Micromorphology and site formation processes at FxJj20 AB, Northern Kenya: insights on 1.5 Ma evidence of fire use

The ability to use fire is an important adaptation for humans, though the origins of this behaviour are debated. Fire use likely started in Africa over a million years ago by exploiting grassfires, but open-air environments hinder the preservation of fire evidence. Furthermore, none of the early open-air African sites with putative burned materials have securely documented contexts, which is critical when interpreting archaeological fire. This study uses micromorphology and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy to better understand the origin and distribution of fire evidence at FxJj20 AB, Kenya. The results cannot conclusively demonstrate an anthropogenic or a natural origin of burned sediment, though do not indicate that post-depositional alteration invalidates demonstrated associations between artifacts and fire evidence. At 1.5 million years old FxJj20 AB remains the earliest instance of fire evidence in an archaeological context, and this thesis contributes to the study of early fire use.