Papers by Barbara Eichhorn
Azania, 2019
ABSTRACT
The Royal City of Meroe, a capital of the ancient Kushite kingdom in
modern Sudan, is re... more ABSTRACT
The Royal City of Meroe, a capital of the ancient Kushite kingdom in
modern Sudan, is renowned for its extensive remains of ancient iron
production. The exploitation of wood to fuel Meroe’s metallurgical
past has long been linked to environmental degradation.
However, palaeoenvironmental studies involving archaeobotanical
methods such as charcoal analysis, which might confirm or
disprove the hypothesis of large-scale deforestation, have so far
been missing for the area. Our investigations offer the first
comprehensive anthracological data for the iron-smelting contexts
at Meroe and its surroundings covering more than 1000 years.
They provide unequivocal evidence for extreme selectivity for a
single species, the Nile acacia Acacia nilotica (Syn. Vachellia
nilotica), throughout the course of the currently known
metallurgical history of the Meroe region. The charcoal data
neither point to fuel shortage nor to environmental degradation
at any point in time during the entire production period. Nonmetallurgical
contexts show that a wider array of taxa was used
for fuel with low values of Acacia nilotica type charcoal. We thus
conclude that Acacia nilotica wood was preferably used and
mainly spared for the technical application of iron smelting. The
probable source areas for Nile acacia wood and possible woody
resource management strategies to maintain the fuel supply are
discussed.
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Journal of World Prehistory, 2019
Many societal and environmental changes occurred from the 2nd millennium BC to the middle of the ... more Many societal and environmental changes occurred from the 2nd millennium BC to the middle of the 2nd millennium AD in western Africa. Key amongst these were changes in land use due to the spread and development of agricultural strategies, which may have had widespread consequences for the climate, hydrology, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of the region. Quantification of these land use influences and potential feedbacks between human and natural systems is controversial however, in part because the archaeological and historical record is highly fragmented in time and space. To improve our understanding of how humans contributed to the development of African landscapes, we developed an atlas of land use practices in western Africa for nine time windows over the period 1800 BC – AD 1500. The maps are based on a broad synthesis of archaeological, archaeobotanical, archaeozoological, historic, linguistic, genetic, and ethnographic data, and present land use in 12 basic categories. The main differences between categories is the relative reliance on, and variety of, domesticated plant and animal species utilized, and in turn the energy invested in cultivating or keeping them. The maps highlight the irregular and frequently non-linear trajectory of land use change in the prehistory of western Africa. Representing an original attempt to produce rigorous spatial synthesis from diverse sources, the atlas will be useful for a range of studies on human-environment interactions in the past, and highlight major spatial and temporal gaps in data that may guide future field studies.
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Local iron production played a major role in the pre-colonial West African economy and certain me... more Local iron production played a major role in the pre-colonial West African economy and certain metallurgical centres operated on an industrial magnitude. One of them is the Bassar area in central Togo where the onset of iron metallurgy is considered to date back to the 3rd-4th century BC, even though only from the 14th century AD onwards the area experienced distinct production intensification. High-level iron production lasted as late as the early 20th century.
Bassar iron metallurgy was often considered to have caused massive deforestation and vegetation degradation, mainly due to wood exploitation for charcoal production, specifically to fuel iron smelting furnaces. The study presented here is the first to test this assumption using anthracological methods, supplemented by ethnohistorical interviews and archaeometallurgical investigations. The focus of our investigations is on two sites, Tchogma and Tatre. The charcoal assemblages at both sites and during all production periods are dominated by trees and shrubs with dense wood. According to our ethnohistorical interviews, hard wood species were considered particularly suitable for iron smelting, including several species with a strong capacity to re-sprout after coppicing. The taxon composition of the charcoal assemblages from metallurgical waste heaps generally correspondsto the oral traditions. In addition to the taxa mentioned by the interviewees, useful fruit trees such as the shea butter tree (Vitellaria paradoxa) were regularly used as fuel for ironworking. This demon-strates the exploitation of agroforestry parklands, which is providing evidence that arable land was already occupying a vast land surface of the Bassar area.
The results of our study seem inconsistent with the previous idea of massive vegetation degradation due to the impact of wood exploitation for iron metallurgy in Bassar. Three main factors contradict previous general deforestation assumptions:
1. The anthracological results indicate the use of taxa with the ability to re-sprout, which probably allowed for fast woodland regeneration;
2. We consider the area to possess a higher biomass reproduction capacity in comparison to areas further north investigated in our previous studies;
3. The development of local craft specialisation scattered the impact of wood use on the Bassar landscape, thereby, preventing complete local deforestation.
Our re-evaluation of Bassar slag amounts indicates fuel consumption was higher than previously thought. The over-exploitation of certain preferred taxa, particularly species with a restricted capacity to re-sprout, and local vegetation changes around the smelting sites is likely, although such modifications are not unequivocally reflected in the charcoal data.
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Archaeology of African Plant Use., Chapter: 7, Publisher: Left Coast Press., Editors: Stevens C., Nixon S., Murray M.A., Fuller D.Q., pp.83-96, Dec 2013
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Palaeogeography Palaeoclimatology Palaeoecology, 2010
During the investigation of phytoliths in Holocene sediments from the site complex of Ounjougou/M... more During the investigation of phytoliths in Holocene sediments from the site complex of Ounjougou/Mali, we recognized several conspicuous types which were initially attributed to Marantaceae and Cyperaceae. Systematic screening of West African herbarium specimens revealed that they originate from the seeds of Commelinaceae, a family of mostly tropical and subtropical monocotyledonous herbs. In West Africa, this family is represented by a limited number of taxa, most of them with clear ecological preferences in anthropogenic (segetal and ruderal) plant communities and wetlands. From 22 species occurring in the Sahelian, Sudanian and Guineo–Congolian zones of West Africa, phytolith extracts were prepared and studied with transmittent light. Microscopic seed sections were prepared and examined with SEM to document the original anatomical position. Three morphotype groups were distinguished: 1. polygonal platelets; 2. flat polygonal prisms with conical top; and 3. subcylindric, distinctly anisopolar, the upper part polygonal prismatic with conical top. Depending on the presence or absence of central protuberances and peculiarities of surface vesturing distinct subtypes could be described. The investigations have shown that identification of Commelinaceae seed phytoliths is often possible at low taxonomic levels. We report here the results of this comparative study and discuss the potential inherent for palaeoecological interpretations in West Africa.
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Vogelsang, R., Richter, J., Jacobs, Z., Eichhorn, B., Linseele, V., Roberts, R.G. (2010). New excavations of Middle Stone Age deposits at Apollo 11 rockshelter, Namibia: stratigraphy, archaeology, chronology and past environments. Journal of African Archaeology 8(2), 185-210.
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Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 2014
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The Holocene 03/2013; 23(3): 415-430. DOI:10.1177/0959683612463102, 2013
In semi-arid ecosystems where lacustrine sediments are rare, bio-proxies preserved in fluvial dep... more In semi-arid ecosystems where lacustrine sediments are rare, bio-proxies preserved in fluvial deposits are needed to understand environmental changes. In this study, we evaluate the potential of phytoliths as a bio-proxy in the Yamé River’s deposits at Ounjougou (Mali, West Africa) covering the middle to late Holocene (7790–4000 cal. BP). In soils, phytolith assemblages result mainly from decomposition of local vegetation but in alluvial deposits, the taphonomy of phytoliths is more complex, depending on the type of transport and deposition. In order to define the spatial origin of the phytolith assemblages, either from local (valley floor) or regional vegetation (catchment area), we took the sedimentary characteristics of the deposits into account. Using a combination of general and index approaches, phytoliths of 14 modern and 29 fossil samples from the Yamé valley were analyzed. The predominant source area of represented phytoliths varies with the fluvial energy of transport. Channel deposits, carried during periods of strong fluvial activity, contain higher numbers of savanna grass phytoliths and display a lower ratio of dicotyledon versus Poaceae phytoliths (D/P) than those deposited in the floodplain where phytoliths from the local gallery forest are more strongly represented. From the 5th millennium BP onwards, higher percentages of grass short cell phytoliths (GSCP) and lower D/P values point to gradual vegetation opening due to increasing aridity. High amounts of burned phytoliths show regular fire incidence in the gallery forest and attest for human impact on the landscapes of Ounjougou from the 7th millennium BP onwards. After 4500 cal. BP, there is evidence for pearl millet cultivation.
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Science 337(6098):1040; author reply 1040. , Aug 2012
Bayon et al. (Reports, 9 March 2012, p. 1219) interpreted unusually high aluminum-potassium ratio... more Bayon et al. (Reports, 9 March 2012, p. 1219) interpreted unusually high aluminum-potassium ratio values in an Atlantic sediment core as indicating anthropogenic deforestation around 2500 years before the present (B.P.). We argue that there is no terrestrial evidence for forest destruction by humans and that the third millennium B.P. rainforest crisis can be clearly attributed mostly to climatic change.
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The interrelation of environment and human agency in the course of the Holocene period is analyse... more The interrelation of environment and human agency in the course of the Holocene period is analysed in two research areas of differing environments in northern Namibia : Kaokoland in the West
and the Kavango region in the East. Detaiied surveys result in the localisation of more than 160 archaeological sites which form the data base for the reconstruction of regional cultural sequences.
Archaeobotanical remains are also analysed, thus allowing for conclusions regarding the environmental conditions to be drawn. Of special interest are two important Holocene innovations: the beginning of livestock herding in Kaokoland and of iron smelting in the Kavango region. Finally, the results of the two research areas are compared, so as to prove trans-regional cultural coherence.
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ABSTRACT
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ABSTRACT
With the aim to contribute to the knowledge of the late Quaternary vegetation history... more ABSTRACT
With the aim to contribute to the knowledge of the late Quaternary vegetation history of northwestern Namibia, charcoal analyses have been conducted on material originating from rock shelters in different vegetation zones of Kaokoland. Before, a reference collection of wood samples had to be established resulting in a wood anatomical character list and a dichotomous key of the represented species.
The research area, presently inhabited by the pastoral nomadic Himba and Herero people, is characterised by a strong east-west climatic gradient influencing the present distribution of vegetation zones.
Up to now, little has been known about the Holocene and late Pleistocene vegetation history of Namibia. Pollen as well as archaeobotanical data are generally few and are not available for the northwestern part of Namibia. Due to the arid climate of the region, pollen preserving sediments are scarce. Available data from marine pollen profiles, originating from off the northwest Namibian coast, yield general information on the environmental history of the whole southwestern part of the African continent. However, they cannot contribute to the vegetation history of northwestern Namibia on a regional to local scale.
Charcoal preservation in Holocene and partly in terminal Pleistocene layers of rock shelters in the Kaokoland is good. Provided that sediments are undisturbed, charcoal analysis from those sites is an appropriate means of gaining knowledge on the vegetation and climate history of the region.
Anthracological analyses from sites in eastern Kaokoland indicate the absence of Colophospermum mopane-savanna and dominance of the genus Acacia in the terminal Pleistocene woody vegetation. Temperatures as well as precipitation during that period were most probably lower than at present.
Charcoal analytical data concerning the Early Holocene originate from site Omungunda in the eastern higher rainfall region. The presence of a mopane savanna can already be assumed during that period. However, the absence of woody taxa typical for the present “Spirostachys africana-Colophospermum mopane tree savanna“ during the Early Holocene indicates distinctly drier conditions.
Mid- and Late Holocene charcoal deposits in rock shelters of Kaokoland show little fluctuation in woody species composition and in their relative abundances. Both factors indicate relatively stable environmental conditions during that period. Species typical for each different site can be detected in the charcoal spectra corresponding to the presently surrounding vegetation units. Their site-specific, stable occurrence is a hint that during the Late Holocene environmental conditions remained relatively constant. The proof of Colophospermum mopane type in the charcoal assemblage of site N 2000/1 in the western, arid part of Kaokoland might indicate slightly more humid conditions around 2000 BP. Another wet fluctuation in the Midholocene can be deduced from anthracological results from a site in northwestern Kaokoland.
In addition to the anthracological analyses, interviews were conducted with the aim to get information on the influence of selective firewood choice on the archaeobotanical samples. The results indicate that wood collection is selective, but changes with the vegetation zones along the climatic gradient. Thus, in this special case, the influence of anthropogenic selection on archaeobotanical data can be considered as limited.
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Sudan and Nubia, 2013
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Les prospections réalisées dans le district sidérurgique de Yamane (centre du Burkina Faso) se po... more Les prospections réalisées dans le district sidérurgique de Yamane (centre du Burkina Faso) se poursuivent depuis 2012 sous la direction de E. Thiombiano Ilboudo. Plus d'une centaine de sites ont été mis en évidence. La tradition technique YNBS est maintenant bien datée entre 1300 et 1500 AD et semble prédominante dans tout le district. Cette tradition n'est pas présente sur le grand complexe sidérurgique de Korsimoro où les vestiges de cette période sont représentés par la tradition KRS 3. Des vestiges appar-tenant à d'autres traditions techniques ont également été identifiés sur quelques sites du district de Yamane. Ils se rapprochent de ceux qui appartiennent aux traditions KRS 1, 2 et 4 de Korsimoro. Le site de Siola 4000, près de Kaniasso (Nord-Ouest de la Côte d'Ivoire) a fait l'ob-jet d'une exploration poussée en 2015, sous la direction de H. T. Kiénon Kaboré. Le site est de grande ampleur et renferme au moins 200 amas de scories qui se rattachent tous à une tradition technique particulière (KAN 4). La chronologie est encore difficile à cerner mais il est clair que le site est en activité au moins entre 1100 et 1300 AD, c'est-à-dire au cours d'une phase précoce par rapport au développement de la sidé-rurgie dans la région. 1. Le projet «Origine et développement de la métallurgie du fer au Burkina et en Côte d'Ivoire»:
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ABSTRACT
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Geographische Zeitschrift
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Métallurgie du Fer et Sociétés Africaines. Bilans et nouveaux paradigmes dans la recherche anthropologique et archéologique., Cambridge Monographs in African Archaeology 81. BAR S 239. edited by Caroline Robion-Brunner, Bruno Martinelli, 01/2012: pages 139-148; Archaeopress, Hadrian Books, Oxford., 2012
Wood, or wood transformed into charcoal, has been the most important fuel for West African iron s... more Wood, or wood transformed into charcoal, has been the most important fuel for West African iron smelting. Severe environmental degradation due to over-exploitation has often been presumed. Fiko Tradition sites in the Dogon Country are characterized by huge metallurgical waste heaps with excellent preservation of charcoal. The amount of waste points to excess iron production and radiocarbon dates as well as oral traditions indicate long-term use. Anthracological analysis was applied to investigate fuel selection and to assess changes of the woody vegetation. Results do not reveal extreme selectivity for single species. A wide array was used, the majority of charcoal fragments originating from taxa with high density wood. Variations within the sequence of the Fiko site complex are interpreted as signs of vegetation change, pointing toward gradual decline of species preferably used and increase of species able to re-sprout after cutting. Mass balance calculations for the whole Fiko Tradition can only indicate the magnitude of wood use and regeneration but point to exploitation near the ecological threshold and thus a relation between wood use and vegetation change. Individual site history influenced the magnitude of degradation: Repeated displacement of iron production at Kéma lead to less severe vegetation change than at Fiko, where iron bloomery took place within a small area.
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Humphris, J. & Rehren, T. (eds), The world of iron. Archetype Publications., 2013
African iron metallurgy is often associated with severe environmental degradation, due to the sup... more African iron metallurgy is often associated with severe environmental degradation, due to the supposed overuse
of wood-based resources as an energy supply. Such assumptions are rarely based on on-site archaeobotanical data, but are instead either inferred from wood consumption estimates or simply represent an uncritically imposed link between present degradation phenomena and past metallurgical activities. This paper discusses charcoal analytical results from slag heaps at sites belonging to the Fiko Tradition in the Dogon Country (Mali). These sites are characterised by their longterm use and intensive iron production. Anthracology points to the predominant use of dense woods with a high burning
value. However, despite this preference, typical Sahelo-Sudanian woody vegetation is reflected in the charcoal assemblages. Significantly, variations within the charcoal sequence indicate distinct vegetation changes over time, and, furthermore, mass balance ratios support a relationship between these vegetation changes and metallurgical activities. This holds true for the mass production sites but probably not for other metallurgical traditions in the area with lower production levels.
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Radiocarbon 51(2): 457-470. , Jan 2009
At Ounjougou, a site complex situated in the Yamé River valley on the Bandiagara Plateau (Dogon c... more At Ounjougou, a site complex situated in the Yamé River valley on the Bandiagara Plateau (Dogon country, Mali), multidisciplinary research has revealed a rich archaeological and paleoenvironmental sequence used to reconstruct the
history of human-environment interactions, especially during the Late Holocene (3500–300 cal BC). Geomorphological,
archaeological, and archaeobotanical data coming from different sites and contexts were combined in order to elaborate a chronocultural and environmental model for this period. Bayesian analysis of 54 14C dates included within the general Late Holocene stratigraphy of Ounjougou provides better accuracy for limits of the main chronological units, as well as for some particularly important events, like the onset of agriculture in the region. The scenario that can be proposed in the current state of research shows an increasing role of anthropogenic fires from the 3rd millennium cal BC onwards, and the appearance of food production during the 2nd millennium cal BC, coupled with a distinctive cultural break. The Late Holocene sequence ends around 300 cal BC with an important sedimentary hiatus that lasts until the end of the 4th century cal AD.
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Papers by Barbara Eichhorn
The Royal City of Meroe, a capital of the ancient Kushite kingdom in
modern Sudan, is renowned for its extensive remains of ancient iron
production. The exploitation of wood to fuel Meroe’s metallurgical
past has long been linked to environmental degradation.
However, palaeoenvironmental studies involving archaeobotanical
methods such as charcoal analysis, which might confirm or
disprove the hypothesis of large-scale deforestation, have so far
been missing for the area. Our investigations offer the first
comprehensive anthracological data for the iron-smelting contexts
at Meroe and its surroundings covering more than 1000 years.
They provide unequivocal evidence for extreme selectivity for a
single species, the Nile acacia Acacia nilotica (Syn. Vachellia
nilotica), throughout the course of the currently known
metallurgical history of the Meroe region. The charcoal data
neither point to fuel shortage nor to environmental degradation
at any point in time during the entire production period. Nonmetallurgical
contexts show that a wider array of taxa was used
for fuel with low values of Acacia nilotica type charcoal. We thus
conclude that Acacia nilotica wood was preferably used and
mainly spared for the technical application of iron smelting. The
probable source areas for Nile acacia wood and possible woody
resource management strategies to maintain the fuel supply are
discussed.
Bassar iron metallurgy was often considered to have caused massive deforestation and vegetation degradation, mainly due to wood exploitation for charcoal production, specifically to fuel iron smelting furnaces. The study presented here is the first to test this assumption using anthracological methods, supplemented by ethnohistorical interviews and archaeometallurgical investigations. The focus of our investigations is on two sites, Tchogma and Tatre. The charcoal assemblages at both sites and during all production periods are dominated by trees and shrubs with dense wood. According to our ethnohistorical interviews, hard wood species were considered particularly suitable for iron smelting, including several species with a strong capacity to re-sprout after coppicing. The taxon composition of the charcoal assemblages from metallurgical waste heaps generally correspondsto the oral traditions. In addition to the taxa mentioned by the interviewees, useful fruit trees such as the shea butter tree (Vitellaria paradoxa) were regularly used as fuel for ironworking. This demon-strates the exploitation of agroforestry parklands, which is providing evidence that arable land was already occupying a vast land surface of the Bassar area.
The results of our study seem inconsistent with the previous idea of massive vegetation degradation due to the impact of wood exploitation for iron metallurgy in Bassar. Three main factors contradict previous general deforestation assumptions:
1. The anthracological results indicate the use of taxa with the ability to re-sprout, which probably allowed for fast woodland regeneration;
2. We consider the area to possess a higher biomass reproduction capacity in comparison to areas further north investigated in our previous studies;
3. The development of local craft specialisation scattered the impact of wood use on the Bassar landscape, thereby, preventing complete local deforestation.
Our re-evaluation of Bassar slag amounts indicates fuel consumption was higher than previously thought. The over-exploitation of certain preferred taxa, particularly species with a restricted capacity to re-sprout, and local vegetation changes around the smelting sites is likely, although such modifications are not unequivocally reflected in the charcoal data.
and the Kavango region in the East. Detaiied surveys result in the localisation of more than 160 archaeological sites which form the data base for the reconstruction of regional cultural sequences.
Archaeobotanical remains are also analysed, thus allowing for conclusions regarding the environmental conditions to be drawn. Of special interest are two important Holocene innovations: the beginning of livestock herding in Kaokoland and of iron smelting in the Kavango region. Finally, the results of the two research areas are compared, so as to prove trans-regional cultural coherence.
With the aim to contribute to the knowledge of the late Quaternary vegetation history of northwestern Namibia, charcoal analyses have been conducted on material originating from rock shelters in different vegetation zones of Kaokoland. Before, a reference collection of wood samples had to be established resulting in a wood anatomical character list and a dichotomous key of the represented species.
The research area, presently inhabited by the pastoral nomadic Himba and Herero people, is characterised by a strong east-west climatic gradient influencing the present distribution of vegetation zones.
Up to now, little has been known about the Holocene and late Pleistocene vegetation history of Namibia. Pollen as well as archaeobotanical data are generally few and are not available for the northwestern part of Namibia. Due to the arid climate of the region, pollen preserving sediments are scarce. Available data from marine pollen profiles, originating from off the northwest Namibian coast, yield general information on the environmental history of the whole southwestern part of the African continent. However, they cannot contribute to the vegetation history of northwestern Namibia on a regional to local scale.
Charcoal preservation in Holocene and partly in terminal Pleistocene layers of rock shelters in the Kaokoland is good. Provided that sediments are undisturbed, charcoal analysis from those sites is an appropriate means of gaining knowledge on the vegetation and climate history of the region.
Anthracological analyses from sites in eastern Kaokoland indicate the absence of Colophospermum mopane-savanna and dominance of the genus Acacia in the terminal Pleistocene woody vegetation. Temperatures as well as precipitation during that period were most probably lower than at present.
Charcoal analytical data concerning the Early Holocene originate from site Omungunda in the eastern higher rainfall region. The presence of a mopane savanna can already be assumed during that period. However, the absence of woody taxa typical for the present “Spirostachys africana-Colophospermum mopane tree savanna“ during the Early Holocene indicates distinctly drier conditions.
Mid- and Late Holocene charcoal deposits in rock shelters of Kaokoland show little fluctuation in woody species composition and in their relative abundances. Both factors indicate relatively stable environmental conditions during that period. Species typical for each different site can be detected in the charcoal spectra corresponding to the presently surrounding vegetation units. Their site-specific, stable occurrence is a hint that during the Late Holocene environmental conditions remained relatively constant. The proof of Colophospermum mopane type in the charcoal assemblage of site N 2000/1 in the western, arid part of Kaokoland might indicate slightly more humid conditions around 2000 BP. Another wet fluctuation in the Midholocene can be deduced from anthracological results from a site in northwestern Kaokoland.
In addition to the anthracological analyses, interviews were conducted with the aim to get information on the influence of selective firewood choice on the archaeobotanical samples. The results indicate that wood collection is selective, but changes with the vegetation zones along the climatic gradient. Thus, in this special case, the influence of anthropogenic selection on archaeobotanical data can be considered as limited.
of wood-based resources as an energy supply. Such assumptions are rarely based on on-site archaeobotanical data, but are instead either inferred from wood consumption estimates or simply represent an uncritically imposed link between present degradation phenomena and past metallurgical activities. This paper discusses charcoal analytical results from slag heaps at sites belonging to the Fiko Tradition in the Dogon Country (Mali). These sites are characterised by their longterm use and intensive iron production. Anthracology points to the predominant use of dense woods with a high burning
value. However, despite this preference, typical Sahelo-Sudanian woody vegetation is reflected in the charcoal assemblages. Significantly, variations within the charcoal sequence indicate distinct vegetation changes over time, and, furthermore, mass balance ratios support a relationship between these vegetation changes and metallurgical activities. This holds true for the mass production sites but probably not for other metallurgical traditions in the area with lower production levels.
history of human-environment interactions, especially during the Late Holocene (3500–300 cal BC). Geomorphological,
archaeological, and archaeobotanical data coming from different sites and contexts were combined in order to elaborate a chronocultural and environmental model for this period. Bayesian analysis of 54 14C dates included within the general Late Holocene stratigraphy of Ounjougou provides better accuracy for limits of the main chronological units, as well as for some particularly important events, like the onset of agriculture in the region. The scenario that can be proposed in the current state of research shows an increasing role of anthropogenic fires from the 3rd millennium cal BC onwards, and the appearance of food production during the 2nd millennium cal BC, coupled with a distinctive cultural break. The Late Holocene sequence ends around 300 cal BC with an important sedimentary hiatus that lasts until the end of the 4th century cal AD.
The Royal City of Meroe, a capital of the ancient Kushite kingdom in
modern Sudan, is renowned for its extensive remains of ancient iron
production. The exploitation of wood to fuel Meroe’s metallurgical
past has long been linked to environmental degradation.
However, palaeoenvironmental studies involving archaeobotanical
methods such as charcoal analysis, which might confirm or
disprove the hypothesis of large-scale deforestation, have so far
been missing for the area. Our investigations offer the first
comprehensive anthracological data for the iron-smelting contexts
at Meroe and its surroundings covering more than 1000 years.
They provide unequivocal evidence for extreme selectivity for a
single species, the Nile acacia Acacia nilotica (Syn. Vachellia
nilotica), throughout the course of the currently known
metallurgical history of the Meroe region. The charcoal data
neither point to fuel shortage nor to environmental degradation
at any point in time during the entire production period. Nonmetallurgical
contexts show that a wider array of taxa was used
for fuel with low values of Acacia nilotica type charcoal. We thus
conclude that Acacia nilotica wood was preferably used and
mainly spared for the technical application of iron smelting. The
probable source areas for Nile acacia wood and possible woody
resource management strategies to maintain the fuel supply are
discussed.
Bassar iron metallurgy was often considered to have caused massive deforestation and vegetation degradation, mainly due to wood exploitation for charcoal production, specifically to fuel iron smelting furnaces. The study presented here is the first to test this assumption using anthracological methods, supplemented by ethnohistorical interviews and archaeometallurgical investigations. The focus of our investigations is on two sites, Tchogma and Tatre. The charcoal assemblages at both sites and during all production periods are dominated by trees and shrubs with dense wood. According to our ethnohistorical interviews, hard wood species were considered particularly suitable for iron smelting, including several species with a strong capacity to re-sprout after coppicing. The taxon composition of the charcoal assemblages from metallurgical waste heaps generally correspondsto the oral traditions. In addition to the taxa mentioned by the interviewees, useful fruit trees such as the shea butter tree (Vitellaria paradoxa) were regularly used as fuel for ironworking. This demon-strates the exploitation of agroforestry parklands, which is providing evidence that arable land was already occupying a vast land surface of the Bassar area.
The results of our study seem inconsistent with the previous idea of massive vegetation degradation due to the impact of wood exploitation for iron metallurgy in Bassar. Three main factors contradict previous general deforestation assumptions:
1. The anthracological results indicate the use of taxa with the ability to re-sprout, which probably allowed for fast woodland regeneration;
2. We consider the area to possess a higher biomass reproduction capacity in comparison to areas further north investigated in our previous studies;
3. The development of local craft specialisation scattered the impact of wood use on the Bassar landscape, thereby, preventing complete local deforestation.
Our re-evaluation of Bassar slag amounts indicates fuel consumption was higher than previously thought. The over-exploitation of certain preferred taxa, particularly species with a restricted capacity to re-sprout, and local vegetation changes around the smelting sites is likely, although such modifications are not unequivocally reflected in the charcoal data.
and the Kavango region in the East. Detaiied surveys result in the localisation of more than 160 archaeological sites which form the data base for the reconstruction of regional cultural sequences.
Archaeobotanical remains are also analysed, thus allowing for conclusions regarding the environmental conditions to be drawn. Of special interest are two important Holocene innovations: the beginning of livestock herding in Kaokoland and of iron smelting in the Kavango region. Finally, the results of the two research areas are compared, so as to prove trans-regional cultural coherence.
With the aim to contribute to the knowledge of the late Quaternary vegetation history of northwestern Namibia, charcoal analyses have been conducted on material originating from rock shelters in different vegetation zones of Kaokoland. Before, a reference collection of wood samples had to be established resulting in a wood anatomical character list and a dichotomous key of the represented species.
The research area, presently inhabited by the pastoral nomadic Himba and Herero people, is characterised by a strong east-west climatic gradient influencing the present distribution of vegetation zones.
Up to now, little has been known about the Holocene and late Pleistocene vegetation history of Namibia. Pollen as well as archaeobotanical data are generally few and are not available for the northwestern part of Namibia. Due to the arid climate of the region, pollen preserving sediments are scarce. Available data from marine pollen profiles, originating from off the northwest Namibian coast, yield general information on the environmental history of the whole southwestern part of the African continent. However, they cannot contribute to the vegetation history of northwestern Namibia on a regional to local scale.
Charcoal preservation in Holocene and partly in terminal Pleistocene layers of rock shelters in the Kaokoland is good. Provided that sediments are undisturbed, charcoal analysis from those sites is an appropriate means of gaining knowledge on the vegetation and climate history of the region.
Anthracological analyses from sites in eastern Kaokoland indicate the absence of Colophospermum mopane-savanna and dominance of the genus Acacia in the terminal Pleistocene woody vegetation. Temperatures as well as precipitation during that period were most probably lower than at present.
Charcoal analytical data concerning the Early Holocene originate from site Omungunda in the eastern higher rainfall region. The presence of a mopane savanna can already be assumed during that period. However, the absence of woody taxa typical for the present “Spirostachys africana-Colophospermum mopane tree savanna“ during the Early Holocene indicates distinctly drier conditions.
Mid- and Late Holocene charcoal deposits in rock shelters of Kaokoland show little fluctuation in woody species composition and in their relative abundances. Both factors indicate relatively stable environmental conditions during that period. Species typical for each different site can be detected in the charcoal spectra corresponding to the presently surrounding vegetation units. Their site-specific, stable occurrence is a hint that during the Late Holocene environmental conditions remained relatively constant. The proof of Colophospermum mopane type in the charcoal assemblage of site N 2000/1 in the western, arid part of Kaokoland might indicate slightly more humid conditions around 2000 BP. Another wet fluctuation in the Midholocene can be deduced from anthracological results from a site in northwestern Kaokoland.
In addition to the anthracological analyses, interviews were conducted with the aim to get information on the influence of selective firewood choice on the archaeobotanical samples. The results indicate that wood collection is selective, but changes with the vegetation zones along the climatic gradient. Thus, in this special case, the influence of anthropogenic selection on archaeobotanical data can be considered as limited.
of wood-based resources as an energy supply. Such assumptions are rarely based on on-site archaeobotanical data, but are instead either inferred from wood consumption estimates or simply represent an uncritically imposed link between present degradation phenomena and past metallurgical activities. This paper discusses charcoal analytical results from slag heaps at sites belonging to the Fiko Tradition in the Dogon Country (Mali). These sites are characterised by their longterm use and intensive iron production. Anthracology points to the predominant use of dense woods with a high burning
value. However, despite this preference, typical Sahelo-Sudanian woody vegetation is reflected in the charcoal assemblages. Significantly, variations within the charcoal sequence indicate distinct vegetation changes over time, and, furthermore, mass balance ratios support a relationship between these vegetation changes and metallurgical activities. This holds true for the mass production sites but probably not for other metallurgical traditions in the area with lower production levels.
history of human-environment interactions, especially during the Late Holocene (3500–300 cal BC). Geomorphological,
archaeological, and archaeobotanical data coming from different sites and contexts were combined in order to elaborate a chronocultural and environmental model for this period. Bayesian analysis of 54 14C dates included within the general Late Holocene stratigraphy of Ounjougou provides better accuracy for limits of the main chronological units, as well as for some particularly important events, like the onset of agriculture in the region. The scenario that can be proposed in the current state of research shows an increasing role of anthropogenic fires from the 3rd millennium cal BC onwards, and the appearance of food production during the 2nd millennium cal BC, coupled with a distinctive cultural break. The Late Holocene sequence ends around 300 cal BC with an important sedimentary hiatus that lasts until the end of the 4th century cal AD.
In: Lafay, M., Le Guennec-Coppens, F., Coulibaly, E. (Eds.), Regards scientifiques sur l'Afrique depuis les Indépendances. Éditions Karthala, Paris. Chapter 13, pages 314-332.
of settlement mounds which mainly developed between
the 1st millennium BC and the 15th century AD. While
knowledge about tell-type sites in sub-Saharan Africa has
advanced in recent years, many aspects of this topic remain
poorly understood. Considering the vast geographic area
and time span, there is very little accurate chronostratigraphic
information available. This relative lack of long
sequences strongly limits the diachronic integration of
cultural, economic and environmental data, necessary
to unravel the socio-economic mechanisms underlying
the emergence and development of this type of site. In
this paper, we present the results of the excavations we
recently conducted on a group of settlement mounds at
Sadia, on the Seno Plain (Dogon Country, Mali), which
allow a precise chronological, cultural and environmental
sequence to be defined. By combining this work and the
results from an extensive approach applied throughout the
Dogon Country for more than fifteen years, we provide a
scenario for the Seno tells and an insight into the development
of Sahelian rural societies, including considerations
on their interactions with the early State polities of the
Niger Bend, prior to AD 1400.