New findings on the significance of Jebel Moya in the eastern Sahel

Bibliographic Data

ID6042352
AuthorsMichael Bra (0000-0002-2891-5750, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY, United Kingdom, corresponding author), D Q Fuller (0000-0002-4859-080X, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY, United Kingdom), Kevin C Macdonald (University College London), Kevin Macdonald (0000-0001-5966-7027, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY, United Kingdom), Craig Stevens (0000-0002-2669-5715, University College London), Chris Stevens (Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY, United Kingdom), Ahmed Adam (0000-0001-9069-3282, University of Khartoum), Ahmed Hussein Abdelrahman Adam (University of Khartoum), Iwona Kozieradzka-Ogunmakin (0000-0003-0396-7623, University of Manchester), Rayan Abdallah (University of Khartoum), Osman Khalil Alawad (University of Khartoum), Osman Alawad (University of Khartoum), Ammar Awad Mohamed Abdalla (0009-0004-0999-3026, University of Khartoum), Ammar Abdalla (University of Khartoum), Isabelle Vella Gregory (0000-0001-5181-4803, Isabelle Vella Gregory: MacDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3ER, United Kingdom), Joss Wellings (Independent researcher), Fakri Hassan (National Museum of Antiquities and Museums, Al-Nil Avenue, Khartoum, Sudan), Ali Mohamed Abdelrahman (National Centre for Research), Ali Abdelrahman (0000-0002-8011-3798, National Museum of Antiquities and Museums, Al-Nil Avenue, Khartoum, Sudan)
Year2019
Volume54
Issue4
Pages425-444
Publication date2019-10-02
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAzania Archaeological Research in Africa (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0067-270X • E-ISSN: 1945-5534
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0067270x.2019.1691845
PMID31853153
OpenAlexW2990876028
LanguageEN
Citations received22
References cited33

This paper presents new excavation data and new radiometric dates for Jebel Moya, south-central Sudan. These data suggest revisions to previous chronological understandings of the site. New excavations, initiated in 2017, show a longer, more continuous occupation of the site than has been previously recognised. Archaeozoological and archaeobotanical analyses provide evidence for domesticated taxa. Archaeobotanical evidence is dominated by domesticated sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), radiocarbon dated to c. 2550–2210 BC. Faunal remains include cattle and goat/sheep. A late third-millennium BC date on the human skeleton excavated in the 2017 season also shows that mortuary activity began early in the site’s history, contemporary with domesticated faunal and botanical remains. These initial results indicate the long-term association of the site with pastoralism and agriculture and with environmental change. Jebel Moya’s continued potential to serve as a chronological and cultural reference point for future studies in south-central Sudan and the eastern Sahel is reinforced

Ancient history · Archaeology · Geography · African Botany and Ecology Studies · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · History · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology