Neolithic Tenerian Culture Stone Axe

The Tenerian culture, c. 4600–2500 BC, Ténéré Desert, Niger, West Africa.

A charming and well-preserved ancient stone axe head crafted from a light greenish-brown stone. Trapezoid in outline, the piece features a smoothly rounded butt and a gently curved blade edge that has been semi-polished to a functional sharpness—an elegant blend of form and early Neolithic craftsmanship.

The Tenerian culture thrived in the Sahara during the Neolithic Subpluvial, a verdant climatic phase when the desert supported lakes, wildlife, and human communities. The culture became known to archaeology through Paul Sereno’s 2000 excavations at Gobero—an isolated site deep within the Ténéré, a region the Tuareg evocatively call a “desert within a desert.”

Two distinct prehistoric populations were identified at Gobero: the earlier, robust Kiffian people and, several millennia later, the more lightly built Tenerians.The Kiffians, active around 8000 years ago, were skilled hunters who lived on the shores of a Holocene lake—evidenced by the bones of large savannah animals found in their settlement layers. Their disappearance coincides with a major aridification event.

The Tenerians followed during the last centuries of the “Green Sahara,” c. 7000–4500 years ago. Their economy appears diverse—hunting, fishing, and early pastoralism—and their burial customs reveal a society with rich symbolic traditions. Tenerian graves often include offerings such as clay vessels, projectile points, ground stone tools, and ornaments made from hippo tusk, reflecting beliefs in an afterlife and the importance of personal goods accompanying the deceased.

This axe stands as a compelling testament to the lifeways of these ancient Saharan peoples and to the sophisticated stone-working traditions of the Neolithic era.

Good condition. Wear commensurate with age and use. Minor chip and nicks. Size approx. 8,3cm x 4,0cm x 3,0cm.

Provenance: Dutch private collection.

References and further reading:

Stone Age mass graves reveal green Sahara, Nora Schultz, New Scientist, 14 August 2008. (https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14536-stone-age-mass-graves-reveal-green-sahara/)

Stone Age Graveyard reveals Lifestyles of a 'Green Sahara': Two Successive Cultures Thrived Lakeside, Uchicago News, University of Chicago, Aug 14, 2008. (https://news.uchicago.edu/story/stone-age-graveyard-reveals-lifestyles-green-sahara-two-successive-cultures-thrived-lakeside)

Lakeside Cemeteries in the Sahara: 5,000 Years of Holocene Population and Environmental Change, Paul Sereno and others, Plos One, August 14, 2008.  (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0002995)

Lost Tribes of the Green Sahara, Peter Gwin, National Geographic September 2008, pp. 126-143.