gems, archaeology, archaeogemology, Africa, Egypt

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of late Quaternary (Upper Pleistocene and Holocene) archaeological research in the Horn of Africa—specifically Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Somalia. Rather than offering an exhaustive literature review, the chapter presents both an objective and interpretive outline of how archaeological thought has developed concerning the region’s later prehistory and early history. The discussion focuses on three key themes that best illustrate the historical trajectory of archaeology in the Horn: the evolution of the Axumite kingdom, the origins of food production, and the later prehistory of hunter-gatherer populations.