100th century BCE
Olduvai Gorge, northern Tanzania
The Ndutu Beds at Olduvai Gorge preserve an East African Middle Stone Age assemblage formed after erosion cut into older Plio-Pleistocene deposits. The industry includes lava tools, discoid and unspecialized cores, Levallois flakes, scrapers, a discoid, and choppers, while formal tools are relatively rare. Chronological estimates range from about 50,000–56,000 years for upper or associated levels to a possible Middle Pleistocene age of up to 200,000 years for the basal deposits.
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The Story
Olduvai Gorge contains one of the principal East African localities discussed in the Middle Stone Age sequence. The Ndutu Beds accumulated after erosion had cut deeply into the older Plio-Pleistocene Formation. Their formation was associated with intermittent faulting, erosion, and fluvial deposition, followed by the accumulation of windblown tuffs.
The artifacts are made from lava and include discoid and unspecialized cores, flakes produced by the Levallois method, scrapers, a discoid, and two choppers. Formal tools are rare, and some Levallois flakes show only minimal retouch. The assemblage thus reflects the relatively light-duty technological pattern described for much of the East African Rift.
The chronology is complex. The upper part of the Ndutu Beds is estimated at about 50,000 years, while bone from a lower level has been dated by amino-acid racemization to about 56,000 BP. Remains of the extinct giant gelada baboon from the basal unit suggest that the lower part may belong to the Middle Pleistocene and could be as much as 200,000 years old.
100th century BCE
Olduvai Gorge, northern Tanzania
The Ndutu Beds at Olduvai Gorge preserve an East African Middle Stone Age assemblage formed after erosion cut into older Plio-Pleistocene deposits. The industry includes lava tools, discoid and unspecialized cores, Levallois flakes, scrapers, a discoid, and choppers, while formal tools are relatively rare. Chronological estimates range from about 50,000–56,000 years for upper or associated levels to a possible Middle Pleistocene age of up to 200,000 years for the basal deposits.
Continue exploring
The Story
Olduvai Gorge contains one of the principal East African localities discussed in the Middle Stone Age sequence. The Ndutu Beds accumulated after erosion had cut deeply into the older Plio-Pleistocene Formation. Their formation was associated with intermittent faulting, erosion, and fluvial deposition, followed by the accumulation of windblown tuffs.
The artifacts are made from lava and include discoid and unspecialized cores, flakes produced by the Levallois method, scrapers, a discoid, and two choppers. Formal tools are rare, and some Levallois flakes show only minimal retouch. The assemblage thus reflects the relatively light-duty technological pattern described for much of the East African Rift.
The chronology is complex. The upper part of the Ndutu Beds is estimated at about 50,000 years, while bone from a lower level has been dated by amino-acid racemization to about 56,000 BP. Remains of the extinct giant gelada baboon from the basal unit suggest that the lower part may belong to the Middle Pleistocene and could be as much as 200,000 years old.