Ngamuriak

Ngamuriak is the name of an archaeological site that is located in south-western Kenya. It has been interpreted as an Elmenteitan Pastoral Neolithic settlement. The excavation of this site produced pottery sherds, stone tools with obsidian fragments and obsidian blades, along with large amounts of animal bones being discovered at Ngamuriak as well.

Ngamuriak is located in what is now south-western Kenya, 3 kilometers east of the Lemek village. The site sits on a large and open plain that is covered in vegetation such as dwarf shrubs and grass. The wildlife animals that are common in this area are wildebeest, giraffes, gazelle, zebras, impalas, and warthogs.

Three seasons of excavation had occurred at Ngamuriak, from July to October in 1981, November to December in 1984, and in April to May of the following year in 1985. The excavation itself was conducted using a grid system for the mapping, while trenches were dug in various sizes ranging from 2m x2m to almost 60 square meters. The first series of excavations were done with 2m x 2m trenches that formed a grid pattern, which allowed for more extensive trenches with exploited features and the retrieval of more artifacts and faunal remains.

Excavations conducted during the 1981 research produced a large amount of faunal remains, artifacts, and charcoal samples. During the 1984 excavation, similar forms of stratigraphy was used and resulted in more faunal remains and artifacts being discovered along with both charcoal and bone fragments. Excavation in 1985 yielded similar findings, along with dung deposits being found around the south-western region of Ngamuriak.

When the south-western area of Ngamuriak was excavated in 1981 a hardened clay surface was uncovered, which was used as a floor for a structure. Evidence for this is supported by the post holes that are found along the floor, which indicates that a hut was constructed at this location. Numerous animal dung deposits were also uncovered in the area of the site.

The artifacts that are excavated from Ngamuriak vary from stone tools which contained obsidian blades or fragments, pottery shards, and numerous faunal and charcoal remains.

Of the 62,000 faunal specimens that were studied only 4,656 were fully identified. A large amount of the identifiable bones came from domesticated animals, with 2,228 being identified as cattle and 2,404 belonging to sheep and goats. The cattle from the site have been identified as Bos indicus (zebu) or Bos indicus/Bos taurus crossbreeds.

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