How much of Africa’s archeological history, other than Egypt do you know of? A lot, some or none? Africa is a history-rich continent, but we seldom hear about it. In this talk, Sirio Canós-Donnay gives us a small glimpse into Africa’s rich archeological history, shows us what armies of archeologists are trying to reveal, and accentuates why is it important to dispel the myth of Africa as a continent without the past.

Sirio Canós-Donnay is an archaeologist and AHRC-funded PhD candidate at UCL. Born in Spain, she read Archaeology & Anthropology at St Hilda’s College, Oxford, and holds a masters in African Archaeology from UCL.

Since 2013 Sirio has been directing excavations in the Upper Casamance region in southern Senegal (West Africa), researching the hitherto unknown archaeology of the Kaabu Empire (13th-19th C). Her work combines archaeology, oral traditions, and written accounts from European travellers, and explores how West African history challenges some of our traditional assumptions about societal development and statehood worldwide.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx