The study of arthropod remains from archaeological contexts has the potential to reveal information about the past that may not necessarily be readily forthcoming from faunal, botanical or artefact analyses. Yet, in southern Africa the field of archaeoentomology is practically non-existent. Here, I explore the application of excitation (fluorescence) light microscopy to an experimental sample of crushed arthropod remains of 14 common species. It is shown that different lighting pathways can reveal valuable information about arthropod sclerites (pieces of their chitinous exoskeleton), and that ultraviolet light in particular is useful for distinguishing certain features, some of which appear to be taxon-specific, and hence helpful for identifying highly fragmented arthropod remains recovered from archaeological settings. Furthermore, excited light can be used effectively to distinguish arthropod remains from inert sediments and botanical fibres. While a lot of work remains to be done, not least of which includes the establishment of a useful arthropod reference collection and the scouring of sediment samples from excavated sites that have not had the benefit of an archaeoentomological assessment, I hope that this paper highlights the potential of excited light microscopy for arthropod identification and will stimulate further research on this topic.
Ntsuanatsatsi is important as an early place in southern Sotho history, as well as being the type site for Type N, the earliest yet recognised archaeological footprint of black farming communities on the Highveld south of the Vaal River. The original fieldwork, done in the 1960s saw Type N as reflecting an early stage of the spread of Sotho people onto the southern Highveld (essentially, the Free State and Lesotho). This interpretation has been challenged in the past two decades by several papers arguing that Type N represents a movement of Nguni people from KwaZulu-Natal. The repetition of this interpretation is leading to a new orthodoxy, which has already influenced the work of both archaeologists and historians. The current paper reviews the evidence for these two opposing interpretations and suggests lines for future research into the origins of the first farming communities of the southern Highveld.
Lovedale is the only open-air Middle Stone Age site in the Free State dated to early Marine Isotope Stage 4. Framing the chronology of this context, especially by taking into account diagenetic processes that may affect age results, is thus fundamental to understand modern human dynamics in the interior of South Africa. In a recent study, we investigated the effect of diagenesis on teeth samples collected for combined electron spin resonance and uranium-series dating at the site. By combining different characterisation methods, it was shown that the uranium (U) content of enamel varied in the specimens, and that it was positively correlated with the degree of crystallinity of carbonate hydroxyapatite, whereby larger amounts ofUare associated with highly crystalline enamel. The large variability inUcontent was in contrast with the fact that teeth were found in the same depositional context. High levels of U in some of the samples limit the accuracy of age determinations, since several uncertainties remain regarding U uptake and leaching, which both affect dose rate modelling. In such complex cases, calculating minimum ages is the most cautious option. Newsamples were collected at the site during the excavation campaign in 2021. Enamel was analysed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy coupled with cathodoluminescence in order to determine its degree of atomic order and the presence of foreign ions (especially U), and the correlation between the two. We discuss here the contribution of U-uptake modelling on the age calculation, and present new ESR ages calculated assuming an early uptake of U, ranging from 84 +/- 9 ka to 56 +/- 5 ka. Together with previous ages obtained on the gravel layer, a weighted mean age of 64 ka can be used as a minimum age estimate for the base of the sequence.
Redevelopment of a property in Elands Bay village revealed the buried remains of previously unknown shell middens. Although subsequent archaeological excavations recovered only a small sample, the ca 3000 cal BP assemblage adds meaningfully to the local cultural sequence. The shallow depth of the shell-supported lenses suggests single occupation events. A modest but noticeable amount of terrestrial and marine vertebrate remains of small prey was recovered, along with a few cultural artefacts. Much of the excavated volumes comprise marine shell, among which large-sized black mussels (Choromytilus meridionalis) are dominant. A limited number of limpets and a few Cape rock lobster (Jasus lalandii) mandibles also form part of the marine invertebrate assemblage. The choice of settlement close to the shoreline and a focus on black mussels reflect some of the hallmarks of sites dated to the beginning of the megamidden period. Beyond the interpretation of its contents, this rescued material increases the evidence of occupation behind the northern shore of Elands Bay and indicates that similar sites may lie buried beneath both the village and the adjacent dunes.
Hoekfontein is a Late Iron Age settlement in the Central Bankenveld of South Africa. Rescue excavations were undertaken at the site in 2002. The fauna indicates that livestock and wild animals are present in the sample. Cattle is the dominant taxon. This is also the case at other Late Iron Age settlements in the region, including mega-sites. The presence of expedient bone tools and worked freshwater mussel is similar to those found at other Late Iron Age sites.
The Modder River basin has been the focus of extensive surveys followed by targeted excavations of specific erosional gullies (known locally as dongas), where Middle and Later Stone Age artefacts and fossils are abundant. At Damvlei, a donga located on the left bank of the Modder, lithic artefacts and fossils were observed in the 1990s. Here, we present the results of two seasons of fieldwork (2019/21) at this locality, as well as unpublished surface faunal remains collected in 1995/96. Damvlei formed as a result of overbank deposition of the Modder River, as indicated by micromorphological analysis. The accumulation of the sedimentary sequence beneath the artefactbearing levels started at 27 +/- 3 ka at the earliest, based on optically stimulated luminescence dating. Artefacts, faunal remains, and phytoliths show that the site is characterised by Holocene Later Stone Age technology in an open-grassland environment typical of the terminal Florisian Land Mammal Age. Damvlei expands our knowledge of the Later Stone Age in the western Free State, and highlights the need for more extensive dating programmes aimed at framing human occupation in the central interior of South Africa.
Portuguese voyages of discovery in search of a route to India led further and further south along the coastline of Africa. The discovery of a sea route to the countries of South Asia, then generally referred to as the 'Indies', was a chief priority of the Kingdom of Portugal at the end of the Middle Ages. By the time of Henry the Navigator's death in 1460, the Portuguese had reached the Senegal River, and during the reign of King Afonso V the African, they travelled another 2000 miles, reaching the Gulf of Guinea and entering the southern hemisphere for the first time. Portuguese sailors initially marked the places discovered during pioneer expeditions with wooden crosses or inscriptions carved on trees. King Joao II decreed that these marks should be permanent and last for centuries. Diogo Cao was the first to carry these marker stones, called padroes. The three most successful Portuguese explorers set up a total of 11 padroes on the shores of Africa: Diogo Cao set up four, Bartolomeu Dias left three, and Vasco da Gama erected six padroes, but only four of them in Africa. In today's Namibia, near Luderitz, Bartolomeu Dias erected a stone padrao on St James Day in 1488. The padrao stood in place for 300 years before it fell over, probably at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. Fragments of the broken stone marker were taken as curios in the following decades and ended up in private and public collections. Systematic excavations were carried out in 1953, resulting in the discovery of 12 large and 180 tiny fragments of padrao. These padrao fragments are currently in the National Museum of Namibia inWindhoek. Previously taken pieces of padrao are in museums in Cape Town, Lisbon and Greenwich. A replica now stands in the place of the original padrao. This article traces the history of this padrao, the archaeological research conducted in 1953 and 1982, and considers its significance in its original sociopolitical context.
Interest in precolonial stone-walled structures in Mpumalanga began in the 19th century AD when European settlers and travellers encountered these stone-walled complexes. Since then these sites, which are associated with African farming communities, have been investigated using ground-based surveys and aircraft-based remote sensing, including LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging). Remote sensing using aerial photographs has been central to research in Bokoni since the 1970s. Through this, stone-walled structures of various shapes, sizes and functions have been identified. These include circular homesteads, agricultural terraces and stone-walled roads. This study employed machine learning - support vector machines (SVM) - to determine whether such structures can be automatically extracted from LiDAR data and classified using computerised techniques. In this paper, we present our innovative research on the use of machine learning applications for the detection of stone-walled structures in the Bokoni village of Khutwaneng, Thaba-Chweu, Mpumalanga Province. The results show that the total (overall) accuracy of the auto detection of stone-walled structures is 95% and the Kappa coefficient (K) accuracy is 91%, which is acceptable in terms of both overall and K accuracy. The object-oriented machine learning technique was found to have good classification accuracies for detecting stone-walled structures.
The relevant literature exposes a notable lag in the effective implemen-tation of decolonised approaches in South African heritage manage-ment. This article examines the degree to which the concepts of indigeneity and decoloniality can provide a framework for heritage management in South Africa using the Mapungubwe and Makgabeng cultural landscapes as case studies. Specifically, to what degree do such concepts have meaning to local communities, and how might they shape the involvement of communities in heritage management? Ethnographic methods, including in-depth interviews and focus group discussions (FGDs), were used to collect qualitative data from the two study areas. Participants included village elders (men and women), and heritage practitioners employed by SANParks and Blouberg Local Municipality. This study found that approaches shaped by indigeneity and decoloniality are not yet fully applied in the management of heritage. There are some thorny issues that may inhibit the effective implementation of these approaches, including the monetisation of heritage interest, conflict over landownership, political infighting, and alienation from heritage. This study also critiques the current level of participation allowed to 'indigenous communities' in heritage management in these two contexts. It emerged that there are conflicting perspectives between local partici-pants who feel excluded from decision-making in the management of heritage, and heritage managers who believe that their organisations have made remarkable progress to provide for such participation. Understandings of decoloniality and indigeneity are complex, and their application is not straightforward and still lagging in South African heritage management practice.
Hunter-gatherer rock art of South Africa is ubiquitous and has various themes including people, animals, therianthropes, and objects, such as musical instruments. Musical instruments or sound-producing instruments identified in South African rock art depictions so far include musical bows, flutes, rattles, and bullroarers. This article focuses on the possible depiction of a person playing a drum, from the farm Grootvlei 158 in the Cathcart district, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The depiction is not a new discovery, but little is known about the image. This article draws on a literature review and the SARADA repository, as well as other known drum depictions in rock art globally to consider whether this is a depiction of a drum. Ethnographic and historical sources have been consulted on the use of drums by southern African hunter-gatherers which suggest that drums were played for musical purposes, featured during rituals, and were used as a communication medium to relay messages or during ritual ceremonies.
