We also have a lot of fun at Olduvai Gorge: a few moments from the 2015 season

Every year the team gets together on 17th July to celebrate Mary and Louis Leakey's discovery of Zinjanthropus boisei at FLK in 1959. We call it the Zinj party. Here are a few shots.  

Still at the Leakey Camp. The party usually starts here, with Maasai songs and dancing. 

The Maasai arrive at FLK for the Zinj party. The best dancing and singing you can ever wish for. 

At FLK, during the Zinj party. 

But we should have started by the beginning! When we actually arrived in Olduvai in early July 2015:

Arriving in the Ngorongoro Conservation area.

That is what you look like when you see your first giraffes! 

The conservation team kept growing all the time.


Visit to Isack's Boma. 

When visiting Isack's Boma we were welcomed by our Maasai friends. 

Besides learning about Maasai culture we also had time to catch up. 

Afterwards, some of our lady friends  walked to their Bomas, which were nearby.

There were giraffes on the way back to the camp... 

It was time for dinner! 

This elephant came out and about to say goodbye when we left Ngorongoro. 

Just another stunning sunset at Olduvai. We hope to see it again soon! 

All images by Renata F. Peters. Please do not use without permission. 
Asante sana!

Karibu to the 2015 conservation season at Olduvai Gorge!

Ignacio de la Torre,  Renata Peters and Norah Moloney have recently returned from Olduvai Gorge. The 2015 field season has produced exciting results that will contribute to a better understanding of the origins of the Acheulean at Olduvai Gorge, the theme of this ERC-funded project  based at the UCL Institute of Archaeology. As usual, work was led by the Olduvai Geochronology Archaeology Project (OGAP).

The 2015 conservation team was again supervised by Renata Peters and Dani Mainoya (conservator and curator at Natural History Museum in Arusha, Tanzania). They were assisted by conservator Elisabet Diaz and IoA conservation students Abigail Duckor, Anna Funke and Jan Cutajar. The team was complemented by Tanzanian apprentices Isack Faustin Lyimo and Ngonyani Lihuni, and several students attending this year's field school. 

Conservators working with OGAP aim to make Olduvai an international reference for in situ conservation excellence, besides making it sustainable and socially relevant. We include both tangible and intangible features in our decision-making processes and use the world’s best materials whilst also trying to develop local resources. This year our work was focused on consolidating fragile fossils and lithic material, removing matrices,  general collections care and building local capacities.  

The 2015 OGAP's season had one of its largest groups ever (credit M. Pante). 

One of the configurations of the 2015 conservation team, with our bead working master Nairoshi Zebeday at the centre. Jastin Mahhu, Abigail Duckor, Anna Funke, Lucy Mshana, Naishoki Paul, Nairoshi Zebeday, Renata Peters, Jan Cutajar, Sekwai Babai, Eli Diaz, Neil, Isack Faustin Lyimo, Ngonyani Lihuni, Dani Mainoya and Edwin Paresso. 

Here is the core of the 2015 conservation team: Isack Faustin Lyimo, Dani Mainoya, Zackarias (who took care of our precious finds and equipment), Abigail Duckor, Renata Peters, Ngonyani Lihuni, Jan Cutajar, Matimba Leakey (a morning wasn't complete without his visit), Anna Funke, Eli Diaz and Jesuit Temba.


Click on the images below to see more details about our work in Olduvai Gorge.

Very busy conservation students (@the Laetoli Lab).

Processing finds @the OGAP Lab.

We were ready for anything!

Conservation team preparing CDD in the Leakey Camp. 

IoA conservation students working in a trench @ FC. 

Matrix removal with Dani Maynoia.

IoA conservation student Jan Cutajar very busy @FC.

Preparing CDD in the trenches. 

Eli Diaz getting ready to apply CDD.

Yes, we like life in the trenches -  @ FCW.

And finally, here is Ignacio de la Torre taking points while
conservation was being done.

Conservation was kindly supported by OGAP, the UCL Institute of Archaeology and the Zibby Garnett Travel Fellowship. UCL students also counted on the kind support of private funders. Our utmost thanks to all!

All images by Renata F. Peters and/or OGAP. Please do not use without permission. 

Getting ready to go to Olduvai Gorge

It’s that time of the year, when we start hoarding conservation materials, packing supplies, and getting ready to join friends and colleagues in Olduvai Gorge.

The UCL conservation team working with OGAP in Olduvai Gorge will be mighty this year! UCL conservation students Abby Duckor, Anna Funke & Jan Cutajar will be working with Eli Diaz and Renata Peters. We are looking forward to joining our colleague Dan Mainoya in Arusha and possibly have some Tanzanian conservation apprentices in the team as well.

The wonderful manager Carmen Martin Ramos and conservator Eli Diaz.  

And here are Abby, Anna and Jan (in very good company) on Gordon Square. Very soon you will see them at the Laetoli Lab in the Leakey Camp! 

Our main activities this year will include:

-Development of new approaches to lifting, consolidation and stabilization of fossils and lithics

-Removal of matrices

-Identification of available local resources

-Testing and use of local materials

-Building capacities among Tanzanian colleagues and students

-Engagement with local groups through the practice of conservation

-Evaluation of approaches to increase access to the collections

But we are also hoping to continue our Maasai beading workshop and possibly some basketry! 

Watch this space, we will be blogging from our lab in the Leakey Camp!

Olduvai Gorge Conservation Project

By Anna Funke

This post is to introduce you to a fascinating project that three MSc Conservation students (myself, Abby Duckor and Jan D. Cutajar) will be involved with this summer. 

The three of us, also known as the GTCT (Greatest Tanzania Conservation Team) will be going to Olduvai Gorge in – you guessed it - Tanzania this summer! We will be in pursuit of some hand-fast evidence about the lives of early man and woman. This famous site is right at the heart of the theory that humanity’s origins are to be found in East Africa.

The archaeological research at Olduvai focuses on the transition between the Oldowan and the Acheulean. Both these groups are steps in the line of the human biological as well as technical evolution. The archaeologists on site will therefore be looking both for human remains that can give some insight into the biological stages of our development, as well as for ancient stone tools that can shed some light on our early technical developments. The finds from Olduvai Gorge go back as far as 1.7 million years!

Olduvai Gorge

Our contribution to these grand questions will be to try to stabilise these fragile finds so that they can safely be studied. We will also try our hands at excavation by helping out with the lifting of particularly fragile finds.  

A fragile find being worked on in the Laetoli Lab by Ephraim Lucas Tarmo, one of the Tanzanian conservation apprentices in the 2014 season. Photo courtesy of OGAP.

We are now in the final weeks of preparations before the departure of GTCT in early July! We are getting our vaccinations and gathering our tents, travel showers, and tool kits. We can’t wait to jump in and we hope you will stay tuned for updates during the excavation! If you would like us to send you a postcard, we will happily do so in return for a small contribution to our travel fund. We are so close to going but we still need to raise the last of our balance to make this trip a success! You can help by contributing here or by spreading the word about our project. Thank you for any help you can give!

Find out more about the conservation at Olduvai Gorge here.

Learning from the best: beadworking with the Maasai in Olduvai

Learning the art of beadwork from the Maasai in Olduvai Gorge was one of the highlights for the OGAP conservation team this season (see details about our team here).

The team was very interested in engaging more directly with local Maasai women to learn about Maasai culture from them. First-hand understanding of manufacturing techniques is essential for a conservator's work, as is a deeper understanding of the cultural significance they carry. At Olduvai we learned from the best. And it was so much fun!

Colourful beads and other materials were brought from the Maasai Market in Arusha (Image by R Peters)

We organized several beadworking sessions and were introduced to the basic techniques. A small fund was provided by the UCL Conservation and Development Research Network, and beads and other materials were brought from the Maasai Market in Arusha. We had several sessions with Pendo Melau and Nairoshi Zebeday. Pendo and Nairoshi came over to the Leakey Camp at the end of the day and patiently showed us what to do! Needless to say they had to undo/correct our work very often!

We also had the chance to observe Siteyo Lembele and Sekwai Babai beadworking (they were working for the OGAP excavation but would sometimes come over to our lab during their lunch break). Siteyo and Sekwai showed us their techniques, and sold the end-products of the demonstrations.

As you probably know, beadworking is exclusively carried out by women in Maasai contexts. They start learning as little girls and devote a lot of attention to the use of colours and creation of designs - at some point they will have developed their own personal styles (usually influenced by their mothers). Their skills achieve nothing less than perfection and they are very critical of small defects.  It was fascinating to see how the four of them produced completely different patterns even though they were using exactly the same raw materials.

Here are the wonderful Pendo Melau,  Sekwai Babai and Nairoshi Zebeday discussing different techniques to produce a necklace (in the Laetoli Lab at the Leakey Camp).  (Image by Eri Ohara-Anderson)

Siteyo Lembele and Sekwai Babai showed us how to make beautiful bracelets and necklaces, and also how to wear them! (Image by R Peters)


In the following sequence Sekwai Babai shows the final steps for a perfect bracelet. Feel free to reproduce the bracelet at home, if you dare! Be patient, be brave, and start again if you have to!  You probably will!  ;-) 

OGAP Conservation 2014

Starting from the top left corner: Carmen Martin Ramos (in black jumper), Elizabeth Diaz, Eri Ohara-Anderson, Ephraim Lucas Tarmo, Isack Faustin Lyimo, Ngonyani Lihuni and Renata Peters. Kristen Welch (Teaching Assistant from Colorado University, seen on top left corner) was not working in conservation but she was in the lab a lot!

The 2014 OGAP Conservation season has been very exciting and successful. We have just finished our work and will add more details here soon.  But first of all, we would like to introduce you to everybody who contributed to this very successful season!

The team was headed by Renata Peters (Coordinator of the MA in Principles of Conservation at the UCL Institute of Archaeology and the UCL Conservation and Development Research Network). Eri Ohara-Anderson (currently on the UCL MSc Conservation for Archaeology and Museums, year 2) assisted managing the team and the magnificent workload! We were  fortunate to count once again on the expert help of our colleague Dan Mainoya (conservator and curator at the Natural History Museum, Arusha).

Dan Mainoya (conservator and curator at the Natural History Museum, Arusha)

We are extremely happy to have added Tanzanian apprentices to our team this year: Isack Faustin Lyimo, Ephraim Lucas Tarmo and Ngonyani Lihuni did brilliant work with us!

Highlights to the season were added by the help of conservator Elizabeth Diaz (OGAP), and conservation enthusiast (hopefully future conservator) Carmen Martin Ramos (OGAP). We also counted on  the help of Jesuit Temba (Tanzania Antiquities Directorate) for a few days! And also the precious help from IFR students Georgina de Barros, Trevor Keevil, Matthew Muttart, Victoria Sluka,   Gabriela de la Torre and Ben Zunkeller. Last but not least, we also had the eventual help of the wonderful Angeliki Theodoropoulou! Wow, this made a mighty team!!!  Thanks so much to you all - it was a privilege and also a lot of fun to work with you!

Here are some of our people in action:

Renata is looking happy with her fossils

Eri Ohara-Anderson - busy bee!

Isack Faustin Lyimo worked on a number of complex artefacts

 Ngonyani Lihuni working with a rotary tool 

Ephraim Lucas Tarmo became very interested in scapulas

The extra help from Carmen Martin Ramos and Elizabeth Diaz was essential for our work 

Jesuit Temba working on fossilised bone

Ben Zunkeller, Georgina de Barros and Victoria Sluka (IFR students) working on recently excavated bone

As you can see, Matthew Muttart (IFR student) was really not very bored by this difficult job (removing concretion from recently excavated lithic). 

Gabriela de la Torre and Trevor Keevil (IFR students) just after accomplishing a difficult mission (Eri on the far right)

And finally, our wonderful Angeliki Theodoropoulou doing some sediment removal!