Oualata Painted House Courtyard 3
Bronze Age (3000–1200 BCE)·Bronze Age·🇲🇷 Hodh Ech Chargui, Oualata, Mauritania
About
About Oualata Painted House Courtyard 3
Oualata Painted House Courtyard 3 in Hodh Ech Chargui, Oualata, Mauritania is a Bronze Age (3000–1200 BCE) ancient city attributed to Bronze Age. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal walled area 12 ha and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 17.2930N -7.0260E controls access to Hodh Ech Chargui resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey ancient city for Hodh Ech Chargui, Oualata, illustrating Bronze Age construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Ceremonial centre for dispersed community
- 02Territorial marker controlling resources
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 2800 BCE
- Period
- Bronze Age (3000–1200 BCE)
- Culture
- Bronze Age
- Purpose
- Regional urban centre controlling trade and administration
- Rediscovered
- 1997 survey
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 2800 BCE
Initial construction of Oualata Painted House Courtyard 3 main structure
c. 1937
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically
1997–2012
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Oualata Painted House Courtyard 3) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
17.2930° N · 7.0260° W · 339 m · 3 mapped features
Oualata Painted House Courtyard 3 — Main Structure
structurePrincipal ancient city — Walled area 12 ha with diagnostic masonry/panel
17.2938° N · 7.0251° WOualata Painted House Courtyard 3 — Ancillary Complex
complexAncillary settlement debris and ceramics surrounding main feature
17.2920° N · 7.0267° WOualata Painted House Courtyard 3 — Peripheral Feature
outlierPeripheral feature with outlier deposit and burial
17.2945° N · 7.0248° W