Isimila Stone Age Site

Isimila Stone Age Site
	Landscape of Isimila Site
	Shown within Tanzania
Location	Iringa District,; Iringa Region,; Tanzania
Coordinates	7°53′49″S 35°36′21″E / 7.89694°S 35.60583°E
Altitude	1,650 m (5,413 ft)
Type	Settlement
History
Material	Stone tools and faunal remains
Cultures	Acheulean
Site notes
Excavation dates	1954-
Archaeologists	Clark Howell, Maxine Kleindienst, Glen Cole, Patton Curran, J. Cole, M. Bates
Condition	Endangered
Ownership	Tanzanian Government
National Historic Sites of Tanzania
Official name	Isimila Stone Age Site
Type	prehistoric

Isimila Stone Age Site (Eneo la zama za mawe la Isimila in Swahili) is a prehistoric site located approximately 16 km south of Iringa town (7.90° S, 35.47° E) within the Iringa region in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania. The site harbors a significant manifestation of the Middle Pleistocene archaeological assemblage of Acheulean stone tools, including handaxes, cleavers, picks, scrapers, and cores. ^[1]^[2] The Isimila archaeological site is positioned at ca. 1650 meters above sea level, and it is dated around 500 kya, with the lowest Lukingi member deposited between 500 kya and 900 kya.^[3] Its discovery in 1951 was a stroke of luck, as an amateur archaeologist serendipitously observed the first stone artifact and animal bones. The site is known for its dramatic landscape of eroded sandstone pillars and canyons, features recognized by Tanganyika colonial administrators and geographers since the 1920s as caused by rapid soil erosion. ^[4] Since 1957, Isimila has been gazetted as a reserved area under The Monument Preservation Ordinance of Tanganyika.^[5] Isimila was the first site recognized as a national historic site under the Antiquities Act of 1964.^[6]

^ Howell, F. Clark (1961). "Isimila: A Paleolithic Site in Africa". Scientific American. 205 (4): 118–129. Bibcode:1961SciAm.205d.118H. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican1061-118. ISSN 0036-8733.
^ Kleindienst, Maxine R.; Blackwell, Bonnie A. B. (2023), Beyin, Amanuel; Wright, David K.; Wilkins, Jayne; Olszewski, Deborah I. (eds.), "Isimila, Tanzania", Handbook of Pleistocene Archaeology of Africa, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 1041–1054, doi:10.1007/978-3-031-20290-2_68, ISBN 978-3-031-20289-6, retrieved 2024-12-17
^ Kleindienst, Maxine R.; Blackwell, Bonnie A.B.; Skinner, Anne R. (2024). "Isimila Prehistoric Site, Tanzania: Comparative Faunal Datings and ESR, with a Reassessment". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 211: 105156. Bibcode:2024JAfES.21105156K. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2023.105156.
^ Hobley, C. W. (1933). "Soil Erosion: A Problem in Human Geography". The Geographical Journal. 82 (2): 139–146. Bibcode:1933GeogJ..82..139H. doi:10.2307/1785661. JSTOR 1785661.
^ Howell, F. Clark; Cole, Glen H.; Kleindienst, Maxine R.; Szabo, Barney J.; Oakley, Kenneth P. (1972). "Uranium-series Dating of Bone from the Isimila Prehistoric Site, Tanzania". Nature. 237 (5349): 51–52. Bibcode:1972Natur.237...51H. doi:10.1038/237051a0. ISSN 0028-0836.
^ Tillya, Digna (1996). "Preservation of the Stone Age site of Isimila, Tanzania". Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites. 1 (4): 243–246. doi:10.1179/135050396793139015. ISSN 1350-5033.

[:0-1] Howell, F. Clark (1961). "Isimila: A Paleolithic Site in Africa". Scientific American. 205 (4): 118–129. Bibcode:1961SciAm.205d.118H. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican1061-118. ISSN 0036-8733.

[:1-2] Kleindienst, Maxine R.; Blackwell, Bonnie A. B. (2023), Beyin, Amanuel; Wright, David K.; Wilkins, Jayne; Olszewski, Deborah I. (eds.), "Isimila, Tanzania", Handbook of Pleistocene Archaeology of Africa, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 1041–1054, doi:10.1007/978-3-031-20290-2_68, ISBN 978-3-031-20289-6, retrieved 2024-12-17

[:2-3] Kleindienst, Maxine R.; Blackwell, Bonnie A.B.; Skinner, Anne R. (2024). "Isimila Prehistoric Site, Tanzania: Comparative Faunal Datings and ESR, with a Reassessment". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 211: 105156. Bibcode:2024JAfES.21105156K. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2023.105156.

[4] Hobley, C. W. (1933). "Soil Erosion: A Problem in Human Geography". The Geographical Journal. 82 (2): 139–146. Bibcode:1933GeogJ..82..139H. doi:10.2307/1785661. JSTOR 1785661.

[:3-5] Howell, F. Clark; Cole, Glen H.; Kleindienst, Maxine R.; Szabo, Barney J.; Oakley, Kenneth P. (1972). "Uranium-series Dating of Bone from the Isimila Prehistoric Site, Tanzania". Nature. 237 (5349): 51–52. Bibcode:1972Natur.237...51H. doi:10.1038/237051a0. ISSN 0028-0836.

[:4-6] Tillya, Digna (1996). "Preservation of the Stone Age site of Isimila, Tanzania". Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites. 1 (4): 243–246. doi:10.1179/135050396793139015. ISSN 1350-5033.

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