Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa
African paleoanthropological studies typically focus on regions of the continent such as Eastern, Southern and Northern Africa, which hold the highest density of Pleistocene archaeological sites. Nevertheless, lesser known areas such as West Africa also feature a high number of sites. Here, we prese...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Journal of Maps |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17445647.2022.2052767 |
| _version_ | 1818043315533119488 |
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| author | Jacopo Niccolò Cerasoni Emily Y. Hallett Eslem Ben Arous Robert M. Beyer Mario Krapp Andrea Manica Eleanor M. L. Scerri |
| author_facet | Jacopo Niccolò Cerasoni Emily Y. Hallett Eslem Ben Arous Robert M. Beyer Mario Krapp Andrea Manica Eleanor M. L. Scerri |
| author_sort | Jacopo Niccolò Cerasoni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | African paleoanthropological studies typically focus on regions of the continent such as Eastern, Southern and Northern Africa, which hold the highest density of Pleistocene archaeological sites. Nevertheless, lesser known areas such as West Africa also feature a high number of sites. Here, we present a high-resolution map synthesising all well contextualised Pleistocene archaeological sites present in Sub-Saharan West Africa. A detailed elevation and ecoregional map was developed and correlated with palaeoanthropological sites. This map is supplemented with 1,000- and 2000-year interval climate reconstructions over the last 120,000 years for three subregions of high archaeological interest. The presented archaeological sites were compiled by reviewing published literature, and selected based on: (1) documented archaeological stratification or >10 characteristic artefacts, (2) published coordinates, and (3) published chronometric ages or relative dating. The data presented here elucidates the current state of knowledge of Pleistocene West Africa, highlighting the regional potential for human evolutionary studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T09:00:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-038069db19aa4eab9751143d791665fc |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1744-5647 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T09:00:16Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Maps |
| spelling | doaj.art-038069db19aa4eab9751143d791665fc2022-12-22T01:55:17ZengTaylor & Francis GroupJournal of Maps1744-56472022-04-011810.1080/17445647.2022.2052767Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West AfricaJacopo Niccolò Cerasoni0Emily Y. Hallett1Eslem Ben Arous2Robert M. Beyer3Mario Krapp4Andrea Manica5Eleanor M. L. Scerri6Pan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, GermanyPan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, GermanyPan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, GermanyDepartment of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UKGNS Science | Te Pū Ao 30, Lower Hutt, New ZealandDepartment of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UKPan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Jena, GermanyAfrican paleoanthropological studies typically focus on regions of the continent such as Eastern, Southern and Northern Africa, which hold the highest density of Pleistocene archaeological sites. Nevertheless, lesser known areas such as West Africa also feature a high number of sites. Here, we present a high-resolution map synthesising all well contextualised Pleistocene archaeological sites present in Sub-Saharan West Africa. A detailed elevation and ecoregional map was developed and correlated with palaeoanthropological sites. This map is supplemented with 1,000- and 2000-year interval climate reconstructions over the last 120,000 years for three subregions of high archaeological interest. The presented archaeological sites were compiled by reviewing published literature, and selected based on: (1) documented archaeological stratification or >10 characteristic artefacts, (2) published coordinates, and (3) published chronometric ages or relative dating. The data presented here elucidates the current state of knowledge of Pleistocene West Africa, highlighting the regional potential for human evolutionary studies.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17445647.2022.2052767Pleistocene archaeologyWest Africapaleoenvironmental reconstructionpaleoclimatic modelling |
| spellingShingle | Jacopo Niccolò Cerasoni Emily Y. Hallett Eslem Ben Arous Robert M. Beyer Mario Krapp Andrea Manica Eleanor M. L. Scerri Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa Journal of Maps Pleistocene archaeology West Africa paleoenvironmental reconstruction paleoclimatic modelling |
| title | Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa |
| title_full | Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa |
| title_fullStr | Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa |
| title_short | Archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of Pleistocene West Africa |
| title_sort | archaeological sites and palaeoenvironments of pleistocene west africa |
| topic | Pleistocene archaeology West Africa paleoenvironmental reconstruction paleoclimatic modelling |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17445647.2022.2052767 |
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