44 new archaeological sites discovered in Morocco's Rhamna

Archaeological surveys carried out from April 4 to 19 in the province of Rhamna led to the discovery of 44 new archaeological sites in Morocco.

The find was made by a team of researchers and students in archaeology and geomorphology, as part of a scientific cooperation project between the National Institute of Archeology and Heritage (INSAP), the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication, Cadi Ayyad University and Hassan II University.

Initial results show that the region has been home to human activity for more than a million years.
According to an INSAP press release, other sites have been identified and can be attributed to the Middle Paleolithic period, dated between 300,000 and 22,000 years ago in Morocco.

The presence of a stratified site dating back to the Upper Paleolithic, dated in Morocco between 22,000 and 7,000 years ago, was also found.

Other sites attributed to the Neolithic (7,000 and 3,000 years old in Morocco) have been identified and contain finds attesting to the presence of a sedentary lifestyle and the practice of agriculture.

In addition, two sites have revealed the presence of historic structures, one of them containing an impressive number of silos.

INSAP points out that the province of Rhamna has not been the subject of systematic, large-scale archaeological research for over 60 years.

However, the province is rich in archaeological potential, which will be confirmed by ongoing archaeological surveys and excavations as part of an international scientific project.

According to the same source, some of the sites discovered in the communes of Benguérir, Bouchane and Sidi Bouothmane should be integrated into tourist circuits.