100th century BCE – 10th century BCE
Angola, Zaire, and the gallery forests and plateaus of Central Africa
The Tshitolian Industrial Complex was a Later Stone Age tradition of Central Africa, with earliest examples dated to about 12,000 BC in Angola and some latest dated examples around 3,000 years ago. Its tool-kits varied geographically between valley and plateau settings and included trapezes, tranchets, leaf-shaped and tanged arrowheads, axes, and adzes. The associated economies likely combined trapping or hunting large game in gallery forests with seasonal antelope hunting on plateaus.
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The Story
Tshitolian tool-kits are recorded in Zaire and Angola and show both chronological and geographic variation. The earliest examples date from about 12,000 BC in Angola, while some of the latest dated examples are approximately 3,000 years old. Their distribution crossed contrasting environments, including gallery forests, valleys, hills, and plateaus.
Two principal equipment sets have been distinguished. Valley assemblages contain high percentages of trapezes and tranchets, whereas hill and plateau assemblages include leaf-shaped and tanged arrowheads. Both sets contain refined axe and adze forms belonging to the Lupemban tradition, indicating a substantial woodworking component alongside hunting equipment.
The technological division may reflect contrasting subsistence strategies. Larger camps in gallery forests may have focused on trapping large game such as hippopotamus and elephant, while seasonal hunting of antelope took place on the plateau. The evidence therefore links tool variation to movement between ecological zones and to the exploitation of different animal resources.
100th century BCE – 10th century BCE
Angola, Zaire, and the gallery forests and plateaus of Central Africa
The Tshitolian Industrial Complex was a Later Stone Age tradition of Central Africa, with earliest examples dated to about 12,000 BC in Angola and some latest dated examples around 3,000 years ago. Its tool-kits varied geographically between valley and plateau settings and included trapezes, tranchets, leaf-shaped and tanged arrowheads, axes, and adzes. The associated economies likely combined trapping or hunting large game in gallery forests with seasonal antelope hunting on plateaus.
Continue exploring
The Story
Tshitolian tool-kits are recorded in Zaire and Angola and show both chronological and geographic variation. The earliest examples date from about 12,000 BC in Angola, while some of the latest dated examples are approximately 3,000 years old. Their distribution crossed contrasting environments, including gallery forests, valleys, hills, and plateaus.
Two principal equipment sets have been distinguished. Valley assemblages contain high percentages of trapezes and tranchets, whereas hill and plateau assemblages include leaf-shaped and tanged arrowheads. Both sets contain refined axe and adze forms belonging to the Lupemban tradition, indicating a substantial woodworking component alongside hunting equipment.
The technological division may reflect contrasting subsistence strategies. Larger camps in gallery forests may have focused on trapping large game such as hippopotamus and elephant, while seasonal hunting of antelope took place on the plateau. The evidence therefore links tool variation to movement between ecological zones and to the exploitation of different animal resources.