Browsing by Subject "Archaeology"

Now showing 1 - 20 of 157
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    45000 years of hunter-gatherer history as seen from Umhlatuzana Rock Shelter
    (1989) Kaplan, Jonathan Michael; Parkington, John
    Umhlatuzana Rock Shelter in Natal was excavated in 1985. A long and detailed sequence of stone artefacts was recovered. These artefacts covered the time range from the Middle Stone Age (MSA) to the Later Stone Age (LSA). The excavations generated important information on the MSA, MSA/LSA transition, the Late Pleistocene early microlithic bladelet assemblages, and the relationship between hunter-gatherers and farmers between AD 400-AD 800. The primary aim of this thesis is to describe the excavation and the results, showing how Umhlatuzana Rock Shelter contributes to a broader understanding of the southern African MSA and LSA technological evolution. The stone artefact sequence, animal and plant remains, worked bone tools, beads, pottery and ochre finds are described. Evidence is presented which shows that the change from the MSA to the beginning of the LSA .took place between 35 000 BP and 20 000 BP, while a true LSA industry occurred closer to 20 000 BP. No technological boundary exists between the MSA and the LSA: rather change was a gradual process beginning· in the MSA. The bladelet-rich assemblages recovered from Umhlatuzana Rock Shelter are the first of their kind to be positively identified in Natal. Pre-dating 18 000 BP and post-dating 12 000 BP, they show that assemblages of this nature were systematically produced earlier and later in Natal, than elsewhere in southern Africa. The metrical results for bladelet cores and bladelets show that there is a progressive decrease in the mean length sizes of. these artefacts from the MSA to the LSA, as well as within the LSA sequence. statistics show that the model for gradual change is corroborated. These results have significant implications for our understanding of the culture-history sequence in southern Africa. The results also raise questions regarding the nature of MSA and MSA/LSA assemblages, and the origins of the early microlithic assemblages of the southern African LSA.
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    A study of indigenous sorghum agriculture in Southern Africa: combining isotope and indigenous knowledge systems approaches
    (2023) Masemula, Nandi; Sealy, Judith
    Sorghum and millets were the principal grain crops of sub-Saharan African farming societies. Enquiry into their isotopic variability is scant and some of the work that has been done is based on studies in highly controlled, artificial environments. To help fill this gap, the present study investigates the variation in δ13C and δ15N in three varieties of sorghum, mshalane, 236 and 308. These were cultivated at four localities in different regions of Eswatini and South Africa, either by small-scale traditional farmers or in accordance with their methods. In addition, this study includes carbon and nitrogen isotopic analysis of archaeological sorghum grains from the mid-19th century Historic Cave siege site. The study also explores the impact that choice of agricultural practices and methods of grain storage and food preparation may have on the δ13C and δ15N values of sorghum. To this end, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 contemporary small-scale agriculturalists from eastern Eswatini. The range of δ13C values in the contemporary-grown sorghum from summerrainfall regions of South Africa is 1.7‰ (n=90), and the mshalane variety shows the greatest sensitivity to environmental variation. Archaeological sorghum grains from Historic Cave yield δ13C values approximately 1.1‰ less negative than contemporary-grown sorghum (after correction for variation in atmospheric δ13C), which likely reflects particular agricultural practices and/or the cultivation of sorghum varieties with characteristically higher δ13C values by the Kekana Ndebele. The range of δ15N values in both contemporary (5.4‰, n=90) and archaeological (8.7‰, n=11) sorghum is larger than that usually attributed to a single trophic level, with significant implications for the interpretation of δ15N in consumers. Some methods of sorghum storage and preparation involve fermentation, which may increase isotopic variation further. These results will contribute towards achieving improved isotope-based dietary reconstructions in African Iron Age farming communities.
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    An actualistic butchery study in South Africa and its implications for reconstructing hominid strategies of carcass acquisition and butchery in the upper pleistocene and plio-pleistocene
    (2000) Nilssen, Peter John
    An actualistic butchery study in South Africa and its implications for reconstructing hominid strategies of carcass acquisition and butchery in the upper pleistocene and plio-pleistocene
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    An investigation of temporal change in lithic technology at Grassridge Rockshelter, Eastern Cape South Africa
    (2023) Mdludlu, Ayanda; Parkington, John; Wilkins Jayne
    This thesis discusses the lithic technological change in Grassridge Rockshelter, a multi-component site located in the interior region of the Eastern Cape of South Africa that presents a rich high-resolution stratigraphy that interchanges with periods of hiatuses between the Late Pleistocene (LP) dated to about ~43ka, Terminal Pleistocene (TP) dated to ~13ka and Mid-Holocene (MH) occupations dated to ~7ka. The similarities and differences between the LP and TP as well as the TP and MH lithic assemblages are analysed to better understand the behaviours of toolmakers. The analyses use raw material type choices and numerous lithic tool typologies as proxies to track lithic variability. Also considered in this study are tool traits that include platform treatment, external platform angle, platform thickness, early/late debitage exploitation, length over width ratio, profile, and width over thickness ratio. The frequencies of each tool trait are arranged into Tostevin's (2012) methodology system of knapping behaviours to consider various explanations – environmental, economic, and sociocultural- for these variations.
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    Analysis of dental pathologies in the Pliocene herbivores of Langebaanweg and their palaeoenvironmental implications
    (2002) Franz-Odendaal, Tamara; Chinsamy-Turan, Anusuya; Lee-Thorp, Julia
    This study evaluates the extent of dental pathologies in several ungulate species from the Pelletal Phosphate Member (PPM) at Langebaanweg, and uses this analysis, along with stable isotope analyses, to obtain fresh insight into the local palaeoenvironment during the Early Pliocene.
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    The analysis of late Stone Age hafting cements from the Cape Province, South Africa
    (1974) Walker, Nicolas John
    In recent years it has become increasingly apparent that an important aspect of southern African late Stone Age technology was the use of glues or adhesives to heft implements, and this correlates largely with the viability of microlithic industries. The number of sites yielding evidence of hafting have increased considerably since excavators have become aware of its presence. For the most part, the remains consist of odd lumps or traces on implements, but there are about a dozen fairly complete moulded pieces that allow some comment to be made as to the hafting strategy, and this technique is considered. To date, no success has been registered in identifying the actual ingredients used, and the main objective of this paper is to indicate that thin layer chromatography can be used to this end.
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    The analysis of late Stone Age hafting cements from the Cape Province, South Africa
    (1974) Walker, Nicolas John
    In recent years it has become increasingly apparent that an important aspect of southern African late Stone Age technology was the use of glues or adhesives to heft implements, and this correlates largely with the viability of microlithic industries. The number of sites yielding evidence of hafting have increased considerably since excavators have become aware of its presence. For the most part, the remains consist of odd lumps or traces on implements, but there are about a dozen fairly complete moulded pieces that allow some comment to be made as to the hafting strategy, and this technique is considered. To date, no success has been registered in identifying the actual ingredients used, and the main objective of this paper is to indicate that thin layer chromatography can be used to this end.
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    Andriesgrond revisited : material culture, ideologies and social change
    (1991) Anderson, Gavin
    The original aims of this thesis were to analyze all the material remains from the previous excavations and collate all written reports on Andriesgrond Cave. Only one article has been written on Andriesgrond Cave (Parkington 1978), while several articles have referred to single unpublished reports or additional projects. Artefacts are analyzed and grouped according to their relevant chapters, and in the conclusion an interpretation of these finds is given in conjunction with social psychological theory of stress coping strategies and inter- and intragroup processes.
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    Annals of ivory : perspectives on African elephant Loxodonta africana (Blumenbach 1797) feeding ecology from a multi-decadal record.
    (2008) Codron, Jacqueline; Lee-Thorp, Julia A; Sealy, Judith
    This thesis explores the dietary responses of African elephants (Loxodonta africana) to environmental change by testing the hypothesis that diet switching (from predominantly browse-based to more grass-rich diets) is driven by cyclical patterns of climate and habitat change in a southern African savanna. Elephants are thought to have substantial impacts on their environments, primarily because they consume large amounts of vegetation over sustained periods. However, the woody plant composition of their diet varies considerably across space and through time, so that in some instances they have been found to be almost pure grazers. Tracking these changes by traditional approaches (e.g. field observations) is difficult because of the geographical and temporal constraints inherent to these methods. Stable light isotope tracking of diet allows diet switching to be studied over multiple space/time scales. Here, I use stable isotope data from elephant faeces, tail hair, and ivory to record short- (monthly), medium- (seasonal to annual), and long-term (decadal) ecological variability, respectively, of elephant diets in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. Results from faeces collected at monthly resolution for one year confirm findings of a previous study (based on biannually-collected samples over two years) that elephants generally consume more grass in the more wooded habitats of the northern Kruger Park, but that there is a greater degree of seasonal diet switching in southern Kruger Park habitats. Moreover, diet changes also relate to changes in underlying bedrock across Kruger Park. Isotopic time-series produced by serial profiling of tail hairs confirm patterns observed in faeces. Long-term diet histories of individuals are derived from serial isotope sampling of ivory, yielding records that represent several decades of an animal’s life, at sub-annual (seasonal) resolution. Overlaying individual ivory series in time produces the first, to my knowledge, multidecadal record of African elephant diet, dating from 1903 to 1993. Contrary to expectations, stable carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotope records from ivory do not correlate well with cyclical climate trends for the study region. Rather, pronounced diet shifts are observed during extreme climatic events (floods and droughts), and the greatest levels of intra- and inter-annual variability coincide with significant changes in park management policy during the 20th century, i.e. the introduction of water provision programs after the mid 1930s, and the onset of elephant population control in 1967. It is proposed that such direct intervention has played the biggest role in disturbance of elephant-plant equilibria during the 20th century, and further studies to improve our understanding of this phenomenon will be instrumental to development of appropriate management strategies for the 21st century.
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    Archaeological collections as a prime research asset: objects and Great Zimbabwe's past
    (2018) Chiripanhura, Pauline; Chirikure, Shadreck
    This thesis sought to explore the lifeways of second-millennium AD inhabitants of Great Zimbabwe through the analyses of material objects housed in museums. Great Zimbabwe comprises walled stone enclosures and non-walled settlements covering approximately 720ha. A number of data acquisition techniques, such as desktop survey, analyses of museum collections, supplementary field survey and excavations, were employed to collect relevant datasets to address the research questions. The sampling strategy adapted for this research enabled the study of material objects from different components making up Great Zimbabwe. The main conclusions drawn from this study are as follows: (i) Within varying temporal scales, the nature and distribution of local and imported objects are largely similar across the site; (ii) chronologically and typologically speaking, there is evidence that different parts of the site were occupied and abandoned at different times; and (iii) based on the similarities in material objects and associated production debris and infrastructure, it is likely that different components were self-sufficient units. This study has underscored the significance of existing collections in developing new interpretations of Great Zimbabwe's past lifeways, thereby motivating for the need for similar work to understand the hundreds of similar settlements scattered across southern Africa.
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    An archaeological investigation of the Koichab River region of the south-western Namib Desert centred on the activities of Holocene hunter-gatherers
    (1989) Noli, Hans Dieter; Parkington, John
    The 1986-1988 archaeological investigations of the previously largely unresearched Koichab River region the south-western Namib Desert are described. The sites studied are those of Holocene hunter-gatherers. Included are the analyses of archaeological remains from two excavations and three surface collections. The investigations resulted in the recovery of the oldest dated archaeological material from the entire Namib coast, and the halving of the duration of the previously established Holocene hiatus for the southern Namib. It is suggested that the resources of the Koichab River reion were subjected to opportunistic utilization, a subsistence strategy which may have been more extensively resorted to in all of southern Africa than has so far suspected.
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    An archaeological perspective on the nineteenth century development of land, landscape and sheep farming in the Karoo
    (2012) Smuts, Troy Nathaniel; Hall, Simon
    The nineteenth century was one of considerable change within the Cape Colony. There was the change from Dutch VOC control to a British government early in the nineteenth century which exposed small scale Trekboer sheep farmers of the Karoo to a wider mercantile capitalism, especially with the adoption of Merino sheep for the global export market. This thesis charts the early nineteenth century history of colonial Trekboer society into the Karoo with a specific focus on the region to the north of the Roggeveld Mountains and west of the Nieuweveld Mountains. Of particular importance in this history is the change in land rights whereby title deeds and ownership were introduced by the British early in the nineteenth century. The distribution and chronology of title deeds are explored in this area of the Karoo using GIS to map and determine the chronological spread of deeded farms and possible links with environmental and ecological variability. While some correlations can be made under the assumption that better areas were claimed earlier in the nineteenth century other factors were also important. In particular the spread of Merino sheep, for wool production, from the Eastern Cape accounts for some of the geographic emphasis in title deed chronology, while technological innovations may underpin others. Furthermore, the thesis also examines the relationship between the title deeds and the distribution of corbelled buildings, a unique nineteenth century vernacular architecture associated with the Trekboer farmer.
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    Archaeological sensitivity model : a cultural resource management exercise
    (1999) Jakavula, Zukisani Vincent; Parkington, John
    The coastline of South Africa is used by diverse groups of people for a wide variety of reasons ranging from economic, scientific, social, and recreational. For the users to obtain optimum utility it is imperative that ways and means of developing the coast and its potential are put in place, in the face of rapid urban, industrial, and rural development. In the past the coast was an important place for human settlement, as it still is today. Past human settlement left traces that are now threatened by development. The fragile nature of these past settlements means that there is an urgent need to preserve these archaeological sites. Archaeologists and other conservationists recognise that development is a fact of life. Therefore in order to realise fully the potential of the coast a proper management plan for archaeological resources is needed. The management plan should be drafted with input from natural and social scientists, economists, technical experts, and communities that depend on the coastline for their livelihood. This will ensure that development is well planned, user conflicts resolved, and ecological damage minimised. The management plan for coastal archaeological resources will take into consideration the sensitiveness of the area and the potential for development. This project will be undertaken in consultation with professional archaeologists, the Department of Environmental Affairs, the National Monuments Council, biologists, geologists, local communities, town planners, architects, and other stakeholders. The objective here is to formulate a "red flagging" system that will alert the appropriate regulatory institution and therefore enable the institution to encourage development where it will do least harm to archaeological resources. The broad aim above is addressed by first documenting existing information on archaeological resources and current patterns of distribution which are then entered as overlays in a Geographical Information System model. The distribution maps of archaeological resources together with geological, geomorphological and vegetational GIS overlays are used to predict site distribution in unsearched areas in order to produce an Archaeological Sensitivity Model.
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    An archaeological study of the Zimbabwe culture capital of Khami, south-western Zimbabwe
    (2016) Mukwende, Tawanda; Chirikure, Shadreck; Hall, Simon
    This study sought to understand the archaeology of the Zimbabwe Culture capital of Khami through synchronic and diachronic analyses of its material culture. The research employed a number of methodological approaches that included a review of historic documents, surveying and mapping, excavations, museum collection analysis, and artefact studies, in order to collect datasets from various sections of the site, including the walled and the nonwalled areas. The main indication is that there is a great deal of similarity in material culture distribution across the whole site. An analysis of objects by stratigraphic sequence exposes continuity and change in local and imported objects. Dry stone-wall architectural data suggests that the site was constructed over a long period, with construction motivated by a number of expansionary factors. The study confirms that Khami began as a fully developed cultural unit, with no developmental trajectory recorded at Mapungubwe or Great Zimbabwe, where earlier ceramic units influenced later ones. Consequently, this study cautiously suggests that Khami represents a continuity with the Woolandale chiefdoms that settled in the south-western parts of the country and in the adjacent areas of Botswana. On the basis of the chronological and material culture evidence, Khami is unlikely to have emerged out of Great Zimbabwe. However, more research is needed to confirm these emergent conclusions, and to better understand the chronological and spatial relationships between not just Woolandale and Khami sites but also Khami and the multiple Khami-type sites scattered across southern Zambezia.
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    An archaeological, anthropological study of the human skeletal remains from the Oakhurst Rockshelter, George, Cape Province, Southern Africa
    (1989) Patrick, Mary Kennedy; Morris, Alan
    Osteological and dental analyses have been widely used to outline a graded response to nutritional and physiological stress in human bone. It is argued that agriculturalists and transitional agro/pastoralists are more stressed than the hunter gatherers who preceded t hem. This is evinced by mortality profiles, mean age at death and the number and extent of stressors observed in the skeleton such as enamel hypoplasiae, porotic hyperostosis and Harris lines. Agriculturalists and agro/pastoralists are thought to be more prone to these stressors as they relied heavily on root crops and cereals for their nutrients. This exposed them to periods of episodic starvation and physical stress. Hunter gatherers in comparison are thought to have subsisted on a relatively healthy diet, offering more and better quality protein and so reducing the incidence of episodic and general stress. An alternative to this diet-dependent hypothesis is suggested by the analysis of forty-six skeletal remains from the nonagricultural, marine-dependent population of Oakhurst from the South coast of southern Africa. Porotic hyperostosis and enamel hypoplasiae are just as common among these marine-dependent people as among transitional agro/pastoralists. These findings imply that both individual development and population growth rates at Oakhurst were interrupted episodically and generally, and that these interruptions were substantially more common than in living and recently extinct hunter gatherers and pastoralists in southern Africa.
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    Archaeology and archaeometallurgy in Limpopo province of South Africa: case studies of early iron age sites of Mutoti and Thomo
    (2021) Mathoho, Ndivhuho Eric; Chirikure, Shadreck
    Decades of archaeological research have established the chronology of the history of culture by farmers in northern South Africa from the beginning of the first millennium AD to the recent past (1900). This thesis sought to explore the archaeology and archaeometallurgy of the early inhabitants of the Lowveld region. Rigorous methodological and theoretical approaches, which include Ethno-Historical, archaeological and archaeometallurgical studies, were employed to acquire the relevant information required to address research problems. Ceramic typology and settlement pattern studies were used to establish the culture-history to contextualise Iron Age sites, while Optical Microscopy, X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (XRF) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) were used to investigate the metallurgical remains to understand metal production technology. Both Mutoti and Thomo sites share several similarities, namely, they are situated near the perennial streams, the presence of metal-production sites and the predominant pottery types, consisting of short and long neck vessels dominated by comb stamping, incision and punctate decorations on the rim, neck and shoulder of the vessels. Ceramic tradition analysis revealed that both Mut 2 and Thomo combine ceramic designs and attributes that appeared in the region near the beginning of the first Millennium AD, that is the Urewe and the Kalundu traditions. Garonga Phase tradition developed from the Urewe tradition which represent the first facie, represented by the Silver Leaves sites of the Kwale branch ceramic tradition which dates to AD 280- 420 and the Kalundu tradition (which starts from Happy Rest and progresses to Diamant - Phase 2) which dates from the sixth century AD, both traditions share distinctive ceramics styles and decoration attributes (Burrett, 2007; Huffman, 2007). The radiocarbon-based chronology suggests that Mut 2 and Thomo sites were occupied contemporaneously and dated to AD 650-850. Analysis of the distribution of materials objects across Mut 2 site revealed active participation in both local and international trade network (Soapstone and Islamic ceramics) operated at a village status. Some of the craft production related evidence include metal production, eggshell beads and cloth manufacturing. Metal production was regarded as signature of power and authority in Iron Age period (Herbert, 1996). More research may strengthen this observation.
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    Archaeology and Identity In the 19th Century Northern Cape Frontier: the Xhosa of the Pramberg
    (2013) Zachariou, Nicholas Alexander; Hall, Simon
    This dissertation examines the identity of the Xhosa communities that settled in the frontier zone of the Northern Cape during the first half of the 19th century. It does this through the archaeology, and ethnographic and historical accounts. The concept of a baseline Nguni identity in the Eastern Cape is examined with an emphasis on settlement, mobility and cultural interaction. The historical background and a brief history of the of the Xhosa in the Northern Cape will be detailed, focusing on the Pramberg community. The archaeology of three Xhosa sites in the Pramberg will be described and analysed, and then contrasted and compared with the ethnographic and historical evidence. The result of this comparison is a discussion of the identity change and continuity of the Pramberg Xhosa in the context of the cultural milieu of the frontier and the appropriation of land by the expanding Cape colony.
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    Archaeology and post-colonialism in South Africa : the theory, practice and politics of archaeology after apartheid
    (1998) Shepherd, Nick; Hall, Martin
    I take my lead from a paper by Bruce Trigger (1984) in which he divides the disciplinary field into three modes or forms of archaeology: a colonialist archaeology, a nationalist archaeology and an imperialist archaeology. He goes on to suggest (1990) that South African archaeology is the most colonialist archaeology of all. Trigger was writing at a point before the current political transformation in South Africa had emerged over the horizon of visibility. Writing somewhat later, and from the point of view of a Third World archaeologist, I ask: What would a post-colonial archaeology look like? In particular, what would it look like from the point of view of South Africa in the late 1990s?
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    The archaeology and technology of metal production in the Late Iron Age of the Southern Waterberg, Limpopo Province, South Africa
    (2013) Bandama, Foreman; Chirikure, Shadreck; Hall, Simon
    The inception of metallurgy in southern Africa was relatively late, compared to other regions in Africa, and as a result, this part of the sub-continent was mistakenly thought to have been less innovative during the Iron Age. On the contrary, dedicated materials analyses are showing that starting from the terminal first millennium AD, southern Africa is replete with innovations that include the growth of state systems, specialised long-distance trading, the re-melting of glass beads, the working of ivory, and the weaving of cotton using ceramic spindle whorls. Additionally, the appearance of gold and tin production, against a background of on-going iron and copper metallurgy, has been interpreted by some as intimating innovation in metal technology. While some research energy has been invested into these novelties, there has only been incidental concern with the innovation in tin and bronze production. This study investigates the context of this novelty in the metallurgy of the Southern Waterberg, an area that hosts one of the unequivocal cases of pre-colonial tin mining in southern Africa. Recent trace element studies have indicated that bronzes from several elite sites in the region, were produced using tin that was sourced from the Southern Waterberg. The current chronology from the Southern Waterberg does not capture the full tin sequence that is implicated by the trace-element analyses of tin and bronze from dated contexts elsewhere and falls short by at two centuries. To bridge this gap, the present study sought, to explore the visibility of tin production in the Southern Waterberg at sites that are contemporary with the appearance of tin and bronze in southern Africa, and to investigate how this innovation was integrated into on-going iron and copper production. Rigorous methodological and theoretical approaches that include ethno-historical, archaeological and archaeometallurgical studies were employed in order to glean relevant information required to address these issues. Ceramic typological and settlement pattern studies were used to establish the culture-historical context, while Optical Microscopy, X-ray Fluorescence Analysis and Scanning Electron Microscopy of metallurgical remains were used to identify the metals and techniques that were employed. Ceramic technological studies were used to establish relationships between the metallurgy and the ceramic typological identities. The results suggest that the Southern Waterberg may have participated in the innovation of tin production in southern Africa. More research may strengthen this observation but it is entirely appropriate, in view of several metallurgical and non-metallurgical innovations that were on-going in societies throughout the region at large. Researchers now need to engage more with innovations and actively explore the various novelties that southern Africa exhibited during the Iron Age.
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    The archaeology of Mapela Hill, South-Western Zimbabwe
    (2016) House, Michelle; Chirikure, Shadreck
    The Middle Iron Age in southern Africa has long been associated with the development of class distinction and state formation. However, most research focus has been on K2 and Mapungubwe in the Middle Limpopo Valley, the presumed first state capitals of the region. Mapela Hill is a site located outside the Middle Limpopo in south western Zimbabwe. Preliminary excavations at the summit of the hill by Peter Garlake in 1968 has resulted in archaeologists drawing contrasting conclusions about the position of the site in the development of complexity in the region. The problem is that we do not have sufficient evidence to support nor deny these theories. As a result of excavations from the foot of the hill to the hill summit, this study has used a combination of theories and analyses in order to classify the material cultural objects recovered at Mapela Hill. Ceramic studies have been used to identify the cultural groups which occupied the site, and tight radiocarbon dates were established, giving insight to the chronology of the site. The results showed that Mapela Hill was occupied by the same groups as at Mapungubwe Hill, contains vast revetment stone walling, successions of thick solid dhaka hut floors and an abundance of traded glass beads; attributes which collectively signify state formation in the region. The radiocarbon dates revealed that the site was occupied before, during and after the abandonment of Mapungubwe Hill. These results call for more research at relatively unknown sites in the region as a progression towards new frameworks for the development of state formation in the Shashe Limpopo confluence