Observed Formation and Burial of a Recent Human Occupation Site in Kenya

Abstract

A recent human campsite, occupied in 1973 by members of the Dassanetch tribe of northern Kenya, was observed from its creation through its subsequent burial in flood events 4 months later. The site was excavated as an archeological occurrence in the summer of 1974. Analyses of field and laboratory data yield a detailed picture of sedimentary structures, bone transport and burial, and site preservation in a well-documented depositional situation. Trampling by site occupants was apparently instrumental in burying much small bone prior to the flood events which acted on the site. About 30 cm of sediments accumulated on the site during four or five flood events. Individual sedimentary beds can be related to specific observed flood events in the drainage system. The ultimate preservation of the site as part of the region's archeological record would depend upon the interaction of sediment deflation and the varying local water table. Specific conditions which tend to preserve human sites in water-poor environments may consistently select seasonally biased vestiges of human settlement and economy.