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posted by martyb on Monday March 09 2020, @11:43PM   Printer-friendly

Phys.org:

The discovery of a 14th century underground burial site deep in Gabon's tropical forest may shed light on a little known period in Africa's history.

Hundreds of mediaeval artefacts are scattered with human remains at the bottom of a cave in the southeast of the country, discovered by a French geo-archaeologist in 2018.

[...] Almost 30 skeletons have been discovered on three levels, with more than 500 metallic artefacts made mostly of iron and ranging from knives, axes and spear tips to bracelets and collars. Researchers also found 39 pierced teeth from hyenas and panthers.

[...] Some researchers wonder whether Africa was struck by the Great Plague, over the same decades as it ravaged Europe and Asia. Maybe the Iroungou bones hold an answer.

Soil in Sub-Saharan Africa is acidic and decomposes remains quickly, so this is a rare find. Local inhabitants had no idea the cave was there or what it contained, which means there might be a lot of exciting archaeological discoveries in the future that are hiding next door.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2020, @01:10AM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2020, @01:10AM (#968801)

    Was Musa I of Mali the richest person in history of the world? Perhaps, but he would still have been carded in many American cities.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2020, @01:19AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2020, @01:19AM (#968810)

    Lucky for him, there was no AmeriKKKa at that time.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2020, @02:53AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2020, @02:53AM (#968868)

    > ...carded ...

    You think he would go to the store for beer? Think again, richest guy would have minions or slaves to do his go-for-ing.