This research is centered on an ancient cultural landscape called Pizaga located in the Upper West Region of Ghana. The landscape is endowed with adequate traces of past human existence. It comprises a flat land and intriguing rock formations within which are a series of rock shelters. It is characterized by several surface configurations of potsherds, house mounds, mass of iron slag, and other archaeological features. However, the landscape is endangered by several destructive mechanisms. Currently, it is impacted by several indigenous agricultural practices, such as the felling of trees for domestic uses and grazing of animals. In an attempt to explore the landscape through an archaeological exploration as a means of salvaging its archaeological heritage from destruction, a conflict erupted between two communities (Kolon-Yiri and Tabiesi) over its ownership. However, to avoid escalated conflicts among the parties involved, the community-based research model aided a mitigation process that allowed for the conduct of the research. As a research anchored on a multi-disciplinary approach, other methods were employed. These included the collection of oral accounts, preliminary archaeological investigations, and the use of ethnographic research tools and techniques including photography. Using these methods helped to obtain both qualitative and quantitative data for the research analyses. Through the archaeological exploration, the research helped to foster historical relationships and a greater understanding of shared ownership models that engender peaceful co-existence as well as positions the site at Pizaga in a temporal context, and this makes the study critical.

Authors:
Jonathan Ampofo Manu, University of Ghana, Ghana
Samuel Nkumbaan, University of Ghana, Ghana

About the Presenter(s)
Mr. Jonathan Ampofo Manu is currently a Research and Teaching Assistant at the University of Ghana.

My research project is "The Nexus between Archaeological Exploration and Heritage Contestation: Perspectives from Pizaga, Upper West Region, Ghana".

See this presentation on the full schedule – Monday Schedule

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