The 21st Century’s Challenge of Dating and Sequencing the Palaeolithic Archaeostratigraphies in West Africa: A Special Reference to Ounjougou vs. Djita, Asokrochona, Zenabi and Ajibode Sites

  • Author: Obarè B. Bagodo
  • Topic: Archaeometry
  • Country: Cameroon, Cote dIvoire, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Seychelles
  • Related Congress: 13th Congress, Dakar

The Pan-African Congress for Prehistory was created in 1947 in Nairobi and lately transformed into a learned Association (PAA) in 1977 in Nairobi. Up to the 9th Congress in Jos (Nigeria) in 1983, reliable Sequencing and Dating of the African Stone Age stratigraphies and assemblages has been the PAA’s main concern as passed on final Recommendations and Resolutions devoted to “Terminology”, “Typology” and “Dating” Issues. The challenge became bigger after the advent of the radiocarbon dating technique in 1949 and the subsequent expansion of associate isotopic or “absolute” dating methods in the 1960s and on. In this regard, the Symposium held at Burg Wartenstein (Austria) in 1965 on the theme “Systematic Investigation of the African Later Tertiary and Quaternary” is usually regarded as a landmark step (Bishop, Clark et al. 1967), and the 8th Congress in 1977 in Nairobi as another one that led to adopt the PAA denomination and statutes, and the general application of the “Early Stone Age”, “Middle Stone Age” and “Late Stone Age” threefold Nomenclature to the sub-Saharan African lithic technocultural times and lifeways (Leakey, Ogot et al. 1980; Bagodo, 1995; 2004; 2008). In this regard, the Symposium held at Burg Wartenstein (Austria) in 1965 on the theme “Systematic Investigation of the African Later Tertiary and Quaternary” is usually regarded as a landmark step (Bishop, Clark et al. 1967), and the 8th Congress in 1977 in Nairobi as another one that led to adopt the PAA denomination and statutes, and the general application of the “Early Stone Age”, “Middle Stone Age” and “Late Stone Age” threefold Nomenclature to the sub-Saharan African lithic technocultural times and lifeways (Leakey, Ogot et al. 1980; Bagodo, 1995; 2004; 2008).

In West Africa, the sequencing and dating problem came out specifically as an open debate focused on “Terminology”, first at the First Conference of the West African Archaeologists held in 1966 in Freetown (Sierra Leone) in relation to Burg Wartenstein Symposium’s Recommendations (Shaw et al. 1966:64), then at the Second Conference of the West African Archaeologists held in 1967 in Ibadan and devoted also to Terminology and Typology as emphasized at Beg Wartenstein Symposium (Shaw et al. 1967:9-43).  In addition, an “Interdisciplinary Symposium on Stratigraphy” has been organized in 1969 in Ibadan (Daniels, Freeth et al. 1970), followed by further statements (Andah et al. 1979; 1987; 1995). After Harris’ debated “Archaeological stratigraphy” (1979:29-39), Leroi- Gourhan et al. (1988: 1002) emphasized “Archaeostratigraphy” as a concept. Since the 1960s, Palaeolithic research in West Africa has continuously yielded various archaeostratigraphies, but without reliable dating and sequencing. Some of the “absolutely” undated but well-known sites are herein referred to, viz. Djita (Sénégal), Asokrochona (Ghana), and Zenabi, Ajibode and others in Nigeria. On the contrary, Ounjougou as a reliably dated site in Mali (Robert et al. 2003; Soriano et Huysecom, 2007) is chosen in order to see how to overcome the challenge of re-examining, dating and sequencing the regional Palaeolithic stratigraphies in accordance with the 21st Century’s innovative technical methods like the Optical Dating on sand sized quartz.

Keywords: West African Palaeolithic, Dating and Sequencing, 21st Century’s Challenge.


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