n Tr an s v aa l F u r t h e r n o r t h and e a s t , s i t e ss i m i l ar t o Mapungubwe i n Sou th Af r ic a a r e ex t remely abu ndan t .N o rth o f F ran c i sto w n th e r e a re a t l e a s t two Zimbabwe s i t e s o fm ajo r p r o p o r t i o n s . E a r l i e r s i t e s , s i m i l a r t o L eo p ar d' s Kopjeand Bambata Cave i n Rhode sia, were a l s o re cord ed.

Pr of es so r Tamplin commented on t h e number, v a r i e t y a n d r i c h n e s so f t h e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l s i t e s and a l s o on t h e f a c t t h a t m ost w erer e l a t i v e l y un to uc he d, e i t h e r by p r o f e s s i o n a l a r c h a e o l o g i s t s o rl o o t e r s . Many s i t e s do s u f f e r t h e e f f e c t s o f v e g e t a t i o n gr ow th ,e r o s i o n , and a ni ma l a c t i v i t y an d s t e p s s ho u ld be t a k e n t o p r e s e r v e

t h e r em ai ni ng s t r u c t u r e s .

C K Cooke, Cu rato r o f Monuments i n Rhodesia, i s a t p re se n tre-ex am ining t h e Wayland co l l ec t i o n s o f s to n e m a te r i a l h o p in gt h a t t h e r e s u l t s may fo rm t h e n u cl e u s o f a n a r c h a e o l o g i c a l s u r v eyfor Botswana. T h e l a t e D r Wayland was D i r e c t o r o f t h e G eo l o g ic a lS u rv e y o f Botsw ana; f o r t u n a t e l y h e l e f t a co m pl et e r e c o r d o f h i sf i n d i n g s an d c od ed e v e ry a r t e f a c t .

One o f t h e o b j e c t i v e s o f t h i s s u r v ey i s t o make recommendationst o t h e govern ment o f Botswana a s t o t h e d e s i g n a t i o n o f p a r t i c u l a rs i t e s o r g r ou p s o f s i t e s a s h i s t o r i c monuments so t h a t t h e s e maybe developed i n t o p a r k a r e a s a nd p re s e r v ed f o r t h e p e o p l e ofBotswana a s p a r t o f t h e i r n a t i o n a l h e r i t a g e . t i s hoped t h a t a l l t h i ssu rvey w i l l s e r v e t o a l e r t Botswanans t o t h e g r e a t a n t i q u i t y o fmany of t h e s i t e s i n t h e i r c o un tr y and t o t h e g r e a t d i v e r s i t y oft h e i r p r e h i s t o r i c c u l t u r a l h e r i t a g e . As p u b l i c a wa re ne ss o f t h eim po r tan ce o f t h e se s i t e s in c r ea se s , h ow ev er, p r o v i s io n s m us t b emade t o p r o t e c t an d p r e s e rv e them f o r p o s t e r i t y.

( ~ d i t o r i a l omment; t h i s l o o k s l i k e t h e l e f t hand n o t knowing whatt h e r i g h t i s d o in g . Perhaps D r s Cooke and Tarrlplin w i l l c o l l a b o r a t e . )


6/59

E a s t A f r i c a

The B r i t i s h I n s t i t u t e i n E a st er n A fr ic a

I t was n o t p o s s ib l e t o c a r ry o u t t h e seaso n o f ex cav a t io n a t Aksuma s p la nn ed f o r e a r l y 1 9 75 . H ow ever, o v e r a sh o r t p e r io d i n May t h e D i r ec to r,M r N e v i l le C h i t t i c k , t oo k p a r t i n emergency ex c a va t io n s a t a f r e s h s i t e i nAksum. T h i s work was d on e in a s so c i a t io n w i th Mo ns ieur E r i c G odet o f t h eE t h i o p i a n I n s t i t u t e o f A rc ha eo lo gy a nd M r R ich ard Wilding o f t h e N a t io n a lUniversi ty, Addis Ababa. The excav at ions were p rompted by pa r t s o f anAksumite bu i ld in g hav ing been exposed (and damaged) i n th e co urse o f d ig g in gt h e f o u n d a t i o n s f o r a new h o t e l o p p i s i t e p a r t o f t h e main g ro up o f s t e l a e .The Aksum building concerned i s of c o n s i d e r a b l e s i z e ( r a t h e r ov e r 20 m e tr e ssq u are ) an d th e w a l l s s t an d t o a maximum h e ig h t o f ab o u t 3 m e t res . T h e n a tu reo f t h e b u i l d i n g , w hic h a p p e a r s t o b e o f l a t e A ks um ite d a t e , i s n o t y e t a p p a r e n t .

I t d o es n o t a p p e a r t o b e a c h u r c h an d y e t t h e p l a n i s differen t f rom any knownA ksum ite h o u se . Of co n s id e rab le i n t e r e s t was t h e d i s c o v e r y o f t w o f u r n a c e si n post-A ksu mite l e v e l s from a f t e r t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f t h e b u i l d i n g ; t h e s ea r e be l ie v e d t o b e t h e f i r s t such a n c ie n t f u rn a ce s t o b e f ou nd . A p r e l i m i n a r ya c co u n t of t h e f i r s t two s e a s o n s t e x c av a t io n s ( 19 73 and 1 9 7 4 ) i s p u b l i s h e di n Volume I X (1974) of Azania. I t i s p la nn e d t o resum e f u l l - s c a l e e x c a v a t i o nw i t h a s u b s t a n t i a l te am i n J a nu a r y 1 9 76 .

In northern Kenya M r D avid P h i l l i p s o n , t h e A s s i s t a n t D i r e c t o r , h a sembarked on a su rv ey o f l a t e r p r e h i s t o r i c s i t e s : p a r t i c u l a r a t t e n t i o n i sb ei ng p ai d t o t h e i n ce p ti o n of p a st o ra l is m i n t h e a r e a and t o i l l u s t r a t i n gp o s s i b l e c o n t a c t s w i t h s o u t h e r n Kenya a nd t h e E t h i o p i a n h i g h l a n d s .R econ n ai san ce was ca r r i e d o u t i n t h e Marsab it -N o r th H or r a re a an d L a teS to ne ~ g e c c up a ti o n o f t h e s h o re o f Lake R ud olf a t t e s t e d fro m a t l e a s tt h e m id d le o f t h e t h i r d m il le ni um B C V r P h i l l i p s o n a l s o c a r r i e d o u ta b r i e f a r c h a e o l o g i c a l r e c o n na i s s an c e o f t h e Wa ji r an d Mandera d i s t r i c t si n t h e N o r t h e as t e rn P r ov i nc e . No a t t em p t was made t o l o c a t e s i t e s e a r l i e rth an tho se o f t h e Middle S tone Age . Abundant evidence was fo un d f o r w e t t e rc o n d i t i o n s i n e a r l i e r t i m e s , w hic h l i n k e d w i t h M iddle S to n e Age o c c u p a t i o n .The S to ne Age in d u s t r i e s o f l a t e r t im e s show a marked r e sem b lan ce t o th o s edescr ibed by J D C lark fro m a r ea s o f S o m ali a im m edia te ly t o th e e a s t . Ofp a r t i c u l a r i n t e r e s t i s t h e e x t r e m e s c a r c i t y o f p o t t e r y , w h ich was o n l yrecove red i n any quan i t y a t Melka Re (JBJ 3238) . O nly i n a v e r y fe w r e -s t r i c t e d a r e a s o f t h e Waj ir and Mandera d i s t r i c t s d oe s t h e g eo lo g y i n d i c a t et h e p o s s i b l e o c c ur re n c e o f r o c k s h e l t e r s .

I n August and September M r P h i l l i p s o n c a r r i e d o u t e x ca v at io n s a t a s i t enear L o ienge lan i sou th o f Lake Rudolf which y ie l de d harpoons . A f i r t h e ra cc ou n t o f t h i s w i l l be give n i n t h e ne xt is s u e of Nyame Akwna.

M r C h i t t i c k h as b een i n v i t ed b y t h e G overnm ent o f t h e D emo crat icRepublic o f S om alia t o p a r t i c i p a t e w it h s t a f f from t h e M i n i s t r y ofC u l t u r e i n a s u r v e y, b e g in n in g t ow ar d t h e end of O c t ob e r, o f t h e c o a s t a ls i t e s o f S om al ia .

M r P a t r i c k Pe nd er -C ud li p t h e S t a f f H i s t o r i a n , h a v in g c om ple te dh i s t h e s i s , Iramba S o c i e ty and H i st o r y, h a s now l e f t t h e I n s t i t u t e .


7/59

M r G a rl a ke , a f orm er member o f t h e I n s t i t u t e ' s s t a f f , r e p o r t s :I v i s i t e d Mozambique i n March 1 97 5 t o l o o k a t t h e p r o s p e c t s f o r

a r c h a e o l o g i c a l r e s e a r c h . During t h i s v i s i t I was a b l e t o l o c a t e a ndi d e n t i f y t h e s t one - wa ll ed r u i n o f Manekweni. I t l i e s o nl y 50 km.

from t h e coa s t nea r Vi l ancu l os , ne a r l y 500 lan s o u th - e a st o f t h ene a r e s t known zimbabwe. The s i ng l e e l l i p t i c a l s t one wa l l ed enc l osu r e ,50 m. by 65 m . a c r o s s , h a s w a l l s o f l i m e s t o n e 1 . 5 0 m. h i g h a n d 1 . 5 m.wide. Ou t s i de t h e r e a r e l a rg e m iddens ove r a wide a r ea , ev i dence o fmore i n t e n s i v e and e x t e n s i v e s e t tl e m e n t t h a n a l l b ut t h e l a r g e s t i n l a n dzimbabwes.

T hr ee weeks w ere s p e n t i n t e s t e x c a v a t i o n s i n J u n e . C h in e se p o r c e l a i na nd a l a r g e a ss em bl ag e of t r a d e b ea ds s u g ge s t t h a t t h e s i t e was i n h a b i t e di n t o t h e 1 7 t h c e n tu r y. The Ceramics f a l l i n t o two g r ou p s, t h e e a r l i e ra d i s t i n c t f a c i e s o f t h e Khami phase of t h e Zimbabwe t r a d i t i o n . A s t h i si s t h e f i r s t l a t e r I r o n Age e x c a va t i on i n Mozambique f o r 45 y e a r s i t i sn o t y e t p o s s i b l e t o p la c e t h e f i n d s i n a r e g i o n a l c o n t e x t . Carbon s am ple sa r e p r e s e n t l y b e i ng pr o c e ss e d . T he re a r e good g ro un ds f o r a r g u i n g t h a tManekweni was th e Shona co ur t of Gambe, e s t ab l i sh ed i n th e f i f t e e n t hce nt ur y by mig ra nts f rom th e a re a of Great Zimbabwe i n Tonga cou nt ry ,and v i s i t e d and desc r i bed by Fe rnandes and S i l ve i r a i n 1560 . I t i s hopedt o con t i nue t h i s work on a l a rg e r s c a l e nex t summer.

The work was u n de r ta k en u n de r t h e a u s p i c e s o f t h e U n i v e r s i t y o fLourenco Marques and with very close cooperat ion of the new Frel imop r o v i n c i a l and d i s t r i c t a d m i n i s t r a ti o n s . I t was f i n a n c e d by t h e B r i t i s hI n s t i t u t e i n Fa s te r n A f ri c a. I h av e j u s t t a k e n u p a p o s t a s a l e c t u r e ri n th e Depar tment of Anthropology a t U niv ers i ty C ol le ge , London.

M r. S tu a rt Munro-Hay, a ph.D. s t ud en t from t h e School of O ri e nt a l

Afr ican s t ud ie s i n London has been awarded a Research Studen tsh ip by t h eI n s t i t u t e t o e n a b le him t o work on h i s t h e s i s , a s t u dy of Aksumitef o r ei g n r e l a t i o n s i n t h e f o u r t h c e nt ur y A.D. He i s examining bui ld ingsi n t h e Yemen a t t h e t i m e o f w r i t i n g .

M r. Michael Mehman ca r r ie d out exc avat ions a t t h e impor tant StoneAge c a v e s i t e a t A pi s Rock i n n o r t h e r n Ta nz an ia a nd was a s s i s t e d i n t h i se n t e r p r i s e by t h e I n s t i t u t e , a l th o ug h i t was mainly f inanced elsewhere,

The l n t i t u t e l s p ub l i ca t i on s , i n a dd i t io n t o ~ z a n i a X have been a sfo ll ow s: Memoir No. 3,J.E.G. Su tt on , The Archaeology of t h e WesternHigh lands of Kenya B.I. E.A ., 1973 Hardcover 1974 E ( ~ i s t r i b u t e d y Thames

Hudson)

Memoir No.4

,J .s . Kirkman, For t Jes us :A

P o rt u gu e se F o r t r e s son t h e Eas t A fr ica n Coas t , Clarendon Pre ss , 1974 12.50Memoir No. 5 H.N. C h i t t i c k , K i l w a : An Isl am ic Trading C it y

on t h e Eas t Af r i can Coas t , Vo l . 1 Hi st or y Archaeologyr Vol .11 Thei nds , B . I . E . A . 1 97 4, 25 t h e s e t .

A l l pr i c e s wi t h 33 and one t h i r d d i s co un t t o members.


8/59

Ethiopia

~gc her ch es rchkologiques d a m la Hggion du Soddo en Ethiopie

Francis Anfray

En 1974 fut entrepris lt inv entaire es sites et des monumentsanciens que conserve la rggion du Sod& au sud-sud-ouest dtAddis-Abeba.Quarante-sept sites furent rgpertorigs; tous les monuments photographigset bon nombre d'entre eux dessings.

Les travaux ont 6t6 poursuivis cette annge, en mai et juin. Vingt-neuf sites ont 6tk visitgs d a m les cantons de Souten et de Limen. Neufde ces sites gtaient d6ja connus par des tgmoignages anciens. C'estdonc vingt-neuf sites et de nombreux monuments qui ont 6t6 dkcouverts en 1975.

Certains de ces sites, par l a quantitg des s6pulturesY constituent

de vgritables cimetizres antiques. Deux au moins de ces cimetikres ontplus de deux cents tombes. Celles-ci sont rectangulaires ou poly-gonales. Des pierres plates enfoncges dans le sol , de chant , endglimitent les contours. Ces pierres sont mitoyennes assurant ainsilf6t ro it e contiguitg des s6pultures qu'aucune dalle ne recouvre.

Des monolithes dress& (ou qui le furent) offrent des aspectsvarigs. La plupart sont ornementgs. Le d&or est fait d'glgmentsfiguratifs dont la signification n'est pas claire.

Les monuments 6tudigs cette annge dans le S o d d ~ euvent Streclass& en trois catggories:

- stsles, avec ou sans dgcor;- pierres monumentales & forme hwnaine;-pierres hgmisphgriques ou coniques.Beaucoup de ces pierres marquent l'emplacement de s6pultures. I1

y a donc lieu de leur attribuer un caractsre fungraire. Ainsi qu 1 2leur dgcor.

Les stsles ant entre un et cinq mktres de hauteur. Nombre dten treelles sont couchges au sol. Quelques-unes, gpargn6es par le temps etles hommes, se dressent encore lte ndr oit 3 originellement ellesfurent plantges.

Elles ont deux cbtgs. L t u n st aplani et prgsente une figurationd'objets symboliques,sculpt6s en champlevg. On reconnalt des 6p6esforme romaine; en-dessous, des symboles sybillins provoquent l'imagina-

tion: figures gkomgtriques et plante stylis6e , ainsi dgsigngecause de sa ressemblance avec un palmier.Les gpges sont toujours reprgsentges avec les gdom6triesY mais

celles-ci peuvent 5 lTo cca sio n ccuper tout le champ de la stsle,sans les gp6es.

L ' ordonnance des 6pges et des symboles montre des traits constantsLes gpges sont toujours sur la partie haute de la stkle et les ggomgtriessur la p r t i e basse, Les 6pges ont leur pointe dressge ou abaissge;elles ne sont jamais dispos6es horizontalement. La plante est presquetoujours en bas. Entre la plante et les gpges figurent le plus souventdeux disques et un semblant de W versg (cette marque prgsente des variantes).


9/59

On remarque cependant que si les figures sont pareilles, leur disposi-tion change d'une stkle lt au tr e. Et notamment le nombre des dpdes.L'ensemble dvoque une composition h6raldique. I1 offre l'aspectd'armoiries qui pourraient s'interprdter comme une allusion la qualit6

du mort ou de sa parentkle. Ce n'est la qu tu ne amorce d1hypoth 8se.Ces stkles dkcor sont nombreuses. On en recens6 une soixantaine.

Plusieurs restent 2 inventorier. Un m@me site peut en comporter de unetrent-trois.

Certaines stkles nl on t ni 6pdes ni gdomdtries mais exclusivementune figure humaine rdduite ses contours lindaires. En relief. Laface ronde n'a d'autre visage que trois bandes verticales parallkles.Ces images taillges dans la pierre, actuellement connues, sont aunombre de cinq.

Les pierres anthropomorphes ont une silhouette trks schkmatique:un tronc duquel deux bras se dgtachent et que surmonte une t@te rec-tangulaire oG.deux petites cavitds figurent les yeux, tout cela composeun corps 2 forme humaine, simplifig llex tr@me. Des traits grav6sdgcorent la pierre lindairement. L'un de ces monuments, massif,mesure prks de trois mktres.

Ces monolithes sont l'dcart des sites stkles. Quelquefoisproximitg.

D'autres pihrres sont fa~ onn des n fonne dlhkmisph&es ou decdnes rgguliers. Le diamktre des pierres hdmisph6riques est d'unmstre, approximativement. Un mktre est kgalement la longueur despierres coniques; environ soixante centimstres le d im str e e leurbase.

Les pierres hgmisphgriques sont parfois disposdes en demicercle.

La partie plane de ces pierres est en haut , curieusement. Le reste estenfoui dans le sol.

Remarques ggndrales

Une houle de collines tel est l'aspect du Soddo, notmelilt. ansla rdgion de Tiya. Les hameaux sont dispersgs. Des sentiers, parmiles buissons, les relient les uns aux autres.

La plupart des sites sont dtablis sur les collines, au sommet;mais pas tous. Certains se trouvent au pied.

Les stkles ne montrent pas d'orientation dgterminde. Leurs facessculpt6es sont tournges dans des directions variges.

Des similitudes essentielles entre les monuments du nord etceux du sud les assignent au meme ensemble culturel. Par exemple,tous la plante stylisge donne un caractkre d'unitk. Des diffgrencescependant permettent de distinguer deux groupes traits spgcifiques.Au nord , un souci de symgtrie caractgrise les monolithes 2 dpges. Ausud, le dgcor, sur les deux faces des stkles, offre une apparencetarasbicotge

Ces monuments sont llexpress ion culturelle d'une ethnie qu'il estdifficile d'identifier. Son habitat ancien n'a pas 6t6 repgrg.


10/59

De multiples questions se posent. A quelle kpoque ces monumentsont-ils 6t6 taill6s et dress&? En fournissant des donnges concrktes

t notamment des vestiges organiques, des fouilles apporteront quelqueseclaircissements utiles. Quatre sondages effectugs cette ann6e n'ontlivr6 aucun indice de datation. Dans trois tombes, aucun fragmentd l o s 'a 6t6 recueilli. I1 serait surprenant qu'on ne dgcouvre rienqui puisse favoriser une dgtermination chronologique.

Les recherches de 1'Institut 6thiopien dtarch6010gie erontpoursuivies dans le Soddo en 1976.

I1 y a lieu de signaler qu's l'occasion de ces recherches, en1975, deux sites palkolithiques ont kt6 dkcouverts, Sombo-Menisa et2 Tiya. Hachereaux et bifaces de llacheulken inal.

Kenya

Reconnaissance at the northern end of Lukenya Hill 27 miles eastof Nairobi, ~ e n ~ a ) n an area of the hill that had only been cursorilyexplored up to this time resulted in the discovery of an extensivecemetery of the East African Stone Bowl culture. The cemetery consistsof two groups of cairns in rockshelters and crevices on a pair ofrocky knolls. A third group of burial places, which may be of laterdate than the others, occupies a neighboring knol l, locally known asHyena Hill. The burials on Hyena were made in small rockshelters, theentrances of which were carefully sealed with rock slabs. Bone pre-servation is excellent for the Hyena Hill burials.

Since some of the cairns showed signs of having been recently dis-turbed , permission was granted to the National Museum of Kenya tocarry out salvage excavation of two of the East African Stone Bowlculture cairns. The largest of the two yielded 3 stone bowls ofvolcanic tuff pestle-rubbers gneiss palettes (for preparing ochreobsidian blades and other implements, and miscellaneous manuports.The smaller cairn, evidently a single interment, contained a stonebowl of volcanic tuff , a spheroidal pestle-rubber, and worked obsidian.In neither cairn was human bone discovered due to the highly acidicfill.

Presently the excavated specimens are being studied and drawn, andthe results of the salvage operations will appear in a forthcoming

number of Azania. The Lukenya Hill finds provide a useful series forcomparison with East African Stone Bowl culture burials elsewhere inKenya and Tanzania as the cemetery is the first of its kind to be re-ported east of the Rift Valley. Further excavations are planned.

R.M. GramlyC.M. NelsonJ. Onyanjo-Aubje


11/59

Dr. Osaga Odak of Nairobi writes that he has been involved inthe Research Programme of Kenyan Antiquities for the last three years

programme concerns:

Systematic survey and prospect for prehistoric sites and(national) monuments in all areas and all periods of Kenyaand to conduct preliminary investigation (and possible salvage)of sites reported by the public, especially those about to bedestroyed by natural or man-made alterations, particularly inso far as the said sites and monuments have been established,through evaluatory exercise or otherwise, to be importantaspects of our country s history, culture and nature.

Compilation and keeping up-to-date record of all known sitesof antiquities (prehistoric sites and monuments) and prominentrelics in Kenya and to evaluate, whenever possible by standardtest-pit technique, such sites of potential importance and thatneed immediate attention.

i) Arrangement of preservational possibilities for identifiedsites (if such preservation is deemed necessary) and investi-gation into the best methods of preserving and protecting sitesfor which commitment for preservation has been made ii) atten-tion to conservation projects of Kenyan antiquitfes and monu-ments and also constant report on the conditions of variousmonuments and prehistoric sites in the country.

In line with the above, have compiled an inventory of Kenya s pre-historic sites and monuments. Since this cannot be accomplished withina short time period, it is hoped that the inventory will be continuallyup-dated as new information emerges from the archaeological and alliedresearches being conducted under the auspices of the British Institute,University of Nairobi s department of History, Department of History ofKenyatta University College, the National Museum and other relatedinstitutions.

Besides, it has been decided, within the framework of ResearchProgramme on Kenyan Antiquities, to undertake specific case studies ofcertain aspects of Kenyan antiquities which require immediate attention.One of these is Prehistoric art in Kenya. Since little is known onthis subject, beginning from September this year , have embarkedupon the study of prehistoric art in Kenya with a special attention to(a) Aesthetic, magical and religious elements in Kenya s prehistoricart b) distribution of prehistoric art localities in Kenya, and(c) prehistoric art and ethnology in Kenya. In other words , the ideaisan attempt to emphasise the ethno-archaeological aspect of pre-

historic art.This study is expected to last about three years including one

and half years field work.


12/59

I am therefore requesting readers of NYAME AKUMA and theirriends working on similar or related fields to keep me informed of

their progress. I would also be very much appreciative to receiveany material on Kenya's prehistoric art from any reader who mayhappen to possess the same.

Dr. J.R.F. Bower writes:

I am reporting on behalf of both Charles Nelson and myself sinceI have recently joined Charles's expedition to study variability in theLate Stone Age and Stone Bowl Cultures of the Nakusu-Naivasha basin.The expedition, which includes 1 2 undergraduates from the Universityof Massachusetts ( ~os to n) , smaller number of African students, andvarious technical, excavating and supervisory staf f, arrived in Kenya

in July and will be in the field until August, 1976. So fa r, inaddition to preparing the students for field work and working outsundry logistical problems, the excavation of 2 burial cairns withstone bowls has been completed and an open site thought to representan early pastoral culture has been opened. All of these sites are atLukenya Hi ll, about 5 km. east of Nairobi, where the expedition hasbeen head-quartered during its tooling up phase. We expect to com-plete excavation of the open site and shift our focus of operationto the eastern Rift Valley by mid October.

Tanzania

Mr. A.A. Mturi , the Director of Antiquities, send the following report:

Ngorongoro Stone Bowl Burial Mounds :

The Department of Antiquities, under the direction of A. A. Mturi ,undertook the excavat ion of another burial Mound during September,1974. The mound excavated was situated in Rumbe Hill near the oneexcavated in 1973 and reported in Nyame Akuma No , 4 . Apart from skeletalremains which indicates multiple inhumations and the usual grave goodsof stone bowls, grinding stones, pestle rubber s, obsidian artifacts

and chalcedony beads, another iron ring was found associated with pestlerubbers and a complete pot. This association strongly suggest the con-temporanety of the iron ring with the stone bowls. Bone from the areaof the iron ring has been submitted for carbon-14 dating.

hT ake Nduta:The excavation started in 1973 and reported in Nyame Akuma No. 4

and No. was continued by the Department of Antiquities in 1974. Thearea from which the hominid skull was recovered was excavated down to thegreeninsh clay layer on which rested considerable amount of lithic andfaunal materials. The Area of the excavation was extended in an attemptto recover more hominid remains but none was found.


13/59

Mr. Ron Clarke has completed the reconstruction of the skullfound in 1973. The preliminary report on the skull and on the siteand Archaeology of the find have been completed and will be pub-lished soon. A date of 500,000 years from bone recovered from thefirst floor which contained the skull has been obtained by using theAmino-Acid dating technique. However, Amino-Acid dating technique isstill experimental and the date should be taken as tentative, thougha similar date has been obtained for the Makek bed of Olduvai Gorge.

bu est KilimanJ roThe archaeological reconnaissance as well as test excavation of

one of the areas from where stone bowls, pottery, obsidian arti-facts and bored stones stone-rings have been recovered duringfarming activities were reported in Nyame Akuma No. 4. Charcoalobtained from the test excavation of the Maua Farm was submitted to

Geochron Laboratory and the following determinations have been ob-tained. GX 3346 4140f 200 (2190 B.C. , GX 3347 2160 19 (210 B.C.and GX 3348 1545 140 (405 A.D. ). The samples of GX 3347 and 3348came from two different sites 15-30cm. below surface.

Although no stone bowls were found in situ it is , however, probablethat the Gtone bowls which have been recovered during farming activikiescome from the level from which the two carbon 14 determinations wereobtained. This might indicate that the stone bowl people lived inthe area until the first half of the first millenium A.D. and thismight explain the presence of iron objects in the Ngorongore Stone BowlBurial mounds. The presence of pottery in the level of sample GX 3346is another interesting occurence.

The Department of Antiquities undertook another generalreconnaissance work and excavation in the area during February/March,1975.

(IV) Nasera p pis Rock Shelter:Mr. Michael Melham of the University of Illinois started the

re-excavation of the site in April, 1975. He completed his fieldwork towards the end of July and he is now analysing his finds. Enormousquanity of artifacts and bone (more than 500,000 pieces) h ve been re-covered from two horizons- one at 70 -100cm below surface which isLater Stone Age and the other 1.5 metres below the surface which is

Middle Stone Age.

(v) Olduvai Gorge and LaeotilDr. M.D. Leakey continued with her work in Olduvai Gorge.

During July/August, she mainly worked at Laeotil. site in the Endulenarea of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Laeotil has producedhominid remains which are either contemporary or earlier than theearliest hominid remains recovered from Olduvai Gorge.


14/59

I n c o n n ec t io n w i t h t h e l a s t i t em D r R L Hay s e n d s t h e f o l l o w i n g :

F i e l d work i n t h e summer of 1 97 5 was d e v o te d t o t h e s t r a t i g r a p h yo f t h e L a e o t i l Be ds , w hic h b o r d er t h e O ld uv ai r e g i o n ( ~ a n z a n i a ) n t h es o u t h . T he se a r e c h i e f l y wind-worked t u f f s a nd c o n t a i n a r i c ht e r r e s t r i a l f a u n a i n c l u d i n g r e ma i ns o f h om in id s f o un d by M D Leakeyi n 1 9 7 4 a nd 1 9 75 . The L a e t o l i l Beds a r e s u b s t a n t i a l l y m ore t h a n 3 my e a r s o l d , t h u s c o n s i d e r a b l y e x te n d in g t h e r e c o r d o f h om in id e v o l u t i o ni n n o r t h e a s t e r n Tan za ni a.

M r M as ao , o f S imon F r a s e r U n i v e r s i t y , r e p o r t s :

a m s t i l l w o r k ia g on t h e LSA a nd t h e r o c k p a i n t i n g s o f C e n t r a lTa nz a ni a. hope t o h av e t h e f i n a l d r a f t o f my d i s s e r t a t i o n r e a d yby t h e e n d o f S p r i n g 1 9 7 6.

M rWaane, S . A. C. , now a g r a d u a t e s t u d e n t a t t h e U n i v e r s i t y o fI l l i n o i s a nd a t t a c h e d t o t h e Bepartment o f A n t i q u i t i e s i n Dar i s

p l a n ni n g t o r e t u r n t o Tan za ni a i n December i n 1 97 5 t o d o a r c h a e o l o g i c a ls i t e s ur ve y i n t h e Tukuyu K yela D i s t r i c t a r e a s . The p r o j e c t w i l lb e i n c l u s i v e o f b o t h I r o n an d S t on e Age s i t e s , b u t M r Waane s i n t e r e s ti s t h e I r o n Age.

A s f a r a s know, M r J o n a t h a n Karoma o f t h e U n i v e r s i t y o fC a l i f o r n i a ( ~ e r k e l e y ) nd a t t ac h e d t o t h e U n i v er s i ty of Dar e sSalaam i s d o in g h i s f i e l d work i s C e n t r a l Ta n za ni a f o r h i s ph D

Egypt

D r T. R H a y s w r i t e s :

During October and November, 1975 w i l l b e d i r e c t i n g e x c a v a ti o n sa t a P r e -d y na s ti c s i t e l o c a t e d on t h e we st bank o f t h e N i l e n ea r t h ev i l l a g e o f E l K h a t a r r a . The r e s e a r c h i s f u nd e d b y g r a n t s f r o m t h eN a t i o n a l S c i e n ce Fo u nd a ti o n a n d t h e S m it hs o ni a n I n s t i t u t i o n .


15/59

Ghana

P r o f e s s o r M . Posnansky s ends t he f o l l owi ng i n f o r m a t i on abou tt h e a c t i v i t i e s o f t h e De pa rt me nt o f A rc ha eo lo gy i n t h e U n i v e r s i t y :

1. A new a n n u a l p u b l i c a t i o n , S a n ko f a , h a s be en i s s u e d . ord e t a i l s s e e page .

2 . M r . E Effah-Gyamfi ha s now been awarded h i s M A f o r h i st h e s i s on t h e Oral Tradi t ions and Archaeology of BonoManso a nd h a s b ee n a p p o i n t e d t o a n A s s i s t a n t L e c t u r e s h i p a sf rom Octo ber, 1975.

M r . J Anquandah ha s been app oin ted Le c t ur er f rom Octob er, 1975.

We w i l l h av e 2 v a c an c i e s i n O c t o b er , 1 97 6 i n t h e L e c t u r e s h i p -S e n i o r L e ct u r e r g r a d e ( s a l a r y s e a l e f o r S e n i o r ( L e c t u re r , @ 7, 10 0x @200 @8,600; f o r L e c t u r e r @ 4, 90 0 7 , 20 0 , 1= 1.151.A p p l i c a n ts s h o ul d p r e f e r a b l y h av e ha d p o s t g r a d u a t e r e s e a r c he x p e r i e nc e i n A f r i c a a nd must p o s s e s s a p o s t g r a d u a t e q u a l i f i -c a t i o n . The appointment w i l l b e f o r ,c an d id a te s w i t h s p e c i a l i t i e si n S t o n e Age s t u d i e s a nd P r i m a to l o g y, C u l t u r a l An t hr op o lo gyand Genera l Old Wor ld Archaeology and Archaeologica l Technique .A pp li ca nt s s ho ul d i n t h e f i r s t i n s t a n ce w r i t e t o P r o f es s o r

M . Posnansky, Depar tment of Archaeology, Univers i ty of Ghana ,P . 0 . Box 3 , L eg on , Ghana f o r f u r t h e r d e t a i l s . The f r , i n g eb e n e f i t s i n c l u d e s u b s i d i z e d f u r n i s h e d a cc om mo da tio ns , f r e em e d ic a l and d e n t a l c a r e , c h i l d an d c a r a l lo w a nc e a nd b i a n n u a ll e a v e .

3 . Un i v e r s i t y Museum o f Ar chaeo l ogy : Dur ing t h e ye a r t h e g en e r a lr e h a b i l i t a t i o n o f t h e Museum was co n t i nu ed and a g r a nt f o rf u r t h e r new cas e s p r ov i ded by Unesco , M r . J Anquandah hasbeen a ppo i n t ed Cha ir man o f t h e C ur a t o r i a l Com mit tee o f wh i cht h e o t he r members a r e M r . Effah-Gyamfi and M r K Agyei-Henaky,M r . S. Apea-Dankwa on a gr an t f rom t h e In te r-U ni ve rs i t yC o un c il h a s b e en r e c e i v i n g a dv an ce d t r a i n i n g i n A r c h ae o l o g i ca lCons erva t ion a t Durham Un iv er s i ty and has o bt a i ne d t h e MuseumsA s s o c i a ti o n C e r t i f i c a t e i n C o ns e rv at io n .

4 . The f o l l o w i n g p r e s s r e l e a s e g i v e s i n f o r m a t i o n o n r a di o - ca r bo ndates f rom Begho:


16/59

PROGRESS I N DATING GHANA'S PAST

D a t es o b t a i n e d f ro m r a d i o c a r b o n d e t e r m i n a t i o n s made o n c h a r c o a ls a mp le s s e n t f ro m Begho i n B rong Ah afo t o J a p a n R a d io i s o to p e s L a b r a -

t o r y a n d j u s t r e l e a s e d h av e g r e a t s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r ou r knowledge o ft h e e a r l y h i s t o r y o f Ghana. Of p a r t i c u l a r im p or ta n ce i s a d a t e o fa round A . D . 1 30 o b ta in e d from a n i r o n f ur n ac e s i t e . T hi s i s t h e e a r l i e s tw e l l a u t h e n t i c a t e d d a t e f o r i ro n wo r ki n g w es t o f N i g e r i a . P r e v i o u s l yt h e e a r l i e s t known d a t e s f o r i r o n te c h n o l o g y i n Ghana were a r o u n d A . D .'780 f rom New Buipe i n Gonja . The e a r l i e s t f o r i r o n work ing i n WestA f r i c a a r e f ro m a r ou n d J o s i n N i g e r i a a n d a r e a b ou t 2 500 y e a r s o l d .D a t es w ere a l s o r e l e a s e d f o r t h e N yarko q u a r t e r o f Begho o f a r ou n dA . D . 1 0 20 a nd 1 0 9 5 . The to wn o f Begho i s t h e o l d e s t known tow n s i t ei n Ghana a nd was f amou s a s a mark et c e n t r e f o r g o ld a nd k o l a n u t swhich t h e t r a d e r s from th e Empire o f Ma li came down t o buy froms u c h imp o r t a n t me d ie v a l to wn s a s J e n n e o n th e N ig e r. I t i s b e l ie v e dt h a t m a jo r e x p a ns i o n o f w o rl d t r a d e f ro m A.D. 1 250 -13 50 l e d t o a ni n t e n s i f i c a t i o n o f t h e demand f o r g o l d f ro m Ghana a n d t h e g r o wt h o ft ow ns i m m ed i at el y t o t h e n o r t h o f t h e f o r e s t . As w e l l a s t o wn s t h eimpo r tan t s t a t e o f Bono Manso e a s t o f Techiman a l s o g rew up , The newd a t e s f o r t h e Nyarko q u a r t e r i n d i c a t e t h a t t h e l o n g d i s t a n c e t r a d e mayh av e b ee n im p o r ta n t e ve n b e f o r e t h e t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r y,

Exca va t io ns have been conduc ted a t Begho e v e r y y e a r s i n c e 1 9 7 0 ,I n 1 97 2 t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f Ghana e s t a b l i s h e d a r e s e a r c h c e n t r e a t H an i,t h e v i l l a g e n e a r e s t t o t h e mounds wh ic h mark t h i s o n ce i m p o r t a n t t o w n ,H an i i s s i t u a t e d some 30 mi l e s w e st o f Wen ch i. I n J u l y a n d A ug us tmore t h a n 2 0 s t u d e n t s , s t a f f a nd v o l u n t e e r s f ro m t h e U n i t e d Kingdom

and Uni ted S t a t e s o f Americaw i l l

c o n ti n u e t h e i r r e s e a r c h e s u nd ert h e d i r e c t i o n o f ' M e r ri ck P o sn an sk y, P r o f e s s o r o f A rc ha eo lo gy a t t h eI ln ivers i ty o f Ghana , Legon .

5 . M iss N yg aa rd h a s u n d e r t a k e n e x c a v a t io n a t a ' m id d le ' S to n eAge s i t e a t Tema a n d D r . A . B . S mith h a s c o mp le te d t h e r e -e x c a v a t io n of t h e Legon B o ta n i c a l Ga rd en s S to n e Age s i t e .

6 . I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e a r t i c l e s i n S ank ofa a nd t h e West A f r ic a nJ o u r n a l o f A r c h ae o lo g y t h e f o l l o w i n g p a p e r s o n Gh an ai ana r ch a eo lo g y h av e be en p u b l is h e d ( o r a r e i n t h e p r e s s ) d u r i n gt h e y e a r .

Mer rick Posnansky, 'Arc haeo logy , Technology and AkanC i v i l i z a t i o n ' , J o u r n a l o f A f r ic a n S t u d i e s ,T 1 (197 5 pp. 24-38.

L R C ro s s l a n d a nd M e r r i c k P o s n an s k y, p o t t e ry , P e o p le a n dTr ad e a t Begho i n The S p a t i a l O rg a n i z a t i o no f C u l t u r e , e d . I H o d d e r ( ~ u c k w o r t h , ond don).

Mrt-r ick l'o:;tw.nsky, ' A r c h w o l o g y ' i n A f r i c a i n t h e S e v e n t i e s , e d .P N i t e c k i , ( o c c a s i o n a l P a pe r No. 8 De-p ar tm en t o f L ib r ar y a nd ~ r c h i v a l t ud ie s , ~ e ~ o n )pp. 15-30,


17/59

K. Myles, 'The Contribution of Archaeology to our Study ofthe Past', in West African Journal for HistoryTeachers, Vol.1, No.1, 1974.

J. Anquandah, Archaeology and the Arts of the Akan of Ghana ,Proc. of the Inter-University Conference on theHistory of the Peoples on either side of the Ghana-Ivory Coast Border, Kumasi ( ~ e g o n istory Department).

After our excavation at Begho, where I'll be joined by Rod McIntosh,I'll send a full report on our Begho work but it may have to waituntil issue No. 8 in April 1976.

The following reports from Ghana have also been received:

EXCAVATION AT THE D2 SITE ON THE DWINFUOR QUARTER OF BEE0

During the course of excavation on the Nyarko quarter of theancient site of Beeo (7 51 '~, O281w) in the Brong Ahafo region ofGhana in March-April 1975 , a new site littered with clay crucibles,pottery, and what appeared to be pottery gold-weights was discoveredby Mr T. Gerrard during a reconnaissance exercise to the west of theDwinfuor site which had been partially excavated in 1972. Oral traditionscollected in the neighboring modern village of Hani stated that the

Dwinfuor was the artisans' quarter of ancient Beeo.

In August 197 5, this site named Dwinfuor 2 ~ 2was excavated undermy direction with the help of students from the University of Ghana, Legon,Dartington College, England, and Educational Expeditions Internat ional,U.S,A. The site is almost flat with a gentle rise towards the northeastern corner. An area 36 metres x 30 metres was surveyed, and fourlarge trenches as well as eight pits 2 m x 2 m) were excavated.

STRATIGRAPHY:

The occupational deposit was up to 0.70 metres thick and therewere two main layers of occupation underlain by thick red clay andlaterite.

CULTURAL MATERIAL

1) Industrial material- Nearly five hundred fragments of claycrucible and ten complete crucibles were found in all trenches and pitsfairly evenly distributed in both layers in association with charcoal,ash, and numerous pieces of slag and furnace walling. Preliminarystudy of these crucibles indicates that they were probably used formelting copper as a number of the crucibles have in them deposits thatappear to be copper or copper alloy. There is thus strong evidence tosuggest that this was a small~scale ndustrial site where various smiths


18/59

( c o p p e r , g o l d , o r b l a c k - s m i t h s ) p r o b a b ly wo rk ed . t i s hoped t h a ta n a l y t i c a l s t u d i e s on t h e c r u c i b l e s a nd s l a g now i n p ro g r es s i n t h e

U n i v e r s i t i e s of Ghana and Cambridgew i l l

t hr ow more l i g h t on t h e n a t u r eo f t h e i n d u s t r i e s , a t t h e Dwinfuor 2 s i t e .2 ) Me t a l work- Le s s t h a n a s c o r e o f me t a l o b j e c t s wer e fo u n d

i n c l u d i ng a l a r g e me t al b r a c e l e t , o n e c op pe r o r b r a s s r i n g , and s e v e r a li r o n o b j e c t s ( ar ro w he a ds , k n i f e b l a d e s , r o d s , n a i l s , an d f i s h h o o k s ) .As t h e r e we re no t r a c e s o f h o u s e s i n t h e e x c a v a t i o n an d n o t manyf i n i s h e d i mp le men ts a nd t o o l s wer e f o u n d , i t would a p p ea r t h a t t h i swas e s s e n t i a l l y a worksh op s i t e and t h a t m ost f i n i s h e d o b j e c t s w er et ak en t o t h e r e s i d e n t i a l a r e a o f t h e a r t i s a n s q u a r t e r , t h e Dwinfuor 3s i t e where L C r o s s l a n d s e x c a v a t i o n o f c o l l a p s e d h o u se s y i e l d e d a muchg r e a t e r h a r v e s t o f m e t a l i m p le m en ts , b e a d s , a nd sm oking p i p e s .

3 ) P o t t e r y - E th n og ra p hi c s t u d i e s c o nf ir m t h e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l d a t at h a t p o t t e r y u s ed i n co nve ying w at er t o t h e s i t e s e rv e d a s p a r t o f t h er e g u l a r e q u ip n en t o f t h e s m i t h s. I n a d d i t i o n , t h e s m i t hs b ro u gh td om e st ic p o t t e r y t o t h e s i t e f o r c oo k in g an d s e r v i n g f oo d ( bo n es ofdom es t ic a ni m als were f ound i n t h e o c c u pa t i on a l ~ t e r i a l ) . n g e n e r a l ,t h e p o t t e r y t y p e s p r e v i o u s l y f ou nd i n t h e Brong a n d Kramo q u a r t e r s o fa n c i e n t Beeo o c c u r r e 3 a t Dwin fu or 2 . P a r t i c u l a r l y i n a t t e n d a nc e wast h e o v e r a l l p a i n t e d - s l ip a nd r o u l e t t e d Beeo w ar e s o c h a r a c t e r i s t i co f t h e 1 5 t h t o 1 7 t h c e n tu r y Beeo s i t e s . However, t h e p rese nce o f afew s l i p p e d s h e rd s w i th l i n e a r p a i n t i n g s uc h a s o c c u r re d i n t h e 1 2 t hCen tu ry N ya rk o q u a r t e r s i t e a b o ut h a l f a k i l o m e t r e n o r t h of Dw in fu or

. 2 i t e a r e s u g g e s t iv e of o c cu p a ti o n d ur i n g a p e r io d a n t e d a t i n g t h e

m a i n p e r i o d o f o c c u p a t i o n .

DATING

S e v e r a l f r ag m e nt s o f smoking p i p e s , o c c u r r e d c o n s i s t e n t l y i nl a y e r ( u p t o 0. 3 3 m e t r e s ) an d i m po r te d g l a s s a nd c a r n e l i a n b e a dsa s w e l l a s a p i e c e o f E ur op ea n i m p or t ed e a r t h e n w a r e w er e f ou n d i n t h esame l a y e r . No p i p e s o c c ur r e d i n t h e l ow er l a y e r . t i s l i k e l y t h e r e -f o r e t h a t t h e D winfuor 2 i n d u s t r i a l s i t e was i n u s e s om etim e- we g u es s -between 1500 A D and 1750 . t i s v e r y much o pe n t o q u e s t i o n w h e t h e rt h e w ork shop b eg an a s e a r l y a s 1 3 t h C e nt ur y.

CONCLUSION

T h e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l importance of Dwinfuor 2 p r o b ab l y l i e s ( 1 ) i ni t s r o l e a s a b r id ge between t h e e a r l i e r Beeo s e t t l em e n t ( ~ ~ a r k o h a s e )and t h e l a t e r s e t t l em en t ( ~ r o n g and 2 and Mus l im Quar te r phase ) and

2) n t h e f a c t t h a t h e r e we hav e what seems t o b e , t o a l l i n t e n t s a n dp u r p o s e s , a Rron g Akan i n d i g e n o u s s mi t h i n g s i t e wh ic h u s e d c r u c i b l e sp r o ba b ly f o r c o pp e r wo rk in g pe r ha p s a t a b o ut t h e same t i m e a s , i f n o te a r l i e r , t h a n t h e a n c i e n t Akwapim-Akan s m i t h i n g i n d u s t r y s o w e l l d e -s c r i b e d b y P r o f e s s o r C T Shaw from h i s Dawu s i t e .


19/59

REFERENCE

Posnansky, M . 1973 West Af r ic an Trade Pro jec t -Repo r t on Researchi n 1972 , Department of Archaeology Mimeograph,

Legon.

Shaw, C T 196 1 Exc ava t ion s a t Dawu ondo don

James Anquandah

SUMMARY OF EXCAVATIONS AT THE NYARKO A N D DWINFUOR SITESOF BEGHO 1975

D ur in g t h e s h o r t E a s t e r v a c a t i o n , work was u n d e r t a k e n a t t h e N yarko

s i t e l o c a t e d n o r t h o f t h e Dwinfuor q u a r t e r . T r a d i t i o n s c la im ed t h a t t h ese tt le m en t was founded by Afua Nyarko and formed p a r t of Begho. Ina d d i t io n t o t h e e x ca va t i on , s u r v e y work was c o nd u ct ed t o d e l i m i t t h ee x t e n t o f t h e s i t e which was f ou nd t o s p r e ad o u t t o t h e n o r t h a nde a s t a l on g t h e f ar m ro ad r u n ni ng t o t h e n o r t h - e a s t.

A t h r e e me tr e g r i d was l a i d o ut o v e r a wide a r e a i n wh ic h a n i r r e g u -l a r l y s ha pe d s h a l l o w d e p r e s s i o n was s i t u a t e d a p p ro x i ma t el y 18 m e t r e sa c r o s s . A t o t a l of u n i t s , two m ea su ri ng 6 x and one h a l f me t re s andt h r e e m e as ur in g 3 x a nd one ha l f me t r e s w er e e xc a v a t e d . I n a l l o nl ytwo m ain s t r a t i g r a p h i c u n i t s w ere r e c o g n i ze d ; a t h i c k b l ac k s o i l r i c hi n humus a bou t 80 cm th i c k c o n t a in ing l a rg e po t she r d s a nd a n ima l bon e su n d e r la i n by a s t e r i l e r e d l a t e r i t e g r a v e l . T h i s s t r a t i g r a p h y was af e a t u r e o f t h e l ow er a r e a o f t h e s i t e . The a r e a o f h i ghe r g r ou nd ha da t h i n b l a c k t o p s o i l u n d e r l a i n by compact c o l l ap s e d w a l l m a t e r i a l ,c o n s i s t i n g o f s u b s o i l mixed w i t h p o t s h er d s l a r g e l y m ea su ri ng l e s s t h a n

cm ac ro ss . Two ch ar co a l samples were ob ta ine d , one c o l l e c t e d f romt h e t h i c k b l a c k l a y e r p r ov i d ed a d a t e o f 112 0 7 5 A D ~ 2 1 4 1 ) nd t h ese co nd fro m t h e t o p o f t h e s t e r i l e l a y e r a d a t e o f 1 045* 80 A D ~ 2 1 4 2 ) .FINDS

The p o t t e r y i s q u i t e d i f f e r e n t from t h e 1 5 th -1 8 th c e n t u r y r e ds l i p p e d Begho t y p e p o t t e r y a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e B r on g, Kramo, a ndDwinfuor qu ar te rs . Micaceous and Des ign-pa in ted p o t te r y were foundand ha s c l o s e s i m i l a r i t y wi t h m a t e r i a l dug r e c e n t l y f rom t h e D2 s i t e

n o r t h o f t h e Nyarko a nd we st o f t h e Dw in fu or q u a r t e r a nd c h a r a c t e r i z e dby l a r g e numbers o f c r u c i b l e s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e l a t t e r i n s u r p r i s i n g l yl a r g e q u a n t i t i e s . The p o t t e r y i s h e a v i l y w ea th er ed and h a s a h i g hi n c i d e n c e o f n o t c h i n g on r i m s and o f c ar ve d r o u l e t t e m o t i f s on t h eb od y sh e r d s .

One i n t e r e s t of t h e s i t e l i e s i n t h e a b un da nt and we ll -p re se rv eda n im a l re m a in s t h r o u g h o u t t h e o c c u p a t i o n w i t h a p r e v a l e n c e o f b o v i dremain s and a la r g e number of worked frag men ts . T h e r e was ne i t he ri v o r y no r e v ide nc e o f w ea ving o r smoking a l t hou gh e v ide nc e f o r t h e u s eof copper and i r o n was found.


20/59

1975 Begho D3

D ur in g t h e l o n g v a c a t i o n o f 1 97 5 a t h i r d s i t e o n t h e Dw infuorq u a r t e r was e x c a va t ed to wa rd s t h e c e n t r a l a r e a o f t h e q u a r t e r a b ou t 7 0m e tr e s e a s t o f t h e D l s i t e e x c av at ed a t Ea s t e r 1 9 7 2 . The D3 s i t ec o n s i s t i n g o f a s e r i e s o f mounds w i t h t wo d e p r e s s i o n s was c h o se n f o re x c a va t i o n f i r s t l y t o p r ov i de more m a t e r i a l f o r c om pa ri so n w i t h t h eo t h e r B egho s i t e s , a nd s e c o nd l y t o l o c a t e a h o us e mound s i t e w hi chwould enable M r Rod McIntosh t o conduc t expe r imen ts on we l l da te dc o l l a p s e d w a l l s .

A t o t a l o f u n i t s , m ea su ri ng 6 x 2 m e t r e s e a c h , a n L shapedt r e n c h me a su r i n g 5 x 5 x 2 m e t r e s a n d t h r e e u n i t s e a c h m e a s u r i n g 2m e t r e s s q u a r e were du g. The s t r u c t u r e o f t h e s i t e i n d i c a t e s t wo p h as e so f a c t i v i t y . The S .E . a r e a e mb od yi ng Tr e n c he s 1 3 , and 5 r e v e a l e d as h al l ow c i r c u l a r t r o u g h b e n e at h t h e o c cu p at i on l a y e r a bo ut 2 m et r e sb el ow t h e p r e s e n t s u r f a c e whi ch me as ur ed a b o u t 6 x 3 m e t r e s a c r o s s .Th i s t rough was p robab ly dug a s a borrow p i t t o o b t a i n e a r t h f o r t h emud wa l l s o f n e a r b y b u i l d i n g s . The t r o u g h was l a t e r f i l l e d w i t h 90 cms.o f r u b b i s h an d a t a l a t e r ph as e a b u i l d i n g was Q o n s t r u c t e d o n t h e s p o t .

Ver y good t r a c e s o f c o l l a p s e d w a l l m a t e r i a l a n d p r o b a b l e w a l lstumps s t a n d i n g on t h i n l i n e s o f l a t e r i t e p l a tf o r m s were f ou nd i n t h es t r a t i g r a p h y of Tre nc he s 1 and 5 . The s t r a t i g r a p h y o f t h e n o r t h e r na r e a o f t h e s i t e i n d i ca t e s a t h i c k r u b b i s h l a y e r o f l o o s e b la ck e a r t hw it h l a r g e p o t sh e rd s o v e r l yi n g a n o l d l a n d s u r f a c e of l a t e r i t e r o c k s .The rubbish dump may probably be contemporaneous wi th t h e main occupa-

i o n . Three b u r i a l s were found . The one i n Trench was found ly i n g i nl o o s e a s hy l a y e r b elow t h e b u i l d i n g . The s e c on d a nd t h i r d i n t h e L -24

Ex t e n s i o n , was t h a t o f a n a d u l t a nd a c h i l d . A l l t h e t h r e e s k e l e t o n swere b u r i ed l y i n g on t h e i r r i g h t s h ou l de r s an d f a c i n g t o t h e e a s t .Brong b u r i a l c us to ms i n t h e a r e a e x p l a i n t h a t men we re b u r i e d f a c i n gt o t h e e a s t a nd women t o t h e w e s t .FINDS

a P ott ery -T he p o t t e r y i s c l o s e l y s i m i l a r t o t h e p o t t e r y e x ca va te dfrom t h e Kramo, Brong, and th e Dwinfuor D l s i t e s .

b Smoking pipes-184 smoking pi pe f rag men ts were found, t h el a r g e s t number y e t r e c o r d e d f ro m Begho. The p r ed o mi n an t s t y l e , t h e

r i n g b a se was r e s t r i c t e d t o t h e l ow er l a y e r s , and t h e f o l i a t e o rq u a t r e f o i l v a r i e t i e s a s s o c i a te d w it h t h e up per l a y e r s .

c M e t a l l i c o b j e ct s - 114 f e r r o u s o b j e c t s c o m p r i s in g a rr ow h ea df r ag m en t s, b a n g l es , r i n g s , k n i v es an d d i s c s , t h e s i z e of 20p. c o i n swere f o u nd . L es s t h a n 1 0 p i e c e s o f i r o n s l a g were f o un d a n d t h e d i s -cove ry o f a n e a r l y c o m p l e t e c r u c i b l e a n d s m a l l c l a y f u r n a c e p l u g s n e a rt o what a p p e a r s t o be a s m it h in g a r e a i n d i c a t e s p r o b a b ly t h a t s m a l ls c a l e wo rk in g o f m e t a l s o t h e r t h a n i r o n was c a r r i e d o u t a t t h e s i t e .9 p i e c e s o f c u pr o us o r c u pr o us a l l o y s w ere f o un d i n c l u d i n g a f r a g -ment o f t w i s t e d b a n g l e .


21/59

d ) Iv ory -3 iv o r y o b je c t s o r f r ag m en t s o f i v o r y w ere r eco v eredI n c l u d i n g a s m a l l c a rv e d comb w i t h c i r c u l a r e n g ra v i n gs s i m i l a r t o t h ed eco ra t iv e m o t i f s o n t h e s ide -b lo w n t ru m p e t s ex cava ted fro m B2 s i t e i n

1972.e ) Bones-A ch ar ac te r i s t i c f ea tu re o f t h e b on es i s the predominance

o f b i rd b on es and th a t o f sm a l l an im a ls a s compared t o th e Nyarko s i t e ,from which la r g e r animal bones were ob tai ne d. Fresh-water mollu scswere c o ll e ct e d probably from t h e nearby Nimpene strea m. 4 cowriesh e l l s and a number o f l an d s n a i l s of v a r i o u s sp ec i es were a l s o fo un d .

f ) Beads-57 g la s s beads and one bead made from qu ar tz c r y s t a lwere found.

g S p in d le Whorls-24 sp in d le w h o rl s of ab o u t fo u r d i f f e r e n tshapes were found.

DISCUSSION

A s f a r a s c an b e de du ce d fro m t h e m a t e r i a l from t h e two s i t e s ,t h e Nyarko s i t e r e p r e s e n t s a d i f f e r e n t p ha se i n t h e c h r o n o lo g i c alh i s t o r y i n t h e Begho a r e a . The c er am ic t r a d i t i o n i s q u i t e d i s t i n c tan d u n l i k e t h e p o t t e r y y e t e x ca v at ed from t h e 1 6 / 1 8 t h c e n t u r y p h a se sa t t h e Brong, Kramo, and Dwinfuor D l and D3 s i t e s . Nyarko po t t er yd i s p l a y s c l o s e s i m i l a r i t i b s w it h t h a t from t h e Dw infuor D2 s i t e an dt h e two s i t e s pr o ba b ly b el on ge d t o t h e same t r a d i t i o n .

L . B . Crossland

R O N FURNACE EXCAVATIONS AT SREDE AND DAPAA DEBIBI)

Excavations have been conducted a t Begho s in ce 1970 bu t inad equ atein fo rm at io n h as b een o b ta in ed o n t ech n o lo g y o th e r th an p o t t e ry. The1 97 5 seaso n was d es ig n ed t o p l a ce a p r i o r i t y o n t ech n o lo g ica l i n fo rma-t i o n . To t h i s end a s tud y o f sp in n ing and weaving i n th e Han i are a

w hic h h a s i t s f o c u s a t ~ e b i b i ) as u nd er ta ke n. The m e ta l w orkshop a tD2 was ex cav a ted an d t h e v a r io u s s i t e s w here i ro n s l a g o ccu r s i nabu nd an ce on th e su r fac e w ere ex cav a ted . A l to g e th e r i r o n s l ago ccu r ren ce s w ere p l o t t e d and ap p ear t o h av e a random d i s t r ib u t i o n th o ug ha l l w ere fou nd b ecau se th ey w ere o u tc ro p p in g a lo n g f o o tp a th s o r w ere

n ot ed n e ar t h e t r a c k s d u r in g fa rm in g a c t i v i t i e s . t i s t h u s o bv io ust h a t many s t i l l aw ai t d is co ve ry . The o r a l t r a d i t i o n s o f a l l t h e v i l l a g e sa ro un d Hani c l e a r l y i n d i c a t e t h a t i r o n s m e l t i n g was n o t u n d e rt a k enw i t h i n t h e l a s t 80 o r 90 y e a rs w i t h i n t h e g e n e r a l a r e a t ho ug h s m it hi n gwas q u i t e p rev a len t t i l l t h e mi dd le o f t h i s c e n t u ry. A t E a s t e r t h en e a r e s t l a r g e o c c ur re n ce of s l a g t o t h e v i l l a g e o f H ani was i n v e s t i g a t e d0 .5 km t o th e so u th -eas t o f Hani on t h e ro ad t o N asan a. The s i t eknown as Atwetwebooso t h e p la ce o f i r o n s to ne s) o r N a m i c o n s i s t e do f a d en se s c a t t e r of s l a g , t u y e r e a nd f u r n a c e f ra g me n ts u p t o 1 0cm t h i c k w i t h t h e a c t u a l f u r n a c e f o cu s c l e a r l y d e f i n e d . d a t e o f A . D ~1 82 0f 80 N -2 14 0) was o b t a i n e d w hich i s t h e e a r l i e s t w e l l a u t h e n t i c a -t e d d a t e f o r i r o n working i n Ghana. D uring t h e e ~ c a v a ~ i o n f u r t h e r


22/59

s i t e ~ r e d e ) as n o te d some 2 .8 7 km west o f Nami a lo ng t h e same ro adw h i l s t i n t h e c o u r s e o f c o l l e c t i n g o r a l h i s t o r y M e ss rs Anquandah,C r o s s l a n d a nd G a r r a r d d i s c o v e r e d a s e r i e s o f l a r g e s l a g mounds t o t h es o u th o f D e b ib i a n d i t was d e c id e d t h a t b o t h s i t e s s h o ul d b e e x c a v at e d

d u r i n g t h e l o n g v a c a t i o n .

S r e d eT h i s s i t e pr ov e d t o b e s omewhat d i s a p p o i n t i n g . A t o t a l o f 1 7. 25

s q u a r e m e t r e s w a s excavated. Nowhere w a s t h e d e p o s i t more t h a n cm.t h i c k . t was e v i d e n t t h a t t h e s i t e was v e r y de nu de d a nd p r o b a b l y o l d .A l l t h e s l a g f r a gm e n ts w ere s m a l l v e ry f e w fu rn a c e f r a g me n t s w e re fo u n dand none were more tha n 10 cm. a c r o ss . Only 3 1 r e c o g n i z a b l e t u y e r ef rag ment s were fou nd , none o f which were whole o r more th an 1 5 cm. long.No f o c u s o f t h e f u r n a c e was l o c a t e d n o r we re a n y p i e c e s o f c h a r c o a lf ou nd s u i t a b l e f o r d a t i n g . P a r t o f a p o s s i b l e b r o ke n h am me rs to ne wast h e o n l y o t h e r f i n d r e co v e re d . The t o t a l a r e a of t h e main s l a g d i s -

t r i b u t i o n was a p p r ox i m at e ly 55 s q . m o v a l i n s h a p e me a s ur i ng 11 by6 m e t r e s . t was e v i d e n t t h a t t h e s m el ti ng a c t i v i t y was o n a r e l a t i v e l ys ma l l s c a l e a n d p o s s ib ly c o n te mp o ra n e o u s w i th t h a t o f A tw e tw e b o o s o .

D e b ib iB ec au se o f t h e p ro ble ms o f c l e a r i n g t h e t h i c k v e g e t a t i o n o n l y t e s t

e x c a v a t io n s w e re c o n d u c te d . The s i t e , a n i r o n w o rk in g c o mp le x , i ss i t u a t e d some 2 a n d o n e h a l f k m . t o t h e s o u th - e as t o f D e bi bi a lo n gt h e f o o t p a t h t o H ani a c r o s s t h e v a l l e y o f t h e Mampa r i v e r . The complexl i e s some 5 0 m e t r e s t o t h e n o r t h o f t h e mounds m ar k in g t h e o l d t ow n o fDapaa which t h e o r a l t r a d i t i o n s o f t h e P a n t e r a s p e a k in g p e o p l e s o fD e b i b i i n d i c a t e was s e t t l e d by re fu ge es f rom Begho and may have beeni n t u r n ab and on ed i n t h e e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y when t h e p r e s e n t tow n ofD e b ib i w a s f o u nd e d . Though t h e e x i s t e n c e of t h e s l a g mounds i s w e l lknown a nd t h e y a r e n o t i c e a b l e l an dm ar ks i n t h e d r y s e a s o n t h e r e a r e noe x t a n t o r a l t r a d i t i o n s a bo ut i r o n s m el ti ng .

T h e s i t e :

A l t o g e t h e r 1 4 s l a g mounds w ere l o c a t e d i n a n o pe n c i r c l e f o r m a t i o nsome 50 me tre s ac ro ss . Four o f t h e mounds were l a r g e ra ng in g from 20x10m e t r e s a c r o s s t o 24 x 1 2 m e t r e s , e a c h h ad s m a l l e r s a t e l l i t e moundsa s s o c i a t e d w hich a v e ra g e d some 6 x me t r e s a c ro s s . The l a r g e mounds

were be tween a metre and a metre and a h a l f i n h e i g h t , t h e s m a l l e r moundswere low er, up t o a round 70-80 cms. h i g h a t t h e mo st. The mounds werecomposed o f l o o s e c i n d e r s l a g w i t h many p i e c e s o f f u r n a c e p i p e o r t u y e r ea nd fu r n a c e f r ag m en ts c l e a r l y v i s i b l e . B ec au se o f t h e l o o s e n a t u r e oft h e mounds most were cove red by small t r e e s a n d b u s h e s .

On t h e s u r f a c e o f t h e mound n e a r e s t t h e t r a c k Mound 1 a b r o k e ndimpled hammerstone and a p o t t e r y d i s c g o l d w ei g h t we re f o u n d .


23/59


24/59

M r Kofi Agorsah , Ass is t an t Keeper- in -charge o f t he Vol ta Reg ionalMuseum a t Ho, sends th e fo l lowin g no t e , which re su l t ed f rom h i s work i nBrong-Ahafo :

A g r e a t d e a l of d e ba t e by h i s t o r i a n s , a r c h a e o l o g i s t s , e t h n o l o g i s t sand th e l i k e h as been made ab o u t th e so -ca l l ed p o l i sh ed s to n e ax es( ~ ~ a m ekuma ( ~ k a n ) So f i a , ( E k e) b u t t h e m y st er y o f i t s d e r i v a -t i o n s t i l l remain s a problem. But th e Ghanaian sto ne age man seemst o have manufact re d and used a more myster ious o b j e c t w h i c h f o r s e v e r a ld ec ad es h as be en a c e n t r e o f a t t r a c t i o n f o r d i s c u s s i o n by a r c h a e o l o g i s t sp a r t i c u l a r l y . T h i s o b j e c t g e n e r a l l y i s c y l i n d r i c a l a nd o v a l- s ec t io n e dan d o f e i t h e r s t o n e o r t e r r a c o t t a , w i t h ge o me tr ic s c o r i n g s o n on e o r b o t hf a c e s , and has been va r i o u s ly r e f e r r e d t o a s t e r r a c o t t a c i g a r , s to n er a s p , o r t e r r a c o t t a r a s p .

Up t o da te t i s d i f f i c u l t t o t e l l t h e o r i g i n of t h e ' r a s p ' ,i t s u ses an d even th e m a te r i a l f ro m w hich t was made- c l a y or st on e.A l th o u g h th e ' r a sp ' h as a lw ay s been ass o c i a t e d w i th e a r ly fo o d p ro -ducing so c ie t i e s o f Ghana da t in g t o some 4,000 years ago, no one i sc e r t a i n w h e t h e r t cou ld be o l de r. The main s i t e s f rom which th es eo bj ec ts were found inc lu de Kintampo, i n Brong Ahafo, Ntere so i n NorthernGhana nea r T amale, Mumute i n Brong Ahafo , ne ar Wenchi, and Chukoto anda t many o t h e r a r c h a e o l o g i c a l s i t e s i n Ghana. The i n t e n t i o n o f t h i sa r t i c l e t h e re fo r e i s t o draw t h e a t t e n t i o n o f G ha na ia ns , p a r t i c u l a r l yf i e l d w o r ke r s, t o e f f o r t s b e i ng made t o u n r a v el t h e m ys te ry s u r r ou n d in gt h i s o b j e c t by c o l l e c t i n g a ny d a t a a b o ut th em .

A t t em p ts have b een made t o p rese n t t h e form o f t h e o b je c t s i n ac l a s s i f i c a t o r y manner. G e ne ra ll y t h e ' r a s p s ' a r e f l a t t i s h and f a i r l y

wide, some between 6.20 cm. a t t h e w id es t p a r t s a nd f a i r l y t h i c k ,varying between 1.0 cm. - 3.5 cm. Some a r e ov al t o comp letelyc i r c u l a r s e c t i o n e d w i t h s i d e s w hich hav e t h e te n de n cy o f b e i n g p a r a l l e l ,b u t w h i l e i n some t h e s i d e s co nv erg e acu te ly to w ard s th e en d , o th e r s dono t and most o f te n end i n rounded o r s t r a i g h t ends . Very few of thp i e c e s r e co v e re d a r e w hole t o h e l p g i v e a g e n e r a l l e n g t h m e as ur em en t.T ho se w i th wh ich t h e w r i t e r i s acq u a in ted h ave l en g th s r an g in g b e tw een1 0 and 5 cm.

The main p a t t e r n s o f s c o r i n g d e c o r a t i o n s on t h e r a s p s i n c l u d eg r i d p a t t e r n c r i s s - c r o s s , s i n g l e l i n e a nd p ec ke d d e c o r a t i o n . Some' r as ps ' have combinations o f two o r more o f the se .

'Rasp' f i n d s w ere r e p o r t e d i n t h e G old C oa st a s f a r b ac k a s 1 91 2b u t t h e o b j e c t s were n o t c l o s e l y s t u d i e d u n t i l a b o ut 1 95 2 when c e r -t a i n a r c h a e o l o g i s t s a t te m pt ed t o e x p l a i n what t h e y w e re , t h e i r s o u r c e ,a n d t h e r a w materials from which they were made. They were f i r s t c a l l e d

t e r r a c o t t a C i g ar s b ec a us e t was thoug ht t he y were hard baked c la yw i th th e ap p ea ran ce o f c i g a r s . S ch o la r s who th o u g h t o th e rw ise ca l l e dthem ' rasps ' made from some other kind of sandstone probably ofv o lca n ic o r ig in . The au th o r managed t o g e t s i x p i e ces s ec t i o n e d w hichhe had from t h e s i t e of Mumute i n t h e Brong Ahafo re gi on of Ghaha.The r e s u l t s o f t h e a n a l y s i s i n d i c at e d t h a t t h e o b j e c t s i n q u es t io nwere o f some ty pe o f f i n e c l ay wi th some e lement o f i ro n con ten t . tseemed t h e o b je c t s w ere b ak ed a f t e r h avin g b een d r i ed i n th e su n . The

f a c e s were t h e n c a r e f u l l y s c o re d w i t h g e om e tr ic p a t t e r n s .


25/59


26/59

A no th er u s e of t h e r a s p was p o s s i b l y f o r m aking p o t t e r y i n as i m i l a r way i n wh ic h modern p o t t e r s i n t h e a r e a u s e m ai ze c ob s f o rs h a p in g v e s s e l s . But w h et he r t h e r a s p c o u l d h av e b ee n u s e d f o r

d ec or a t in g v e s s e l s i s d i f f i c u l t t o t e l l . The r ea so n beh ind t h i ss u g g e s t i o n o f t h e u s e o f r a s p f o r p o t t e r y m aking i s t h a t t h ei n t r o d u c t i o n i n t o West A f r i c a i n r e c e n t t i m e s o f m a iz e p r o b a b l yr e s u l t e d i n t h e abandonment of u s e of t h e r a s p s s i n c e t was moret e d i o u s t o make t he m. Th i s seems t o h av e o c c u r r e d s e v e r a l g e n e ra -t i o n s b e f o r e t h e modern p o t t e r s who do n o t seem t o ha ve a n y i d e a a st o what t h e r a s p s wer e a nd o f wha t u s e t h e y we re . The t i me g a p i sq u i t e lo n g. No e vi de nc e h as y e t b ee n fo un d f o r t h i s a s s e r t i o n b u t

t seems tha t i f t h e r a s p s were u s ed f o r making p o t t e r y a t a l l , i twas more l i k e l y t o ha ve b ee n u s ed f o r s h a p in g r a t h e r t h a n d e c o r a t i n g .

The abundance o f t h e r a s p s a t t h e s i t e of Mumute, a s a t t h eN t e r es o a nd Kintam po s i t e s , s u g g e s t s t h a t t h e y w ere r e l a t e d t o some-t h i n g pr o du c ed on a l a rg e s c a l e . The ov er wh el mi ng ma j o r i t y o fthem had been worn down and abandoned only a f t e r th ey had brok en ,p o s s i b l y b y t h e f o r c e o f p r e s s u r e o n t he m, t ho ug h i t i s h a r d t o t e l lhow t h e y wer e u s e d . The wea r p a t t e r n s on t h e r a s p s s u g g e s t t h a tt h e y c o u l d h a v e b e e n u s e d f o r a c t i v i t i e s t h a t i n vo l ve d p u sh i ng themb ac k and f o rw a rd l e n g t h w i s e , p e r h ap s a s t o o l s f o r g r i n d i n g a n d sh ap -i n g d e s i g n s on wood o r s t o n e o r f o r g r i n d i n g some k i n d o f m a t e r i a l ,r a t h e r i n t h e way t h a t t h e name r a s p s s u g g es t . s i s well knownwi t h modern s t e e l r a s p s t h e main work i s done by t h e numeroust e e t h and p r o j e c t i o n s p ro du ce d by g r oo vi ng t h e s t e e l i n a s o f tt empered m a t e r i a l . The t e r r a c o t t a r a sp s f rom Mumute do no t seem

t o h av e t h e h a r d n e s s a d e q u a t e enough f o r r a s p i n g e v en wood s i n c e t h et e e t h would b r e a k o f f and f a l l away q u i c k l y. The w ear p a t t e r n s a sm e nt io ne d a b ov e , how ever seem t o su p p o r t t h e u s e o f t h e r a s p s f o rr a s p i n g b u t f o r w h at , one ca nn ot t e l l .

B e si d es t h e o r i g h a l p ur po se f o r w hich t h e r a s p s w ere m ade,t h e o b j e c t s seem t o h av e bee n u se d f o r o t h e r s ec on da ry a c t i v i t i e s .

R a sp s 1 f ro m t h e N t e r es o s i t e ha ve b e en f ou nd w i t h c o n i c a l h o l e sp e r f o r a t e d n e a r o n e e n d , an d w i t h gr o ov e s s i m i l a r t o g ro ov ed s t o n e ss u pp o se d ly u se d f o r b e ad p o l i s h i n g . t a pp ea rs t h a t t h e o r i g i n a lform o f t h e r a sp cou ld be changed by us ing i t f o r s o me o t h e r p u r p o s e .The p e r f o r a t e d r a s p s c o u l d h av e b ee n u s e d a s p en d a n ts s u ch a s f i n d sfro m Nt e r e s o , Ti- n- de he r a nd E l Ke l a r e a s of t h e Sa h a r a seem t o s u g g e s t .The u s e o f t h e r a s p s a s m a g ic a l o b j e c t s i s t h e r e a s o n why c o n i c a lh o l e s a r e made i n t hem f o r u s e as p e n d a n t s .

No c o n c l u s i o n ca n b e drawn a t t h i s s t a g e o f s t u d y o f t h e f u n c t i o nof t h e r a s p s . t c o n t in u e s t o b e a g r e a t p u zz l e i n t h e a r c ha eo lo gyof Ghana , a puzz le wh ich canno t be so lv ed by one pe r s on nor a s tu dyo f s u ch o b j e c t s fr om o n l y a l i m i t e d number o f s i t e s . A l so t h e r e i st h e need t o br i n g o ut c e r t a i n h id de n s i g n i f i c a n t t r a i t s t h a t c ou ldt h r o w l i g h t o n t h e p r o b l e m .


27/59

D r L i es e g an g o f t h e F r o b e n iu s I n s t i t u t e i n F ra nk fu rt- A.-M .s en ds t h i s r e p o r t :

From December 1973 t o March 1 974 , Klena Sanogo of t h e N at io na lMuseum of M ali a t Bamako and Gerhard L iese gan g of t h e Fro be niu sI n s t i t u t , F r a nk f u rt , W . Germany, exc ava ted fo ur i r o n age mounds andsome grav es n ea r t h e v i l l a g e o f Famanbougou, a r rond issmen t de Dogo(7 18 '20 W , 11 '54' 2 5 ~ ) a bo u t 1 60 m SSE of Bamako. )

Three Carbon 1 4 da t e s h a ve now become a va i l a b l e f ro m th e 1 4 ~L a b o r a to r y o f t h e N i e d e r s a c h i s c h e s L a n d e s m t f b r B od en fo rs ch un g i nHannoverHv 6421 920k40 BPHv 6422 1335*75 BPHv 6423 1320 i6 0 BP

The f i r s t d a t e i s from c h a rc o a l i n a n a sh y l a y e r i n t h e h i gh e s to f t h e s e t t l e me n t mounds w hich c on t a in e d a p p r ox ima te ly 3 .5 m ofc u l t u r a l l a y e r s . The c h a r c o a l was a s s o c i a t e d w i t h a w ar e w hi ch i sc h a r a c t e r i z e d b y p a t t e r n s i m p r e s s e d w i t h s m a l l c a r v e d r o u l e t t e s(d ia met er c . 0 .7-0 .8 cm, le n gt h 2 .2 -2.7 cm). S imi la r wares werea l s o f ou nd a t N ia ni ( ~ k p u b l i q u e u G uinke) e s p e c i a l l y i n t h e s p i t so r l a y e r s I and I V o f t h e S t a t i on 6D1' by F i l i p ow ia k a nd o th e r s .The ware was t h e r e f o r e p r o v i s i o n a l l y c a l l e d ~ i a n i - 6 ~ - 1 11 ar e. A tNiani 6D only l a y e r s be low t h e above m

nyame akuma issue 007

Documents