Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C.
Oued Djebanna, eastern Algeria
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Bir el-Ater is the type-site of the Aterian in eastern Algeria, situated in the Oued Djebanna near the Tunisian border. The extract identifies it as a principal locality for the Aterian and associates Helix shells from a Middle Aterian context with a date older than 50,000 BP. The site also anchors discussion of the Djebannian facies of the typical Aterian.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Bir el-Ater is located in the Oued Djebanna of eastern Algeria, close to the Tunisian border. It is identified as the type-site for the Aterian and therefore occupies a central place in the archaeological classification of the tradition. The locality belongs to an area where the Aterian is especially well represented, both on inland plateaus and at coastal sites.
The passage associates Helix shells from a Middle Aterian context at Bir el-Ater with a reported date older than 50,000 BP. This date is used within a broader discussion of the chronology of Aterian industries, whose early and late phases remain unevenly dated across North Africa and the Sahara.
The site also provides the geographical anchor for the Djebannian form of the typical Aterian. This facies retains a Mousterian character but contains more Aterian-tanged points, end-scrapers, and burins, together amounting to nearly one-fifth of the tools in the cited comparison.
Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C.
Oued Djebanna, eastern Algeria
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Bir el-Ater is the type-site of the Aterian in eastern Algeria, situated in the Oued Djebanna near the Tunisian border. The extract identifies it as a principal locality for the Aterian and associates Helix shells from a Middle Aterian context with a date older than 50,000 BP. The site also anchors discussion of the Djebannian facies of the typical Aterian.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Bir el-Ater is located in the Oued Djebanna of eastern Algeria, close to the Tunisian border. It is identified as the type-site for the Aterian and therefore occupies a central place in the archaeological classification of the tradition. The locality belongs to an area where the Aterian is especially well represented, both on inland plateaus and at coastal sites.
The passage associates Helix shells from a Middle Aterian context at Bir el-Ater with a reported date older than 50,000 BP. This date is used within a broader discussion of the chronology of Aterian industries, whose early and late phases remain unevenly dated across North Africa and the Sahara.
The site also provides the geographical anchor for the Djebannian form of the typical Aterian. This facies retains a Mousterian character but contains more Aterian-tanged points, end-scrapers, and burins, together amounting to nearly one-fifth of the tools in the cited comparison.