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Lot 179
Saharan Aterian & Tilemsi Stone Point Group - Lot of 25

North Africa, Sahara, Aterian and Tilemsi cultures, ca. 9000–3000 BCE. A compelling assemblage of twenty-five chipped stone projectile points and blade preforms drawn from the vast lithic record of the Saharan Mesolithic and Neolithic. Knapped from cherts, jaspers, and silicified sandstones in warm tones of caramel, ochre, smoke-gray, and umber, the points display the full vocabulary of pressure flaking: bifacial retouch climbing the faces in feathery scars, fine serrations along select edges, and the elongated lanceolate silhouettes that distinguish Tilemsi tradition workmanship from the older, tanged Aterian forms. Several pieces retain the characteristic Aterian basal stem, a hafting innovation considered among the earliest in the human archaeological record, while others taper to leaf-shaped or ogival tips associated with the later pastoralist communities of the Tilemsi Valley in present-day Mali and the wider central Sahara.

These tools were produced when the Sahara was no desert at all but a verdant mosaic of lakes, savannas, and seasonal rivers, a "Green Sahara" populated by hunting bands and, later, by cattle-keeping peoples whose rock paintings still survive on the cliffs of the Tassili and Acacus. Points such as these tipped arrows and light spears used in the pursuit of antelope, wild cattle, and waterfowl, and their abundance across the eroding surfaces of the modern desert speaks to a long-vanished ecology of plenty. As a study group, the lot offers a tactile cross-section of two of Africa's most influential prehistoric lithic industries. Size of largest: 1.4" W x 4" H x 1" D (3.6 cm W x 10.2 cm H x 2.5 cm D).

Provenance: private Colorado, USA collection, acquired from Keystone Auctions, York, Pennsylvania, USA, April 12, 2024

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Item # 188927

  • Condition: Very Good. Some chips, nicks, and abrasions not from knapping process, but, otherwise, all present nicely with clear forms.

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by Artemis Fine Arts
June 25, 2026 9:00 AM MDT
686 S. Taylor Avenue
Suite 108
Louisville, CO, US 80027

Artemis Fine Arts

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$0 $299 $25
$300 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $199,999 $10,000
$200,000 + $20,000