Dating Hominin occupation of the north of the Namib Sand Sea, Namibia.

The Namib Sand Sea (NSS) is one of the oldest deserts on Earth, representing a significant challenge to human occupation, yet, despite these challenges, Early Stone Age (ESA) and Middle Stone Age (MSA) tools are found across this hyperarid landscape. Whilst surface scatters are hindered by a lack of clear stratigraphy, they provide a spatially integrated record of the structuring of landscape use through time and relationships to sources of raw material and water. Omitting such sites leads to bias in our interpretations of early hominin distribution. We investigate how and why early hominins were moving into the northern NSS, focussing on the two interdune pan sites of Namib IV and Narabeb. In establishing the palaeoenvironmental context of the lithics and fossil fauna, 12 samples from Namib IV and for from Narabeb were taken for luminescence. This poster sets out the context of these archaeological sites and the stratigraphies observed. Relative age data from the portable luminescence reader and preliminary analysis using post-IR IRSL protocols to extend the achievable age range will be discussed, and there may be additional data hot off the RISØ readers accompanying the poster.