The area of Melka Kunture (central Ethiopia) is one of the most important clusters of Paleolithic sites in Eastern Africa. The archaeological record spans from ca. 1.7 Ma onwards, with a number of stratified occurrences of Oldowan, Acheulean, Middle Stone Age and Late Stone Age industries, together with faunal remains and human fossils. However, the archaeological sites are affected by present day processes. These processes are mainly triggered by the climatic conditions and specific Paleo-landscape forms and features in the nearer surroundings of Melka Kunture and the upper Awash catchment. Hence, the main aims and objectives of this study are the assessment of the present day geomorphological and hydrological processes as well as the detection of Paleo-landscape pattern. Based on fieldwork, aerial photo interpretation and a detailed DEM analysis we derived a geomorphological map of the Melka Kunture area. Furthermore, we assessed the major landscape forming process using physically based models and a detailed Terrain Analysis. For this study we utilized the SRTM-X with 25m resolution and ALOS/ PRISM DEM with 10m resolution.The study reveals the spatial distribution of present day landscape forming processes. Especially surface runoff and soil erosion processes were analysed in detail. Moreover, we identified evidences for specific Paleo-landscape pattern in the surroundings of Melka Kunture. In part these features can be explained with tectonic activity, on the other hand they indicate specific pattern of the Paleo-drainage network.
MORPHOMETRIC ANALYSIS TO EXPLORE THE SURROUNDINGS OF THE MELKA KUNTURE PREHISTORIC SITE
MELIS, RITA TERESA
2014-01-01
Abstract
The area of Melka Kunture (central Ethiopia) is one of the most important clusters of Paleolithic sites in Eastern Africa. The archaeological record spans from ca. 1.7 Ma onwards, with a number of stratified occurrences of Oldowan, Acheulean, Middle Stone Age and Late Stone Age industries, together with faunal remains and human fossils. However, the archaeological sites are affected by present day processes. These processes are mainly triggered by the climatic conditions and specific Paleo-landscape forms and features in the nearer surroundings of Melka Kunture and the upper Awash catchment. Hence, the main aims and objectives of this study are the assessment of the present day geomorphological and hydrological processes as well as the detection of Paleo-landscape pattern. Based on fieldwork, aerial photo interpretation and a detailed DEM analysis we derived a geomorphological map of the Melka Kunture area. Furthermore, we assessed the major landscape forming process using physically based models and a detailed Terrain Analysis. For this study we utilized the SRTM-X with 25m resolution and ALOS/ PRISM DEM with 10m resolution.The study reveals the spatial distribution of present day landscape forming processes. Especially surface runoff and soil erosion processes were analysed in detail. Moreover, we identified evidences for specific Paleo-landscape pattern in the surroundings of Melka Kunture. In part these features can be explained with tectonic activity, on the other hand they indicate specific pattern of the Paleo-drainage network.
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