Discovery of 5,000-year-old farming society in Morocco fills a major gap in history

Discovery of 5,000-year-old farming society in Morocco fills a major gap in history – north-west Africa was a central player in trade and culture

Published: October 10, 2024 10:59am EDT

A new discovery of an ancient farming society at Oued Beht in Morocco fills a centuries-old gap in history. It reveals that, 5,000 years ago, the Maghreb (north-west Africa) was far from a backwater. Rather, it was an integral part of life in the Mediterranean, a region nestled between north Africa, south-western Asia and southern Europe.



Aerial photo of the site area. T Wilkinson/OBAP Archive

Over time, the Mediterranean has served as a cradle for interconnected societies that influenced one another through trade, migration and the exchange of ideas. Although the Maghreb is widely recognised for Middle Stone Age and Iron Age developments (from 300,000 years ago to the first millennium BCE), its role in the period from 4000 BCE to 1000 BCE has remained an enigma. Until now.

Archaeologists Cyprian Broodbank, Giulio Lucarini and Youssef Bokbot are the leaders of the international team who made the discovery. They are co-directors of the Oued Beht Archaeological Project in Morocco. Their multidisciplinary study has finally shed light on Africa’s pivotal role in the socio-cultural evolution of the early Mediterranean in a time marked by dynamic changes. We spoke with them.



T Wilkinson/OBAP Archive

What did the study find?

The team’s work at Oued Beht unearthed the most extensive and earliest agricultural complex known in north Africa outside the Nile Valley. Located in northern Morocco, between the coast and the Middle Atlas Mountains, Oued Beht occupies a unique position that favours both agriculture and trade. Its varied terrain, with river valleys intersecting rolling hills and plains, offers fertile ground ideal for early agricultural activities.

More:
https://theconversation.com/discovery-of-5-000-year-old-farming-society-in-morocco-fills-a-major-gap-in-history-north-west-africa-was-a-central-player-in-trade-and-culture-240848