The Role of Obsidian in the Afro-Arabian Interchange Circuit in the First Millennium BC in Ethiopia and Yemen

This thesis examines the impact of obsidian on the first millennium BC Pre-Aksumite culture of Ethiopian Tigray. Archaeological evidence indicates that the increasing exchange of obsidian from Ethiopia to South Arabia was a contributory factor in the development of social complexity in Tigray ca 800 BC. The exogenous influence of South Arabian material culture significantly shaped the Pre-Aksumite character during the first and second millennium BC. The exchange process indicates that there was a movement of people undertaking the challenging journey between the Ethiopian Tigray highlands and the Yemen Tihamah.

The focus of the thesis is the Tigray highlands of Ethiopia, specifically the first millennium BC site of Yeha, and the Yemen Tihamah site of Al Midaman. Midway between these sites is the Nabro volcano, the source of obsidian and a regional economic driver ca. 800 BC. This research is a synthesis of published and unpublished data from archaeological sites in Ethiopia and Yemen. The research uses Remote sensing to demonstrate that the routeways established by the interconnectivity of the obsidian trade, as early as 5000 BC, have remained in use, and that many of the modern roads in the region are now still using the same routeways. Remote sensing indicates that the topography of the region is such that, in most cases, there is little choice of where a journey can be made.

The research examined the data to consider the impact of the obsidian trade on the social complexity of Tigray and its influence on Yemen Tihamah. The presence, and sometimes absence, of obsidian, indicates nature the relationship taking place in the region. It also highlights anomalies in the Pre-Aksumite narrative and how these may contribute to future research in both countries.