Melka Kunture

Melka Kunture

Ethiopia · Oromia

SettlementExcavation ongoingUNESCO · 2024
Approximate periodPleistocene See on the map ↓

In brief

Melka Kunture, in the Upper Awash Valley, is a group of excavation sites preserving archaeological records spanning approximately two million years. Human fossils, stone tools and footprints allow researchers to investigate adaptation to high-altitude environments.

What was found?

  • 1Obsidian handaxes

    Obsidian handaxes produced in similar shapes were found at Simbiro III in a layer more than 1.2 million years old. According to researchers, this dense accumulation is evidence of a tool workshop dedicated to a specific task.

  • 2Homo erectus fossils

    They were found in well-dated layers alongside tools made from volcanic rocks. They allow human evolution and stone technology to be studied within the same archaeological record.

  • 3Homo heidelbergensis fossils

    The fossils identified by UNESCO under this name document the site's long history encompassing different human populations.

  • 4Archaic Homo sapiens fossils

    Fossils belonging to early modern human forms constitute later links in the region's record of human evolution.

  • 5Hominin footprints

    Footprints preserved on ancient surfaces are direct traces of the presence of human relatives here. Alongside fossils and tools, they provide a separate record of behavior.

What does it point to?

The site shows that human relatives lived in high-altitude environments and adapted to changing conditions. According to researchers, the obsidian workshop indicates an ability to exploit new resources in the surrounding area and concentrate production in a particular place.

What did it teach us?

  1. It documents a human presence in the Ethiopian highlands extending back two million years.
  2. It allows Oldowan, Acheulean, Middle and Later Stone Age technologies to be traced within the long record of the same region.
  3. According to researchers, it shows that workshops dedicated to a specific task could have been established more than 1.2 million years ago.

Latest news / selected archive

A study published in 2023 identified a stone tool workshop at Simbiro III where standardized obsidian handaxes were produced more than 1.2 million years ago.

Record

Culture
Various stone tool traditions, including Oldowan and Acheulean
First modern dig
1965
Team / historical
Melka Kunture ve Balchit İtalyan-İspanyol Arkeoloji Misyonu
Coordinates
8.7000°, 38.5900°

Sources

  1. whc.unesco.org
  2. nature.com
  3. whc.unesco.org
  4. mdpi.com
  5. CENIEH — Nature Ecology & Evolution makalesinin kurumsal arşiv kaydı

Nearby excavations


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12.000

From beneath the soil: latest discoveries

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    Heritage Daily ↗ · Excavation notebook
  • Celtic woman's grave containing jewelry and animal remains found in Germany

    A woman's skeleton, heavy bronze anklets, a sapropelite arm ring, and the remains of a lamb or kid were found in the grave in Bavaria. According to the researchers, placing the animal in the grave as a food offering represents an unusual example of Celtic funerary practices in the region.

    Arkeofili ↗
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    Grooming items, 38 bronze coins and a necklace made up of at least 24 amulets were found in a cupboard in a house in Pompeii that had remained closed since the eruption in AD 79. The preservation of these objects together provides detailed information about everyday life and personal mementos in Roman times.

    Arkeofili ↗ · Excavation notebook
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    A wheeled toy horse, a rooster-shaped rattle, jewelry and organic remains were recovered from a sealed child’s sarcophagus dating back approximately 1,800 years in the ancient city of Tomis. The preservation of wooden coffin fragments and the shroud also offers a rare opportunity to study child burials in Roman times.

    HeritageDaily ↗
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    Arkeofili ↗
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    A marble portrait of Antinoos and 13 inscriptions on reused stone blocks were found around the Temple of Roma and Augustus at Teos. The inscriptions shed light on the city’s political and legal relations, while researchers say the portrait and inscription fragments show that the temple was also connected to the cult of Antinoos.

    Arkeofili ↗ · Excavation notebook
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