User:Chopperology/Ishango

Geography
Ishango is a lakeshore site located in the north-eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa, previously known as Zaire. This Congolese village is known as a "fishermen settlement" as it lies on the shores of the Semliki River, flowing out of Lake Edward, serving as one of the sources of the Nile River.

Virunga National Park
Ishango is a sub-station of the Virunga National Park, covering more than 13% of the North-Kivu province with about 790,000 hectares of extended landscape. Located at the mouth of Lake Edward, the Virunga National Park was established in 1925 in an effort to protect mountain gorilla species from threats of poaching and deforestation, making it the "oldest protected park in Africa". Virunga National Park was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1979 as a result of its geological and biological processes, unique natural phenomena, and its diverse habitats where rare and endangered species survive. Ishango is also home to the last significant population of hippos on Lake Edward, a lake which formerly held the biggest hippo population in the world.

Archaeological Significance
The Ishango site was discovered on a scientific research excursion in 1935 by Hubert Damas, a zoologist from Liege University. Upon excavating for an observational survey of fauna and flora, Damas found material that demonstrated ancient human activity, including human mandibles and bone harpoon beads. Damas, despite his findings, did not pursue the excavation of the site further, but referred to his findings in a later publication, mentioning that the area could be of interest in a more in-depth research project in the future. It was not until 1950 and 1959 when Jean de Heinzelin, a geologist with a specialization in African Paleolithic at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, took interest in the archaeological site and began excavating. Geological analysis of the site by Heinzelin revealed the fluctuations in the water levels of the lakes and the presence of volcanic activity.

Ishango is most known for its archaeological discovery of the Ishango bone in the early fifties by Heinzelin. This fossilized baboon bone features three columns of engraved, ordered markings suggested to be either tally marks, a series of prime numbers, or a lunar calendar. Debates have arisen surrounding the age of the bone, but the consensus seems to be that the bone dates between approximately 18,000 to 20,000 years before present, making it the oldest mathematical tool of mankind.

Human Occupation
The human remains found at Ishango represent the oldest sample of modern humans in the Late Pleitsocene of Central Africa. The presence of these remains are crucial to the understanding of diet and cultural development during the Pleistocene and Holocene in this region of Africa. The human bones that have been found at Ishango which, while dating to only 20,000 BC, show robust, archaic features.

Through Carbon-14 dating and relative dating of the stratigraphic layers of this site, we have concluded that Ishango's oldest layers date back to 25,000 years ago. Humans are thought to have occupied this site from 20,000 to 5,000 BC. Tools that were unearthed at this site, including bone harpoons, barbed points and quartz tools used for tool-making, cutting, or scraping are indicative of previous human occupation of Homo sapiens and the relationship these people had with the environment. The close proximity to Lake Edward provided these occupants with an abundance of resources. The remains of bones from animals like fish, hippopotamus, buffalo, and antelope demonstrated taphonomy consistent with cutting, revealing the dietary habits of these past people. The remains found at this site allow for the characterization of a hunter-fisher-gatherer community that shows reliance on the surrounding environment along with complex social and cognitive behaviors.