hunting, fishing, and gathering: Egypt throughout most of the valley, to the middle of the first millennium b.c.e., data point to semisedentary foragers, existing on riverine fish, or more mobile groups of foragers Along Lake Chad, by 2000 b.c.e herding, fishing, and hunting occupied people dwelling in permanent wooden buildings Shell middens (piles or refuse heaps) dating to the sixth millennium b.c.e have been discovered in Mauritania By the middle of the second millennium b.c.e the oil palm may have been domesticated By the end of the millennium millet was clearly being cultivated The Kintampo culture of central Ghana from the second millennium b.c.e seems to have been a point of cultural fusion between Saharan traditions and rain forest gathering cultures Eastern Africa was a zone of foraging until the second millennium b.c.e., as pastoralism became the dominant economic activity around the lakes and along the Rift Valley highlands The Ethiopian highlands became a place of domesticated farming, primarily with species native to the region Before the advent of pastoralism, the fishers on the lakes harvested a wider variety of species as the lake levels dropped At Lake Turkana the fishers used boats Nile perch was the dominant species, but catfish and cichlids and softshelled turtles were also present Crocodiles, elephants, gazelles, giraffes, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, warthogs, and zebras were among the species hunted As throughout most of Africa, foragers in the east had ceramics before the advent of agriculture, around 4000 b.c.e Southern Africa consisted exclusively of foraging societies throughout all but the last four centuries of the ancient period Herding and agriculture entered the region at the beginning of the Common Era Ceramics, domesticated plants, domesticated animals, and iron all arose in the region roughly at the same time as Bantu peoples There is no firm evidence of the ancient foraging way of life, but we can make what are widely evidenced generalizations about historic foraging societies, which may or may not be an accurate embodiment of their ancient forbearers Foragers live in bands for at least part of the year, often in areas of marginal climate, meaning that they must not overuse the resources at their disposal, or they might not have these resources in the future Thus, foragers are intimately tied to nature The !Kung of the Kalahari are aware of seven distinct seasons in an area in which climatologists distinguish two They consume at least 80 distinct floral food sources They are able to recognize each band member’s footprint From animal droppings, they can discern the size, gender, and health of each animal, where an animal has recently been, what time of day it passed, which direction it was heading, and the number of animals that have passed by Foragers have an understanding that they are but bit players in an intricately balanced world Religion traditionally has taken the form of animism The chief value in foraging societies is sharing Both the risks and the resources of the group must be shared to facilitate survival in marginal areas Hoarding is the most heinous act one can commit Gift giving and regift ing are important social mechanisms to prevent ac- 573 cumulation of items and to establish ties among members, as items are briefly possessed by all members of the band Not only are males relatively equal, but women are indeed nearly equal to men in foraging societies Anthropologists attribute this gender equality to the role women play in food production, as gathering provides some 80 percent of the calories consumed by the band Given that there is no property to inherit, men are not concerned with controlling women’s reproduction Thus, women are decision makers in their marriages and divorces Women interact freely with men, including in public discussion Men will help women gather In some societies women can hunt larger animals, and in most, women can hunt small animals or use traps EGYPT BY LINDA EVANS The ancient Egyptians observed their surroundings closely and drew upon aspects of the natural world to form many of their religious and philosophical concepts By using various methods and technologies, they also exploited the plentiful food sources that could be found in the fertile Nile River valley and adjoining deserts Petroglyphs, or rock carvings, in the cliffs that border the Nile provide clear evidence that animals were hunted extensively during the Paleolithic and Neolithic Periods In these images, men armed with harpoons and bows and arrows pursue a variety of game, including hippopotamuses, Nile crocodiles, scimitar oryx, giraffes, and African elephants Bones and scales recovered from prehistoric settlement sites also show that the indigenous population consumed a great deal of fish, especially Nile catfish Later, during the Predynastic Period (before ca 3000 b.c.e.), art objects, such as ceramic pots, knife handles, and palettes, were often decorated with images of game By the dawn of the Egyptian state, however, many prey species had become extinct locally owing to the combined effects of climate change and human disturbance With the development of agriculture, the Egyptians were no longer dependent upon hunting for their survival Nevertheless, images that were carved into and painted upon the walls of tombs reveal that the practice continued throughout the historical period, during which it achieved a ritual significance Hunts took place in both the desert fringes and the marshes of the northern delta region In desert scenes from the Old Kingdom (ca 2575–ca 2134 b.c.e.), hunting dogs are commonly used to attack prey These slender, greyhound-like animals, with tightly curled tails and pricked ears, are shown pulling down and savagely biting a range of species, including scimitar oryx, hartebeest, dorcas gazelles, Nubian ibex, striped hyenas, red foxes, golden jackals, and Cape hares The dogs are often accompanied by a hunter wearing a striped tunic who, while kneeling beside his pack, points out potential victims Other hunting practices are also depicted In a few tomb scenes men use lassos to rope wild cattle or wrestle desert