Buya, Eritrea

Surveys and excavations of the region have led to the identification of hundreds of fossils and artifacts.{{Cite web |title=Eritrea: Discovery of Ancient Human Remains in BUYA-UA31 – Eriswiss |url=https://www.eriswiss.com/news-eritrea/eritrea-discovery-of-ancient-human-remains-in-buya-ua31/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231106031703/https://www.eriswiss.com/news-eritrea/eritrea-discovery-of-ancient-human-remains-in-buya-ua31/ |archive-date=November 6, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=www.eriswiss.com}} Much of the artifacts found in the area are acheulean or oldowan.{{Cite web |last=admin |date=2007-06-01 |title=Le industrie paleolitiche del bacino di Buya (Dancalia, Eritrea): prime osservazioni |url=https://www.iipp.it/le-industrie-paleolitiche-del-bacino-di-buya-dancalia-eritrea-prime-osservazioni/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729084833/https://www.iipp.it/le-industrie-paleolitiche-del-bacino-di-buya-dancalia-eritrea-prime-osservazioni/ |archive-date=July 29, 2022 |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria |language=it-IT}}Rook, Lorenzo & Libsekal, Y & Kibreab, A & Russom, R & Tecle, TM & Abbate, Ernesto. (2002). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/298284251_The_Buia_Project_a_collaborative_geo-paleontological_and_paleoanthropological_research_project_in_Eritrea The Buia Project: a collaborative geo-paleontological and paleoanthropological research project in Eritrea]. Journal of Human Evolution. 42. A29-A30.

File:Buia UA 31 NMNH.jpg

Following a 1994 prospection of the region, surveys were carried out in 1995.{{Citation |last1=Abbate |first1=Ernesto |title=Buia, Eritrea |date=2023 |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-20290-2_14 |work=Handbook of Pleistocene Archaeology of Africa : Hominin behavior, geography, and chronology |pages=243–261 |editor-last=Beyin |editor-first=Amanuel |access-date=2023-10-21 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-20290-2_14 |isbn=978-3-031-20290-2 |last2=Bondioli |first2=Luca |last3=Collina |first3=Carmine |last4=Coppa |first4=Alfredo |last5=Delfino |first5=Massimo |last6=Ghinassi |first6=Massimiliano |last7=Libsekal |first7=Yosief |last8=Macchiarelli |first8=Roberto |last9=Martínez-Navarro |first9=Bienvenido |editor2-last=Wright |editor2-first=David K. |editor3-last=Wilkins |editor3-first=Jayne |editor4-last=Olszewski |editor4-first=Deborah I.}} These surveys were conducted by the Asmara Department of Mines, the Department of Earth Sciences, the Eritrean Ministry of Energy and Mines, and the University of Florence.{{Cite journal |last1=Delfino |first1=M. |last2=Abbate |first2=E. |last3=Balter |first3=V. |last4=Bondioli |first4=L. |last5=Candilio |first5=F. |last6=Carnevale |first6=G. |last7=Coppa |first7=C. |last8=Ghezzo |first8=E. |last9=Ghinassi |first9=M. |last10=Libsekal |first10=Y. |last11=Macchiarelli |first11=R. |last12=Martin |first12=J.E. |last13=Martínez-Navarro |first13=B. |last14=Medin |first14=T. |last15=Papini |first15=M. |date=2016 |title=The Buia Project: a summary of two decades of vertebrate paleontology in the Early Pleistocene of Eritrea. |url=https://hal.science/hal-02911987 |journal=International Conference on Eritrean Studies "The Way Forward" |location=Asmara, Eritrea}} Buya was excavated from 1995 to 1997 by a team of Eritrean and Italian paleontologists from the National Museum of Eritrea, and the University of Florence.{{Cite web |last=Schuster |first=Angela |year=1998 |title=New Skull from Eritrea |url=https://archive.archaeology.org/9809/newsbriefs/eritrea.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230820015518/https://archive.archaeology.org/9809/newsbriefs/eritrea.html |archive-date=August 20, 2023 |access-date=2023-10-21 |website=archive.archaeology.org |language=en}} The material they uncovered was stored in the Asmara Department of Mines. Archaeological work was temporarily halted from 1998 to 1999 by the Ethiopian-Eritrean conflict. Research began again in 2000. They established a laboratory in 2001 within the National Museum of Eritrea for the safekeeping of the fossils.{{Cite journal |last=Rook |first=Lorenzo |date=2004-01-01 |title=The large fossil mammals from Buia (Eritrea): systematics, biochronology and paleoenvironments |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259012189 |journal=Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia}} One of the paleontologists, Lorenzo Rook,{{Citation |last=Almécija |first=Sergio |title=Lorenzo Rook |date=2023-07-12 |work=Humans |pages=255–257 |publisher=Columbia University Press |language=en |doi=10.7312/alme20120-063 |isbn=978-0-231-55398-8|doi-access=free }} unearthed fragments of the Homo erectus fossil Madam Buya.{{Cite web |title=National Museum of Eritrea |url=https://museu.ms/museum/details/17398 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021021218/https://museu.ms/museum/details/17398/national-museum-of-eritrea |archive-date=October 21, 2021 |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=museu.ms |language=en}}{{Cite journal |last=Libsekal |first=Yosief |date=2008 |title=Multiplying and Sharing Heritage Values: Planning Conservation and Site Management at the Acheulean Sites of Buya, Eritrea |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1179/175355209X452796 |journal=Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites |language=en |volume=10 |issue=3 |pages=251–263 |doi=10.1179/175355209X452796 |s2cid=110336117 |issn=1350-5033}} The fossil was found inside of ancient lake sediments located within the Danakil Depression.

This skeleton consisted of a nearly complete cranium, two fragments of a pelvis, and two incisors.{{Cite web |title=Ritrovamenti di ominidi in Dancalia eritrea {{!}} Dancalia |url=http://www.dancalia.it/dancalia/nuovi-riitrovamenti-di-ominidi-in-dancalia-dopo-lucy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230512092020/http://www.dancalia.it/dancalia/nuovi-riitrovamenti-di-ominidi-in-dancalia-dopo-lucy/ |archive-date=May 12, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-06 |language=it-IT}} It lacks a mandible and has no remaining dental crowns. Most of the root canals were missing, although a few were preserved in the maxilla.Macchiarelli, Roberto & Bondioli, Luca & CHECH, MARIO & Coppa, Alfredo & Fiore, Ivana & RUSSOM, REZENE & VECCHI, FRANCESCO & LIBSEKAL, YOSIEF & Rook, Lorenzo. (2004).[https://web.archive.org/web/20231107184007/http://www.dankalia.com/homo/00407.pdf The Late Early Pleistocene human remains from Buia, Danakil Depression, Eritrea]. Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia. 110. 133-144. 10.13130/2039-4942/5768. The root canals show occlusal wear, dentine accumulation, and loss of enamel.{{Cite journal |last1=Zanolli |first1=Clément |last2=Bondioli |first2=Luca |last3=Coppa |first3=Alfredo |last4=Dean |first4=Christopher M. |last5=Bayle |first5=Priscilla |last6=Candilio |first6=Francesca |last7=Capuani |first7=Silvia |last8=Dreossi |first8=Diego |last9=Fiore |first9=Ivana |last10=Frayer |first10=David W. |last11=Libsekal |first11=Yosief |last12=Mancini |first12=Lucia |last13=Rook |first13=Lorenzo |last14=Medin Tekle |first14=Tsegai |last15=Tuniz |first15=Claudio |date=2014-09-01 |title=The late Early Pleistocene human dental remains from Uadi Aalad and Mulhuli-Amo (Buia), Eritrean Danakil: Macromorphology and microstructure |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S004724841400102X |journal=Journal of Human Evolution |volume=74 |pages=96–113 |doi=10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.04.005 |pmid=24852385 |issn=0047-2484}} The cranium has a long and narrow braincase, round parietooccipital area, bulging occipital lobes, a constricted postorbital area, and a volume of 995 cubic centimeters.{{Cite journal |last1=Beaudet |first1=Amélie |last2=Bruner |first2=Emiliano |date=2017-08-01 |title=A frontal lobe surface analysis in three archaic African human fossils: OH 9, Buia, and Bodo |journal=Comptes Rendus Palevol |series=Hominin biomechanics, virtual anatomy and inner structural morphology: From head to toe. A tribute to Laurent Puymerail |volume=16 |issue=5 |pages=499–507 |doi=10.1016/j.crpv.2016.12.002 |bibcode=2017CRPal..16..499B |issn=1631-0683|hdl=2263/62831 |hdl-access=free }} It has a more pronounced bossing, large and deeper orbits, larger zygomatic bones with maxilla, a slightly more curved frontal profile, and a thinner endocranium than other archaic human fossils.{{Cite journal |last1=Bruner |first1=Emiliano |last2=Bondioli |first2=Luca |last3=Coppa |first3=Alfredo |last4=Frayer |first4=David W. |last5=Holloway |first5=Ralph L. |last6=Libsekal |first6=Yosief |last7=Medin |first7=Tsegai |last8=Rook |first8=Lorenzo |last9=Macchiarelli |first9=Roberto |date=2016 |title=The endocast of the one-million-year-old human cranium from Buia (UA 31), Danakil Eritrea |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajpa.22983 |journal=American Journal of Physical Anthropology |language=en |volume=160 |issue=3 |pages=458–468 |doi=10.1002/ajpa.22983 |pmid=27040007 |issn=0002-9483}} According to research published in 2022, the maxilla of this fossil are larger than any other known Early Pliocene hominin fossil. Two fossils of permanent teeth with dental crowns and roots, as well as a hip bone fragment, were uncovered in 1995. In 2003 archaeologists uncovered a pubic symphysis fragment at the site.{{Cite journal |last1=Bondioli |first1=Luca |last2=Coppa |first2=Alfredo |last3=Frayer |first3=David W. |last4=Libsekal |first4=Yosief |last5=Rook |first5=Lorenzo |last6=Macchiarelli |first6=Roberto |date=2006-04-01 |title=A one-million-year-old human pubic symphysis |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0047248406000029 |journal=Journal of Human Evolution |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=479–483 |doi=10.1016/j.jhevol.2006.01.001 |pmid=16499949 |issn=0047-2484}} These fossils are all thought to belong to the same individual. Analysis of the pubic symphysis suggests that the skeleton may have belonged to an individual between the ages of 25 and 30.

The fossil bears characteristics of both Homo erectus skeletons and Homo sapiens skeletons.{{Cite journal |last1=Dong |first1=Rui |last2=Pei |first2=Shaojun |last3=Guan |first3=Mengcen |last4=Yau |first4=Shek-Chung |last5=Yin |first5=Changchuan |last6=He |first6=Rong L. |last7=Yau |first7=Stephen S.-T. |date=2022 |title=Full Chromosomal Relationships Between Populations and the Origin of Humans |journal=Frontiers in Genetics |volume=12 |pages=5 |doi=10.3389/fgene.2021.828805 |issn=1664-8021 |doi-access=free|pmid=35186019 |pmc=8847220 }} It has a large brow ridge, oval neurocranium, and wide cheekbones. These traits are all characteristics of a Homo erectus fossil. It also has a cranium which is widest high on the vault, which is a human trait. The fossil contains features of both Early Pleistocene human fossils and Middle Pleistocene fossils, providing archaeologists with evidence of the transition between these two periods. For these reasons, the discovery is considered an important source of information about the development of modern humans.{{Cite book |last1=NgCheong-Lum |first1=Roseline |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oj0mEAAAQBAJ |title=Eritrea |last2=Orr |first2=Tamra |date=2020-04-15 |publisher=Cavendish Square Publishing, LLC |isbn=978-1-5026-5578-3 |pages=6 |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Eritrea: Discovery of New Fossil {{!}} ECSS {{!}} Eritrean Center for Strategic Studies |url=https://www.ecss-online.com/eritrea-discovery-of-new-fossil/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230605172957/https://www.ecss-online.com/eritrea-discovery-of-new-fossil/ |archive-date=June 5, 2023 |access-date=2023-10-21 |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2021-10-27 |title=What do we know about the one million year old Eritrean Homo Sapiens? |url=https://shabait.com/2021/10/27/what-do-we-know-about-the-one-million-year-old-eritrean-homo-2/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221201175221/https://shabait.com/2021/10/27/what-do-we-know-about-the-one-million-year-old-eritrean-homo-2/ |archive-date=December 1, 2022 |access-date=2023-11-10 |website=Eritrea Ministry Of Information |language=en-US}} The fossils found at the site were dated to be one million-years-old.{{Cite book |url=https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/55758bab4.pdf |title=Report of the detailed findings of the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea |publisher=United Nations |publication-date=June 5, 2015 |pages=20 |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230916062346/https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/55758bab4.pdf |archive-date=September 16, 2023 |url-status=live}}{{Cite thesis |last=Bevin |first=Amaneul |url=https://repo.library.stonybrook.edu/xmlui/handle/11401/71987 |title=Archaeological Investigation of the Buri Peninsula and Gulf of Zula, Red Sea Coast of Eritrea |publisher=Stony Brook University |year=2009 |pages=12 |type=Thesis |language=en }} Fission-track dating of the fossils dated them to be 0.75±0.16 million years old. Further research led to an estimated age of 1.3±0.3 million years old.Balestrieri, Maria & BIGAZZI, GIULIO & NORELLI, PIO & Oddone, Massimo. (2004). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/234110886_Fission-Track_Dating_of_a_tephra_layer_in_the_Alat_Formation_of_the_Dandiero_Group_Danakil_Depression_Eritrea Fission-Track Dating of a tephra layer in the Alat Formation of the Dandiero Group (Danakil Depression, Eritrea)].. RIVISTA ITALIANA DI PALEONTOLOGIA E STRATIGRAFIA. 110. 45-49. 10.13130/2039-4942/5763.

Another team of Italian, French, and Eritrean paleontologists conducted an excavation in 2011.{{Cite web |last=Avenir |first=Sciences et |date=2011-01-14 |title=Un nouveau crâne d'Homo ergaster découvert en Erythrée |url=https://www.sciencesetavenir.fr/archeo-paleo/un-nouveau-crane-d-homo-ergaster-decouvert-en-erythree_21321 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230204014902/https://www.sciencesetavenir.fr/archeo-paleo/un-nouveau-crane-d-homo-ergaster-decouvert-en-erythree_21321 |archive-date=February 4, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=Sciences et Avenir |language=fr}} They found another Homo erectus fossil at the site.{{Cite web |last=Figuerola |first=Pere |title=Aprenent dels amfibis i rèptils com a estil de vida |url=https://www.icp.cat/index.php/ca/sala-de-premsa-4/noticies-icp/item/1617-aprenent-dels-amfibis-i-reptils-com-a-estil-de-vida |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201023706/https://www.icp.cat/index.php/ca/sala-de-premsa-4/noticies-icp/item/1617-aprenent-dels-amfibis-i-reptils-com-a-estil-de-vida |archive-date=February 1, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=www.icp.cat |language=ca-es}}{{Cite news |date=February 7, 2011 |title=Un frammento nel deserto: Ricercatore di Romano trova pezzo di osso di un milione di anni fa |language=Italian |work=La Sentinella |url=https://lasentinella.gelocal.it/ivrea/cronaca/2011/02/07/news/un-frammento-nel-deserto-1.206233#google_vignette |url-status=live |access-date=November 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109200141/https://lasentinella.gelocal.it/ivrea/cronaca/2011/02/07/news/un-frammento-nel-deserto-1.206233#google_vignette |archive-date=November 9, 2023}} Massimo Delfino, one of the paleontologists, found the artifact while conducting a routine survey of the area.{{Cite web |last=Lupi |first=Luca |title=Scoperto a Buia (Dancalia eritrea) un nuovo cranio umano {{!}} Dancalia |url=http://www.dancalia.it/2011/07/1429/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327111635/http://www.dancalia.it/2011/07/1429/ |archive-date=March 27, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-06 |language=it-IT}}{{Cite web |title=Un nuovo cranio umano a Buya |url=http://www.nationalgeographic.it/scienza/2011/01/07/foto/cranio_buya_nuovo-163359/1/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110318134343/http://www.nationalgeographic.it/scienza/2011/01/07/foto/cranio_buya_nuovo-163359/1/ |archive-date=March 18, 2011 |website=National Geographic}}{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Tornati alla luce resti di nostro progenitore vissuto un milione di anni fa |url=https://www.univpm.it/Entra/Press_releases/Tornati_alla_luce_resti_di_nostro_progenitore_vissuto_un_milione_di_anni_fa/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109194844/https://www.univpm.it/Entra/Press_releases/Tornati_alla_luce_resti_di_nostro_progenitore_vissuto_un_milione_di_anni_fa |archive-date=November 9, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=UNIVPM |language=en}} Another excavator, Husein Omar, discovered a set of 650,000 to 1.4 million-year-old molars. According to Medin, this discovery provided a vital source of information about human development during this time period and an opportunity for further research in Eritrea.{{Cite web |last= |date=2011-12-25 |title=Over 1.5 Million Year-old Human Skeleton Discovered in Buya, Eritrea |url=https://tesfanews.net/over-1-5-million-year-old-human-skeleton-discovered-in-buya-eritrea/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021153123/https://tesfanews.net/over-1-5-million-year-old-human-skeleton-discovered-in-buya-eritrea/ |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |access-date=2023-10-21 |website=TesfaNews |language=en-US}} In 2012 archaeologists working for the Sapienza University of Rome made another expedition.{{Cite web |last=Moriconi |first=Tiziana |date=2012-04-04 |title=Ecco il Santuario delle amigdale |url=https://www.galileonet.it/ecco-il-santuario-delle-amigdale/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109214353/https://www.galileonet.it/ecco-il-santuario-delle-amigdale/ |archive-date=November 9, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=Galileo |language=it-IT}}{{Cite web |date=2012-04-05 |title=Homo sapiens scoperto in Eritrea il santuario delle amigdale |url=https://gaianews.it/attualita/homo-sapiens-scoperto-in-eritrea-il-santuario-delle-amigdale-19201.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220628053517/http://gaianews.it/attualita/homo-sapiens-scoperto-in-eritrea-il-santuario-delle-amigdale-19201.html |archive-date=June 28, 2022 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=Gaianews.it |language=it}}{{Cite web |date=2012-04-05 |title=Il "santuario delle amigdale", scoperta italiana in Eritrea |url=https://scienze.fanpage.it/il-santuario-delle-amigdale-scoperta-italiana-in-eritrea/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812003334/https://scienze.fanpage.it/il-santuario-delle-amigdale-scoperta-italiana-in-eritrea/ |archive-date=August 12, 2022 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=Scienze fanpage |language=it}} This project was coordinated with the University of Padua, National Museum of Natural History in Paris, and the University of Turin.{{Cite web |last=admin_med |date=2011-02-01 |title=ROMA. Un'equipe internazionale guidata dalla Sapienza ha rinvenuto in Eritrea nuovi fossili ... |url=https://www.archeomedia.net/roma-unequipe-internazionale-guidata-dalla-sapienza-ha-rinvenuto-in-eritrea-nuovi-fossili/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200825125107/https://www.archeomedia.net/roma-unequipe-internazionale-guidata-dalla-sapienza-ha-rinvenuto-in-eritrea-nuovi-fossili/ |archive-date=August 25, 2020 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=Archeologia online - Archeomedia |language=it-IT}} They found another million-year-old fossil and some lithic objects.{{Cite web |date=2012-04-05 |title=Eritrea, resti umani nel bacino di Buya |url=https://www.lastampa.it/viaggi/2012/04/05/news/eritrea-resti-umani-nel-bacino-di-buya-1.36484057 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928193807/https://www.lastampa.it/viaggi/2012/04/05/news/eritrea-resti-umani-nel-bacino-di-buya-1.36484057 |archive-date=September 28, 2020 |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=lastampa.it |language=it-IT}}{{Cite web |last=Dolce |first=Marilena |date=2012-04-11 |title=Eritrea, le origini dell'uomo |url=https://eritrealive.com/eritrea-le-origini-delluomo/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230323021639/https://eritrealive.com/eritrea-le-origini-delluomo/ |archive-date=March 23, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=EritreaLive |language=it}} Because of this discovery, the site was nicknamed the "Shrine of the Amygdales" for its large quantity of important archaeological sites.{{Cite web |title=Danakil, an Italian team discovered the 'Shrine of the Amygdales' |url=https://www.9colonne.it/41953/danakil-an-italian-team-discovered-the-shrine-of-the-amygdales |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109215024/https://www.9colonne.it/41953/danakil-an-italian-team-discovered-the-shrine-of-the-amygdales |archive-date=November 9, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=9Colonne |language=it-IT}}{{Cite web |title=In Eritrea un'importante scoperta archeologica |url=http://www.turismo.it/oltreconfine/articolo/art/in-eritrea-unimportante-scoperta-archeologica-id-3993 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927110715/https://www.turismo.it/oltreconfine/articolo/art/in-eritrea-unimportante-scoperta-archeologica-id-3993/ |archive-date=September 27, 2022 |access-date=2023-11-09 |website=www.turismo.it |language=it}} In addition, six traces of 800,000-year-old human footprints have been found in the region.{{Cite web |last=raimoq |first=IIIRራ {{!}} |date=2018-05-30 |title=[VIDEO] Eritrea: Discovery of Ancient Human Remains in BUYA-UA31 |url=http://raimoq.com/video-eritrea-discovery-ancient-human-remains-buya-ua31/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231106025756/https://raimoq.com/video-eritrea-discovery-ancient-human-remains-buya-ua31/amp/ |archive-date=November 6, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=IIIRራ {{!}} raimoq.com |language=en-US}}

Archaeologists have uncovered 213 lithic objects at Buya. According to a 2004 study of the site, they found 133 flakes, 26 choppers, 13 hand-axes, 9 hammerstones, 6 cores, 2 hammers, and 1 trihedral pick. These objects were found across three areas. Area one is located along a gully in the northern part of the region. Area two is located on elevated ground in the northeastern part of the region. Area three is located along the western borders of Buya. 98 flakes, 15 choppers, 8 hammerstones, 4 cores, one hand-axe, one pitted pebble, and one trihedral pick were all found in area one. 78 of these objects contained unworn edges, with only 37 having any wear. The axes and choppers were made from pebbles. The hammerstones were made of quartz arentine. Some of the axes and the pick were made from basalt. The flakes were primarily made from quartz, although marble, basalt, and quartzite were also utilized. 98 total artifacts were recovered from area two. These materials consist of 22 flakes, 10 hand-axes, 9 choppers, and a basalt pebble used as a hammer. Most of the choppers from this area were unworn, with only having patina. The axes are also mostly unworn and are primarily made from schist and basalt. Although marble was used for one of them. The one core is made from marble, and the one hammer is made from an elongated oval-shaped basalt pebble. Only 12 artifacts were found in area three. These consist of 8 flakes, 2 transverse choppers, 1 hand-axe, and a core. The choppers were made from elongated marble pebbles, the hand-axe from a basalt flake, and the core was made from a thick basalt pebble. 6 of the flakes were made from quartz and 2 were made from basalt. There were a small number of objects identified in between these areas. These include 3 basalt flakes, 1 quartz flake, 1 quartz arenite flake, 1 cordiform axe, and a quartz arenite hammerstone.{{Cite journal |last1=Martini |first1=Fabio |last2=Libsekal |first2=Yosief |last3=Filippi |first3=Omar |last4=Ghebre/Her |first4=Asmeret |last5=Kashay |first5=Habtom |last6=Kiros |first6=Asmeret |last7=Martino |first7=Gabriele |last8=Okubatsion |first8=Dawit |last9=Segid |first9=Amaha |last10=Solomon |first10=Tekeste |last11=Teka |first11=Zelalem |last12=Yosief |first12=Dessale |last13=Yamane |first13=Samuel |date=2004-12-31 |title=Characterization of Lithic Complexes from Buia (Dandiero Basin, Danakil Depression, Eritrea) |url=https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/RIPS/article/view/5767 |url-status=live |journal=Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia |volume=110 |language=en |doi=10.13130/2039-4942/5767 |issn=2039-4942 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109014204/https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/RIPS/article/view/5767/5798 |archive-date=November 9, 2023}}

Numerous remains of flora and fauna have been found at the site. These fossils have been revealed due to erosion, climate changes, and volcanic activity. The type of animals found at this site are typical for East African Early Pleistocene faunas. Remains of extinct species from this time period found at the site include the Theropithecus oswaldi,{{Cite journal |last1=Rook |first1=Lorenzo |last2=Ghinassi |first2=Massimiliano |last3=Libsekal |first3=Yosief |last4=Martínez-Navarro |first4=Bienvenido |last5=Medin |first5=Tseqai |last6=Papini |first6=Mauro |date=2010-12-01 |title=Stratigraphic context and taxonomic assessment of the large cercopithecoid (Primates, Mammalia) from the late Early Pleistocene palaeoanthropological site of Buia (Eritrea) |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0047248410001600 |journal=Journal of Human Evolution |volume=59 |issue=6 |pages=692–697 |doi=10.1016/j.jhevol.2010.07.018 |pmid=20828786 |issn=0047-2484}} Pelorovis oldowayensis, Giraffa jumae, Hexaprotodon, Hippopotamus gorgops,{{Cite journal |last1=Pandolfi |first1=Luca |last2=Martino |first2=Roberta |last3=Belvedere |first3=Matteo |last4=Martínez-Navarro |first4=Bienvenido |last5=Medin |first5=Tsegai |last6=Libsekal |first6=Yosief |last7=Rook |first7=Lorenzo |date=2023-05-15 |title=The latest Early Pleistocene hippopotami from the human-bearing locality of Buia (Eritrea) |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277379123000872 |journal=Quaternary Science Reviews |volume=308 |pages=108039 |doi=10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108039 |bibcode=2023QSRv..30808039P |s2cid=258024770 |issn=0277-3791}} Palaeoloxodon recki,Ferretti, Marco & Ficcarelli, Giovanni & Libsekal, Yosieph & Tecle, Tewelde & Rook, Lorenzo. (2003). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249023443_Fossil_elephants_from_Buia_Northern_Afar_Depression_Eritrea_with_remarks_on_the_systematics_of_Elephas_recki_Proboscidea_Elephantidae Fossil elephants from Buia (Northern Afar Depression, Eritrea) with remarks on the systematics of Elephas recki (Proboscidea, Elephantidae)]. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 23. 244-257. Palaeoloxodon recki ileretensis, Kolpochoerus olduvaiensis, Kolpochoerus majus, Metridiochoerus modestus, and potentially the Giraffa pygmaea.{{Cite journal |last1=Medin |first1=Tsegai |last2=Martínez-Navarro |first2=Bienvenido |last3=Rivals |first3=Florent |last4=Libsekal |first4=Yosief |last5=Rook |first5=Lorenzo |date=2015-08-01 |title=The late Early Pleistocene suid remains from the paleoanthropological site of Buia (Eritrea): Systematics, biochronology and eco-geographical context |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031018215002217 |journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |volume=431 |pages=26–42 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2015.04.020 |bibcode=2015PPP...431...26M |issn=0031-0182}} One potential new species of bull, Bos buiaensis, may have been identified at the site. Bovid fossils found at Buya contain characteristics of aurochs and pelorovis. This indicates that humans may have had a relationship with cattle since the Late Pliocene.{{Cite journal |last1=Martínez-Navarro |first1=Bienvenido |last2=Rook |first2=Lorenzo |last3=Papini |first3=Mauro |last4=Libsekal |first4=Yosief |date=2010-02-01 |title=A new species of bull from the Early Pleistocene paleoanthropological site of Buia (Eritrea): Parallelism on the dispersal of the genus Bos and the Acheulian culture |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1040618209003000 |journal=Quaternary International |series=Quaternary Changes of Mammalian Communities Across and Between Continents |volume=212 |issue=2 |pages=169–175 |doi=10.1016/j.quaint.2009.09.003 |bibcode=2010QuInt.212..169M |issn=1040-6182}}

Other remnants of extant animals such as the White rhinoceros,Delfino, Massimo & Candilio, Francesca & Carnevale, Giorgio & Coppa, Alfredo & Medin, Tsegai & Pavia, Marco & Rook, Lorenzo & Urciuoli, Alessandro & Villa, Andrea. (2018). [https://www.paleoitalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/02_Delfino_et_al_2018_BSPI_571.pdf The early Pleistocene vertebrate fauna of Mulhuli-Amo (Buia area, Danakil Depression, Eritrea)]. Bollettino della Societa Paleontologica Italiana. 57. 10.4435/BSPI.2018.02. goat, Grévy's zebra, Sitatunga, waterbuck, Cane rat, Kori bustard, Old World monkey, Spotted hyena, and an unspecified Gazella species have been identified. Most of the mammals found at Buya are water-dependent species that inhabit grassland or savanna environments. For example, taxa found at Buya such as the hippopotamus, waterbuck, sitatunga, crocodile,Delfino, Massimo & SEGID, AMAHA & Okubamichael, Desale & SHOSHANI, JEHESKEL & Rook, Lorenzo & LIBSEKAL, YOSIEF. (2004). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259012022_Fossil_reptiles_from_the_Pleistocene_Homo-Bearing_locality_of_buia_Eritrea_Northern_Danakil_Depression Fossil reptiles from the Pleistocene Homo-Bearing locality of buia] (Eritrea, Northern Danakil Depression). Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia. 110. 51-60. 10.13130/2039-4942/5764. African rock python, Nile monitor lizard, and pelomedusidae are all creatures that rely on water and live in grassland or savanna environments. This indicates that the region consisted of moist grassland or savanna habitats situated near water. Stratigraphic evidence also suggests the reach once was a grassland or savanna located near water.{{Cite journal |last1=Ghinassi |first1=Massimiliano |last2=Libsekal |first2=Yosief |last3=Papini |first3=Mauro |last4=Rook |first4=Lorenzo |date=2009-09-15 |title=Palaeoenvironments of the Buia Homo site: High-resolution facies analysis and non-marine sequence stratigraphy in the Alat formation (Pleistocene Dandiero Basin, Danakil depression, Eritrea) |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031018209002582 |journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |volume=280 |issue=3 |pages=415–431 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2009.06.029 |bibcode=2009PPP...280..415G |issn=0031-0182}} Rare examples of pre-Middle Pleistocene Nile crocodiles have been found in Buya. Very few examples of this species dating back to before the Middle Pleistocene have been identified in Africa.{{Cite journal |last1=Delfino |first1=Massimo |last2=Segid |first2=Amaha |last3=Yosief |first3=Dessale |last4=Shoshani |first4=Jeheskel |last5=Rook |first5=Lorenzo |last6=Libsekal |first6=Yosief |date=March 22, 2004 |title=Fossil Reptiles From the Pleistocene Homo Bearing Locality of Buya |url=http://www.dankalia.com/homo/00405.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia |volume=110 |pages=51–60 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208031606/http://www.dankalia.com/homo/00405.pdf |archive-date=December 8, 2021}} Examples of bird species such as anhinga or burhinus were found in the area. These imply that the region had open water with reed beds near dry areas. Fossils of clarias, a genus of fish, were also identified.{{Cite book |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/361192871 |title=African Paleoecology and Human Evolution |date=2022 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-07403-3 |editor-last=Reynolds |editor-first=Sally C. |location=Cambridge |editor-last2=Bobe |editor-first2=René}}

Hundreds of trace fossils were identified in Buya. These fossils can be divided into two categories. One is rosette-shaped trace fossils, the other is ring-shaped fossils. These fossils were likely made by oolitic sand filling in imprints left by the original object. It is unclear what organisms could have made it. It can be inferred that soft-bodied organisms with radial symmetry were responsible for the original imprints. They likely used a pedal disc to create the imprint. Sea anemones were considered as a potential origin of the fossils, however, sea anemone appear in the ocean, whilst these fossils occurred on land. Other species such as scyphoza have been considered, however, the patterns in the ichnofossils are unlike other known animals. It is possible that two new ichnotaxa were responsible for the imprints. Abiogenic origins have also been considered, although, the complexity of the patterns strongly suggest that they have biogenic origins.{{Cite journal |last1=Abbate |first1=Ernesto |last2=Bruni |first2=Piero |last3=Landucci |first3=Francesco |last4=Pellicanò |first4=Giannantonio |date=2012 |title=Unusual Ichnofossils in Homo Erectus-Bearing Beds of the Pleistocene Lake Deposits in Central-Eastern Eritrea, East Africa |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41511638 |journal=PALAIOS |volume=27 |issue=1/2 |pages=97–104 |doi=10.2110/palo.2011.p11-054r |jstor=41511638 |bibcode=2012Palai..27...97A |s2cid=130709126 |issn=0883-1351}}

Cutmarks in fossilized bones and flesh indicate that a Pleistocene human population may have practiced the butchering of animal carcasses. One bovid fossil bears deep cuts on the neck, near the jugular vein. These cuts were likely made by a lithic tool and intended to decapitate the animal. Another waterbuck fossil shows oblique, short, and straight scratch marks likely also made by a lithic tool, to skin the animal. Another mammalian hip pelvis fossil and a crocodile femur fossil also contain scratch marks indicating that it was skinned. V-shaped cutmarks probably made by a lithic tool were found on the femur of a hippopotamus fossil. They were likely an attempt to detach the leg from the body. Three short and arched cutmarks were identified on the fossil of a hippopotamus tibia. They appear to have been made by stone tools and to have been intended to separate the leg from the joints. Bitemarks found on other fossils and coprolites found at the site indicate the presence of carnivores.{{Cite journal |last1=Fiore |first1=Ivana |last2=Bondioli |first2=Luca |last3=Coppa |first3=Alfredo |last4=Macchiarelli |first4=Roberto |last5=Russom |first5=Rezene |last6=Kashay |first6=Habtom |last7=Solomon |first7=Tekeste |last8=Rook |first8=Lorenzo |last9=Libsekal |first9=Yosief |date=2004-12-31 |title=Taphonomic Analysis of the Late Early Pleistocene Bone Remains from Buia (Dandiero Basin, Danakil Depression, Eritrea):Evidence for Large Mammal and Reptile Butchering |url=https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/RIPS/article/view/5766 |journal=Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia |volume=110 |language=en |doi=10.13130/2039-4942/5766 |issn=2039-4942}}

The Buya basin is located in the northwestern part of the Afar Triangle. This area contains a village populated by the Saho people and the Afar people. This town has an economy sustained by irrigation, goat-herding, and trade. In 2000 a camp for people displaced by the Eritrean–Ethiopian War.{{Cite web |date=2000-09-25 |title=ICC Briefing No. 1: Internally Displaced Persons' (IDP) Camps in Eritrea - Eritrea {{!}} ReliefWeb |url=https://reliefweb.int/report/eritrea/icc-briefing-no-1-internally-displaced-persons-idp-camps-eritrea |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230522151925/https://reliefweb.int/report/eritrea/icc-briefing-no-1-internally-displaced-persons-idp-camps-eritrea |archive-date=May 22, 2023 |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=reliefweb.int |language=en}} The archaeological site is located within the Dandiero basin, which is the northern part of the Danakil depression. It is named after the Buya village which is located 100 kilometers south-southeast of Massawa.{{Cite book |last=Melake |first=Tekeste |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-v5MXBdyAUwC |title=Archaeo-historical Research on Eritrea |date=2008 |publisher=National Museum of Eritrea |isbn=978-99948-50-00-6 |pages=5 |language=en}} The excavated site was 500 meters thick and is southeast of Buya by the Alad wells and the Alid volcano. It is covered in grey and white silts and contains river areas with small numbers of marls.{{Cite journal |last1=Abbate |first1=Ernesto |last2=Albianelli |first2=Andrea |last3=Azzaroli |first3=Augusto |last4=Benvenuti |first4=Marco |last5=Tesfamariam |first5=Berhane |last6=Bruni |first6=Piero |last7=Cipriani |first7=Nicola |last8=Clarke |first8=Ronald J. |last9=Ficcarelli |first9=Giovanni |last10=Macchiarelli |first10=Roberto |last11=Napoleone |first11=Giovanni |last12=Papini |first12=Mauro |last13=Rook |first13=Lorenzo |last14=Sagri |first14=Mario |last15=Tecle |first15=Tewelde Medhin |date=1998 |title=A one-million-year-old Homo cranium from the Danakil (Afar) Depression of Eritrea |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/30954 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=393 |issue=6684 |pages=458–460 |doi=10.1038/30954 |pmid=9623999 |bibcode=1998Natur.393..458A |s2cid=205000929 |issn=1476-4687}} The area is built on a basement of Neoproterozoic rock.{{Cite journal |last1=Papini |first1=Mauro |last2=Ghinassi |first2=Massimiliano |last3=Libsekal |first3=Yosief |last4=Rook |first4=Lorenzo |date=2014-01-02 |title=Facies associations of the northern Dandiero Basin (Danakil depression, Eritrea, including the Pleistocene Buya homo site) |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17445647.2013.862748 |journal=Journal of Maps |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=126–135 |doi=10.1080/17445647.2013.862748 |bibcode=2014JMaps..10..126P |s2cid=140538441 |issn=1744-5647}}{{Cite journal |last1=Abbate |first1=Ernesto |last2=Woldehaimanot |first2=Beraki |last3=Bruni |first3=Piero |last4=Falorni |first4=Paola |last5=Papini |first5=Mauro |last6=Sagri |first6=Mario |last7=Girmay |first7=Simret |last8=Tecle |first8=Tewelde Medhin |date=2004-12-31 |title=Geology of the Homo-Bearing Pleistocene Dandiero Basin (Buia Region, Eritrean Danakil Depression) |url=https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/RIPS/article/view/5761 |journal=Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia |volume=110 |language=en |doi=10.13130/2039-4942/5761 |issn=2039-4942}} This rock basement is metamorphic and consists of low-grade dolomitic rock, marble, calcareous meta-sediments, amphibolite gneiss, granite gneiss, and high-grade kyanite schist that came into contact with graphitic slate.{{Cite journal |last1=Teklesenbet |first1=Andemariam |last2=Eysteinsson |first2=Hjálmar |last3=Karl Rosenkjær |first3=Guðni |last4=Karlsdóttir |first4=Ragna |year=2010 |title=Resistivity Survey in Alid Geothermal Area, Eritrea |url=https://www.geothermal-energy.org/pdf/IGAstandard/WGC/2010/1164.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Proceedings World Geothermal Congress |pages=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021155747/https://www.geothermal-energy.org/pdf/IGAstandard/WGC/2010/1164.pdf |archive-date=October 21, 2023}}{{Cite thesis |last=Beyene |first=Andemariam |year=2012 |title=Multidimensional inversion of MT data from Alid Geothermal area, Eritrea; comparison with geological structures and identification of a geothermal reservoir |url=https://skemman.is/bitstream/1946/10750/1/Andemariam_thesis_2012.pdf |degree=Magister Scientiarum |publisher=University of Iceland |pages=5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170816214319/https://skemman.is/bitstream/1946/10750/1/Andemariam_thesis_2012.pdf |archive-date=August 16, 2017}}

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• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGfvTf8IiXI Embassy Media - Eritrea: Discovery of Ancient Human Remains in BUYA-UA31]

Category:Archaeological sites in Eritrea

Category:Prehistoric archaeological sites

Category:Prehistoric Eritrea

Category:Homo erectus fossils

Category:Homo erectus sites