Archaeology Magazine - March/April 1991 - 103

-AFRICA

GHANA
Asante Kingdom, Kokofu and
Adansi (excavations March and
April). What sort of culture led to the
Asante empire's creation and from
where did customs such as matrilineäl
kinship arise? Volunteers will work
with excavationdirector Peter Shinnie
and Asante laborers at forest sites to
hunt for answers to these questions.
Teamswillbe based in a hotel and eat
traditional Ghanaian fare. Volunteers
accepted: the Asante Kingdom will
be exploredby Earthwatch-sponsored
teams; participants share costs. Contact: Baylor Chapman, Earthwatch,
Box403ARC,Watertown,MA 02272
(tel.) 617-926-8200.
LIBERIA
Cape Mount (excavations December 24-January 7, 1992). This project hopes to initiate exploration of
Liberian prehistory; at this point little is known. The project will determine the presence of defensive
structures similar to fortified towns
unearthed in nearby Sierra Leone.
Selected prehistoric sites will be excavated to determine depth and to
collectmaterials for radiocarbon dating. Participants can expect to unearth stone tools, pottery vessels,and
brass and iron objects. Second, the
projectis concernedwith the collection
of ethnographic artifacts to obtain
information about their use and the
recording of popular oral history.
Gettingthere:contact the Foundation
for FielclResearch for details. Volunteers accepted: room and board
provided. Contact: Thomas Banks,
Foundation for Field Research, P.O.
Box2010,Alpine, CA 91903(tel.) 619445-9264.
NAMIBIA
Rehoboth Iron AgeSite (excavations
June-September). The Iron Age
came to sub-Saharan Africa as late
as the 17th century. Virtually everywhere, clay furnaces were used to
smelt iron, yet BeatriceSandelowsky's
studies in Namibia reveal a conspicuous absence of such furnaces. Moreover, the pottery that she has found
is very different in shape, form, and

decoration from pottery in East
Africa. Using the standard tools and
methods of archaeology, volunteers
will research and contribute to our
knowledgeof the prehistory of southwestern Africa. They may also design
and create exhibits for the Rehoboth
Museum so that native Namibians
may learn more about their national
heritage. Nearby attractions include
Hardap Dam and the Namib Naukluft Nature Park. Earth watch-sponsored teams will explore Rehoboth;
participantsshare costs.Contact: Baylor Chapman, Earthwatch, P.O. Box
403ARC,Watertown,MA 02272(tel.)
617-926-8200.
SOUTH
AFRICA
Ash
Middelburg
Heap (excavations July 14-19). This is a six-day
field school in archaeological excavation and analysis designed for
beginners with no prior experience.
The site is a 15-foot-deep stratified
ash heap on the edge of a small Karoo
town, dated to a.d. 1885-1937.There
is a very dense accumulation of
domesticchina, glassware,metalwork,
animal bones, etc. This season we expect to coverthe period of the great flu
epidemic and reach the World War I
levels.Team members receive8 hours
of closelysupervisedinstruction in excavationmethods and extraction, and
4 hours each in sorting, recording,
glass/chinaanalysis, metalwork analysis, faunal analysis, and graphics.
Nearby attractions include the Middelburg Museum. Gettingthere:Middelburg is a 7-hour drive fromJohannesburg and is situated on the main
Jo'burg-Port Elizabeth highway.The
site is next to the railway station.
Visitors welcome anytime between
July 16-19, appointment necessary
for a guide; accessibleby bus, train,
and taxi; camping Vi mile from the
site in a municipal caravan park;
hotels and restaurants are a 10-minute walk from the site. Volunteers
accepted. Contact: Mrs. S. Pager,Archaeology Survey Unit, University
of the Witwatersrand, P.O.WITS, Johannesburg 2050, Republic of South
Africa (tel.) 011-716-2777,(fax) 01127-11-403-1926.

TUNISIA
Ancient Carthage (excavations
May 19-June 30). Although many
of Carthage's major monuments
have been excavated over the past
15 years, finer points of the city's social history and working-classculture
remain unknown. Excavating a lateRoman cemeteryover the last 4 years,
John Humphrey's staffhas attempted
to fill this gap. The cemetery is connected with an early Christian church
knownas Bir Knissia.The goalsof this
research are twofold: first, to learn
more about late Roman burial customs and religion, and second, to
study the forensic, paleonutritional,
and demographiccharacteristicsof the
skeletalpopulation.Volunteerswillexcavatehuman skeletalremains and assist the National Museum of Carthage
in developingand completingexhibits
for public education. Teams will stay
in the Tunis suburb of Dermech and
be treated to Tunisian cuisine. Digging begins by the first light of dawn
and ends by 1:30 to avoid the afternoon sun. Gettingthere:ancient Carthage willbe exploredby Earthwatchsponsored teams. Volunteers accepted: participants share costs. Contact: Paul Millhouser, Earthwatch,
P.O. Box 403ARC, Watertown, MA
02272 (tel.) 617-926-8200.
Minus
Lepti
(excavations
June-July). Situatedcloseto the lively
modern tourist resort of Monastir,
where excavators are housed, the
Roman port city of Lepti Minus was
a major center for the export of olive
oil, fine African red-slip ware and
other products. The project uses fieldsurvey techniques and excavation to
shed light on the urban topography,
development, and social and economic life of the town. Volunteers
will receive instruction in a range of
field techniques. The results of the
work willbe important for our knowledge of the ancient Roman economy
and urbanization. Nearby attractions
include the Monastir Ribat and the
Old Town. Gettingthere:on the north
edge of the modern town of Lamta,
on the main road from Monastir,
on the west side of the road. Site
Archaeology

Travel Guide

Archaeology Magazine - March/April 1991

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Archaeology Magazine - March/April 1991