Iminjili Victor, Crowther Alison, Fisher Michael T, Kay Andrea, Roberts Patrick, Goldstein Steve, Boivin Nicole, Fernandes Ricardo
Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, Kahlaische Strasse 10, 07745, Jena, Germany.
Institute for Prehistory and Early History, University of Cologne, Weyertal 125, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
Sci Data. 2025 May 16;12(1):801. doi: 10.1038/s41597-025-05138-x.
Large collections of archaeological spatiotemporal data can reveal past cultural and demographic trends, land use strategies, and processes of environmental adaptation. Within Africa, archaeological Big Data can contribute to the study of the spread of agriculture, domesticated species, and specific artefacts and technologies, as well as their ecological impacts. Although reviews addressing these topics are available for different parts of the continent, existing mid-late Holocene archaeology datasets have yet to be compiled into a central, open-access, standardized informatic-oriented dataset. Here we present Wanyika, a dataset of scientific dates from archaeological sites in eastern Africa spanning almost 7 millennia, from ~5000 BCE to 1800 CE. This dataset compiles published scientific dates and associated botanical, faunal, iron, and ceramic finds from sites in Kenya, Tanzania, the Comoros Islands, and Madagascar. The records also include data for megafauna extinctions in Madagascar. We describe the spatiotemporal coverage of the dataset, how the data were collected, the structure of the dataset, and the applied quality control measures.
大量的考古时空数据可以揭示过去的文化和人口趋势、土地利用策略以及环境适应过程。在非洲，考古大数据有助于研究农业、驯化物种、特定文物和技术的传播，以及它们的生态影响。尽管针对非洲大陆不同地区的这些主题已有相关综述，但现有的全新世中晚期考古数据集尚未被汇编成一个集中的、开放获取的、标准化的面向信息学的数据集。在此，我们展示万伊卡数据集，这是一个来自东非考古遗址的科学年代数据集，时间跨度近7000年，从公元前5000年到公元1800年。该数据集汇编了肯尼亚、坦桑尼亚、科摩罗群岛和马达加斯加等地遗址已发表的科学年代数据以及相关的植物、动物、铁器和陶瓷发现。记录还包括马达加斯加巨型动物灭绝的数据。我们描述了数据集的时空覆盖范围、数据收集方式、数据集结构以及所应用的质量控制措施。
