Browsing by Author "Sillen, Andrew"

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    A background investigation into the feasibility of heavy stable isotopes (87Sr/86Sr) as source tracers of early hominids
    (1995) Hall, Grant; Sillen, Andrew; Armstrong, R
    Heavy stable strontium isotope ratios (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) may be used to characterize the habitat choices of early hominids. The basis for this approach is that different geological substrata may have a characteristic range of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios in the available soil strontium pool. This range may be represented in the plants growing on these various geologies and thus into the bones of animals feeding in these areas. Through an examination of strontium isotope ratios for isotope and soils from 10 different geologies in the Sterkfontein Valley and immediate vicinity, it was possible to obtain some tentative indication of the possible range in ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios in an area most likely to cover favoured foraging habitats of early hominids, such as Australopithecus robustus. On the basis of isotopic data from extensive dolomite sampling, it is clear that there is a wide range of variation in strontium isotope ratios for dolomite substrata around Swartkrans. This may be as a result of topography, water action and atmospheric pollution. However, in spite of such variation, it is possible to distinguish isotopically different habitats, such as riparian from slopes. Such variation will complicate the interpretation of early hominid home ranges, but does provide alternative avenues for behavioural interpretations and also emphasises the necessity for the collection of background isotopic data.
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    Canine dental microwear and light stable isotopic analyses of some South African holocene populations
    (1998) Manning, Lee; Sillen, Andrew; Lee-Thorp, Julia
    This thesis uses light stable isotope analyses as the basis against which to evaluate the efficacy of canine dental microwear in distinguishing different diets between some Holocene populations in southern Africa. It has been recognised for some time that the use of stable isotopes as the basis for dental microwear evaluations may be a valuable method for determining dietary activities. These methods are used together for the first time here. Three southern African Holocene populations representative of different dietary regimes were sampled for both carbon apatite and canine microwear. The information gleaned from carbon apatite values was supplemented by existing collagen information. General dietary trends are discernable between the three populations based on isotopic analyses. Coastal hunter-gatherer populations from Matjes River and Oakhurst subsisted largely on a diet of marine foods, supplemented by C3 or C4 terrestrial resources. K2 agriculturalists indicated diets based largely on the exploitation of domesticated stock supplemented by wild hunted/gathered/snared foods. Isotopic ratios for inland hunter-gatherers vary depending on geographical location, but largely reflect a diet based on the resources available from the biome of habitation. Two Harrismith burials, thought to be hunter-gatherers, may indicate some contact with sedentary populations. These dietary trends are not borne out by canine microwear analyses. Canine microwear indicates statistically significant differences only in the concentration of features. These differences are however subject to groupings and probability limits and are therefore not regarded as viable dietary indicators. Isotopic results for this study substantiate those from previous research in recognising dietary patterns associated with particular Holocene populations in southern Africa. However the analysis of canine dental microwear in human populations is not sensitive enough to detect dietary differences.
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    Foodways of the mid-18th century Cape : archaeological ceramics from the Grand Parade in central Cape Town
    (1996) Abrahams, Gabeba; Sillen, Andrew; Hall, Martin
    The principal intention of this thesis was to study the archaeologically excavated remains from the site of the Grand Parade in central Cape Town. The main lines of argument are centred around the question of the ceramics and how these can be interpreted to add to the knowledge of everyday life at the Cape. This involved excavation of the site, a descriptive report on the site, formulating a typological system of classification relevant to the sample, and interpretation of the ceramic data, considering its context within the local ceramic tradition and the overarching historical background of the Cape. The typological framework used in the ceramic analysis is largely based on the work by Mary Beaudry and others and the interpretive style draws heavily on the ideas about the food domain postulated by Anne Yentsch. A social history paradigm has been used to study the nature of the local evidence, to investigate how the excavated ceramics can be used to inform in one of the most basic cultural traditions involving the foodways of early Capetonians. It has been found: that the typological framework for the ceramic analysis set out in this thesis, is successful in interpreting the ceramics; that the ideological functions of the ceramics remain a less tangible aspect of recreating the past; that although the local food way tradition of the mid-18th century continues to be a complicated web of cultural interactions, through the use of a multi-disciplinary approach, the archaeological evidence can be successfully integrated with the faw:ial, inventory and other docwnentary sources; and that all the aforementioned are crucial to a better, more holistic understanding of the local Cape foodway tradition of the mid-18th century.
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    Leisure-learning : revitalising the role of museums : a survey of Cape Town parents' attitudes towards museums
    (1993) Mathers, Kathryn; Davison, Patricia; Graaff, Johann; Sillen, Andrew
    The aim of this project was to assess the image of museums in Cape Town society in the context of the changing needs of South African people. A questionnaire examining museum-visiting habits and perceptions of the role of museums was distributed to parents via nine schools in Cape Town. Each school represented a different socioeconomic package so that the sample included parents with varying educational status and incomes. Parents of school-going children were sampled because they may be predisposed towards museums as institutions that offer their children educational and recreational opportunities and, therefore, represent a best-case scenario. The majority of the sample had visited a museum. A relationship exists between museum-visiting and higher socioeconomic status. Museum- visiting, though, was not limited to people with a higher level of education. Parents who were actively involved in a broad range of leisure activities were most likely to have visited museums. Although socioeconomic status and participation in leisure activities are related, museum-visitors appear to have leisure-lifestyles and not level of education in common. The results showed a contradiction in parents' attitudes towards museums; the image of museums was good but the image of the museum experience was often bad. This was particularly the case for infrequent museum-visitors. This group also experienced a feeling that 'museums are for a different type of person', which may explain why they do not visit despite believing that museums are worthwhile institutions. Museums appear to be perceived as institutions that offer children opportunities for learning and recreation. This could be the reason why young adults or seniors do not participate in museum programmes. This survey also showed that museums were associated with research on and preservation of the past. Black parents, though, were least likely to make this association and it is possible that the emphasis of most museums on the post-colonial past of South Africa is one reason why Black South Africans do not visit museums. There does, though, exist a generally positive image of the role of museums. The emphasis placed on leisure-learning or semi-leisure by young and old people in the townships does indicate that museums could meet an important need for constructive leisure opportunities.