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Geoarchaeology and prehistory of the Kipsing and Tol river watersheds in the Mukogodo Hills region of Central Kenya
Author(s) -
Pearl Frederic B.,
Dickson D. Bruce
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
geoarchaeology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.696
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1520-6548
pISSN - 0883-6353
DOI - 10.1002/gea.20011
Subject(s) - geoarchaeology , alluvium , geology , prehistory , lithology , quaternary , stratigraphy , chronology , deposition (geology) , natural (archaeology) , archaeology , alluvial plain , period (music) , erosion , sediment , paleontology , geography , physics , acoustics , tectonics
An archaeological survey and geomorphological investigation were conducted over a period of three years in the Tol and Kipsing River valleys, both located in the Mukogodo Hills‐Upper Ewaso Ng'iro Plains region of Central Kenya. Eleven alluvial‐stratigraphic sections were studied, and five late‐Quaternary alluvial stratigraphic units were identified on the basis of lithology, chronology, and soil stratigraphy. The locations of 63 archaeological sites recorded during the reconnaissance were compared with the distribution of the alluvial units. These data were used to predict where sites of different cultural periods are most likely to be found and to determine the relationship between site location and alluvial deposition. Since natural processes of deposition and erosion do not fully account for the distribution of Middle and Later Stone Age sites in the study area, the hypothesis that these differences reflect human choices, not the operation of natural processes, cannot be rejected. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.