KNUST SEG Geophysics Field Camp: A project to study slavery-related archaeology in West Africa

What is it about?

The paper describes a geophysics field camp held in Ghana to train geoscience students across West Africa in deploying geophysical techniques for archaeological investigations. The focus of the camp was on discovering archaeological sites related to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Techniques included magnetic, resistivity and Ground Penetrating Radar methods. The field camp also actively engaged communities within which the sites were located, educating them on the geosciences and the project. Geophysical anomalies possibly corresponding to material relics and infrastructure related to the transatlantic trade of enslaved people in southeastern Ghana were identified. More than 50 students gained practical skills in conducting geophysical investigations such as survey planning, data acquisition, processing and interpretation, presentation of results, and scientific writing. Geophysical outreach was conducted in two senior high schools, one basic school, and the communities within the study area.

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Why is it important?

A combination of geophysics, training students and the specific focus on archaeological sites related to the transatlantic slave trade make this project important. Africa’s geodiversity and richness of natural resources make geoscience education essential for social, academic, scientific, and professional growth and development. The lack of geoscience field camps across Africa is a significant problem because it limits opportunities for students to gain hands-on experience. More than 400 years after the first slave ships left the shores of the Gold Coast (now Ghana) for the Americas, researchers are still unravelling the slave trade and its impact on communities Ghana was the central hub for the slave trade across West Africa for more than a century. Recent research is highlighting the roles played by diverse slave-holding sites and populations in the slave trade. To enhance these investigations, geophysical methods can provide information about the stratigraphy of archaeological survey areas, locate anthropogenic traces of the slave trade, and delineate their spatial dimensions, thereby enriching the body of knowledge in this area.

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