Vᵉ siècle av. J.-C. – IIᵉ siècle av. J.-C.
Central Nigeria
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Taruga is an archaeological site in central Nigeria associated with early iron-working and Nok-style material culture. Excavations uncovered iron slag, iron-smelting furnaces, stone tools, pottery, and characteristic terracotta figurines. Radiocarbon results from the site include dates in the fifth and fourth centuries BC, leading to its presentation as the earliest securely documented sub-Saharan centre of iron-working in the excerpt. Its evidence is important but remains geographically isolated.
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Le récit
Taruga lies in central Nigeria, approximately 60 kilometres south-east of Abuja and 90 kilometres south-west of Nok. Earlier discoveries had already identified figurines in the characteristic Nok style, but excavations led by Bernard Fagg revealed a broader technological context. Alongside stone tools and pottery, the excavators found additional Nok-style figurines, iron slag, and furnaces used for smelting iron.
The radiocarbon evidence is unusually early. Tests produced dates of 440 ± 140 BC, 300 ± 100 BC, and 280 ± 120 BC, with the second date obtained from charcoal inside furnace number 2. The presence of dated charcoal within a furnace strengthened the case that iron-working, rather than merely the later circulation of iron objects, occurred at the site during the second half of the first millennium BC.
Within the comparative framework presented here, Taruga stands apart from the Chad region. Daima has no evidence for iron before about AD 500, whereas Taruga’s furnace evidence is several centuries earlier. The site therefore became central to discussions of early Nigerian metallurgy and the relationship between iron-working and the Nok Culture, although the excerpt cautions that comparable dates from other metal-using sites are still needed.
Vᵉ siècle av. J.-C. – IIᵉ siècle av. J.-C.
Central Nigeria
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Taruga is an archaeological site in central Nigeria associated with early iron-working and Nok-style material culture. Excavations uncovered iron slag, iron-smelting furnaces, stone tools, pottery, and characteristic terracotta figurines. Radiocarbon results from the site include dates in the fifth and fourth centuries BC, leading to its presentation as the earliest securely documented sub-Saharan centre of iron-working in the excerpt. Its evidence is important but remains geographically isolated.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Taruga lies in central Nigeria, approximately 60 kilometres south-east of Abuja and 90 kilometres south-west of Nok. Earlier discoveries had already identified figurines in the characteristic Nok style, but excavations led by Bernard Fagg revealed a broader technological context. Alongside stone tools and pottery, the excavators found additional Nok-style figurines, iron slag, and furnaces used for smelting iron.
The radiocarbon evidence is unusually early. Tests produced dates of 440 ± 140 BC, 300 ± 100 BC, and 280 ± 120 BC, with the second date obtained from charcoal inside furnace number 2. The presence of dated charcoal within a furnace strengthened the case that iron-working, rather than merely the later circulation of iron objects, occurred at the site during the second half of the first millennium BC.
Within the comparative framework presented here, Taruga stands apart from the Chad region. Daima has no evidence for iron before about AD 500, whereas Taruga’s furnace evidence is several centuries earlier. The site therefore became central to discussions of early Nigerian metallurgy and the relationship between iron-working and the Nok Culture, although the excerpt cautions that comparable dates from other metal-using sites are still needed.
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