Egypt during the last interglacial: the middle Paleolithic of Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East

Plenum Press • New York • Published In 1993 • Pages:

By: Wendorf, Fred, Schild, Romuald, Close, Angela E., Applegate, Alexander, Bluszcz, Andrezej, Bochenski, Zygmunt, Campbell, Amy L., De Deckker, P., Gautier, Achilles, Grün, Rainer, Hietala, Harold Jacob, Hill, Christopher L., Huxtable, J., Issawi, Bahay, Kowalski, Kazimierz, Królik, Halina, Marciniak, Barbara, McKenzie, Judith A., McKinney, Curtis R., Miller, Gifford H., Mlynarski, Marian, Morawska, Lidia, Van Neer, Wim, Robins, Don, Rzebik-Kowalska, Barbara, Saunders, Joe, Schwarcz, Henry P., Stokes, Stephen, Szyndlar, Zbigniew, Williams, M. A. J..

Abstract

This large volume describes the fieldwork and findings from the geological and archaeological fieldwork at 17 Middle Paleolithic sites in two deflational basins in the Sahara of southwestern Egypt. Also described are the several dating techniques used to date the sediments including: uranium-series, electron spin resonance, thermoluminescence, optically stimulated luminescence and amino acid racemization. Where possible multiple techniques were used for the same beds. '[T]here were discrepancies between the dates obtained by different methods, and none of them appears to yield completely reliable or consistent results…' (page 558). However, the dates are consistent with the general chronology for the Middle Paleolithic. During the Middle Paleolithic the area was, at times, savanna or wooded savanna with lakes that were sometimes permanent and sometimes seasonal. When water was available Middle Paleolithic groups of Homo sapiens could be found in the area. Most of the sites found are associated with these lakes and so are thought to be day-use sites (verses night camp sites). Faunal material, although not found at every site, was only found when associated with human artifacts and never by itself. This seems to indicate (along with a few butchering marks) the Middle Paleolithic humans were hunting and/or scavaging. In addition, the location, stratigraphy, and type of tools found at other sites indicates plants found along the edge of the lakes were a major part of the diet during the wet season of the year. Unfortunately, the type of stone used to make the tools, quartzitic sandstone, meant use-wear analysis could not be conducted to determine the specific functions of the tools. Stone tool technology remained essentially the same for the whole time period except for pedunculated tools which may occur later in this period. Most of the differences 'between sites … are seen primarily in the relative frequencies of denticulates vs sidescrapers and Mousterian points.' (page 571). Denticulates seem to be associated with sites where plant processing was important while Mousterian points and sidescrapers are found in sites that were used during the dry season. This 'might indicate a stress on meat procurement during the dry season …' (page 572). 'By excavating a large series of sites in several different settings within a limited area, we discovered that sites in similar settings tended to contain the same kinds of artifacts in very similar frequencies, that sites in different settings had different artifacts frequencies, and that these patterns persisted thoughout the long Middle Paleolithic sequence in both depressions. Clearly, Middle Paleolithic people had a pattened set of behaviors for the use of this landscape.' (page 5).

HRAF PubDate

2004

Region

Africa

Sub Region

Northern Africa

Evaluation

Creator Type

Archaeologist

Document Rating

4: Excellent Secondary Data

5: Excellent Primary Data

Analyst

Sarah Berry ; 2002

Field Date

1973-1974, 1985-1988

Coverage Date

230,000 BP-60,000 BP

Coverage Place

Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East; Egypt

Notes

Fred Wendorf, Romuald Schild, and Angela E. Close and associates

Introduction / Fred Wendorf, Romuald Schild and Angela E. Close Contributions to the stratigraphy of the area of Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East / Bahay Issawi Middle Paleolithic lakes in the Southwestern Desert of Egypt / Romuald Schild and Fred Wendorf Sedimentology of Pleistocene deposits associated with Middle Paleolithic sites in Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East /Christopher L. Hill Chemical stratigraphy of Lacustrine sequences deposited during latest Pleistocene pluvial periods in the Eastern Sahara / Judith A. McKenzie Lacustrine paleoenvironments of the area of Bir Sahara-Bir Tarfawi area reconstructed from fossil ostracods and the chemistry of their shells / P. De Deckker and M. A. J. Williams Diatoms from the pool in section BT-A of Bir Tarfawi / Barbara Marciniak The Middle Paleolithic archaeofaunas from Bir Tarfawi (Western Desert, Egypt) / Achilles Gautier Fish remains from the last interglacial at Bir Tarfawi (Eastern Sahara, Egypt) / Wim Van Neer Remains of small vertebrates from Bir Tarfawi and their paleological significance / assembled by Kazimierz Kowalski Amphibians and non-chelonian reptiles from Bir Tarfawi /Zbigniew Szyndlar Chelonians (reptilia) from Bir Tarfawi / Marian Mlynarski Bird fauna from Bir Tarfawi / Zygmunt Bochenski Insectivores (insectivora: mammalia) from Bir Tarfawi / Barbara Rzebik-Kowalska Taphonomy and paleoecology of small vertebrates from Bir Tarfawi / Kazimierz Kowalski Uranium-series dating of carbonates from Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East / Henry P. Schwarcz and Lidia Morawska Bir Tarfawi: a stratigraphic test of uranium-series dating of tooth enamel / Curtis R. McKinney Thermoluminescence dating deposits from the area of Bir Sahara East and Bir Tarfawi / Andrzej Bluszcz Thermoluminescence dates for burnt earth samples from Bir Sahara East and a burnt core from Bir Tarfawi / J. Huxtable Optical dating of sediment samples from Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East: an initial report / Stephen Stokes Electron spin resonance dating of tooth enamel from Bir Tarfawi / Henry P. Schwarcz and Rainer Gün ESR study of materials from the Middle Paleolithic of Bir Tarfawi / Don Robins Chronology of hominid occupation at Bir Tarfawi and Bir Sahara East, based on the epimerization of isoleucine in ostrich eggshells / Gifford H. Miller The analysis of Middle Paleolithic artifacts / Angela E. Close E-88-14: an assemblage associated with the Tarfawi White Lake / Angela E. Close and Fred Wendorf Work at BT-14 during 1974 / Fred Wendorf and Romuald Schild BT-14 main excavation: the archaeological sequence of the East Lake (1986 and 1987 seasons) / Angela E. Close E-87-5: occupations dating to the Grey Phases / Fred Wendorf E-86-1: a site associated with the Sand Pan / Joe Saunders E-87-4: a Sand Pan site / Halina Królik E-87-1: a locality associated with the Sand Pan Delta / Fred Wendorf and Romuald Schild E-86-2: occupations during the Grey and Green Phases / Halina Królik E-86-3: an assemblage in hydromorphic and basin-edge sands of the Lower Lake (Grey Phase 3) / Christopher L. Hill E-86-4: artifacts in marsh-related sand of the Lower Lake (Grey Phase 3) / Christopher L. Hill E-87-2: a site in lake-margin deposits of the Green Phase / Christopher L. Hill E-87-3: a small, dry-season occupation at the onset of the Green Phase / Christopher L. Hill E-88-1: The archaeology of the Sandsheet / Angela E. Close and Fred Wendorf BS-11: a site in the recessional beach of West Lake 1 / Fred Wendorf and Angela E. Close E-88-11: a site associated with West Lake 2 / Halina Królik BS-12: a site associated with West Lake 2 (1988 excavations) / Amy L. Campbell E-88-2: occupations associated with West Lake 4 / Halina Królik Spatial analyses of Middle Paleolithic localities in the Bir Tarfawi basin: an interpretive study / Harold Jacob Hietala and Alexander Applegate Summary and conclusions / Fred Wendorf, Romuald Schild and Angela E. Close

Includes bibliographical references (p. 575-590) and index

LCCN

92046277

LCSH

Paleolithic period--Egypt