Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorParkington, Johnen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorHallinan, Emily Sarahen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2014-08-20T14:31:27Z
dc.date.available2014-08-20T14:31:27Z
dc.date.issued2013en_ZA
dc.description.abstractThis thesis investigates changing patterns of landscape use throughout the Earlier (ESA), Middle (MSA) and Later Stone Ages (LSA) in the Olifants River Valley in the Western Cape, South Africa. Stone Age surface assemblages are all too often neglected in favour of stratified, datable cave sequences, overlooking important insights into changing behavioural patterns at a broader scale. The Olifants River Valley offers the opportunity for integrating a rich surface lithic record with excavated rock shelter occupation dating from the LSA and extending back into the early part of the MSA. This thesis approaches Stone Age landscape use with reference to a hypothesis proposed by Hilary Deacon, framing the MSA within the context of earlier and later patterns of behaviour. Based on observations from sites across South Africa, Deacon described ESA landscape use as stenotopic, occupying a narrow ecological niche focused on permanent water sources, and LSA landscape use as eurytopic, making use of a much broader range of habitats but with a specific focus on rock shelters as domestic sites. Deacon suggested that the intervening MSA, in its later stages, shows a pattern that anticipated LSA landscape use, with an increasing emphasis on caves and a wider-ranging exploitation of resources across different environmental zones. Surface surveys were carried out in the Olifants River Valley, mapping temporally diagnostic artefacts and their association with different topographic features. In this thesis, I test Deacon's model and show that it can be applied to the study area, observing distinctive preferences for certain sites and raw materials, and approaching changes in patterns of artefact discard from a technological perspective.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationHallinan, E. S. (2013). <i>Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Archaeology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6605en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationHallinan, Emily Sarah. <i>"Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Archaeology, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6605en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationHallinan, E. 2013. Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Hallinan, Emily Sarah AB - This thesis investigates changing patterns of landscape use throughout the Earlier (ESA), Middle (MSA) and Later Stone Ages (LSA) in the Olifants River Valley in the Western Cape, South Africa. Stone Age surface assemblages are all too often neglected in favour of stratified, datable cave sequences, overlooking important insights into changing behavioural patterns at a broader scale. The Olifants River Valley offers the opportunity for integrating a rich surface lithic record with excavated rock shelter occupation dating from the LSA and extending back into the early part of the MSA. This thesis approaches Stone Age landscape use with reference to a hypothesis proposed by Hilary Deacon, framing the MSA within the context of earlier and later patterns of behaviour. Based on observations from sites across South Africa, Deacon described ESA landscape use as stenotopic, occupying a narrow ecological niche focused on permanent water sources, and LSA landscape use as eurytopic, making use of a much broader range of habitats but with a specific focus on rock shelters as domestic sites. Deacon suggested that the intervening MSA, in its later stages, shows a pattern that anticipated LSA landscape use, with an increasing emphasis on caves and a wider-ranging exploitation of resources across different environmental zones. Surface surveys were carried out in the Olifants River Valley, mapping temporally diagnostic artefacts and their association with different topographic features. In this thesis, I test Deacon's model and show that it can be applied to the study area, observing distinctive preferences for certain sites and raw materials, and approaching changes in patterns of artefact discard from a technological perspective. DA - 2013 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2013 T1 - Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape TI - Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6605 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/6605
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationHallinan ES. Stone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Cape. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Archaeology, 2013 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6605en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Archaeologyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.titleStone age landscape use in the Olifants River Valley, Western Capeen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMPhilen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
thesis_sci_2013_halllinan_emily.pdf
Size:
24.16 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
Collections
Masters