Technological characteristics of the Sangoan industry at Sango bay, southern Uganda

The study of stone tool nomenclature in Sub-Saharan Africa received much attention starting with three to five and back to three Stone Age industries. Within Stone Age industries, there are two intermediate industries that have raised great concern in evolutionary studies on whether their cultural materials are transitional or they belong to the main three Stone Age periods of Early Stone Age, Middle Stone Age or Later Stone Age. This study aimed at addressing the First Intermediate Industry with great emphasis on Sangoan that was first discovered at Sango Bay in southern Uganda. The study was guided by the following three specific objectives: to examine typological characteristics of Sangoan artefacts; to examine technological characteristics of Sangoan artefacts; and to examine mobility system of the toolmaker based on lithic raw material procurement and use strategies. The analysed samples suggest that lithic artefacts from Simba Hill in Sango Bay represent an independent MSA industrial tradition