Basque Archaeologists in Search of the Lost Sahara

In search of the lost Sahara - eitb24.com

Here's a feature from eitb24, which looks at the recent work by a team of Basque archaeologists in the Tiris region of the south-western Sahara, whom, led by Andoni Sáenz de Buruaga of the Universidad del Pais Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, have been investigating the presence there of humans past. This from the linked article (slightly amended by me)...

In five years' work, the Basque archaeologists have catalogued more than 300 archaeological sites, including former human settlements, carvings and cave paintings. Most of them are between 3,000 and 10,000 years old. The research work helps to make the prehistoric heritage of the southern region of the Western Sahara better known. The gathered material will be part of the first archaeological catalogue of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

"We are sweating blood but it is worthwhile. We will keep on trying to research the past of the Sahrawis. It is very important for them to know their cultural heritage, which is very rich, the opposite to what it was generally thought. It is a way to show and claim and their ancestors lived here", Sáenz de Buruaga said.

One of the most remarkable conclusions is the verification that today's arid desert was a subtropical savanna with plenty of flora and fauna six thousand years ago. Rains decreased as a consequence of a process of climate change and animals moved to other places to escape the lack of water.

A good aspect of this research is that the Basque archaeologists are working in tandem with their Sahrawi colleagues, the advantages of which are explained thus...

"We can only work together with them for a month, which is all the time we spend at the Sahara every time. It is little time but we try to make the most of it. What we want is to give them technical training. They have very few resources and what we teach them is very useful for them for future research works. But certainly, the cooperation is mutual. We receive much from them, Sáenz de Buruaga says.

In fact, Basque archaeologists would not be able to go deeper into the inhospitable desert of Tiris without the help of the Sahrawi Government and the local researchers.

In addition to this article, there is a very good graphic presentation, 'Archaeology In The Sahara Desert', which not only illustrates how the archaeologists travel and survive in the desert, but also provides a very nice 20-image slideshow, in which we see the local conditions, work in the field, as well as some rock art, featuring ochre hand-prints, giraffe, including some exquisite rock engravings.