Préhistoire de L'Afrique du Nord: Essai de Chronologie
... Unfortunately, Debruge's arguments did not prevail against Pallary's authority, and the Berber Neolithic fantasy persisted until 1922, when Maurice Reygasse presented the Oued Djebbana industry (Reygasse 1922;Balout 1955). In typical circumstances, the term would have been abandoned in favour of reverting to the Mousterian label for all Middle Palaeolithic industries, however, Reygasse chose to introduce a new classification, proposing to categorise assemblages with tanged tools under a distinct culture he called the Aterian. ...
... The former was proposed by Reygasse (1935) and Lhote (1943) to identify a few Ahaggar industries in the Central Sahara, while the latter was coined by Reygasse (1921Reygasse ( /1922 to describe an assemblage collected south of Tebessa. Both have faced significant criticism (Bordes and Bourgon 1951;Balout 1955;Camps 1974). Some other lithic assemblages from the Sahara have been linked to the MSA but lack specific labels (Cinquabre and Maître 1964;Aumassip 1986). ...
... Even Morel (1955), who mentioned the discovery of small Sbaikian handaxes in the wall of a well at Bir Sbaikia above a classical handaxe and Levallois flakes, did not consider it a distinct industry. Additionally, Balout (1955) highlighted the absence of equivalent Sbaikian pieces in the ESA and MSA sites in the Tebessa region. The final Acheulian handaxes from El Ma Labiod and a few bifacial pieces from Oglat Chaacha and Fedj el Botma share very little resemblance to the thousands of 'leaves' collected by Reygasse. ...
... Finds from Oued Djebbana invalidated the "néolithique berbère" hypothesis of Pallary (1909) and reclassified all the Levallois industries with tanged pieces in the Middle Paleolithic/ MSA (Reygasse, 1920). The site is represented by a single archaeological level in an alluvial context at the base of a steep bank of Wadi Djebbana (Balout, 1955), Fig. 2. The archaeological level was exposed as a result of the downcutting of the host alluvial deposit by fluvial action. In 1922, the Aterian layer at the site extended over a length of 36 m, but it had since gradually vanished due to erosion of the host deposit. ...
... The vegetation corresponds to a steppe grassland adapted to a semi-arid climate. Wadi Djebbana was named in reference to the cemetery of Si Djedd el Kebir, which is located about 500 m to the east of the site (Balout, 1955). Djebbana means cemetery in the Algerian and Tunisian Arabic languages. ...
... The other sequences of Oued Djebbana are less detailed but include the same tripartite stratigraphy (A, B, C) with two successions of argillaceous deposits more or less mixed with pebbles enclosing an ashy archaeological layer. Previous research has pointed out variations in the layers' composition laterally, which are attributed to lateral facies changes that commonly characterize fluvial settings (Morel, 1974a;Balout, 1955;Reygasse, 1936Reygasse, -1937. However, the current cutbank only exposes sandy clay layers with few gravels. ...
The site of Oued Djebbana is located on the outskirts of the Bir el Ater town in the Tebessa region of eastern Algeria (34.730° N, 8.051° E). It is the first site where the Aterian technocomplex was identified and named so after the nearest major settlement, “Bir el Ater.” The Aterian is a North African variant of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) technology characterized by the use of pedunculation to create tanged stone points. At the time of its discovery in 1917, Oued Djebbana was the only site showing an industry with tanged tools in a clear stratigraphic context without any evidence of material intrusion from other periods. The Oued Djebbana material is relevant for establishing regional models of hominin adaptation affiliated with the Aterian technology. Although the site did not provide human remains nor reliable chronometric age yet, it is the only one that produced an association of pigments, shell beads, tanged tools, and blade technology in the Algerian MSA. These elements, in addition to bifacial points, bone tools, and exchange networks, were described in Aterian sites in Morocco and the African MSA as evidence of complex and modern behavior. At Oued Djebbana, both pigments and beads that indicate a deliberate non-utilitarian behavior, as well as shells of Nassarius gibbosulus, are evidence of long-distance exchange networks
... Finds from Oued Djebbana invalidated the "néolithique berbère" hypothesis of Pallary (1909) and reclassified all the Levallois industries with tanged pieces in the Middle Paleolithic/ MSA (Reygasse, 1920). The site is represented by a single archaeological level in an alluvial context at the base of a steep bank of Wadi Djebbana (Balout, 1955), Fig. 2. The archaeological level was exposed as a result of the downcutting of the host alluvial deposit by fluvial action. In 1922, the Aterian layer at the site extended over a length of 36 m, but it had since gradually vanished due to erosion of the host deposit. ...
... The vegetation corresponds to a steppe grassland adapted to a semi-arid climate. Wadi Djebbana was named in reference to the cemetery of Si Djedd el Kebir, which is located about 500 m to the east of the site (Balout, 1955). Djebbana means cemetery in the Algerian and Tunisian Arabic languages. ...
... The other sequences of Oued Djebbana are less detailed but include the same tripartite stratigraphy (A, B, C) with two successions of argillaceous deposits more or less mixed with pebbles enclosing an ashy archaeological layer. Previous research has pointed out variations in the layers' composition laterally, which are attributed to lateral facies changes that commonly characterize fluvial settings (Morel, 1974a;Balout, 1955;Reygasse, 1936Reygasse, -1937. However, the current cutbank only exposes sandy clay layers with few gravels. ...
... The North African localities with Ceratotherium. The key to numbers of the sites is given in Table 4. (2010), Rhodes et al. (2006) and Daujeard et al. (2020) Oulad (2002) Thomas Quarry I hominid level 7 Teeth, metapodials, MC II Ennouchi (1956) and Geraads (1980) 0.6 Geraads (2002) Khemisset, 6 m terrace 23 Teeth Arambourg (1938) and Balout (1955) M Pleistocene/Acheulian Guérin (1980b) and Balout (1955) Chetma 46 M 1/2 Thomas (1884) and Gaudry (1879) Quaternaire récent Acheulian M Pleistocene/ Acheuléen Thomas (1884), Balout (1955) and Guérin (1980b) Aboukir 35 ...
... The North African localities with Ceratotherium. The key to numbers of the sites is given in Table 4. (2010), Rhodes et al. (2006) and Daujeard et al. (2020) Oulad (2002) Thomas Quarry I hominid level 7 Teeth, metapodials, MC II Ennouchi (1956) and Geraads (1980) 0.6 Geraads (2002) Khemisset, 6 m terrace 23 Teeth Arambourg (1938) and Balout (1955) M Pleistocene/Acheulian Guérin (1980b) and Balout (1955) Chetma 46 M 1/2 Thomas (1884) and Gaudry (1879) Quaternaire récent Acheulian M Pleistocene/ Acheuléen Thomas (1884), Balout (1955) and Guérin (1980b) Aboukir 35 ...
... The North African localities with Ceratotherium. The key to numbers of the sites is given in Table 4. (2010), Rhodes et al. (2006) and Daujeard et al. (2020) Oulad (2002) Thomas Quarry I hominid level 7 Teeth, metapodials, MC II Ennouchi (1956) and Geraads (1980) 0.6 Geraads (2002) Khemisset, 6 m terrace 23 Teeth Arambourg (1938) and Balout (1955) M Pleistocene/Acheulian Guérin (1980b) and Balout (1955) Chetma 46 M 1/2 Thomas (1884) and Gaudry (1879) Quaternaire récent Acheulian M Pleistocene/ Acheuléen Thomas (1884), Balout (1955) and Guérin (1980b) Aboukir 35 ...
Most biogeographers considered the Maghreb to be part of the Palearctic biogeographic region, though it is relatively recently that the proportion of Palearctic species increased there. How and when exactly these biogeographic changes occurred is not well understood, but they are probably the result of the increasing aridification of the Sahara and decreasing global temperatures. Fossils of Bos primigenius and Ceratotherium simum from a new fossil locality in a terrace of the Oued el Haï (NE Morocco) contribute to our understanding of some of these biogeographic processes and their timing. They also suggest an age between ~57 and ~100 ka for the terrace. The same evolutionary change in Bos in Europe and the Maghreb suggests geneflow as the most parsimonious explanation, though parallel evolution is an alternative possibility. Oued el Haï has the oldest well-documented record of C. simum in the Maghreb. The dispersal of this species to North Africa, where it replaced C. mauritanicum, may have occurred during a ‘Green Sahara Period’ between 80–85 or 100–105 ka, when the Maghreb had acquired already a Palearctic character. The study of the biogeography and requirements of the large mammals of the Maghreb may provide information to calibrate the region’s climate modelling.
... L'articulation des cultures atériennes a été l'objet de nombreux travaux (Tableau I.1). Dès le milieu des années 40, certains auteurs expriment la nécessité d'une subdivision en trois, voire quatre périodes (Antoine 1938, Canton-Thompson 1946, Balout 1955, Roche 1969, Wengler 1973, Camps 1974, Ferring 1975, Bordes 1977. Cette subdivision s'opère notamment à partir d'éléments typologiques tels que les pointes moustériennes, les éléments pédonculés, les pièces bifaciales ainsi que les nucléus de morphologie discoïdes de petites dimensions (Antoine 1950, Hawking 2001, p. 85, Bouzouggar et al. 2012. ...
... Par ailleurs, la construction de la Préhistoire nord-africaine, et singulièrement celle du Maghreb, dans la première moitié du vingtième siècle, est avant tout le fait d'Européens. Il n'est pas possible d'éluder cette dimension historiographique de la mise en place de la terminologie, qui affecte le sens des concepts manipulés aujourd'hui encore (Holl 2005, Balout 1955. Pour autant, le Maghreb est à l'interface des espaces méditerranéen et africain, au moins pour les périodes (ici le SIM 5) où la barrière naturelle du Sahara s'estompe. ...
... 10,000-7500 BP). Information on this mollusc fauna in Algeria is richer than it is in Tunisia (Debruge, 1910(Debruge, , 1911Debruge and Mercier, 1913, Gobert, 1937, Balout, 1955, Vaufrey, 1955, Morel, 1953, 1977Camps, 1974, Camps and Morel, 1983, Camps-Fabrer, 1975, Lubell et al, 1975, 1976, 1982-1983, Zoughlami, 1978Roubet, 1979, Saafi et al, 2013, Saafi, 2019, Saafi et al, 2021a. But it remains insufficient to understand their role in the daily life of the region's prehistoric populations. ...
... This technique consists of heating the water contained in containers (made of wood or skin) by throwing in heated stones. The burnt stones found in escargotieres could be used in the cooking of molluscs (Balout, 1955, Camps, 1974. In the absence of a study of this phenomenon, it is not possible to check the effectiveness of this method. ...
The rammadiya of Medjez I, located near El Eulma (eastern Algeria), is one of the best known sites of the Upper Capsian. The discovered terrestrial malacofauna comes from two excavations (2013 and 2017). The majority of the shells belong to two species: Helix melanostoma and Xerosecta sp. (more than 90% of the total malacofauna). The high proportion of young individuals of Xerosecta sp., the small size of its shell and the presence of faunal remains highlight the negligible - secondary or complementary - role of the terrestrial malacofauna in the diet of the occupants of Medjez I. The molluscs could be cooked on heated stones, a technique that will preserve the structure of the shell. The presence of systematic (or regular) anthropogenic perforations is due, for a large part, to the methods of extraction of the animal from its shell for consumption: piercing by human canines and/or by a flint or bone tool. However, certain types of perforation, located just behind the peristome at the level of the last whorl of the shell, could have had the objective of manufacturing collars or other ornamental objects. The collection season for the land snail species identified in the site could have taken place during several periods of the year depending on the adaptation of each species to climate change.
... Research expeditions have multiplied over years, but, although several Lower Palaeolithic sites were discovered, most of them lack a stratigraphic context (e.g. Alimen 1955;Balout 1955;Vaufrey 1955;Biberson 1961a;Champault 1966;Clark 1992;Mattingly et al. 2003;Reynolds 2006;Boudad and Guislain 2012;Parenti et al. 2015;Cancellieri 2021). Accordingly, the timing and mode of the early Acheulean emergence and its subsequent development are poorly understood in this part of Africa and many aspects remain open questions. ...
... At the base of the Sidi Abderrahmane Quarry (Fig. 1), Neuville and Ruhlmann (1941) recorded in layer M of Site B an assemblage of 426 artefacts made of quartzite and feldspathic sandstone from an excavation area of 50 m 2 . This industry was qualified as "Clacto-Abbevillian" (Neuville and Ruhlmann 1941;Balout 1955). It contained Acheulean forms (trihedrons, handaxes, cleavers, spheroids, the "Abbevilian" component), large flakes (the "Clactonian" component) and various forms of cobble tools, associated with a very fragmentary fauna dominated by Hippopotamus. ...
North Africa is a key area for understanding cultural processes that led to the Acheulean panAfrican emergence and expressions and the related hominin population dynamics. Unfortunately, little is known about the early Acheulean in this vast area of the African continent due to the scarceness of archaeological sites in stratigraphic context with reliable chronometric data, human remains, and technological analyses of the lithic industries. Here, we present the first comprehensive techno-economic analysis of the early Acheulean assemblage from Thomas Quarry I – Unit L1 (ThI-L1, Casablanca, Morocco), which is the earliest Acheulean site of North Africa, unambiguously dated to 1.3 Ma. Fieldwork has unearthed faunal remains and a lithic collection containing over 3800 artefacts, which represents one of the largest series for the early African Acheulean. The assemblage is mainly composed of quartzites and to a lesser extent of silicites, both abundantly available near the site. Previously published results of the silicite study revealed two different productions for the extraction of small flakes and of bladelet-like flakes. In this work, we analyse the techno-economic systems of the quartzite assemblage. Two distinct quartzite productions co-occur, one devoted to the manufacture of Large Cutting Tools (LCTs), the other focused on the extraction of small-medium sized flakes. LCTs were usually produced from large cobbles, less often from large flakes detached mainly using the entame core method. The main technical objective was to obtain large pointed tools and, more rarely, large tools with a transversal cutting edge. Results support the existence of a strong synergy between conceptual and operational schemes regulated by the ability to anticipate the final tool morphology and to apply standardized shaping procedures to manufacture recurrent morphotypes. Quartzite small-medium sized flakes were produced by a diversity of flaking methods adapted to the cobble blank morphologies and were not retouched. The results allow to assess that the earliest technical expression of the Acheulean in North Africa is characterised by a high diversification of the stone knapping outcomes, the complexity of the mental templates, and the flexible structure of the operational schemes.
... 10,000-7500 BP). Information on this mollusc fauna in Algeria is richer than it is in Tunisia (Debruge, 1910(Debruge, , 1911Debruge and Mercier, 1913, Gobert, 1937, Balout, 1955, Vaufrey, 1955, Morel, 1953, 1977Camps, 1974, Camps and Morel, 1983, Camps-Fabrer, 1975, Lubell et al, 1975, 1976, 1982-1983, Zoughlami, 1978Roubet, 1979, Saafi et al, 2013, Saafi, 2019, Saafi et al, 2021a. But it remains insufficient to understand their role in the daily life of the region's prehistoric populations. ...
... This technique consists of heating the water contained in containers (made of wood or skin) by throwing in heated stones. The burnt stones found in escargotieres could be used in the cooking of molluscs (Balout, 1955, Camps, 1974. In the absence of a study of this phenomenon, it is not possible to check the effectiveness of this method. ...
... Tout cela s'est en effet passé bien avant l'entrée des Proto-Méditerranéens au Maghreb, vers le IX e millénaire BP et de ceux en particulier venus s'installer dans la grotte néolithique du Kef el-Agab* à une date non encore fixée (Barbin 1951(Barbin , 1953. Or, il n'existe pas non plus pour ces Proto-Méditerranéens de Tunisie de plus proches ancêtres que ceux issus du peuplement capsien des Hautes-Plaines du Constantinois. 3 À l'occasion d'une révision documentaire, locale et régionale, s'appuyant sur tous les indices encore disponibles, on essaiera de lever certaines ambiguïtés soulignées par de nombreux auteurs (Balout 1955 ;Vaufrey 1955 ;Camps 1974 ;Hachi 1999Hachi et 2003) et l'on tentera de préciser les modalités de circulation et d'occupation de cet espace littoral, tellien et dunaire, par ces deux types humains sapiens, au cours des derniers millénaires. ...
... D'assez bonnes dimensions, aptes au façonnage délicat des (Morel 1953 : 175). Cette opinion n'a pas été soutenue (Balout 1955 ;Vaufrey 1955 ;Camps 1974), l'hypothèse d'un mélange s'est imposée comme dans le cas du gisement du Demnet el-Hassan (La Calle), fouillé et publié par J. Morel (1955). ...
... An equatorial origin was proposed as early as 1946 by Caton-Thompson on the basis of the presence of large foliates or lanceolates similar to those known from 'Lupemban' assemblages. However, autochthonic origins within the Maghreb have always been posited (Balout, 1955;Camps, 1974;Aumassip, 2001). These opposing views persist to this day. ...
... While some may resemble Lupemban lanceolates, without significant chronological and comparative technological studies links between TTAs and the Lupemban are purely speculative. For example, in northwest Africa, a surface assemblage at the Algerian-Tunisian border was collected containing numerous bifacial tools ranging from thick symmetrical forms to bifacial foliates and coined as the 'Sbaikian' (Balout, 1955). Another 'Sbaikian' assemblage comes from Oued Mahrouguet (Anonymous, 1956) and its bifacial tools show very striking morphological and possibly, technical similarities with the core-axes from Saï 8-B-11. ...
North Africa features some of the earliest manifestations of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) and fossils of our species, Homo sapiens, as well as early examples of complex culture and the long distance transfer of exotic raw materials. As they are elsewhere, lithics (i.e., stone tools) present by far the most abundant source of information on this cultural period. Given the importance of North Africa in human origins, understanding the character and distribution of MSA lithics is therefore crucial, as they shed light on early human behaviour and culture. However, the lithics of the North African MSA are poorly understood, and their technological variability is frequently obfuscated by regionally specific nomenclatures, often repeated without criticism, and diverse methods of analysis that are often incompatible. Characterising dynamic technological innovations as well as apparent technological stasis remains challenging, and many narratives have not been tested quantitatively. This significantly problematizes hypotheses of human evolution and dispersals invoking these data that extend beyond North Africa. This paper therefore presents a description of the lithics of the North African MSA, including their technological characteristics, chronology, spatial distribution and associated research traditions. A range of interpretations concerning early H. sapiens demography in North Africa are then re-evaluated in the light of this review, and the role and power of lithic data to contribute to such debates is critically assessed.
... By its very amplitude, it is clear that this name covers very diverse and culturally different prehistoric realities. This observation is not new, and one only needs to read the first few pages of Lionel Balout (1955) to be convinced of it. Unfortunately, this observation has not yet led the notion to be abandoned nor to be replaced by other more coherent entities. ...
... The presence of a significant number of backed bladelets (more than 200 at the Logan Museum), some large retouched flakes and backed knives and end-scrapers on wide blades suggest some affinities of this industry with the Typical Capsian. Some authors, however, attribute at least a part of this site to the Upper Capsian (Balout 1955). 6 Information about the number of pits and trenches is unclear. ...
The early Holocene in North Africa remains a poorly known period, documented unequally by region. Eastern Algeria and Tunisia have the greatest number of deposits, but most were excavated decades ago without the controls and recording required for modern interpretation. The chronological framework is based on radiocarbon ( ¹⁴ C) dates that are also old, for the most part. Recent work on Mesolithic lithic industries of Western Europe has enabled us to revive the hypothesis of the existence of contacts between the northern and southern shores of the western Mediterranean at least by the 6th millennium cal BC. A collective research program was conducted in 2016–2017 to test this hypothesis with a particular focus on documenting the technological traditions in the lithic industry and situating them precisely in time. We have 46 new radiocarbon dates that were recently carried out on previously excavated Algerian sites, some of which contain several levels, allowing the construction of Bayesian models. These new measures reinforce the hypothesis of contacts between Europe and Africa by demonstrating the contemporaneity of similar technological processes. Above all, they make it possible to accurately refine the chronology of the main cultural entities of the Maghreb at the beginning of the Holocene.
... While Cardium-impressions are rare ( Fig. 3.3), impressed ( Fig. 3.5-6) and incised decorations ( Fig. 3.7-9) are much more frequent. The latter, mostly formed as so-called "criss-cross-pattern" are well known from the Oran area in Algeria and show a clear connection to the African coast further east (Balout 1955, Aumassip 1971, Camps & Camps-Fabrer 1972. The few Cardium-impressions do not resemble the decorations from the Tangier area (Gilman 1975, Daugas & El Idrissi 2008 and impressed decoration rather show to the Iberian Peninsula (Camalich et al. 2004, Pellicer & Acosta 1997 Altogether connections arise more to the east and the Spanish coast, then to the Tangier peninsula in the West. ...
... Compared with the contemporaneous pottery of Hassi Ouenzga some common characteristics are visible like pointed bases, plastic applications, shell, comb and other impressions as well as some incised decorations with wavy line patterns. But also some remarkable differences become obvious like the clear domination of Cardiumimpressions at the littoral and criss-cross incised patterns in Hassi Ouenzga like they are known from the Oran region (Balout 1955, Aumassip 1971, Camps & Camps-Fabrer 1972. The Hassi Ouenzga pottery therefore cannot simply be deduced from the littoral ware like the geographical position would suggest. ...
... Archaeologists have devised taxonomic schemes or chrono-cultural sequences for different areas of the MSA, often from key sites with long stratigraphic deposits, based on aggregating archaeological materialalmost exclusively stone toolsinto units with distinct spatio-temporal extent variably called cultures, phases/facies, varieties, industries, industrial complexes or technocomplexes (e.g. Leakey 1931;Balout 1955;Clark 1959Clark , 1982Marks 1968;Sampson 1974;Volman 1981;Singer and Wymer 1982;Allsworth-Jones 1986; see also the list given by Kleindienst 1967: 837-852). While the famous Burg-Wartenstein conference wanted to abandon high-level age-stages such as Earlier Stone Age (ESA) or MSA and re-consider the use of many of the then ill-defined 'cultures' (such as the Still Bay and Wilton), it stuck with a focus on a scheme of industrial complex, industry, or phase but called for a better and more consistent definition of these units (Clark et al. 1966;Bishop and Clark 1967: 866-872) A move away from more 'culture-historical' to processual approaches since the 1960s by the international Stone Age community questioned the definition, naming, reality and relevance of such classificatory units (e.g. ...
... Small numbers of burins, as well as endscrapers on large flakes, are also present. Camps (1955) stressed the Iberomaurusian affinities and the relative absence of geometrics in the Mechta el Arbi material, as also noted by Vaufrey (1935) and Balout (1955). However, Camps (1974) decided to classify this rammadiya as "Capsian." ...
The Capsian, comprising the Typical Capsian and Upper Capsian facies, is a prominent North African prehistoric entity dating to the Early Holocene. Hundreds of rammadiyat (snail-shell mound) sites in eastern Algeria and Tunisia were occupied by Capsian hunter-gatherer communities. A significant technological change occurred at these sites during the mid-seventh millennium BCE. Pressure knapping, for producing a blade and trapeze lithic industry, emerged. This technique developed during the Mesolithic throughout the Mediterranean region. Understanding the earlier typological and technological variabilities and the exact timing of the emergence of pressure knapping is crucial in determining the local or foreign origin of this innovation in North Africa. Recent examination of legacy collections excavated in the Oum el Bouaghi area of Algeria during the interwar period fosters new perspectives on Capsian lithic industry variability. Our analyses document a complex lithic landscape for the Early Holocene, including a proposed “Central Early Capsian” facies for the early phases, as well as the persistence of strong regional variabilities in Upper Capsian lithic industries.
... Excavations carried out since the early 1900s in many rockshelters and open-air sites across Morocco have led to the recovery of important faunal and lithic collections, often in well-preserved conditions (Balout 1955;Nehren 1992). Despite this, there are only a few sites in Morocco where the Iberomaurusian technocomplex has been documented in its entirety and stratigraphic sequences published (Barton et al. 2005(Barton et al. , 2013(Barton et al. , 2016Bouzouggar et al. 2008;Mikdad et al. 2002). ...
The Iberomaurusian lithic assemblages from Ifri El Baroud (northeast Morocco) are discussed from techno-economic, typological, and functional points of view. The site preserves an archaeological sequence spanning the period ca. 23,000–13,000 cal BP. The analysis of the lithic materials from the sequence highlights the diachronic changes in human behavior. Results show a strong relationship between paleoenvironmental shifts and changes in settlement strategies and lithic production.KeywordsIfri El BaroudIberomaurusianLithic technologyMorocco
... B.C.) and Neolithic periods (VIIth-VIth Millennium cal. B.C.) (Debruge, 1910(Debruge, , 1911Debruge and Mercier 1913;Gobert 1937;Balout, 1955;Vaufrey, 1955;Morel, 1953Morel, , 1977Morel, , 1978Morel, , 1980Camps, 1974;Camps and Morel, 1983;Camps-Fabrer, 1975;Lubell et al., 1975Lubell et al., , 1976Lubell et al., , 1982Grebenart, 1976;Roubet, 1979;Saafi, 2019;Saafi et al., 2021a;Saafi et al., 2021b;Saafi et al., 2013;Zoughlami, 1978). ...
Piercing of land snails is archaeologically attested in prehistoric North Africa, but there is very little information about the techniques employed by the ancient peoples. This ethnographic study aims to throw light on this phenomenon. The consumption of land snails is one of the important culinary traditions of a large part of the current Tunisian population. Collected terrestrial gastropods and their preparation vary from one region to another and from one family to another. Consumption techniques depend on the position of the body of the mollusc at the entrance of the shell after cooking and the consumer's mastery of extraction techniques. In addition to simple extraction, the piercing of the shells, by human canines or by any other tool, offers an effective solution for removal of the animal from the shell. The position of the perforation on the shell (upper or lower part) is related to the part of the mollusc flesh desired by the consumer.
... On doit surtout à trois savants naturalistes F. Doumergue (1917), P. Pallary (1918)(1919) et à G. Lecointre (qui participa aux recherches, in Balout 1955 : 369, note 3) d'avoir avalisé et soutenu les travaux du Lt. J. Campardou (1917Campardou ( , 1921 en examinant les lieux fouillés et les documents recueillis que citèrent bien plus tard R. Vaufrey (1955), L. Balout (1955) et G. Camps (1974. Aucune autre recherche n'a été entreprise dans la grotte et aux alentours. ...
... The extent of these sites and the considerable density of their archaeological deposits have long suggested that the Capsian groups who inhabited them lived a sedentary way of life (Balout 1955;Camps 1974;De Morgan 1909;Morel 1974a, b). However, more recent research has highlighted the importance of other dietary resources, both animal and plant, for Capsian groups. ...
This article discusses two major types of the Upper Capsian cultural materials in the Eastern Maghreb (ca. 8.2–6.0 cal BP): worked bones and knapped stones. These materials represent the main “toolset” of Capsian groups. The comparative observation of the two systems of production—bone and lithic—has allowed the recognition of certain analogies in their methods of exploitation and fabrication. These similarities, which represent a significant cultural marker of the Upper Capsian period, have not previously been explored. In this paper, two particular aspects of the system of production will be considered: multi-structured matrix partition in the bone industry and pressure knapping in the lithic industry.
... I al Marroc va poder freqüentar francesos d'alt nivell acadèmic que van ser decisius en la seua experiència professional. Entre ells hi hagué Lionel Balout (1907Balout ( -1992, membre destacat dels Congressos Panafricans de Prehistòria i gran detractor de la teoria africanista després de les seues minucioses excavacions a Algèria i Tunis, on va ocupar llocs molt rellevants (Balout 1955); de manera que Tarradell, després de les excavacions de Gar Cahal, prop de Ceuta, i de Caf That el-Gar, prop de Tetuan (Tarradell, 1957, p. 101-112), va poder demostrar que els contextos del Neolític eren més recents a Àfrica que a la Península. Així, un paradigma que havia sustentat l'esquema interpretatiu de Bosch i de Pericot es va ensorrar. ...
Resum L'època de Tarradell a la Universitat de València contribuí a fer que els estudis d'història de la facultat de Lletres adoptaren les tendències europees més actuals de la dècada de 1950. El contacte de Tarradell amb arqueòlegs francesos al Marroc i el dinamis-me que s'aconseguí a l'antic Laboratori d'Arqueologia, compartit amb el Ser-vei d'Investigació Prehistòrica de la Diputació, produïren un ambient cultural que traspassà els murs acadèmics i creà noves expectatives per al País Valencià. Paraules clau Miquel Tarradell, arqueologia, universitat, País Valencià. miquel Tarradell, on the centenary of Jaume vicens vives: Abstract The era of Tarradell at Valencia University contributed to History studies at the Humanities Faculty adopting the most up-to-date European trends of the decade 1950-60. Tarradell's contact with French archaeologists in Mo-rocco and the dynamism achieved in the old Archaeology Laboratory, shared with the Prehistory Research Unit of the provincial government, produced a cultural atmosphere that broke through academic boundaries and created new expectations for the País Valencià.
... Excavations carried out since the early 1900s in many rockshelters and open-air sites across Morocco have led to the recovery of important faunal and lithic collections, often in well-preserved conditions (Balout 1955;Nehren 1992). Despite this, there are only a few sites in Morocco where the Iberomaurusian technocomplex has been documented in its entirety and stratigraphic sequences published (Barton et al. 2005(Barton et al. , 2013(Barton et al. , 2016Bouzouggar et al. 2008;Mikdad et al. 2002). ...
The Iberomaurusian lithic assemblages from Ifri El Baroud (northeast Morocco) are discussed from techno-economic, typological, and functional points of view. The site preserves an archaeological sequence spanning the period ca. 23,000–13,000 cal BP. The analysis of the lithic materials from the sequence highlights the diachronic changes in human behavior. Results show a strong relationship between paleoenvironmental shifts and changes in settlement strategies and lithic production.
... The late upper Palaeolithic in northwest Africa is represented by the Iberomaurusian techno-complex (Pallary, 1909), a bladelet industry with backed pieces that has been described in many sites along the coast of the Maghreb and Libya as well as in the Atlas Mountains (Balout, 1955;McBurney, 1967). Based on new AMS radiocarbon dates, the Iberomaurusian appeared for the first time across the Maghreb at about 25-23 ka calibrated years BP (cal BP) (Barton et al., 2013;Hogue and Barton, 2016) and continued until the end of the Pleistocene (Bouzouggar et al., 2008). ...
With the onset of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), hunter-gatherers of the so-called Iberomaurusian techno-complex appeared in what is now the Mediterranean Maghreb. During a period of about seven thousand years, these groups left sandy occupation layers in a limited number of archaeological sites, while at the beginning of Greenland Interstadial (GI) 1, the sudden shift towards the deposition of shell-rich sediments and the increase in number of sites document clear changes in subsistence strategies as well as occupation density. It is highly likely that these shifts in human behaviour are related to pale-oenvironmental changes in the area, which, so far, are poorly documented in geological and archaeological archives. Ifri El Baroud (Gunpowder Cave, northeast Morocco) contains a well-stratified archaeological sequence covering both phases of Iberomaurusian occupation separated by a sharp sedimentary change. In this paper, new chronological data and detailed investigations on site formation using sedimentology and micromorphology are presented. In addition, results of the analyses of fauna, pollen, macrobotanical remains, and phytoliths are included. This data contributes to a full-scale pale-oenvironmental interpretation of the site's archaeological deposits, highlighting the fluctuations of landscape conditions at the transition from the cold-arid Greenland Stadial (GS) 2.1 to the warmer and moister Greenland Interstadial 1.
... Other sites (Tabelbala-Tachenghit, Djebel Meksem, Tessala, Aoulef, Reggane, Saoura, Bordj Tan Kena) are attributed to the Early Pleistocene on the basis of the composition and general morphology of the stone industries they contain. Unfortunately, most are non-stratified scatters of industries, and they are generally lacking in associated fauna (Champault 1951;Balout 1955;Hugot 1955;Laplace-Jauretche 1956;Alimen and Chavaillon 1960;Ramendo 1963;Roubet 1967;Thomas 1973;Alimen 1978;Heddouche 1980). One significant open-air site is Errayah, situated in northwestern Algeria (Sidi Ali, Mostaganem). ...
... When hunting, a lion will bring down its prey animal by leaping onto its back ; once it has its prey down, it clamps its powerful jaws around the animal's neck to kill it (Goldstein, 2009 ;Rudnai, 1973). In the rock art of Northern Africa, the lion is depicted in different realistic postures and actions of hunting, mainly as a solitary hunter such as in the hunting of an antelope in the site of Zaccar (Aumassip, 1986) and in the site of Teniet El Kharrouba (Vaufrey, 1939 ;Roubet, 2008), while the scene of Kef Messiouer, studied by R. Vaufrey (1939), L. Balout (1955) and C. Roubet (2005), can be qualified as a cooperative hunting of a pig performed by a lion family in the presence of jackals. The combination of the hunting habits of present day lions and the data from North African rock art demonstrates that the lion's position in the scene of Boukhirane doesn't fit with a hunting action, because the lion is neither on the body of the bovid, nor on its neck. ...
Pelorovii, lions, rams, and elephants are the major figures of animals represented in the Saharan Atlas, while the Central Sahara is usually known for the representations of giraffes, rhinoceroses and cattle (Aumassip, 2002). These wild and domestic animals have been depicted according to the economical role they played in each of these societies, or in connection with the various mythological systems they have induced (Soleilhavoup, 1991). Whatever the explanation, the long tradition of North African
rock art studies based mainly on the description of these depictions, as well as the determination and the geographic distribution of their styles, did not allow for other methods of research to be explored and developed (Soukopova, 2011). The symbolic and/or extra-ordinary significance, or as natural scenes of hunting and feeding, are the interpretations given to many artistic depictions, where some scenes include
big felines in association with other animals, such as bovids (Aumassip, 1986 ; Vaufrey, 1939 ; Roubet, 2008), an elephant (Aumassip, 1986) and pigs (Roubet, 2005). In general, the approaches to reach these interpretations are unclear and ambiguous. This prompted us to combine the descriptive, stylistic and ethological study, first in order to understand this unusual and heterogeneous animal association discovered in the rock art site of Boukhirane and find out the purpose of depicting vultures and a felid together surrounding a bovid, then in order to know precisely the kind of subject portrayed by the artist.
... Ain Hanech is considered to be Early Pleistocene (within the Olduvai Event, between 1.78 and 1.95 Ma), and 591 limestone artifacts from two archaeological horizons in a deep test trench were recovered and originally described as "sphéroides à facettes" or faceted spheroids (Balout, 1955). A subsequent analysis suggested that "the bulk of the assemblage was comprised of simple cores," (Sahnouni, Schick, & Toth, 1997, p. 703). ...
The mass distribution of the natural spheroids (manuports) from the Cave of Hearths, South Africa, is examined and found to empirically match a Poisson-type histogram with an average of 533 g. The stature of the (male) hominins that hoarded this cache is modeled at 181 cm, compatible with the fossil record for this region and period. This empirical distribution is shown to be partly a consequence of a visual selection of throwing material. The ethnological case of the war stones from the Niue Islands is examined in terms of their use and mass, showing that their distribution is similar to that of the Cave of Hearths and validating the interpretation that these manuports were collected for throwing. An examination of other spheroid artifacts reveals similar mass distributions, indicating that they also may have been made for throwing (or that our attraction to good throwing material determined their mass). The surprisingly overlooked question of play-learning is discussed, together with the possibility that smaller stones and artifacts were hoarded by juveniles at certain sites.
... En el caso de la prehistoria, esta realidad se ha traducido en conclusiones históricas de tipo eurocéntricas y racistas, negando que los grupos prehistóricos magrebíes innovaran o fueran dinámicos, dependiendo en todos y cada uno de sus cambios culturales y socio-económicos de influjos poblacionales o culturales europeos o próximo-orientales. Obras como las de los prehistoriadores Maurice Antoine (1955), Raymond Vaufrey (1933, 1956 o Lionel Balout (1955) son un buen ejemplo de ello. Queda patente esta relación entre conocimiento científico marroquí e ideología colonial. ...
En el presente artículo, realizamos un acercamiento a la propia problemática de los grupos tribales en Marruecos, afirmando que ha supuesto un hecho central en la historia del país, que en los últimos siglos ha tenido como expresión la realidad amazigh. Proponemos la necesidad de integrar esta preocupación por la historia del tribalismo marroquí en los estudios del Neolítico, siendo necesario desarrollar nuevas parcelas de investigación olvidadas.
... As Balout (1955) has pointed out, the earliest mention of tanged pieces in North Africa dates to the 1880s at Eckmühl (Oran, Algeria), where Carrière (1886) described an object of this type in a Mousterian assemblage. Later, Pallary (1892) suggested that these elements were more recent, belonging to the Neolithic. ...
In the last decade, research conducted in North Africa, particularly in northwestern Africa, has shed light on the key role that the region has played in improving our understanding of human evolution. Specifically, (1) the increased number of direct dates obtained with new methods has pushed back the age of the Aterian (~ 150,000 to 40,000 BP); (2) analyses of Aterian lithic assemblages have placed them within the range of variation of the Middle Stone Age; (3) analyses of associated human remains suggest that the makers of the Aterian are within the range of variation common among early modern human and present affinities with contemporary remains from the Levant (Qafzeh, Skhul); (4) zones of settlement, such as those in the present-day Sahara and coastal areas, and even the composition and demography of populations could have been influenced by specific climatic changes of the Late Pleistocene; and (5) the presence of blocks of pigment showing use-wear facets on their surfaces, the presence of pigments on artifacts, as well as osseous industry and earliest ornaments suggest complex behaviors among these populations. In this renewed approach to the Aterian, data from faunal analyses provide information on human-carnivore competition and the subsistence practices of hunter-gatherer groups. Taphonomic and zooarchaeological analyses suggest that humans were not the only large predators occupying caves, and that the hunter-gatherers of the Middle Stone Age exploited a wide range of environments, consuming terrestrial and coastal resources alike. Interdisciplinary confrontations highlight the apparent complexity of socioeconomic organization and the strategies of high levels of mobility that characterized Aterian groups.
... The rockshelter measures 6 m wide by 8 m deep and is located at Djebel Babor Mountain which contains several coastal rock cavities such as Afalou bou Rhummel, which yielded numerous burials of Mechta Afalou populations (Arambourg et al. 1934;Hachi 1987Hachi , 1996. First noted by Ehrmann in 1920, Tamar Hat site has been excavated by several researchers: Arambourg et al. (1934), Balout (1955), Brahimi (1969) and Saxon et al. (1974). ...
Tamar Hat rockshelter (Béjaïa, northeastern Algeria) has yielded a lithic assemblage showing general characteristics of an Iberomaurusian Early Late Stone Age nature. Specific “becs,” which we shall call “becs of Tamar Hat,” appear as an important component of the assemblage in the upper occupations, which occurred at the end of Late Glacial Maximum. These becs, from a technological point of view and especially by their shaping processes, constitute a reliable reference collection, though showing morphological variability resulting in part to the reduction process. The use-wear analysis conducted, based on a microscopic examination validated by experimentation, testifies the becs would have functioned for engraving hard bone, such as those of deer. Other scars observed on the sharp edge and lower face near the active portion of the tool are caused by hafting. Hence, the results of the technological and functional analyses of the becs from Tamar Hat reveal the presence of specialized activities in the upper occupations, related to the animal bone processing. These results are supported by the archaeozoological study, which confirms that the site functioned as a seasonal habitat, where Megacerin deer was exploited in the upper occupations for utilitarian, non-food purposes. The emergence of the use of the becs of Tamar Hat is synchronous with the end of the Upper Paleolithic, prior to the expansion of bec use in the Upper Magdalenian of Europe, where technical and stylistic convergences were observed. This raises the question of the emergence of these lithic implements in North Africa and the possible spread of similar industries elsewhere.
... L'examen du matériel archéologique conservé dans ces rammadiyet nous renseigne sur les occupations de ces sites. De nombreux travaux ont été réalisés au cours du xx e siècle sur ces gisements de plein air (entre autres : Gobert, 1910 ;Pallary, 1912 ;Reygasse et Latapie, 1912 ;Balout, 1955 ;Camps, 1974). Les études malacologiques standard effectuées sur les restes provenant des rammadiyet restent cependant insuffisantes pour appréhender l'impact des mollusques terrestres sur l'économie des hommes capsiens. ...
Malacological studies using land-snail shells found on archaeological sites are very scarce in the Maghreb, although such remains are the main constituent of Holocene sites known locally as rammadiyet. In this paper, the open-air prehistoric sites studied belong to the Upper Capsian culture. The Capsian culture is one of the Epipalaeolithic cultures found in the Maghreb and is inherent to Tunisia and eastern Algeria. Capsian open-air sites are huge oval accumulations of ashes, a lot of land-snail shells and burned stones, flint material and faunal remains. The Capsian culture is divided into two subdivisions : Typical Capsian and Upper Capsian. The prehistoric sites examined in this research belong to Upper Capsian subdivisions. Different facies or ‘ regional varieties’ are known from Capsian sites. Chronologically, Capsian sites with their different facies, dated by 14C, give an age of between 10000 and 6000 BP. The Capsian groups are considered to have been the last hunter-gatherers in the Maghreb. Their way of life depended on gathering land snails, hunting wild animals and picking fruit. Standard malacological studies on rammadiyet vestiges are however still insufficient to detect the impact of land snails on the subsistence economy of Capsian communities. Our study includes simultaneously the identification of the land-snail shells (species), an attempt at determining their ages, and taphonomic analyses. It enables us to propose, for both the studied sites, a reconstruction of the contribution of land snails to the Capsian population''s food, and to try to identify the season the molluscs were collected. Our work concerned two series resulting from surveys carried out in 2005 in two stratified rammadiyet : El Oghrab and Aïn Oum Henda 1 (Meknassy, central Tunisia). Careful investigations were made regarding the stratigraphy as well as the material culture (lithic industry) and faunal remains from both sites. Faunal remains are scarce at the El Oghrab rammadiya and absent at the Aïn Oum Henda 1 rammadiya. For the malacofauna, we adopted a method of work that can be exploited for the study of collections resulting from other similar sites. After identification of the species, we quantified them by NISP (number of identified remains for each species), then calculated the minimum number of individuals (MNI). Some measurements (height and diameter) were noted for each shell. Fragments of shells were classified in different classes. A specific fragment typology was adopted (from Type 0 to Type 6). In this paper we present the results of analysis of series of malacofauna from both rammadiyet. We have highlighted the presence of nine species of land snails : Helix melanostoma, Helix sp., Eobania vermiculata, Otala lactea, Helicella ambilina, Helicella variabilis, Helicella sp., Leucochroa candidissima, Rumina decollata. Two land snail species prevail, Leucochroa candidissima and Helix melanostoma. This would seem to confirm a selection made by the human groups among the species available in their surrounding environment. This choice is also affected by the abundance of these two species in the environment of the sites depending on the season and palaeoenvironmental conditions. This selection is also manifested by the size of the land snails collected. The Capsian populations mostly collected adult gastropods and privileged the biggest individuals, which provided the most flesh. According to taphonomic studies and especially to the typology of shell fragments, the high percentage of broken shells is probably linked to trampling and not to the consumption method of these molluscs by humans. The trampling may be related to the nature of activities which took place on the site or to the topographic position of both rammadiyet (high up, near a small stream) in the Meknassy Basin. This was a stopping place for prehistoric humans coming from the region of Gafsa and the west (the Tebessa high plateaux) and moving either northwards or towards the Mediterranean coast. The important quantity of broken shells would seem to be the result of these successive passages of groups. The presence of a marine shell (Columbella rustica) shows another aspect of the behaviour of Capsian groups : we presume there were exchanges between the Capsian populations and coastal communities. The gathering and consumption of land snails at these sites seem to have been seasonal. We note changes in the amount of each species (NISP) and the composition of the species spectrum from different levels of the El Oghrab rammadiya.
The gathering of land snails mainly occurred during the spring and autumn. This seasonality helps us to reconstitute the way of life of Capsian communities. These groups, the last hunter-gatherers in Tunisia and Algeria, survived mainly by gathering land snails and some occasional hunting activity. These results help to reconstitute environments and the Capsian culture but still require additional examination of material from other rammadiyet in Tunisia. The malacological species consumed by the prehistoric humans occupied a wetter environment than the current one. Nowadays these species of snails (Leucochroa candidissima, Helicella sp., Helix melanostoma) are extremely rare, even absent, indicating increased aridity in central Tunisia. When the Capsian communities disappeared and Neolithic Capsian-tradition groups appeared there was no change in the consumption of land snails. Capsian-tradition Neolithic populations continued to gather and consume terrestrial snails as well as some domestic fauna.
Les sites préhistoriques de Casablanca sont d'une grande importance pour la compréhension de l'histoire préhistorique du Maroc et de l'humanité en Afrique du Nord. Le site de Sidi Abderrahman a été le premier site préhistorique du Maroc à être classé en 1951. Malheureusement, une partie du site a été détruite en raison d'activités de carrière, mais une portion a été préservée grâce aux efforts du géologue et préhistorien Pierre Biberson.
Casablanca a livré des grottes avec des dépôts marins et continentaux,
et des séries lithiques significatives ont été découvertes pendant les travaux. Ces découvertes sont conservées dans des musées au Maroc et en France. Depuis 1978, de nouvelles fouilles ont été entreprises dans le cadre du programme "Casablanca" de l'INSAP, ce qui a permis de collecter davantage de collections lithiques et de réviser le classement initial établi par P. Biberson. Cette recherche continue est cruciale pour approfondir notre compréhension de l'histoire préhistorique de la région et de l'évolution de l'humanité au Maroc et dans le Maghreb.
Les équidés de la grotte des Hyènes (Nord-Est algérien, collection Debruge) Jugales et métapodes des morphes 1 et 2 et leurs affinités taxonomiques The equids from "la Grotte des Hyènes" (Eastern Algeria, Debruge collection) Cheek-teeth and metapodial morphs 1 & 2 and their taxonomic affinities Yasmina CHAÏD SAOUDI1 Wahiba ABDELOUAHAB2 Résumé-L'étude du matériel dentaire et des métapodes des équidés de la grotte des Hyènes révèle la présence de deux, voire trois morphes du genre Equus. Le morphe dominant est à double-boucle sténonienne, (complexe pli lingual, métaconide et métastylide) légèrement accusée. Le second, très rare, serait de type caballin et le troisième est représenté par un seul troisième métatarsien gracile et long, à extrémités asiniennes. La morphologie dentaire du premier morphe est plus compatible avec Equus africanus mais les proportions et le profil des métapodes évoquent Equus melkiensis. Le profil des métacarpes III du second morphe sont proches du caballin Equus algericus. La ségrégation de ces formes par les caractères dentaires est, cependant, moins discriminante que le profil des métacarpes III. Ce constat induit des interrogations sur les limites de la typologie dentaire sur laquelle repose généralement la détermination paléontologique des équidés, notamment dans les sites préhistoriques où les restes dentaires sont dominants.
This article considers the chrono-cultural evolution in the Northwest Africa territories during the Neolithic period. A systematic chronology based on specialized literature on the chrono-cultural features of this period in the Sahara and the Maghreb was inferred. It covers the following three major Neolithic currents characteristic of the Neolithic period in Northwest Africa: the Saharan Sudanese Neo-lithic, the Neolithic of Capsian Tradition, and the Mediterranean Neolithic. These currents were studied using the data on cultural behaviors with some radiocarbon dates. The results obtained revealed the features of the evolution from the Neolithization process to the full establishment of the Neolithic economy of production, as well as, a possible continuity to a Final Neolithic phase that lasted longer in some regions despite other regions that transitioned to the Eneolithic and the Iron Age. It was concluded that the evolution path that determined the characteristics of the Early, Middle, Late, and Final Neolithic phases was almost the same in different territories of the northwestern part of the African continent.
The Neolithisation of the Mediterranean Basin involved a change from a procurement to a productive economy. Although the domestication of most of the plants and animals associated with the Old World Neolithic occurred in the Levantine Fertile Crescent, the Second Neolithic Revolution that resulted in elements of the Neolithic such as domesticates and objects occurring in North Africa and throughout Europe, is arguably just as important a process. Archaeological attention has been focused primarily on the initial domestication process, and only latterly on the spread of food producing economies. In recent years, research into the Neolithisation of both Europe and North Africa has been increasing, notably so into the process by which varied communities adopted new food producing strategies. The implementation of new technology, methods, and theories have contributed to refinements in the timing of change in economies, analysis of the types of food eaten, and the reasons behind these transformations.
https://insap.ac.ma/?p=29705
Résumé
Depuis un siècle, c'est à Casablanca que la construction d'un cadre de référence du Quaternaire marocain s'est opérée et qu'ont été jetées les bases d'une longue séquence culturelle paléolithique, assortie de la trouvaille de plusieurs fossiles de la lignée humaine datés du Pléistocène moyen ancien. Sont brièvement évoquées, sur le ton de la confidence et de l’anecdote les conditions générales du développement des recherches préhistoriques à Casablanca, les étapes majeures, les acteurs et les avancées marquantes de ce long processus qui a conduit après quatre décennies à une perception renouvelée des premières humanités au nord-ouest de l’Afrique.
Abstract
Since a century, a reference frame for the Quaternary of Morocco was built at Casablanca, along with a long Palaeolithic archaeological sequence. Moreover, several human fossils were found in ancient Middle Pleistocene strata. We expose here briefly in a tone of confidence and with anecdotes the general context, the main steps of this long history, the leading actors and the major advances of this long process which lead after forty years to a renewed perception of first humanities in North-West Africa.
ملخص
مكنت الأبحاث المنجزة منذ قرن بالدار البيضاء من إرساء إطار مرجعي للحقب الرباعي المغربي وتحديد أسس السلسلة الثقافية الطويلة المتعلقة بالعصر الحجري القديم والتي تتميز باكتشاف العديد من أحافير الفصيلة البشرية المؤرخة بالبلايستوسين الأوسط القديم. على نبرة من الثقة والحكي، نشير بشكل مقتضب إلى الظروف العامة التي تطورت فيها الأبحاث التي تهم فترات ما قبل التاريخ بالدار البيضاء والمراحل الكبرى والمتدخلون والإنجازات المهمة التي ميزت هذا الطريق الطويل والذي أدى منذ أربعة عقود إلى تكوين رؤيا متجددة حول البشرية الأولى بالشمال الغربي لإفريقيا.
Cape Spartel is known by the oldest lighthouse in Morocco. It was known since prehistoric times, as evidenced by the sites of Cape Achakar 4 km to the south
Durant des siècles, la steppe algérienne a été exploitée par des tribus nomades qui vivaient de l’élevage pastoral transhumant des petits ruminants. Fractionnée et déstabilisée par des politiques et des projets inappropriés pendant et après la colonisation française, cette exploitation collective et régulée des parcours a cédé la place à un mode d’exploitation familial concurrentiel. Pour répondre à une demande croissante de viande ovine, consécutive à un fort accroissement démographique, les éleveurs ont accru leurs troupeaux, étendu la céréaliculture fourragère motorisée et multiplié les achats de céréales fourragères. Surchargés, les parcours qui fournissaient l’essentiel de l’alimentation des animaux, ont été dégradés, la transhumance réduite et les petits éleveurs appauvris.
Aujourd’hui, l’interdiction de la céréaliculture sur les terres fragiles et la mise en défens des pâturages dégradés sont plus que nécessaires. Elles ne seront cependant ni assez respectées pour protéger ou restaurer la fertilité de la steppe, ni suffisantes pour améliorer les conditions d’existence des agropasteurs, et elles le resteront tant que les ressources inexploitées en terres cultivables et en pâturages de la région n’auront pas été durablement mobilisées pour accroitre et réguler les disponibilités fourragères.
Ainsi rendu possible, le développement durable de l’élevage agropastoral dans la steppe serait grandement facilité par l’élaboration et la réalisation participatives d’un ensemble coordonné de programmes et de projets, intégré aux stratégies de développement durable de la région et du pays.
Mots clés : steppe algérienne, tribus nomades, transhumance, élevage pastoral, viande ovine, éleveurs, troupeaux, céréales fourragères, parcours, pâturages dégradés, agropasteurs, développement durable.
For centuries, the algerian steppe has been exploited by nomadic tribes living by pastoral
transhumant herding of small ruminants. Divided and destabilized by inappropriate
government policies and projects during and after the french colonization, these tribalregulated
pastureland have given way to a competitive family-operation mode of pasture. To
meet a growing demand for ovine meat, following a high population growth, breeders
increased their herds, extended the mechanized grain farming and increased purchases of feed
grains. The overloaded ranges that supplied the bulk of animal feed have been degraded,
transhumance reduced and small breeders impoverished.
Today, the prohibition of cereals culture on fragile lands and the closure of degraded grazing
pastures are a necessity. However, they will not be enough either to protect or to restore the
fertility of the steppe, nor sufficient to improve the livelihoods of agro-pastoralists; and will
remain so as long as the untapped cropland and pastureland resources in the region have not
been permanently deployed to increase and regulate forage availability.
Sustainable development of agro-pastoral livestock in the steppe would be greatly facilitated
by implementing participatory and coordinated programs and projects, integrated to strategies
for sustainable development of the region and country.
Key-words : algerian steppe, nomadic tribes, transhumant, pastoral transhumant, ovine meat,
breeders, herds, feed grains, ranges, degraded grazing, agro-pastoralists, Sustainable
development
To date, in Africa, evidence for animal processing and consumption in caves routinely used as living spaces is only documented in the late Middle Pleistocene of the North and South of the continent and postdates the Middle Pleistocene in East Africa. Here we report the earliest evidence in a North-African cave (Grotte des Rhinocéros at Casablanca, Morocco) of cut, percussion and human gnawing marks on faunal remains directly associated with lithic knapping activities in the same space and in a well-documented stratified context. Ages for this Acheulean site are provided by the dating of herbivorous teeth to 690-720 ka and 520-550 ka (lower and upper sets) by combined Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) and U-series techniques. Traces of butchery on gazelle, alcelaphin, and zebra bones demonstrate that hominins had primary access to herbivore carcasses. Hominins brought and consumed meat in the cave, as documented by herbivore bones bearing human tooth marks concentrated in a circumscribed area of the excavation. In Africa, this site provides the earliest evidence for in situ carcass processing and meat-eating in cave, directly associated with lithic production and demonstrates the recurrent use by early Middle Pleistocene hominins of a North African cave site 400 000 years before that by Homo sapiens at Jebel Irhoud (Morocco).
Quarante années de recherches à Casablanca (Maroc): nouveaux regards sur l’Archéologie et la géologie du Pléistocène inférieur et moyen
Dans la région de Casablanca, le développement des dépôts littoraux de la séquence quaternaire est exceptionnel, il commence aux environs de 6 millions d’années (Miocène supérieur) et s’étend tout le long des périodes plio-quaternaires avec un enregistrement détaillé des variations des niveaux des océans témoins de l’évolution du climat planétaire. Ces unités morpho-sédimentaires ont conservé un patrimoine paléontologique et archéologique extraordinaire. En 1961, après à peu près 50 ans de recherches, Pierre Biberson établit un cadre stratigraphique du Quaternaire du Maroc atlantique et définit un schéma culturel qui représenta dès lors la référence pour la Préhistoire ancienne nord-africaine. Cependant, depuis 1978, un programme de recherches archéologiques maroco-français a conduit des travaux de terrain dans la région de Casablanca ayant permis la révision stratigraphique et culturelle des sites classiques et la découverte de nouveaux sites. Dans le présent article, nous présentons la Préhistoire ancienne et la géologie de Casablanca selon deux perspectives: l’historique des recherches et l’état de l’art.
Cuarenta años de investigación en Casablanca (Marruecos): Nuevas
perspectivas sobre la arqueología y geología del Pleistoceno inferior y medio
En la región de Casablanca, la evolución de los depósitos litorales de la secuencia cuaternaria es exceptional, empezo alrededor de 6 millones de años (Mioceno superior) y se extiende a lo largo de los períodos plio-cuaternarios con un registro detallado de las variaciones de niveles de los océanos testigos de la evolución del clima global. Estas unidades morfo-sedimentarias han conservado un patrimonio paleontólogico y arqueológico extraordinario. En 1961, después de 50 años de investigacións, Pierre Biberson estableció un cuadro estratigráfico del Cuaternario del Marruecos atlantico y definió un esquema cultural que representaba desde entonces la referencia para la prehistória antigua del norte de África. Sin embargo, desde 1978, un programa de investigación arqueológica marroquí-francesa ha llevado a cabo un trabajo de campo en la región de Casablanca que ha permitido la revisión estratigráfica y cultural de los sitios clásicos y el descubrimiento de nuevos sitios. En el presente articulo, presentamos la Prehistoria antigua y la geologia de Casablanca segun dos perspectivas: la historia de las investigaciónes y el estado de arte.
This work aims to study the relation between the geological history of Sidi El Hani saline environment and its response to the climatic variability. To achieve this goal, a multidisciplinary work compiled in the individual chapters' compilation thesis format was done. Added to chapter zero, this work is made up of seven chapters. Each of them has its own local purpose serving the global purpose of the work. In chapter zero, the aim is to show scientific arguments for compiling this work in English and to give the scientific name of Sidi El Hani saline environment according to the Anglophone terminology. This terminology gives a name to a saline environment according to its geologic features and the speciality of study. For instance, hydrogeologically, Sidi El Hani saline environment is a discharge playa; hydrologically, it is playa; and sedimentologically, it is a clay pan. Chapter one aims, by introducing the specific context of Sidi El Hani saline environment, to show the further increasing need for a multidisciplinary study, to give a bird's eyes sight on the coming chapters and to comment the thesis format. In chapter two, the focus was meant to be on the interaction between the global, the regional and the local frameworks on the one hand and the geodynamic context of Sidi El Hani saline environment on the other; such interaction proves vital in deciding whether the saline environment will be commanded by its geological history or by the climatic variability. Thus, on the basis of a cross-interpretation of previous works, results showed that the geological history is more likely to dominate by providing a salty context in the subsurface of Sahel area. This study proposed its own model of a saline environment inherited from the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC). By doing so, this study proposes two hypotheses as origin of salt: the Triassic intrusions and the Messinian Salinity Crisis. In chapter three, on the basis of a hydrological, hydrogeological and geochemical study, the aim was to reinforce the idea of a strong deep influence of somewhere domes of salt and/or salty water probably inherited from the Triassic domes and/or the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC) and to deduce that the climatic factor has been taking minor role since the opening of Sidi El Hani discharge playa. By proposing its own model about the groundwater contribution, this study found out that, as a consequence of the dominance of a salty groundwater contribution, the effect of the climate is considered as minor. In chapter four, the aim was to give some precision to previous studies and to examine the depositional environment of sediments in Sidi El Hani watershed, which may feed the saline environment after their erosion by wind or water. Accordingly, some outcropping sediments from the vicinities were sampled and studied. Three crania found also somewhere near the playa have permitted this study declaring Sidi El Hani zone as archeological site; and they may be an efficient tool for dating. In chapter five, the Visual Core Description focused on three reference sandy bands and on the concept of grey scale variability in order to infer the clay pan response to the climatic variability during the last two millennia. Actually, this study established its own concept of the major grey scale variability. This line of attack permitted the classification of Sidi El Hani cores according to their major grey scales variability. Only cores with high major grey scales variability were indeed useful to infer the climatic variability in Sidi El Hani clay pan. Correlations of these cores, on the basis of the major grey scale variability and the occurrence of the three reference sandy bands, were done with a known reference core from sebkha Mhabeul (southeast Tunisia) in order to guess the last 2000 years clay pan climatic history. In chapter six, cores were the object of descriptive classifications of the grain size distribution, which were meant to describe the grain size continuous variability within cores and to correlate between them. The statistical treatment of the crude data was done on the basis of two different methods (the method of Moments Statistics and the method of Inclusive Graphic Statistics) to compute statistical parameters of the grain size distribution such as mean and median. The correlations between cores were done on the basis of sand/silt/clay percentages. Eventhough it has given special care to test different methods of studying the grain size distribution, this study was not deviated from its primary purpose of investigating the filling of the playa; correlations between different cores were meant to infer their sedimentary dynamics. In chapter seven, the synthesis was done by giving a complete map of the saline environment of Sidi El Hani summing up the hydrological, hydrogeological and sedimentological features of its vicinities and its fillings. This Master opens new perspectives concerning the chaos theory and studying the organic matter. Another serious promise for research is in comparing Sidi El Hani saline environment with other saline environments in Tunisia and with analogous locations in planet Mars.
The rock shelter of Benzú, located in the Atlantic-Mediterranean geohistorical region of North Africa and the vicinity of the Strait of Gibraltar, presents a deep stratigraphic sequence dated, using various techniques, to a Middle and Late Pleistocene geo-archaeological context.
We present a functional study of the site's Mode 3-Middle Palaeolithic scrapers and points, evaluating the raw materials, the technology and the use of these products. It is confirmed that these artefacts present no major differences in terms of use, being used as scrapers to process meat, hides, wood and fish, results which rule out the use of the points as projectiles. This suggests that they were used for domestic purposes, and sheds light on the use of Mode 3-Middle Palaeolithic technology in North Africa.
L'étude morphométrique et comparative de l'ensemble de la faune des trois gisements holocènes d'Algérie, précise les caractères anatomiques des espèces, notamment pour Pelorovis antiquus et Bos ibericus. Elle met en évidence la présence de deux équidés à Columnata - Equus melkiensis et Equus algericus - et atteste de la parenté des genres Bison, Pelorovis et Syncerus. L'espèce Bos primigenius reconnue à Columnata et à Gueldaman-Akbou, se distingue de Bos opisthonomus tandis que Bos ibericus se révèle un Bos taurus brachyceros. Enfin, Alcelaphus probubalis est une forme affine d'Alcelaphus buselaphus. L'évolution de la faune dans les trois gisements, au Néolithique, se traduit par une différence dans les taux des pourcentages des espèces présentes.
We review below the Acheulean of East Africa from two perspectives: the history of research and the current state of the art. The definition of Acheulean industries has changed considerably over 150 years and since the earliest research in Africa. A brief presentation of the main discoveries, of the many theories, and of the various methods used in Acheulean archaeological research will help in understanding the current debate and the topics addressed in this volume. © Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018.
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