A Note on the Neolithic Graves on seidentoffs Farm Ngorongoro

The circumstances of the discovery and first excavations of these graves is recorded by Professor Reck 4n an article entitled "Prahistorische Grab- und Menschenfunde und ihre Beziehungen zur Fluvialzeit in Ostafrika" in,Witteilungen aus den deutschen Schutzgebieten.The relevant passages have been translated by Dr Leakey at pp 112-113 in his Stone Age Races of Kenya OUP 1934; as under

‘'As in the even nature of the Caldera soil stones are rare, when material for building was again required in 1912 people turned to the slopes of the hill near the house. And when they came upon human remains their attention was aroused, and they brought in the finds to Siedentoffs house where I saw them in 1913 on my first visit to Ngorongoro. Here Rothe, who was at that time living and working upon the farm, quickly recognized the sites of these finds as graves mounds and with great circumspection and thoroughness carried out a systematic excavation of some of these places....." In the course of quarrying for stones for house building as mentioned above it-was at first thought that they were dealing with natural blocks on the hill-slope, and their attention was drawn to the true nature of the abounds through the discovery of bones and of other finds