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Free keywords:
Pleistocene archaeology, West Africa, paleoenvironmentalreconstruction, paleoclimaticmodelling
Abstract:
African paleoanthropological studies typically focus on regions of the continent such asEastern, Southern and Northern Africa, which hold the highest density of Pleistocenearchaeological sites. Nevertheless, lesser known areas such as West Africa also feature a highnumber of sites. Here, we present a high-resolution map synthesising all well contextualisedPleistocene archaeological sites present in Sub-Saharan West Africa. A detailed elevation andecoregional map was developed and correlated with palaeoanthropological sites. This mapis supplemented with 1,000- and 2000-year interval climate reconstructions over the last120,000 years for three subregions of high archaeological interest. The presentedarchaeological sites were compiled by reviewing published literature, and selected basedon: (1) documented archaeological stratification or >10 characteristic artefacts, (2) publishedcoordinates, and (3) published chronometric ages or relative dating. The data presentedhere elucidates the current state of knowledge of Pleistocene West Africa, highlighting theregional potential for human evolutionary studies.
