Uncovering West Africa's 150,000 Year Old Time Capsule.
The oldest directly dated archaeological site in West Africa has been discovered, extending the known timeframe of Middle Stone Age toolkits in the region to 150,000 years ago. The site, Bargny 1, shows technological continuity spanning roughly 140,000 years and offers insights into the ecological stability of the region. The enduring cultural continuity may be due to stable behavioral adaptation to stable environmental conditions and potential isolation from other populations across Africa.