Foragers downstream of Mapungubwe : the cultural sequence and chronology of Skirbeek Shelter, South Africa
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Date
Authors
Forssman, Tim
Antonites, Alexander
Ashley, Ceri Z.
Pentz, Justin
Scott, Karin
Woodborne, Stephan M.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Routledge
Abstract
In recent decades, interest in the Later Stone Age of the Mapungubwe region has increased. Here, we present the results of an investigation from a shelter downstream from Mapungubwe called Skirbeek. The shelter is in a sandstone koppie (tor) adjacent to another that was occupied in the 19th century a.d. by a Venda community. Radiocarbon results show three primary occupation phases in the mid-Holocene, final millennium b.c., and mid–late 2nd millennium a.d. The most intensely occupied phase was before ca. a.d. 750 prior to the arrival of herders, possibly, and farmers. There are several continuities and other discontinuities between these periods. Quartz dominates assemblages in each period, as do small end scrapers, but artifact and faunal frequencies vary. We compare these findings to those made in the Mapungubwe region and argue that Skirbeek represents a similar Later Stone Age phase. More generally, it appears largely consistent with Wilton assemblages defined in South Africa’s Cape zone rather than the Amadzimba and Bambata (or Ceramic Matopan) Industries found in Zimbabwe.
Description
Keywords
Later Stone Age, Stone tools, Ceramics, Foragers, Holocene archaeology, Wilton Industry, Southern Africa
Sustainable Development Goals
None
Citation
Tim Forssman, Alexander Antonites, Ceri Ashley, Justin Pentz, Karin Scott
& Stephan Woodborne (29 Oct 2024): Foragers Downstream of Mapungubwe: the Cultural Sequence and Chronology of Skirbeek Shelter, South Africa, Journal of Field Archaeology, DOI: 10.1080/00934690.2024.2411648.