Re-entering the central Sahara at the onset of the Holocene A territorial approach to Early Acacus hunter–gatherers (SW Libya)》.pdf

Quaternary International 320 (2014) 43e62 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Quaternary International journal homepage: www.else /locate/quaint Re-entering the central Sahara at the onset of the Holocene: A territorial approach to Early Acacus hunteregatherers (SW Libya) Emanuele Cancellieri a, b, *, Savino di Lernia a, c a Dipartimento di Scienze dell ’Antichità, Sapienza Università di Roma, Via dei Volsci 122, 00185 Rome, Italy b Istituto Italiano di Paleontologia Umana, c/o Museo Civico di Zoologia, Via Ulisse Aldrovandi 18, 00197 Rome, Italy c School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t Article history: The central Sahara was intensely occupied at the very onset of the Holocene, when moister conditions re- Available online 12 September 2013 established after the Younger Dryas. In the study area (SW Libya), a solid 14C chronology dates the occupation of Early Acacus H/G between 9800 and 8900 BP. It is likely that the colonization by these small groups of specialized hunteregatherers was rapid, entering unfamiliar areas characterized by the presence of lakes and ponds. Whether or not the very first re-entry was a uniquely Holocene phe- nomenon is still debated, we favour an arrival from the North considering current p