BÉNIN
Projet benino-danois d'archéologie (BDArch)
Chronology
The dating of the caves has been complicated by the fact that until now no previous archaeological work has been carried out in the area. The study of the caves had to begin with the creation of a chronological sequence. Excavations inside and outside the caves have produced a significant body of artifacts, especially ceramics; oral information has also been obtained in order to determine their age. In one case a fragment of a pipe has been found which postdates the construction of a cave to the second half of the 17 th c AD. In another case a cave of the latest type must have been dug after the late 18 th c AD. No certain date for the earliest caves have been obtained so far.
In order to solve the chronological problems a search was started to find a site with long term accumulations of both local and, hopefully, datable European materials, which might be correlated with the materials related to the caves. The moat of Abomey turned to be a suitable site answering such demands.
Fig. 9 Sieving of finds during excavation of cave No 1. at Kana Hadagon
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