Skip navigation
Skip navigation

Two Holocene rock shelter deposits from the Knersvlakte, southern Namaqualand, South Africa

Orton, Jayson; Klein, Richard G.; Mackay, Alexander; Schwortz, Steve; Steele, Teresa

Description

This paper describes the first excavations into two Holocene Later Stone Age (LSA) deposits in southern Namaqualand. The limestone shelters afforded excellent preservation, and the LSA sites contained material similar in many respects to shelters in the Cederberg range to the south. Deposition at both sites was discontinuous with a mid-Holocene pulse in Buzz Shelter followed by contact-period deposits over a total depth of some 0.45 m. In Reception Shelter the 1.40 m deposit yielded a basal age...[Show more]

dc.contributor.authorOrton, Jayson
dc.contributor.authorKlein, Richard G.
dc.contributor.authorMackay, Alexander
dc.contributor.authorSchwortz, Steve
dc.contributor.authorSteele, Teresa
dc.date.accessioned2015-12-07T22:15:03Z
dc.identifier.issn1681-5564
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1885/17726
dc.description.abstractThis paper describes the first excavations into two Holocene Later Stone Age (LSA) deposits in southern Namaqualand. The limestone shelters afforded excellent preservation, and the LSA sites contained material similar in many respects to shelters in the Cederberg range to the south. Deposition at both sites was discontinuous with a mid-Holocene pulse in Buzz Shelter followed by contact-period deposits over a total depth of some 0.45 m. In Reception Shelter the 1.40 m deposit yielded a basal age in the fifth to eighth centuries BC with pottery and domestic cow contained within a strong pulse of occupation just above this. The deposit then reflects another significant pulse in the terminal Holocene. A basal age of c. 24 000 BC suggests Pleistocene occupation of the area. Significant observations at both sites are that ostrich eggshell beads remain relatively small throughout, although those at Reception Shelter are somewhat larger, and that the typical prehistoric signature continued right through the contact period. Artefacts ascribed to a late Holocene industry so far only recognised on coastal sites were also found.
dc.publisherNatal Museum Council
dc.sourceSouthern African Humanities
dc.subjectKeywords: Beads; Bedding and ash; Contact period; Holocene; Later Stone Age; Namaqualand; Organic artefacts; Stone artefacts
dc.titleTwo Holocene rock shelter deposits from the Knersvlakte, southern Namaqualand, South Africa
dc.typeJournal article
local.description.notesImported from ARIES
local.identifier.citationvolume23
dc.date.issued2011
local.identifier.absfor210103 - Archaeology of Asia, Africa and the Americas
local.identifier.ariespublicationu4486421xPUB2
local.type.statusPublished Version
local.contributor.affiliationOrton, Jayson, University of Capetown
local.contributor.affiliationKlein, Richard G., Stanford University
local.contributor.affiliationMackay, Alexander, College of Arts and Social Sciences, ANU
local.contributor.affiliationSchwortz, Steve, University of California, Davis
local.contributor.affiliationSteele, Teresa, University of California, Davis
local.description.embargo2037-12-31
local.bibliographicCitation.startpage109
local.bibliographicCitation.lastpage150
local.identifier.absseo970121 - Expanding Knowledge in History and Archaeology
dc.date.updated2020-12-20T07:32:49Z
local.identifier.scopusID2-s2.0-84858185655
local.identifier.thomsonID000299392200006
CollectionsANU Research Publications

Download

File Description SizeFormat Image
01_Orton_Two_Holocene_rock_shelter_2011.pdf3.9 MBAdobe PDFThumbnail


Items in Open Research are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.

Updated:  17 November 2022/ Responsible Officer:  University Librarian/ Page Contact:  Library Systems & Web Coordinator