African megaliths. GRILLO Assistant Professor Department of Anthropology .
African megaliths. GRILLO Assistant Professor Department of Anthropology Dec 12, 2019 · The 46 large, decorated Tiya megaliths have been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Wassu stone circles The Senegambian stone circles (French: Cercles mégalithiques de Sénégambie), or the Wassu stone circles, [1] are groups of megalithic stone circles located in the Gambia north of Janjanbureh and in central Senegal. Quesnel & L. Megaliths of the World - Part VII: African Megaliths Philippe GOUÉZIN Associate Researcher UMR CNRS - CReAAH Centre de Recherche en Archéologie Archéosciences Histoire Campus Beaulieu - Bât - avenue du Général Leclerc - CS Rennes Cedex, France philgouez@orange. Figure 3. They are recorded from North Africa to Madagascar, and from the Atlantic shores of West Africa to the Sahara and the Horn of Africa. Even today, among the Bassari people, stone Namoratunga, a megalithic site in northwestern Kenya, has an alignment of 19 basalt pillars that are nonrandomly oriented toward certain stars and constellations. fr Katherine M. Far from being an exception, Jan 2, 2015 · The investigation not only provides a new context for one of the most important sites in West Africa but the precise determination of the sequence and techniques used at Wanar offers key pointers for the understanding of megalithic structures everywhere. Apr 28, 2025 · Africa’s megaliths are not just rocks; they’re time capsules of lost knowledge, cosmic wisdom, and societal blueprints. Yet, while Europe’s Stonehenge grabs headlines, the hidden meanings of African megaliths remain shrouded in mystery. The same stars and constellations are used by modern eastern Cushitic peoples to These four megalithic sites are the most dense concentration in the zone and have Outstanding Universal Value, representing a traditional monumental megalithic construction spread out over a vast area, with more than 1,000 stone circles scattered along one of the major rivers of Africa. Delvoye & V. Laporte; plan: A. Dartois; grahics: F. Laporte). The stone circles and other megaliths in Senegal and Gambia are divided into four large sites. Sep 8, 2021 · Often associated with the monumental structures of the European Neolithic, megalithic architectures are found in reality on almost all the continents of the globe. Most of these sites are located in the Southern Nation Nationalities and peoples Regional State (SNNPRS). Sometimes referred to as "African Stonehenge", it predates both Stonehenge and the Great Pyramid of Giza by tens of thousands of years. Spread across a region 30,000 km 2 (12,000 sq mi), [2] they are sometimes divided into the Wassu (Gambian) and Sine-Saloum (Senegalese) circles, but this is Megaliths of the World, 2022 Senegambian megaliths are characterized by the presence of standing stones, called frontal stones, erected to the east of funerary monuments whose ruins take various forms in the landscape, sometimes sealed beneath a mound, with platforms measuring 3-11 m in diameter and ringed by standing stones or dry-stone walls. Jun 2, 2015 · Adam’s Calendar is controversially suggested to be the oldest man-made structure in the world. Mar 29, 2014 · Most people have heard of Stonehenge in the UK, but far from all are familiar with the large concentration of stones that are sometimes referred to as African Stonehenge. Megalithic monuments exist in all regions of Ethiopia. Monument XIX at Wanar: superimposed megalithic structure and burial pit: 1) collapsed megalithic structure during first investigation; 2) deeper burial pit and human bones (photographs: L. Therefore, they correspond to very diverse cultural contexts and a wide range of uses. Although the construction of such megaliths is an ancient tradition in Ethiopia, the Tiya stones are fairly ‘recent,’ dating to sometime between the 10th and 15th centuries. Located in Mpumalanga, South Africa it is a standing stone circle about 30 meters in diameter and has been estimated by some accounts to be more than 75,000 years In Africa, megalithic structures have been documented since the sixth millennium BCE approximately until the contemporary period. . Bertin, L.
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