Today starts the part of this trip where I am completely out of my element. I came into this class knowing nothing about paleoarchaeology, but what I’ve learned today has really opened my eyes to a new interest of mine. Wow, I really do love bones!
At the Olduvai museum, I got to see the mandible and horn of an extinct Antilopini species called Antidorcas recki! I included this species in my presentation, and it was cool to get to see the fossils in person. I struggled to find much information about the species to put in my lecture, but the exhibit taught me that they were browsers and grazers and weighed about 40 kilograms.
Antidorcas recki museum sketch
Antidorcas recki teeth and horn
Dr. Dominguez-Rodrigo led us on a tour of many of the archaeological sites in Olduvai Gorge. We got to see David’s site, which is the biggest Pleistocene site in the world. We also got to see the site where Mary Leakey discovered the first hominin fossil in Olduvai Gorge in 1959. Seeing in-progress excavations was like watching Great British Bake Off. It’s extremely fascinating and entertaining despite the fact that I understand none of the terminology and have no clue what’s going on.
Marina working at an excavation site
I did get to channel my inner hominin when I held a 1.5 million-year-old hammer stone. It fit perfectly in my hand, and I’ve never wanted to smash something more in my life. It was unbelievable holding an early human stone tool standing next to a 1.8 million-year-old elephant butchery site.
Holding a hominin hammer stone
Excavation of a hominin elephant butchery site
Because it’s Sunday, we got the afternoon and evening off, and we were treated with a trip to a really nice lodge called Olduvai Camp! It had an incredible viewpoint and ice-cold beers. A brewski has never tasted so blissful.
Beer = sweet treat
On the way back to the cruisers, we saw Kirk’s dik-diks!! Dik-diks are in the Antilopini tribe, and I really wanted to see them. I was so excited to spot them and see them so close. They’re pretty small for antelopes, and they have adorable triangle-shaped heads and rounded backs.
Dik-diks!
I’m all tucked into my sleeping bag and ready for slumber underneath a light flurry of sand.
My sandy cocoon
Today, I rested. Tomorrow, I dig.
