Radiocarbon dates from Fazzan, southern Libya

Abstract

This short paper presents a full list of the currently available radiocarbon dates from the work of Charles Daniels in the 1960s-1970s and the Fazzan Project (1997-2001). The dates can be grouped into several categories, by site or area, and demonstrate the potential of radiocarbon dating being applied to historic-period archaeology in the Sahara. This complements earlier Italian work on later prehistory. One of the most important conclusions to emerge is that the construction of castle-like buildings in Fazzan began within the Garamantian period and that some of the numerous well-preserved mudbrick fortified sites are thus rather earlier than has previously been envisaged. A second important conclusion is that the use of AMS dating can help to identify and confirm activity of the post-Garamantian and early Islamic phases, which has hitherto been elusive.

Desert Migrations Project XVI: Radiocarbon Dates from the Murzuq Region, Southern Libya

“…Following a technique pioneered by the Fazzan Project (see Mattingly et al 2002) organic inclusions were removed from standing mudbrick buildings for dating. In most cases this involved breaking up a mudbrick with a hammer and retrieving a sample from within the matrix of the brick (Fig.…”

“…Previous suites of AMS (Accelerator Mass Spectrometry) dates provided a pioneering dataset for the region (Higham et al 2007;Mattingly et al 2002;Mattingly 2007, 294-302), supplemented by some limited dates from Italian work in the area close to Ghat (Liverani 2006, 363-74). In combination, the work of the Fazzan Project and the Desert Migrations Project (DMP) on the Garamantes and Islamic era sites in the Wadi al-Ajal is an exception to a general neglect of historical periods in the archaeology of the central Sahara.…”

“…In combination, the work of the Fazzan Project and the Desert Migrations Project (DMP) on the Garamantes and Islamic era sites in the Wadi al-Ajal is an exception to a general neglect of historical periods in the archaeology of the central Sahara. Previous suites of AMS (Accelerator Mass Spectrometry) dates provided a pioneering dataset for the region (Higham et al 2007;Mattingly et al 2002;Mattingly 2007, 294-302), supplemented by some limited dates from Italian work in the area close to Ghat (Liverani 2006, 363-74). The rise of the Garamantian civilisation in the course of the first millennium BC is now well established, with its apogee reached in the first half of the first millennium AD (Mattingly 2003;2010).…”

Desert Migrations Project XVII: Further AMS Dates for Historic Settlements from Fazzan, South-West Libya

“…As with previous batches of material, we have had the AMS radiocarbon dating conducted by the Oxford Radiocarbon Laboratory. Although three samples failed due to low yield and two gave a post-Atomic bomb date indicating modern intrusive material, the remaining 25 new dates add significant information about the historical pattern of human settlement and habitation (for previous dates from this part of Fazzan, see Higham et al 2007;Mattingly et al 2002;Sterry et al 2012). These latest samples take the total number of successful radiocarbon dates for historic settlements in central Fazzan to 135 ( Fig.1.…”

“…Although three samples failed due to low yield and two gave a post-atomic-bomb date indicating modern intrusive material, the remaining 25 new dates add significant information about the historical pattern of human settlement and habitation (for previous dates from this part of Fazzan, see Higham etal. 2007;Mattingly et al 2002;Sterry etal. 2012).…”