Detecting and mapping the ‘ephemeral’: magnetometric survey of a Pastoral Neolithic settlement at Luxmanda, Tanzania

Common assumptions about the ephemeral archaeological signature of pastoralist settlements have limited the application of geophysical techniques in the investigation of past herding societies. Here, the authors present a geophysical survey of Luxmanda, Tanzania, the largest-known settlement documen...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Antiquity 2022-04, Vol.96 (386), p.298-318
Main Authors: Fitton, Tom, Contreras, Daniel A., Gidna, Agness O., Mabulla, Audax Z.P., Prendergast, Mary E., Grillo, Katherine M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Archaeology
Culture
Excavation
Historic artifacts
Magnetic anomalies
Magnetic fields
Mapping
Material culture
Mobility
Neolithic
Pastoralism
Polls & surveys
Stratigraphy
Survey services (Geodesy)
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Summary:Common assumptions about the ephemeral archaeological signature of pastoralist settlements have limited the application of geophysical techniques in the investigation of past herding societies. Here, the authors present a geophysical survey of Luxmanda, Tanzania, the largest-known settlement documented for the Pastoral Neolithic era in eastern Africa (c. 5000–1200 BP). The results demonstrate the value and potential of fluxgate gradiometry for the identification of magnetic anomalies relating to archaeological features, at a category of site where evidence for habitation was long thought to be undetectable. The study provides comparative data to enable archaeologists to identify loci for future investigations of mobile populations in eastern Africa and elsewhere.
ISSN:0003-598X
1745-1744
DOI:10.15184/aqy.2021.59