Affad 23, a Late Middle Palaeolithic Site with

Refitted Lithics and Animal Remains in the

Southern Dongola Reach, Sudan
Piotr Osypiski, Marta Osypiska & Achilles Gautier

Abstract

Rsum

Affad 23, situated in upper alluvial deposits related to a

former channel of the Nile in the Affad District, Southern
Dongola Reach, Sudan, is mainly known through its upper or surface level. The combined data concerning the
position of the site, composition of the lithic assemblage,
freshness, refittings and dispersion of the artefacts point
to a late Middle Palaeolithic workshop used for short
periods. It utilized discoid and levallois debitage of Hudi
Chert collected from the palaeochannel during the lowwater season. The animal remains suggest opportunistic
hunting of medium-sized antelopes, probably mainly kobs
living near the site, some dorcas gazelles, occasionally
hippopotamus and other big game, as well as small vertebrates, much less visible in the collected samples. A
lower level, separated from the surface level by a deposit
of some 30 cm, represents an earlier workshop. The easy
access to chert in the palaeochannel may also explain
the existence of other Paleolithic sites along the channel
as workshops.

Affad 23, situ dans les alluvions suprieurs en connexion

avec un ancien chenal du Nile dans le district dAffad,
zone mridionale du Dongola au Soudan, est connu principalement par son niveau suprieur ou de surface. Les
donnes combines concernant la position topographique du site, la composition de lassemblage lithique, la
fraicheur, les remontages et la dispersion des artfacts
indiquent un atelier du Palolithique Moyen tardif, occup
pour de courtes priodes. Il utilisait le dbitage discode
et Levallois du Hudi Chert, rcolt du palo-chenal au
cours de la saison des basses eaux. Les restes animaux
suggrent la chasse opportuniste dantilopes de taille
moyenne, probablement surtout des kobs vivant prs du
site, des gazelles dorcas, occasionnellement dhippopotames et dautre gibier de grande taille, ainsi que de petits
vertbrs, beaucoup moins visibles dans les chantillons
rcolts. Le niveau infrieur, spar du niveau suprieur
par quelque 30 cm de dpts, reprsente un atelier plus
ancien. Laccs facile au chert du palo-chenal explique
peut-tre aussi dautres sites du Palolithique Moyen le
long du chenal comme autant dateliers.

Keywords: Late Middle Palaeolithic, Sudan, Southern Dongola Reach, refittings, workshop
Piotr Osypiski 8 piotr.osypinski@patrimonium.pl
* Polish Center of Mediterranean Archaeology (Warsaw University) & Patrimonium Foundation, Rubiez 46, PL-61-612 Poznan,

Poland
Marta Osypiska 8 osypinska@iaepan.poznan.pl
Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology, Polish Academy of Science, Rubiez 46, PL-61-612 Poznan, Poland

Achilles Gautier 8 achiel.gautier@ugent.be

Palaeontology Research Unit, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281/S8, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium

DOI 10.3213/2191-5784-10186

Published online November 2, 2011

Africa Magna Verlag, Frankfurt M.

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011, pp. 177188

177

P. Osypiski, M. Osypiska & A. Gautier

Operating within the framework of the Polish Joint

Archaeological Mission to the Middle Nile Valley, the
Southern Dongola Reach Survey (SDRS), directed by
Zurawski (2003), discovered a plethora of archaeological
remains. Interesting among the many sites are the ones
with lithics, typologically attributable to the Middle Palaeolithic. Moreover, at one of these occurrences, labeled
Affad 23, animal bone remains occur in appreciable quantity. This is exceptional, because until now Palaeolithic
occurrences with animal remains are very rare in Sudan.
Discovered during the 1998/99 season of the SDRS, the
detailed analysis and excavation of Affad 23 were an
independent project of the first two authors, for which
fieldwork took place in February 2003. A preliminary
report and notes saw the light already in the same year
(Osypiski 2003; Osypiska 2003; Osypiski & Osypiska
2003). In the present report, the first author deals with
the archaeology of the site and its context, the second
author with the animal remains, while the third author
helped with some of the animal identifications, notes on
the archaeozoological record of north-east Africa and the
synthesis of the various data and inferences.
Most of the Middle Palaeolithic sites in the mantiqa or district Affad discovered during the SDRS are
located north of the palaeochannel of the Nile on alluvial
deposits no doubt related to the palaeochannel (Fig.
1; Zurawski 2003: 262263). Among these, Affad 23
is situated about 1.5 km north of the first buildings of
the village Affad (N180130.6, E311026.7). The
surface of the site is formed by a lag deposit due to deflation, bringing together younger, rounded microlithic
artefacts with a marked patina and older, very well
preserved artefacts made utilizing discoidal methods
mainly on chert, as well as numerous animal bone remains. The microlithic finds are made on quartz pebbles,
ferruginous sandstone, agate and porphyry and include
lunates and some endscrapers on cortical flakes. They

are assignable to the Khartoum Mesolithic and the succeeding Neolithic, known from other sites in the region.
A concentration of early ceramic sites with microlithic
industries occurs some 2.5 km to the east of Affad 23.
No doubt the makers of these sites also came to the Affad 23 area; they do not concern us further.
The surface level with the older artefacts has been
labeled Level 1, to distinguish it from Level 2, encountered in a test excavation (1 sq.m) and separated from
the surface layer by 30 cm of fine sand with disintegrating silt passing downwards into silt, both with calcareous concretions. The artefacts of Level 2 resemble the
fresh ones of Level 1 and lack of refittings of artefacts
originated from the two horizons confirms the independence of Levels 1 and 2. Artefacts, mainly those
from Level 2, were often encrusted with calcareous
cement, as visible on the photographs in Osypiski &
Osypiska (2003: 272).
On most terrestrial surfaces a very thin rain of animal remains is continuously deposited. Concentrations
of animal remains in particular loci relate to specific
taphonomic factors or agents. The association of such
concentrations with artefacts establishes most often a
causal link between the remains and human activity.
In our case, the bones are no doubt associated with the
older artefacts in Level 1, for the question does not arise
whether they might rather be connected with the microlithic artefacts. The preservation of the bones is not
at all comparable with that observed in the Holocene
sites analysed by the third author (see, for example,
Gautier 1986). Moreover, bones originally associated with the microliths would not have survived the
erosion and concentration in the lag deposit. As to the
fact that no bones were collected from the lower level
this is no doubt due to the limited surface excavated
in the test trench.

Fig. 1. Location of Affad 23,

based on an aerial photograph. The boundaries of the
palaeochannel could not be
traced precisely; it extends
between the Affad village and
cultivated area (grey) and the
string of Middle Palaeolithic
sites (black for Affad 23).

178

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

Fig.1: Location of Affad 23, based on an aerial photograph . The boundaries of the palaeochannel could
not be traced precisely; it extends between the Affad village and cultivated area (grey) and the string of

Affad 23, a Late Middle Palaeolithic Site

The artefacts of Level 1 were concentrated in an

area of some 25 x 25 m, but less densely distributed
artefacts were also recorded around the central clustering in an area of 200 x 200 m. Our study concerns the
some 1200 artefacts of the central area. As to the bone
remains, some 800 pieces were collected by hand,
including 252 from the central part.
Level 1 lithics
The assemblage of Level 1 consists of 1206 artefacts
but is dominated by waste products (1120 finds or ca
92.9 %), only 20 cores (1.7 %), 18 retouched flake tools
and 47 unretouched flakes with facetted butts (together
5.4 %). The latter flakes can be added to the final forms
only in a few cases. A bifacial form completes the assemblage.
The raw material used was predominantly chert
of various kinds, more or less porous, with many gas
bubbles, crystalline inclusions and small fossils, belong-

ing to the Hudi Chert, common in the whole Dongola

Reach, as well as up the Nile towards the 4th Cataract
(Whiteman 1971; Osypiski 2010). The raw material
palette is completed by quartzite, flint and petrified
wood. Seventeen of the artefacts show evidence of exposure to fire. They belong to the general waste category
and none could be refitted, indicating that their exposure
to fire was no doubt accidental. All the cortical surfaces
of the finds bear traces of rolling and even polishing due
to fluvial transport. These traces indicate that the raw
materials were collected from the palaeochannel during
low water. Even today, it is easy to collect similar rocks
from the recent Nile near Affad in winter when the water
is low. Middle Palaeolithic exploitation of palaeochannel chert deposits has also been recorded along the
Egyptian Nile (Vermeersch et al. 1986).
Figures 2 and 3 present the first exercise in refitting and dispersion of Sudanese prehistoric artefacts.
A comparable method was used for the study of late
Middle Palaeolithic assemblages of Taramsa I in the
Lower Nile Valley I, with elongated flakes interpreted

Fig. 2. Affad 23, Level 1, general view of the refitted artefacts.

Fig. 2: Affad 23, Level 1, general view of the refitted artefacts.

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

179

P. Osypiski, M. Osypiska & A. Gautier

Fig. 3. Affad 23, Level 1, dispersion of selected artefacts (levallois flakes, cores and tools).

Fig. 3: Affad 23, Level 1, dispersion of selected artefacts (levallois flakes, cores and tools).
as transitional Middle Late Palaeolithic elements
(Van Peer 1992, 1998). Our exercise was made possible by the exceptional preservation of the artefacts
and their restricted dispersal, as most were discovered
in a cluster of some 25 by 15 m. Figure 2 shows clearly
three concentrations of chert debitage: a western, an
eastern and a south-western one. These concentrations do not overlap with the concentrations of bone
remains (Osypiski & Osypiska 2003: 271) and suggest preservation of activity areas respectively related
to butchering and artefact knapping. Each concentration
moreover contained but elements of a few blocks only.
A very telling feature is the very low number of flakes
with facetted butts or prepared with more than one
negative. However, the western concentration produced
also some elements pointing to platform preparation.
Around the concentration also most of the facetted
flakes which could not be refitted were found. Most of
the refitted flakes have cortical, plain or pointed butts,
the latter often in the form of big, almost complete
hertz cone. Without any doubt, the debitage was done
by direct percussion with a hard hammer.

180

Figures 2 and 3 show the direction of artefact dispersal of each block. The western and biggest concentration show deposition of artefacts to the north and the
north-east. Interesting is the fact that single elements
of the blocks from that concentration are linked with
other concentrations. For example, the initial phases
of the debitage of blocks 1 and 32 were done in the
eastern concentration, but the final stages of debitage
took place in the western concentration.
In the eastern concentration dispersion of the refitted
artefacts shows dominantly directions to the north-west,
the west and the south-west. A distinctive feature of this
concentration is the complete absence of artefacts to the
east, it suggests some physical barrier there, perhaps a
windbreak or some vegetation, precluding dispersal to
the east. The presence of only a few flakes with facetted
butts is another feature of the concentration suggesting typical initial debitage done in the place, probably
unrelated with activities on the spot using stone tools.
On the other hand most of the retouched tools, mainly
temporary scrapers, come from this area.

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

Affad 23, a Late Middle Palaeolithic Site

The flakes with facetted

butts which could be refitted
pertain to two categories. The
first one groups typical levallois
products, among which only
two refittings were found: one
of two products in a sequence
(Fig. 4b), the second the result
of a Siret accident (Fig. 4a). No
other elements could be refitted,
so it was impossible to link the
final actions with particular sequences of debitage. The second
category of facetted flakes contains single products removed
during the forming or repairing
of debitage surfaces (Fig. 4d and
e). These elements confirm the
careful preparation of striking
platforms, even if the cores are
not typical levallois.
The tools comprise seven
temporary scrapers (Fig. 6d and
e), four burins (Fig. 6b and c),
three side-scrapers, two denticulate tools (Fig. 6f, g and h),
two notched tools and a single
bifacial form (Fig. 6a). They
are made of irregular flakes or
chunks, except the burins, which
are made on flakes with facetted
butts. Their characteristic feature consists in the removal of
the burin spall along the edge of
the butt and versal or positive
face together with the bulb. As to
the bifacial form, it was made on
Fig. 4. Affad 23, Level 1, refitted artefacts demonstrating levallois reduction; a, b: refita thick
chunk of chert. ComparaFig; 4: Affad
Level
1, refitted
demonstrating
levallois Drawings
reduction;P.aOsypiski.
& b: refitted flakes;
c: block
ted 23,
flakes;
c: block
8a; d: artefacts
block 14; e:
levallois core perform.
ble Middle Palaeolithic bifacial
8a; d: block 14.; e: levallois core perform. Drawings P. Osypinski.
tools from the 4th cataract conThe last and smallest concentration, the one of
firm its production on a flake/chunk blank; however,
the south-east, is also characterized by a few refittings
our find is much more robust.
and the dispersal of waste products to the north-west.
A single flake with facetted butt was recorded here, but
no retouched forms.
Level 2 lithics
The cores of Level 1 are exclusively discoidal in
concept, but not one of them can be classified as typical levallois, with a formed debitage surface, a facetted
striking platform and the negative of a removed predetermined flake. Both initial and final forms of cores
are present. One of the initial forms is an almost ideal
preform for further levallois debitage (Fig. 4c). The
debitage surface is formed by negatives of flakes mainly
removed from one direction; the opposite end was prepared with a series of small elongated negatives.

The subsurface artefacts were in general similar to the

ones described above. Although the sample consists of
36 artefacts only, 14 elements could be refitted in three
blocks. These blocks point to initial debitage with decortication and the formation of the pre-surface of debitage
and discoidal striking platforms. Among the other finds,
a single flake with facetted butt was registered (Fig. 7a
and b) as well as two cores. The first one is the only core
in the whole assemblage of Affad 23 that can be classified
as a typical levallois core of the late kind, as described

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

181

with butt preparation; a: block 7; b: block 8b; c: block 5. Drawings P. Osypiski.

d, e: scrapers; f, g, h: denticulates; Drawings P. Osypiski.

Fig 5: Affad 23, Level 1, refitted artefacts showing centripetal surface shaping with butt preparation; a:
Fig 6: Affad 23, Level 1, retouched tools; a: bifacial tool; b & c: burins; d & e: scrapers; f, g & h:
block 7;Fig.
b: block
8b; c:
Drawings
P. Osypinski.
5. Affad
23,block
Level5. 1,
refitted artefacts
showing centripetal surface shaping
denticulates;
Drawings
Fig.
6. AffadP.
23,Osypinski.
Level 1, retouched tools; a: bifacial tool; b, c: burins;

P. Osypiski, M. Osypiska & A. Gautier

182

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

Affad 23, a Late Middle Palaeolithic Site

used only for the flakes removed

during the shaping off the flaking surface. All the blocks have a
debitage surface shaped from two
sides, but the facetted products
were removed from one side only.
Block 19 was the only one with a
facetted platform found on each
removed flake.
In a few blocks, the refitted
flakes show an almost complete
sequence of bidirectional or centripetal debitage surface forming,
but the cores were not found (Fig.
5c). The discovery of refitted final
levallois flakes at the site confirms
their production on the spot, but
no doubt attractive, that is, well
exploitable cores were taken from
the site.
Only in the case of the few
burins, made on levallois flakes,
can we speak of intentional tool
production on predetermined
blanks. All the other retouched
forms were produced on coincidental waste of the initial centripetal debitage.
From the foregoing it should
be clear that both assemblages
preserve relics of initial chert debitage workshops, using discoidal
methods and platform faceting, probably to prepare
blanks for further levallois reduction; also the number
of typical levallois products is low. Such artefact inventories have been recorded from quarry sites further
north along the Nile (Wendorf & Schild 1992: 69).
No evidence of quarrying was found at Affad 23, but
as already said, the nearby Nile palaeochannel appears
to be the main source of raw material. The low number
of cores, or rather their blanks, also fits the workshop
hypothesis: the best products were taken off for further exploitation in other places. From such places
some levallois flakes without refitting links returned
to Affad 23. The preservation of the artefacts and their
restricted dispersion indicate very limited disturbance
by trampling or other postdepositional factors. Most
likely people came to the investigated area but a few
times, perhaps even only once. As to the fact that Level
1 is separated from Level 2 by some 30 cm of sediment, it suggests reuse of the site as a workshop after
some time. We do not known the function of the other
Middle Palaeolithic sites in the vicinity of Affad 23,
but there is a chance that they were also workshops.

Fig. 7: Fig.
Affad7.23,
Level
selected
artefacts;artefacts;
a & b: flake
fragments
with facetted
butt; c & d:
cores.
Affad
23,2,Level
2, selected
a, b:
flake fragments
with facetted
butt;
Drawings P. Osypinski.

c, d: cores. Drawings P. Osypiski.

by Van Peer (1991); it is characterized by the bidirectional formation of the debitage surface (Fig. 7c). The
removal of the final flake failed due to a missed strike
or a wrong debitage angle, resulting in a huge bulb and
an short outline. The other core can be classified as a
single platform, but might also be a failed or abandoned
byproduct with a discoidal platform made on a large
chunk (Fig. 7d).
Lithic technology
The numerous refittings show the initial stages of raw
material testing and the shaping of surfaces definable
as flaking surfaces and striking platforms, the latter
usually on three sides of the artefacts. The alternate
forming of the two surfaces was clearly visible. Already
in the initial stages of the debitage, precise platform
preparation was used for the removal of particular
technological products. This action can be observed
in the blocks numbered 7 (Fig. 5a), 8 (Fig. 4c and
d), 14 (Fig. 5b), 21, 25, 26, 29 and 32. Facetting was

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

183

P. Osypiski, M. Osypiska & A. Gautier

If that is the case, people probably visited periodically

the region for quite a long time to collect and prepare
lithic material for further exploitation elsewhere. The
repeated use of the same sites and most likely repetitive
behavioural patterns were seen on Sai Island in much
older occurrences, dating back to ca 200 ka (Van Peer
et al. 2003).
Dating
Affad 23 was occupied during the later period of sedimentation of the formation in which it occurs. This
formation reaches about 15 m above the present Nile
level and we may look for deposits referable to the same
phase in the history of the river on the left bank of the
Nile, opposite Affad. There two surveys took place.
The latest, during the Merowe Dam Salvage Project,
located several Middle Palaeolithic sites (Garcea 2003;
Geus & Lecointe 2003), but these cannot be linked with
our site. The 1966/67 survey by the Southern Methodist University Expedition however recorded three
late Middle Palaeolithic occurrences associated with
the Goshabi Formation, but the three reports dealing
with the survey differ somewhat (de Heinzelin 1968;
Marks et al. 1968a, 1968b). The Goshabi Formation
reaches to ca 13 m above the present-day floodplain
and consists apparently of a more silty lower sequence
covered by coarser fluvial sediments. At least one of the
Middle Palaeolithic sites appears to be reminiscent of
the Khormusan of the Wadi Halfa region. Tentatively
the Goshabi Formation has been correlated with the
Sahaba Formation of the Wadi Halfa region, but the
lower part of the formation was also linked with the
Dibeira-Jer Formation of the mentioned region. Correlating fluviatile deposits from regions separated by
several hundreds of kilometers is a hazardous exercise,
as the absolute dates now available demonstrate. The
Sahaba Formation spans roughly the period between
20 and 10 ky. The Khormusan is beyond the reach of
radiocarbon dating, but has been put in the final phase of

Animal remains
As said, the animal remains were collected by hand
from the central site and the area around this central
part, measuring 200 m x 200 m. The finds are moderately affected by weathering cracks and sometimes
encrusted with some calcareous cement. Their colour
is black or dark grey with spots of lighter grey. Rounding of the remains is limited and may be due mainly,
if not completely, to abrasion during the formation of
the lag deposit. Preliminary sorting of the bones was
done in Sudan. The remains thought to be identifiable
were brought to Poland, but only limited comparative
documentation was available there.
Table 1 summarizes the absolute and relative frequencies of the assemblage for the central site, the assemblage of the surrounding area and the combined
assemblages. The quantitative differences in the central
and peripheral assemblages reflect the haphazard distribution of activities on the site, but the dominance of
the medium-sized antelopes is clear. The not identified fragments also appear to be derived mainly from
medium-sized mammals. Notes on the animals identified follow. Examples of Holocene faunal spectra
from Central Sudan referred to in the notes come from:
Saggai, Kadada, Kadero, Shaqadud, Abu Darbein, and
related sites (Gautier 1983, 1986, 2006; Peters 1991,
1995). As said, few Palaeolithic sites with animal remains are known from Sudan. Two Middle Paleolithic
occurrences on the Blue Nile, Abu Hugar and Singa,
yielded restricted faunal assemblages (Bate 1951). A
human skull cap of Singa derives from an archaic Homo
sapiens and has been dated between 170 and 150 ky
ago (Klein 1999: 312, fig. 5.29 and 398). As a single
assemblage some animal remains have been described

cluster

n
Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus)
Cape hare (Lepus capensis)
hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius)
medium-sized antelope
dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas)
large bovid
total identified vertebrates
not identified vertebrate remains
total vertebrates

the Middle Palaeolithic (Paulissen & Vermeersch 1987;

Vermeersch 1992; Wendorf & Schild 1992; Van Peer
1998). Affad 23 appears to fit in the same bracket.

2
1
26
5
3
37
215
252

periphery

5.4
2.7
70.3
13.5
8.1
100.0

14.7
85.3
100.0

3
3
18
73
29
3
129
418
547

2.3
2.3
14.0
56.6
22.5
2.3
100.0

Tab. 1. The fauna of the Middle Palaeolithic site Affad 23.

184

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

totals

23.6
76.4
100.0

5
4
18
99
34
6
166
633
799

%
3.0
2.4
10.9
59.6
20.5
3.6
100.0

20.8
79.2
100.0

Affad 23, a Late Middle Palaeolithic Site

from two much older sites near the 3th Cataract with
Lower Pleistocene artefacts, Kaddanarti and Kabrinarti
(Chaix et al. 2000). Not yet published are the finds from
Wadi Umm Rahau near the 4th Cataract, associated
with artefacts attributable to the Middle Palaeolithic
(D. Makowiecki, pers. comm.). As to the many finds
from the Wadi Halfa region, they compare well with
finds from further north along the Nile (Gautier 1987)
and are best added to the archaeozoological record of
the Palaeolithic and Holocene hunter-gatherers of the
Nile in Egypt. The publications cited contain data on
the diagnostic features, present distribution and ecology of the animals encountered and are not repeated in
what follows. Measurements are given following von
den Driesch (1976). An asterisk before a measurement
indicates that, together with others below, it concerns
one specimen.
Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus)
Some separate and coarticulating vertebrae prove the
presence at the site of the monitor lizard. These finds
were originally attributed to bird and fish. The monitor
has been recorded in small quantities from most of the
sites of the Khartoum Mesolithic and the succeeding
Neolithic of the Central Sudanese Nile.
Cape hare (Lepus capensis)
A lagomorph is represented by a mandibular fragment,
a fragment of a scapula, and two pelvic fragments.
Most likely the finds pertain to the Cape hare, which is
well represented in the archaeofaunas of the Egyptian

Nile Valley (Gautier 1987). It is much less well represented in the Holocene archaeofaunas from the Central
Sudanese Nile. In fact, it would seem that the hare was
added to the faunal spectrum during the Neolithic, as
if people were not interested in this small prey animal
in earlier times.
Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius)
Several jaw fragments with jugal teeth (some of these
may derive from one animal) as well as two cranial
fragments, some remains of four humeri and one fragment of a radius, were collected. A large rib probably
represents also this pachyderm. No measurements
could be taken. As the already cited vertebrates, hippopotamus is a regular but not frequent member of the
Holocene archaeofaunas from the Central Sudanese
Nile. The extant hippopotamus is also known from the
Kaddanrti/Kabrinarti assemblage.
Medium sized antelopes, including kob
(Kobus kob) (Fig. 8, BF)
This category of bovid encloses various remains of
medium-sized bovids, but most frequent are vertebrae,
cannon bones and phalanges. Unfortunately, jugal teeth
which are generally diagnostic are missing in the collection. In the preliminary report on the faunal remains,
these finds were grouped as dama gazelle (Gazella
dama). This large gazelle however does not occur today east of the Nile and in the past the same situation
probably prevailed. The well preserved finds also do
not exhibit the slender habitus of gazelles.

Fig. 8. Some bone finds from

Affad 23. A: distal metacarpus,
plantar view, dorcas gazelle; B:
third phalanx, medium sized
antelope, attributable to kob;
C: skull fragment with horn
core, female dorcas gazelle; D:
second phalanx medium sized
antelope, kob?; E: astragalus
medium sized antelope, kob?;
F: fragmented distal metatarsus,
medium sized antelope, kob?; G:
horncore, male dorcas gazelle.
Scale AF equals ca 20 mm;
scale G ca 30 mm.
Fig. 8: Some bone finds from Affad 23. A: distal metacarpus, plantar view, dorcas gazelle; B: third
African
Archaeology
Vol. 9core,
(2), 2011
phalanx, medium sized antelope, attributable toJournal
kob; C:ofskull
fragment
with horn
female dorcas
gazelle; D: second phalanx medium sized antelope, kob?; E: astragalus medium sized antelope, kob?; F:
fragmented distal metatarsus, medium sized antelope, kob?; G: horncore, male dorcas gazelle. Scale A-F
equals c. 20mm; scale G c.30 mm.

185

P. Osypiski, M. Osypiska & A. Gautier

humerus, Bd
radius, Bp
Bd
mc, Bp
astragalus, GLl
GLm
Bd
mt, Bd
ph.1, Bp
ph. 2, GL
Bp
Bd
ph. 3, LSD
Ld

39.8
33.0
31.5
28.2
*38.3
35.8
21.7
27.0
15.0
*25.3
13.6
11.0
*34.5
29.0

male horncore, A-P. diameter base

TR. diameter base
female horncore, A-P. diameter base
TR. diameter base
humerus, Bd
radius, Bp
mc, Bd
astragalus, Glm

34.2
29.0
*42.2
38.8
24.6
17.7
*28.0
15.0
12.0
*37.2
30.6

Tab. 3. Affad 23, measurements of dorcas gazelle remains

(in mm).
*37.7
30.8

*38.4
31.6

*39.0
31.4

Tab. 2. Affad 23, measurements of medium-sized bovid remains (in mm).

The measurements (Tab. 2) indicate indeed that the

finds originate from a medium-sized bovid about 1.4 to
1.5 times larger than the small gazelle described next,
measuring some 75 to 95 cm at the withers. In fact most
of the measurements compare favourably with those
of kob (Kobus kob) from Saggai. Kob is frequently encountered in the Holocene sites of the Central Sudanese
Nile and was apparently an easy prey for late prehistoric
hunters. The attachment of kob to its grazing grounds
is so strong that in East Africa human settlement may
proceed with kob attempting to go on living almost at
the new villages. At least part of the finds grouped here
derive from kob. Other antelopes of comparable size,
such as bohor reedbuck (Redunca redunca) or bushbuck
(Tragelaphus scriptus), also occurring in Central Sudanese Holocene sites, may of course have contributed to
the sample. In the Kaddanarti/Kabinarti two fragments of
medium-sized antelopes occur, one of them referable to
Kobus or Redunca. Abu Hugar and Singa yielded some
remains of antelopes of medium and larger size.
Dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas) (Fig. 8, A, C, G)
This small gazelle is represented by a much less diversified lot of skeletal remains in comparison with the
foregoing, including two male horncores, one female
horncore, five mandibular fragments with teeth some
vertebrae and four canon bones.
The measurements (Tab. 3) fall in the upper range
of extant dorcas gazelles or are a bit larger, as in smaller
extant red-fronted gazelles (G. rufifrons; Peters 1986b).
The latter have been recorded in Holocene sites of the
Central Sudan, but those finds appear generally larger
than their present-day offspring. Dorcas gazelles from
Palaeolithic sites in the Wadi Halfa region were originally included in this species, but fossil dorcas gazelles
186

*25.3
18.5
*13.6
10.5
27.0
25.5
18.8
26.8

are larger than their recent offspring and the Wadi Halfa
gazelles have been re-identified as dorcas gazelles.
The preliminary identification or the Affad gazelle can
be retained. Apart from the small gazelles from the
Holocene sites above, a small, not further identified
gazelle, has been recorded from Singa.
Large bovid, wild cattle or African buffalo
(Bos primigenius or Syncerus caffer)?
A pelvis fragment and an astragalus compare with their
homologs of large cattle. A vertebra and three ribs seem
to belong to the same bovid. These remains may represent either buffalo, or wild cattle or aurochs. Wild cattle
(Bos primigenius) is well known from Palaeolithic and
later sites in the Wadi Halfa region (Gautier 1968), but
it penetrated apparently quite far into Sudan, for it has
been recorded from sites dated about 10ky bp near Kassala (Marks et al. 1987). In later sites near Kassala it is
replaced by the extant buffalo. If buffalo, the remains may
derive from the predecessor of the extant African buffalo
(Syncerus caffer) or from the giant buffalo; in the view of
the third author, the latter is an extinct subspecies (S. caffer
antiquus) of the extant buffalo and not a separate species
(Syncerus antiquus) (Peters et al. 1994). The medial
length of the astragalus (ca 75 m) fits in the range of large
domestic cattle and extant African buffalo (Peters 1986a).
Extant buffalo occurs in small quantities in the Holocene
archaeofauna from the Central Sudanese Nile. Buffalo is
also present in the Kaddanarti/kabrinarti assemblage. The
Singa buffalo skull is assignable to giant buffalo.
Palaeoecology
The identification rate, that is, the ratio identified bones/
total number of bones of the whole Affad bone collection
is 20.8 %. In the Holocene sites of the Central Sudan
rates of less than 10 % have been calculated and we may
assume some taphonomic loss and sampling bias with
respect to the Holocene sites. Taphonomic loss refers to
the fact that remains of small animals may not have been
preserved, sampling bias to the fact that the collecting by

Journal of African Archaeology Vol. 9 (2), 2011

Affad 23, a Late Middle Palaeolithic Site

hand tends to overlook small remains, such as those of

fish, reptiles and birds. We should also not forget that the
Holocene faunal collections are much larger than the one
from Affad and, as known, faunal diversity increases with
sample size. The Holocene sites were occupied at least in
a semi-sedentary manner for quite a long time and offered
in this respect much better chances to sample the available mammalian fauna of their catchment areas, including
monkeys, several rodents, carnivores and plant-eaters of
varying size. Thus, the limited spectrum of Affad 23, even
if we accept that our medium-sized antelope group hides
several species, corroborates the hypothesis that the use
of the site was periodical and not intensive. People came
to the place to collect and prepare lithics for further use
elsewhere and hunted opportunistically, bagging mainly
medium sized antelopes, probably mostly kob which may
have lived near the site, some dorcas gazelles when they
came to the water, and occasionally a hippopotamus, an
aurochs or a buffalo. Lizards, hare and probably other
small terrestrial vertebrates were also on the menu, but
their share is difficult to evaluate. As to the absence of
fish remains, people were most probably not fishing, for
the site appears to have been occupied in the low water
season of the Nile. Van Neer (2004) demonstrated that
during Middle and Upper Palaeolithic times in Egypt and
the Wadi Halfa region fishing was restricted to the shallow
waters of the alluvial plain during the high water season.
There is no reason to assume that the situation was different further to the south. The antelope and gazelle remains
indicate butchering on the site, but butchering of larger
animals may also have been done on the site, if we accept
localized hunting and limited transport of carcases.
Summary and conclusion
The available data on Affad 23 and its general context
indicate that the site is a late Middle Palaeolithic workshop using discoid and levallois methods for initial stone
artefact reduction. Its occupants exploited the Hudi Chert
from the Nile palaeochannel near the site during the low
water season and hunted probably in an opportunistic
way. Their game bag included mainly medium-sized antelopes, probably mostly kob, some dorcas gazelles, a few
bigger mammals and smaller much less visible terrestrial
vertebrates, most likely hunted or trapped near the site.
The existence of two levels, the freshness, refittings and
dispersion of the lithics point to recurrent occupation for
an appreciable time but probably never intensive. Possibly other Middle Palaeolithic sites in the area were used
in the same way, suggesting that people may have paid
regularly visits to the area for a long time to exploit the
Hudi Chert from the palaeochannel. Excavations of Affad
23 and a choice of other Middle Palaeolithic sites in its
vicinity may corroborate the explanations here advanced
about the nature of the site, as well as about the concentration of Middle Palaeolithic sites near Affad.

Acknowledgements
The first authors thank the SDRS for logistic help during the field work in Affad 23. Daniel Makowiecki (Institute of Archaeology, Nicolaus Copernicus University,
Torun) provided preliminary information on the site of
Wadi Umm Rahau. The third author thanks Elena Garcea (Laboratory for Archaeology, University of Cassino) and Philip Van Peer (Research Unit Archeology,
University of Louvain) for their comments on Middle
Palaeolithic occurrences on both sides of the Nile valley
near Affad. Bert Van Bocxlaer, younger colleague of the
third author, willingly composed the figure with bone
photographs provided by the first authors.
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