Abstract
The transition from hunting and gathering to food production in the Central Sahara is complex and
variable. The paucity of direct radiocarbon dates and poor preservation of organic remains makes it
difficult to track the origins, spread and intensity of food production in this part of the world. Never-
theless, the prevailing narrative in North African prehistory is that cattle pastoralism was the defining
characteristic of mid-Holocene African economies, against a backdrop of widespread aridification. Here
we present the first ever trans-Saharan analysis of mid Holocene subsistence behaviour using a novel
comparative analysis of zooarchaeological remains, organic residue analysis from pottery and palae-
ohydrological mapping. In some areas, domestic animal resources appear to have played only a marginal
role in economic practices, which were typically diverse and potentially even specialised as a response to
local environmental conditions. We utilise organic residue analysis (ORA) from 478 potsherds in
conjunction with zooarchaeological data to examine animal resource exploitation strategies and envi-
ronmental change. We demonstrate a significant increase in the d13C value of the C16:0 fatty acid through
time, reflecting a substantial increase in C4 vegetation associated with increased aridity. However,
despite the changing environmental conditions, North Africa offered a unique context for Neolithic
developments. Lakes that persisted during the onset of Saharan aridification provided highly productive
and sustainable ecological niches that supported the resilience of hunter-gatherer fisherfolk. Analysis of
site distance to water and faunal exploitation strategies reveals a significant correlation between aquatic
resource strategies and proximity to water. As such, we propose that rather than being a wave of
expansion, as has often been suggested, cattle pastoralism in the Sahara happened as a sporadic
expansion, with mid-Holocene populations adapting and specialising in the context of habitat frag-
mentation and increasing environmental diversity.
variable. The paucity of direct radiocarbon dates and poor preservation of organic remains makes it
difficult to track the origins, spread and intensity of food production in this part of the world. Never-
theless, the prevailing narrative in North African prehistory is that cattle pastoralism was the defining
characteristic of mid-Holocene African economies, against a backdrop of widespread aridification. Here
we present the first ever trans-Saharan analysis of mid Holocene subsistence behaviour using a novel
comparative analysis of zooarchaeological remains, organic residue analysis from pottery and palae-
ohydrological mapping. In some areas, domestic animal resources appear to have played only a marginal
role in economic practices, which were typically diverse and potentially even specialised as a response to
local environmental conditions. We utilise organic residue analysis (ORA) from 478 potsherds in
conjunction with zooarchaeological data to examine animal resource exploitation strategies and envi-
ronmental change. We demonstrate a significant increase in the d13C value of the C16:0 fatty acid through
time, reflecting a substantial increase in C4 vegetation associated with increased aridity. However,
despite the changing environmental conditions, North Africa offered a unique context for Neolithic
developments. Lakes that persisted during the onset of Saharan aridification provided highly productive
and sustainable ecological niches that supported the resilience of hunter-gatherer fisherfolk. Analysis of
site distance to water and faunal exploitation strategies reveals a significant correlation between aquatic
resource strategies and proximity to water. As such, we propose that rather than being a wave of
expansion, as has often been suggested, cattle pastoralism in the Sahara happened as a sporadic
expansion, with mid-Holocene populations adapting and specialising in the context of habitat frag-
mentation and increasing environmental diversity.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 108070 |
| Journal | Quaternary Science Reviews |
| Volume | 309 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 27 Apr 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The authors also wish to thank the NERC for partial funding of the National Environmental Isotope Facility (NEIF; contract no. NE/V003917/1 ) and NERC (contract no. NE/V003917/1 ) and funding from the European Research Council under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme ( FP/2007-2013 ) and European Research Council Grant Agreement number 340923 for funding GC-MS capabilities, together with NERC (contract no. NE/V003917/1 ) and the University of Bristol for funding the GC-IRMS capabilities. Toby Gillard is thanked for carrying out analyses and Ian Bull, Alison Kuhl and Helen Whelton are thanked for technical help. We also thank Dr Timothy Knowles of the Bristol Radiocarbon Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Facility (BRAMS) for carrying out radiocarbon analyses.
Funding Information:
We thank Leverhulme for funding the Green Sahara Project (Grant RPG-2016-115) during which the vast majority of this research was conducted. Additional research time was funded by the Leverhulme Trust (Grant ECF-2019-538). The pottery residue analysis would not have been possible without the generosity of the following people whom agreed to supply their pottery sherds for analysis; Elena Garcea (Università degli studi di Cassino e del Lazio Meridionale), Ibrahima Thiaw (IFAN), Dominique Commelin and Annabelle Gallin (CNRS, Aix-en-Provence), Matthieu Honegger (Université de Neuchâtel), Paul Sereno (University of Chicago), Savino DiLernia (Sapienza University of Rome), Vincent Mourre (INRAP), Jörg Linstädter (Universität zu Tübingen), Friederike Jesse (Universität zu Köln), Donatella Usai and Sandro Salvatori (Centro Studi Sudanesi e Sub-Sahariani ONLUS), Giulio Lucarini (Institute of Heritage Science), Graeme Barker (University of Cambridge), M. Jórdeczka (Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology), M. Chłodnicki (Archaeological Museum in Poznań), Abdeslam Mikdad, (Institute National des Sciences de l'Archéologie et du Patrimonie), Giulia D'Ercole (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München), Lenka Varadzinova (Czech Institute of Egyptology), Farid Kerbouche (Centre National de Recherches Préhistoriques), Colette Roubet (MNHN), Maria Gatto (Polish Academy of Sciences), Joanne Rowland (University of Edinburgh). The authors also wish to thank the NERC for partial funding of the National Environmental Isotope Facility (NEIF; contract no. NE/V003917/1) and NERC (contract no. NE/V003917/1) and funding from the European Research Council under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme (FP/2007-2013) and European Research Council Grant Agreement number 340923 for funding GC-MS capabilities, together with NERC (contract no. NE/V003917/1) and the University of Bristol for funding the GC-IRMS capabilities. Toby Gillard is thanked for carrying out analyses and Ian Bull, Alison Kuhl and Helen Whelton are thanked for technical help. We also thank Dr Timothy Knowles of the Bristol Radiocarbon Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Facility (BRAMS) for carrying out radiocarbon analyses.
Funding Information:
We thank Leverhulme for funding the Green Sahara Project (Grant RPG-2016-115) during which the vast majority of this research was conducted. Additional research time was funded by the Leverhulme Trust (Grant ECF-2019-538 ). The pottery residue analysis would not have been possible without the generosity of the following people whom agreed to supply their pottery sherds for analysis; Elena Garcea ( Università degli studi di Cassino e del Lazio Meridionale ), Ibrahima Thiaw ( IFAN ), Dominique Commelin and Annabelle Gallin ( CNRS , Aix-en-Provence), Matthieu Honegger ( Université de Neuchâtel ), Paul Sereno (University of Chicago), Savino DiLernia ( Sapienza University of Rome ), Vincent Mourre (INRAP), Jörg Linstädter ( Universität zu Tübingen ), Friederike Jesse ( Universität zu Köln ), Donatella Usai and Sandro Salvatori ( Centro Studi Sudanesi e Sub-Sahariani ONLUS ), Giulio Lucarini ( Institute of Heritage Science ), Graeme Barker ( University of Cambridge ), M. Jórdeczka ( Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology ), M. Chłodnicki ( Archaeological Museum in Poznań ), Abdeslam Mikdad, ( Institute National des Sciences de l’Archéologie et du Patrimonie ), Giulia D'Ercole ( Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München ), Lenka Varadzinova ( Czech Institute of Egyptology ), Farid Kerbouche ( Centre National de Recherches Préhistoriques ), Colette Roubet (MNHN), Maria Gatto ( Polish Academy of Sciences ), Joanne Rowland ( University of Edinburgh ).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023
Research Groups and Themes
- Organic & Biological
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