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Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa

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The recent excavation of Spitzkloof Rockshelter in Namaqualand, South Africa is part of a larger project called AMEMSA: Adaptations to Marginal Environments in the Middle Stone Age. This project is aimed at answering the questions: How, when and under what environmental conditions were so marginal environments permanently colonized during the Middle Stone Age? With over 1500 Later Stone Age, 90 Middle Stone Age and 50 Early Stone Age sites in Namaqualand, evidence of occupation from this southern extension of the Namib Desert has potential to inform on how people used economic, technological and social strategies to adapt to the stress of this environment. In order to address these questions, the shelter was recently excavated in order to establish a chronological, palaeoenvironmental, and archaeological record for the region. Following a biogeographic model to interpret the faunal remains from the bottommost layers Brian and Genevieve, the results reflect evidence for an arid to semi-arid and therefore hard environment: the subsistence strategy is broad for the region and consists of arid adapted species found on the landscape today. Non-local yellow silcrete suggests the potential for higher levels of mobility than found in later layers. The presence of gypsum and Trigonephrus sp. land snails suggests an arid environment that may have been slightly more humid than today. Future research will include increasing the sample size through continued excavation, while a rigorous radiometric dating program and geomorphology study will hopefully more precisely identify the time frame of this occupation.
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Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld,
South Africa
Genevieve Dewar
a
,
*
, Brian Stewart
b
a
Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Scarborough, 1265 Military Trail, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M1C 1A4
b
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge CB2 3ER, United Kingdom
article info
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Available online xxx
abstract
The recent excavation of Spitzkloof Rockshelter in Namaqualand, South Africa is part of a larger project
called AMEMSA: Adaptations to Marginal Environments in the Middle Stone Age. This project is aimed at
answering the questions: How, when and under what environmental conditions were so marginal
environments permanently colonized during the Middle Stone Age? With over 1500 Later Stone Age, 90
Middle Stone Age and 50 Early Stone Age sites in Namaqualand, evidence of occupation from this
southern extension of the Namib Desert has potential to inform on how people used economic, tech-
nological and social strategies to adapt to the stress of this environment. In order to address these
questions, the shelter was recently excavated in order to establish a chronological, palaeoenvironmental,
and archaeological record for the region. Following a biogeographic model to interpret the faunal
remains from the bottommost layers Brian and Genevieve, the results reect evidence for an arid to
semi-arid and therefore hard environment: the subsistence strategy is broad for the region and consists
of arid adapted species found on the landscape today. Non-local yellow silcrete suggests the potential for
higher levels of mobility than found in later layers. The presence of gypsum and Trigonephrus sp. land
snails suggests an arid environment that may have been slightly more humid than today. Future research
will include increasing the sample size through continued excavation, while a rigorous radiometric
dating program and geomorphology study will hopefully more precisely identify the time frame of this
occupation.
Ó2011 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
Recent discoveries of new fossils, genetics, and evidence for
behavioural innovations in Africa make it imperative to develop
testable hypotheses of human evolution, paleodemography,
behaviour and dispersals within varying ecological habitats.
Ongoing research has been hampered by the patchy distribution of
continuous, multi-disciplinary, high-resolution records for behav-
ioural and environmental changes over the past two million years.
While South African sites have produced evidence for symbolically
mediated and therefore modern behaviour, including the engraved
ochre and seashell beads from Blombos Cave (dErrico et al., 2005;
Henshilwood et al., 2001, 2002, 2004), engraved ochre from Klein
Kliphuis (Mackay and Welz, 2008) and engraved ostrich eggshell at
Diepkloof (Texier et al., 2010) the majority of this research has been
geographically focussed on regions with rich and predictable
resources, such as the Fynbos biome. While this is valuable, it only
adds to the patchiness of the overall data set, as most interpretations
of early modern behaviour will be based on a limited range of socio-
economic strategies. A project was initiated to explore diversity in
early modern human adaptations by studying archaeological and
paleoenvironmental data from a low productivity environment in
order to answer the questions: How and under what environmental
conditions were Pleistocene foragers rst able to colonize marginal
environments? What were the different subsistence, settlement,
technological and social strategies employed in order to cope with
marginal environments and what triggered colonization of these
environments in the rst place? Were the innovations required to
survive in these difcult regions developed elsewhere or were they
creative solutions established in situ? This project will test the
theory proposed by Clive Gamble (1994) that only behaviourally
modern humans were able to permanently colonize the worlds
most marginal ecozones: highland plateaux, tropical rainforests and
deserts. Gamble suggests that pre-sapiens exhibit an ebb and ow
pattern of occupation linked to climatic uctuations and only the
development of modern Homo sapiens resulted in the colonization of
the Arctic, rainforests and the deserts of Australia.
*Corresponding author. Fax: þ1 416 287 7283.
E-mail addresses: gdewar@utsc.utoronto.ca (G. Dewar), bas29@cam.ac.uk
(B. Stewart).
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Quaternary International
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/quaint
1040-6182/$ esee front matter Ó2011 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e10
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
In order to address these questions and test Gambles theory,
two very different marginal regions in southern Africa were
chosen: the highlands of Lesotho and the coastal semi-desert of
Namaqualand. Both regions have unpredictable resources, spatially
and/or temporally. This paper presents preliminary results from the
Middle Stone Age (MSA) layers of the excavation at Spitzkloof A
Rockshelter in Namaqualand, South Africa (Fig. 1).
1.1. Why study Namaqualand?
The semi-desert of Namaqualand is the southern extension of
the Namib Desert. Since the formation of the Namib seven to ten
million years ago, this coastal region has consistently maintained
its desert-like characteristics, uctuating between hyper-arid to
semi-arid (Eitel, 2005). Survey of the region conducted through
contract archaeology has identied more than 1500 Later Stone Age
(LSA), 90 Middle Stone Age (MSA) and 50 Early Stone Age (ESA)
sites (Webley et al., 1993; Halkett and Hart, 1997, 1998; Halkett,
2002, 2006; Halkett and Orton, 2005; Orton and Halkett, 2005;
Dewar and Jerardino, 2007; Halkett and Dewar, 2007; Dewar,
2008). On the Namibian side of the Orange River, Kinahan (1991)
and Kinahan and Kinahan (2006, 2003) have been studying the
LSA while Vogelsang (1998) and Wendt (1972) have focussed on the
MSA, particularly at the rockshelter Apollo 11. Apollo 11 has
produced some of the earliest evidence for representative art in
Africa with painted slabs dating to 27,500
14
C BP based on
associated charcoal remains (Wendt, 1972). As Apollo 11 is the
nearest excavated shelter (100 km) to Spitzkloof A, it provides
a data set with which the results from this study can be compared.
Other than contract archaeology, relatively little archaeological
research has been conducted in Namaqualand south of the Orange
River with only two academic projects focussing on the LSA
(Webley, 1992; Dewar, 2008). However, the survey data shows that
this marginal environment was occupied in the deep past, and
evidence of continuous occupation could suggest colonization
rather than visitation.
1.2. Hypothesis and theoretical approach
Following Smith (2005), Veth (2005), and Yellen (1977), the
results of this study are interpreted based on the hypothesis
proposed by the biogeographic model. This hypothesis states that
past marginal versus rich environments can be identied based on
specic patterns in the archaeological record. As marginal envi-
ronments are regions where by denition nutrients and water are
patchy and unpredictable in time and space, the number and
diversity of faunal and oral species will be low. Foragers should
thus be highly mobile and practice a generalist subsistence strategy
requiring exible social and technological organization. Territori-
ality should be loose if non-existent while social networking will be
an important mechanism for risk reduction. If the environment
were to ameliorate and produce a resource base of that is rich and
Fig. 1. Satellite photo of South Africa showing the location of Spitzkloof and Apollo 11 as well as other sites mentioned in the text, within southern Africa.
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e102
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
predictable, then species diversity should be high and foragers
could practice a focussed economic strategy requiring specialized
technology. Evidence for lower levels of mobility, increased terri-
toriality and less exible social organization are expected.
2. Regional setting
Spitzkloof A Rockshelter (28
51.79
0
S17
04.6527
0
E) (Fig. 1)is
located in the northern hinterland of Namaqualand, otherwise
known as the Richtersveld. The rockshelter is one of three
consecutive dome-shaped hollows (labelled AeC) eroded from
a folded outcrop of quartzite from the Stinkfontein subgroup
(Frimmel, 2003)(Fig. 2), overlooking quartzitic gravel plains.
Immediately in front of the shelters is a dry tributary of the Holgat
River. The site is 30 km inland from the Atlantic Ocean and 30 km
south of the Orange River. The landscape is desolate with the
coastal strip consisting of Holocene white sand dunes and older
Pleistocene red drift sands in the interior (Le Roux and Schelpe,
1981; Acocks, 1988). Drainage is westward into the Atlantic via
rivers that ow infrequently, today these ow once a decade at
most, unless there has been an uncharacteristic amount of rain. The
factor that denes this arid environment is precipitation. Rainfall is
variable and arrives primarily (>66%) in the austral winter months
inuenced by the westerly winds or the South Atlantic cyclone. The
average annual rainfall ranges from 150 mm in southern Nama-
qualand to less than 50 mm near the Orange River (Cowling and
Pierce, 1999). The paucity of precipitation is due to the cold Ben-
guela Current and upwelling of cold water from the Atlantic Ocean
oor, producing sea surface temperatures of 11
Ce17
C(Eitel,
2005). The cold water prevents moisture in the air from precipi-
tating out until it reaches mountainous terrain further inland. The
mean annual temperature measured for the entire Succulent Karoo
Biome is 16.8
C(Mucina et al., 2006). While in the immediate
vicinity of the site maximum temperatures exceed 30
C during the
summer while winter minimums are below freezing. Very hot and
dry Foehn or Berg winds can drive the daytime temperatures up to
40
C. The diversity of mammal and bird species is very low and
ora and fauna are arid adapted, typically obtaining hydration
through Malmokkiesor coastal fogs that extend to the edge of the
escarpment, up to 90 km inland. Dwarf succulent shrubs dominate
the vegetation (Acocks, 1988) while larger species such as Acacia
karroo are only found along the dry riverbeds including the tribu-
tary of the Holgat River.
2.1. Paleoenvironmental data
To date there is very little direct palaeoenvironmental data for
Namaqualand. Most palaeoecological models are based on data
from offshore cores near southern Namibia (cf. Shi et al., 2001;
Stuut et al., 2002) or from archaeological sites further south along
the west coast of South Africa (Meadows and Baxter, 1999;
Parkington et al., 2000; Chase and Meadows, 2007). For the Late
Pleistocene, studies of pollen, grain size variation in terrigenous
sediments (uvial activity), sea surface temperature, and trade
wind proxies suggest that during glacial periods the winter rainfall
zone experienced fairly wet conditions (Chase and Meadows,
2007). Interglacial periods respond by being arid relative to the
last glacial. During the Holocene, the diversity and richness of
micro-fauna at Spoeg River Cave in Namaqualand suggest a transi-
tion from a wet and cool Neoglacial to a warm and arid Medieval
Warm Epoch (Avery, 1992). Archaeological evidence from LSA
occupations of Namaqualand supports this data as there is little
evidence for human occupation during the warm mid-Holocene
altithermal or the Medieval Warm Epoch (Dewar, 2008), whereas
the region was well populated during the cool Neoglacial and Little
Ice Age. Water availability seems to be the primary constraint to
settlement in Namaqualand (Dewar, 2008).
3. Excavation of Spitzkloof A
The mouth of the shelter is 25 m long and 7 m deep from the drip
line, facing east on the west bank of the tributary (Fig. 3). Excavation
began in April 2010 by establishing a two-by-two m
2
grid near the
top of the deposit trying to avoid the remains of modern-day
camping res. Three square meters were excavated (Fig. 3)in
a step-like fashion, using standard archaeological methods. The
sediment was sieved through both 1 mm and 3 mm mesh in order to
collect the smallest artefacts. The artefactual material was sorted
and bagged on site. The deepest unit G3 was excavated to 1.7 m
(Fig. 4) without reaching bedrock. The sediment was homogenous in
colour with a break at 85 cm depth where it transitioned from grey
sandy silt in the upper levels to Pleistocene red sands in the lower
units (Table 1). Context changes were identied on the basis of
texture and inclusions. The site was excavated stratigraphically and
3 cm spits were used in thicker contexts. Bucket counts were
recorded to measure density. Standard 10 L buckets were used and
measured to the nearest 10th of a bucket. There were numerous
rockfall events and gypsum wasso abundant that the sediment from
many contexts was cemented. To date, excavation has encountered
nine layers consisting of twenty contexts and features. Artefacts
were consistently present throughout the deposit, although there is
variability in the density. Five micromorphology samples were
collected throughout the east prole of G3. The preliminary
impression based on artefact morphology and levels of fossilization
is that the grey layers represent the LSA while the red and orange
layers are from the MSA.
The preliminary results discussed in this report will focus on the
analysis of the faunal remains from the two bottommost layers
Brian and Genevieve in order to evaluate the data against the
biogeographic model to determine if the region was a marginal or
rich environment. The upper layers, which consist primarily of LSA
deposits, will be discussed in a subsequent report.
3.1. Stratigraphy
The sequence of the bottommost layers consists of layer Brian
overlying layer Genevieve (Fig. 4). Layer Brian consists of course
sandy silt with gritty pebbles and a Munsell chart colour of 7.5 YR
4/4 brown. This layer included nine spits as it encompassed a large
Fig. 2. Picture of the front of Spitzkloof Rockshelter showing the three hollow domes
and the tributary. The shelters are labelled upwards from A through C. The bakkie is
parked in the dry tributary.
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e10 3
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
rockfall (Fig. 4), for a total of 0.365 m
3
of deposit. Most spits were
rich in artefacts. Layer Genevieve is differentiated from Brian by
consisting of a much ner sandy silt with gritty pebbles and thin
at inclusions. The Munsell colour is 7.5 YR 5/6 strong brown and
includes another rockfall event (Fig. 4). A total of eight spits or
0.134 m
3
of deposit was excavated. This layer has a lower density
of artefacts. In both these layers the charcoal has degraded to
charcoal ecks but the bone is preserved and present down to
layer Genevieve spit three. Plotting the density of bone and ostrich
eggshell fragments as grams per bucket (BKT) for each spit (Fig. 5),
identies the uctuating frequency of artefacts. In layer Brian the
density of bone and ostrich eggshell in the upper spits is relatively
stable (Table 1) ranging from 15.8 to 19.5 g/BKT for bone with
ostrich eggshell following a similar pattern. In the lower portion of
layer Brian there is a dip and corresponding oscillation in the
density of artefacts with bone ranging widely from 6.9 to 27.2 g/
BKT. This pattern is associated with the rockfall where the volume
of sediment changes (Tab le 2). There is a similar pattern in artefact
density in layer Genevieve with ostrich eggshell and bone present,
though in smaller frequencies at the top of this layer, thereafter
reducing in density through to the bottom of the layer. This shift in
frequency is also associated with a rockfall event with varying
volumes of sediment (Tab le 2 ).
3.2. Dating
Two bone samples from Spitzkloof layers Mark and Genevieve
were sent to Beta Analytics Laboratories, but the collagen
component of each was too degraded to obtain radiocarbon dates.
Re-evaluation of the samples showed no evidence for leaching or
burning, thus the most parsimonious explanation for the protein
diagenesis is that the samples are greater than 20 ka (Beta Labo-
ratories pers. communication). Future excavation plans include
collecting in situ OSL samples, while various teeth and ostrich
Fig. 3. Drawing and image of the plan post-excavation of Spitzkloof Rockshelter facing west.
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e104
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
eggshell fragments are currently being identied for ESR and AMS
dating respectively.
4. Results and discussion of layers Brian and Genevieve
4.1. Lithics
While the lithics are still being analysed it is of interest to
mention an important eld observation. Local quartz is well rep-
resented throughout the sequence at Spitzkloof A, but an additional
raw material is present only in layer Genevieve: non-local yellow
silcrete. While they have not been analysed yet, very large akes and
blades made on this non-local yellow silcrete were identied during
excavation. Based on the limited selection of lithics currently at the
lab, the large yellow silcrete blades and akes were compared to
images of the assemblage from Apollo 11 and are most similar to the
early MSA/Komplex 4from layer 1 (Vogelsang, 1998). Recent
re-dating of the sediments at Apollo 11 did not produce an age for
this complex (Vogelsang et al., 2010), but it must be older than MIS 4
as this complex is found below the Still Bay layer dated to 71 3ka
(Jacobs et al., 2008; Vogelsang et al., 2010). Yellow silcrete quarry
sites and artefact scatters reecting both ESA and MSA components
have been indentied over 30 km away near the mouth of the
Orange River. These localities range from Port Nolloth in South
Africa (Dewar, 2008) through to the northern side of the mouth of
the Orange River in Namibia (Corvinus, 1983). This may suggest
Fig. 4. Prole of the east wall of unit G3 from Spitzkloof Rockshelter. The location of the micromorphology samples are also indicated.
Table 1
Description of layers at Spitzkloof A Rockshelter, South Africa. Layers are named after individuals who participated in the project.
Layer Contexts/features Munsell colour Description
Nick 1e4 2.5 YR 3/2 very dark greyish brown Sandy silt with angular pebbles and degraded quartzite
John 5, 5a & 5b 10 YR 3/2 very dark greyish brown Silty sand and degrading sandstone patches
Nadja 6, 7, 8, 9, 9a,
9b, 9c & 10
10 YR 4/2 dark greyish brown Sandy silt with sub angular pebbles and degraded quartzite
Jaird 11 & 12 10 YR 5/4 yellowish brown & 2.5 YR 4/2 dark greyish brown Fine sandy silt with degraded sandstone and quartzite
Dave 13 & 14 10 YR 4/2 dark greyish brown Fine sandy silt with pebbles and gypsum crystals
Mark 15 10 YR 3/2 very dark greyish brown & 10 YR 6/6 brownish yellow Coarse silt with small thin at inclusions
Julie 16 & 17a 10 YR 4/4 dark yellowish brown Fine sand with angular pebbles
Brian 18 & 19a 7.5 YR 4/4 brown Course sandy silt with gritty pebbles
Genevieve 20 7.5 YR 5/6 strong brown Fine sandy silt with gritty pebbles and thin at inclusions
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e10 5
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
a higher level of mobility than the overlaying layers that consist of
local quartz and local cryptocrystalline silicates (CCS) found on the
gravel plains and riverbeds in the immediate vicinity.
4.2. Bone and ostrich eggshell artefacts
There is only one bone artefact, a complete bone bead from layer
Genevieve (Fig. 6). It has a diameter of 4.2 mm with an aperture of
2.1 mm and a thickness of 1.5 mm. There are two burnt ostrich
eggshell bead preforms/rough outs from layer Brian (Fig. 6).
Following the classication scheme of Kandel and Conard (2005)
they are both stage 2 while following Orton (2008) they are at
pathway 2 stage 3a, modied but not yet drilled. One has a diam-
eter of 5.9 mm and a thickness of 2.0 mm, while the other is 7.3 mm
in diameter with a thickness of 1.6 mm. Of interest is one piece of
ostrich eggshell from layer Brian that has two holes that were
drilled from the internal side of the fragment. The apertures are
2.8 mm and 3.0 mm respectively. It is unclear whether they
represent practice attempts at making ask mouths, pendants or
even bead apertures. The uniform drill hole makes it clear that
these are not the result of carnivore activity (Kandel, 2004). Ten
fragments from Brian exhibit scratches on the external surface,
most likely due to post sedimentary processes (cf. Apollo 11,
Vogelsang, 1998: Fig. 52). Minimally, these artefacts suggest that
people were capable of making ornamentation but the small
sample size makes it unclear if these items were strictly personal or
were also used for social networking purposes.
4.3. Faunal assemblage
The faunal remains were identied to lowest possible taxon by
comparison with the African Mammal collection at the Royal
Ontario Museum. The bones are highly fragmented (Table 3) and
the majority consist of pieces of trabecular bone or shaft fragments
with no evidence of a medullary cavity or diagnostic muscle
markings. The sample that was identied was minimally classied
by size class following Brain (1981) and in some cases, they were
identied based on cortical thickness. The element, side, end, and
proportion was recorded following Klein and Cruz-Uribe (1984) to
maximize comparability with previously published MSA faunal
assemblages. Data was also collected following Marean et al. (2001)
using the long bone zones published by Abe et al. (2002). All
evidence of taphonomic activity was recorded. Heat alteration was
identied on the basis of colour changes such as yellow-red to
purple-red for scorched bone that has been exposed to res ranging
from 300 to 550
C; blue-black for charred bone exposed to
600e900
C; and white for calcined bone exposed to temperatures
>1000
C(Shipman et al., 1984; Johnson, 1989). Recording of
carnivore activity, percussion marks and cut marks followed
Blumenschine et al. (1996) while weathering followed
Behrensmeyer (1978). Root etching, acid etching, long bone frag-
mentation angle and shape were recorded (Abe et al., 2002). By
NISP small mammals (size class 1 and 2) and tortoises including the
angulate tortoise (Chersina angulata) and the Namaqua tent tortoise
(Psammobates tentorius trimeni) represents the bulk of the sample
at 58% and 38% respectively. Larger mammals (size class 3 and 4)
make up the remaining 4%.
4.3.1. Taxonomic abundance
In layer Brian 720 of 1911 bones were identied to size class or
better, representing 38% of the assemblage. There is a low diversity
of species (Table 4) but the list is actually afair representation of the
ungulates that are present on the landscape today. The assemblage
is dominated by small species and includes Bathyergus janetta,
Table 2
Density in grams per Bucket (BKT) of bone and ostrich eggshell (OES) by spit and
unit for layers Brian and Genevieve at Spitzkloof A Rockshelter. One BKT is 10 L.
Layer Squares Context Spit BKT OES
(g)
Bone
(g)
OES
(g/BKT)
Bone
(g/BKT)
Brian F3 & G3 18 1 3.2 42.2 62.4 13.19 19.50
Brian F3 & G3 18 2 3.2 28.0 54.4 8.75 17.00
Brian F3 & G3 18 3 4.7 48.8 82.6 10.38 17.57
Brian F3 & G3 19a 1 6.1 42.4 96.2 6.95 15.77
Brian F3 & G3 19a 2 4.6 16.4 31.6 3.57 6.87
Brian G3 19a 3 2.6 10.8 32.9 4.15 12.65
Brian G3 19a 4 1.6 0.8 24.5 0.5 15.31
Brian G3 19a 5 2.2 23.8 59.8 10.82 27.18
Brian G3 19a 6 3.0 9.8 48.9 3.27 16.30
Brian G3 19a 7 2.7 14.9 0.6 5.52 0.22
Brian G3 19a 8 2.6 12.4 8.4 4.77 3.23
Genevieve G3 20 1 2.6 10.8 31.9 4.15 12.27
Genevieve G3 20 2 2.0 3.7 19.4 1.85 9.70
Genevieve G3 20 3 2.4 0.1 1.1 0.04 0.46
Genevieve G3 20 4 2.3 0.1 0.0 0.04 0.00
Genevieve G3 20 5 2.5 0.1 0.0 0.04 0.00
Genevieve G3 20 6 1.6 0.1 0.1 0.06 0.06
Fig. 6. Burnt ostrich eggshell bead preforms from layer Brian and one bone bead from
layer Genevieve. The adhering material is gypsum cement.
Table 3
The fragmentation of the bone sample from layers Brian and Genevieve at Spitzkloof
A Rockshelter.
Layer Total bone Bone weight (g) Fragmentation
index (bones/g)
Range of length
of fragments (mm)
Brian 1911 502.3 3.8 2 to 35
Genevieve 164 52.4 3.1 7 to 20
Fig. 5. Chart showing the density of ostrich eggshell and bone in grams per bucket
(BKT) of excavated material. 1 BKT is 10L.
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e106
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Raphicerus campestris,Oreotragus oreotragus,Antidorcas marupialis,
Sylvicapra grimmia and two tortoises, C. angulata and P. tentorius
trimeni. Larger animals (size class 3 through 5) consist of Oryx
gazella and a single fragment of vertebra from a size class 4
mammal, but it is too degraded to positively identify. There are no
size class 5 individuals. Microfauna elements are present in the
sample as are the remains of a small and large snake and the land
snails Trigonephrus sp. However, as these species may have been
intrusive into the deposit they are not included in the subsistence
analysis. The proportion of small mammals, tortoises and large
mammals by NISP is 58%, 38% and 4% respectively.
In layer Genevieve, 90 of the 165 specimens were identied,
representing 54.2% of the assemblage. Based on the small sample
and lack of complete teeth, the majority of the fauna are identied
to size class (Table 4). The diversity of species is low and similar to
layer Brian. There are no carnivores and small animals dominate:
size class 1 bovid, size class 1 mammal, size class 2 mammal, two
micromammals, P. tentorius trimeni and unidentied tortoise. An O.
gazella represents the large animal assemblage. There are no size
class 4 or 5 individuals. The proportion of small mammals to
tortoises to large mammals by NISP is 61%, 35% and 4% respectively.
As there is no change in the proportion of large mammals
between layers Brian and Genevieve, a Chi-square test was used on
a two-way table to assess if the proportion of small mammals and
tortoises varied. The samples are statistically the same at the 95%
condence level (
c
2
¼0.207, df ¼1, p<0.05). This suggests that the
overall subsistence strategy was similar during the occupation of
both layers.
4.3.2. Small species
In layer Brian, a lumbar vertebra and a metapodial belonging to
a black backed jackal were identied, but these elements most
likely did not arrive at the site through the actions of hominins. This
is because the vertebra has evidence of carnivore gnawing. There is
a range of small ungulate species representing both the nearby
plains environment and the immediate rocky terrain.
The plains-loving steenbok, duiker, springbok and tortoises
would have been available a few hundred meters from the shelter
while the rock-loving Namaqua mole rat and klipspringer could
have been captured in the immediate vicinity of the shelter. The
sample size is small but when the plains-loving tortoises are
included there is a higher frequency of plains animals over rocky
species. Currently the sample size is too small to comment on
evidence for past processing or transport decisions that might have
affected the assemblage.
4.3.3. Tortoises
The tortoise sample is highly fragmented so that only 14% were
identied to species. By NISP angulate tortoise make up 63% of the
identied tortoise while the Namaqua tent tortoise represents the
remaining 27%. The third species of tortoise living in the region
today, the Namaqua speckled padloper (Homopus signatus sig-
natus), is clearly missing from the assemblage, as it is easy to
identify because it is the worlds smallest tortoise at six to ten cm in
length (Branch, 1998). As they like to forage on succulents in rocky
outcrops, perhaps the focus on plains hunting rather than on rocky
outcrops explains their absence. The tiny size of these animals
could also explain their absence. All tortoise bone was indentied
to element and included in the determination of MNI. While the
plastron and carapace elements are identiable between the three
species, the MNI happened to be based on long bones. There are
three Namaqua tent tortoises (based on left femora), three angulate
tortoises (based on right humeri) and two unidentied tortoises
(based on fragmented right humeri) in layer Brian and one
Namaqua tent tortoise in layer Genevieve.
4.3.4. Large species
There is one identied large ungulate species in both layers, the
plains-loving gemsbok, while a vertebra from layer Brian indicates
the ephemeral presence of a size class 4 mammal. Gemsbok is
a desert-adapted species living in the region today. The sample size
is too small to evaluate transport or butchery patterns associated
with the large species.
4.3.5. Accumulator
The assemblage is extensively fragmented with 3.8 fragments
per gram of bone in layer Brian and 3.1 in layer Genevieve (Table 3).
The sample of identied bone is dominated by long bone shaft
fragments while the elements that are identied to species are
primarily teeth and foot bones, easily identiable elements that
typically survive density mediated destruction. Their presence thus
reects their ability to withstand taphonomic processes rather than
purposeful selection by hominins (Marean and Frey, 1997; Marean
et al., 2004).
Before the accumulator of the assemblage can be determined
the effects of density mediated attrition need to be accounted for.
Using the long bone zones presented by Abe et al. (2002) and
following Thompson (2010) the proportion of dense mid shafts to
less dense epiphyseal ends of long bones is identied. Mid shafts
consist entirely of cortical bone and represent 76% of the long bone
shaft fragments with the near shaft ends (both proximal and distal
ends with some trabecular bone) accounting for 12%. The epiphyses
account for the other 12%. This pattern suggests that less dense
trabecular bone was preferentially destroyed, while cortical bone
survives.
One possible source of the destruction of epiphyses over mid
shaft fragments is carnivore activity, so all bone was observed for
evidence of carnivore modication. Only three elements in the
assemblage bear evidence of carnivore gnawing or puncture marks
including one juvenile black backed jackal caudal bone. While this
suggests there was at least minimal contribution to the deposit by
Table 4
Species list, Number of Identied Specimens (NISP) and Minimum Number of
Individuals (MNI) for the faunal remains from layers Brian and Genevieve at
Spitzkloof A Rockshelter.
Brian Genevieve
Species NISP MNI NISP MNI
Black backed Jackal Canis mesomelas 21
Steenbok Raphicerus campestris 21
Klipspringer Oreotragus oreotragus 11
Bovid size class 1 3 / 3 1
Duiker Sylvicapra grimmia 31
Springbok Antidorcas marsupialis 11
Bovid size class 2 14 /
Gemsbok Oryx gazella 11 1 1
Bovid size class 3 1 /
Namaqua Mole rat Bathyergus janetta 21
Mammal size class 1 240 / 41 1
Mammal size class 2 125 / 4 1
Mammal size class 3 27 / 1 /
Mammal size class 4 1 1
Micromammal 33 2 11 2
Mammal unidentied size class 19 / 23 /
Namaqua Tent Tortoise Psammobates
tentorius trimeni
14 3 1 1
Angulate Tortoise Chersina angulata 26 3
Tortoise 217 2 27 1
Large Snake 1 1
Small Snake 5 1
Land snails 2 2
Unidentiable fragments 1172 / 52 /
Total 1,911 23 165 8
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e10 7
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
carnivores during the occupation of layer Brian, they are not
a primary accumulator of bone in the assemblage. There is also no
evidence for rodent gnawing on the surface of bone, nor acid
etching from travelling through the digestive tract of either birdsof
prey or carnivores (Andrews, 1990; Lyman, 1994).
Evidence for human modication includes cut marks and
percussion notches on 0.6% of the identied bone and heat alteration
on 26% of the assemblage. The low incidence of visible modications
may be due to post-depositional breakage, which can depress the
original values (Marean et al., 2000). Additionally, some elements are
covered with a cement slip or exhibit exfoliation or pocking on the
surface, potentially masking evidence of modications. If elements
exhibiting evidence for post-depositional breakage (Abe et al., 2002)
and obscured surfaces are removed from the sample then the
frequency of modied elements greatly increases (Thompson, 2010).
One measure of post-depositional breakage evaluates long bone
fracture patterns with dry bone breaks identied by transverse or
irregular, right-angled breaks and fresh bone breaks with a curved or
V-shaped oblique angle (Villa and Mahieu, 1991). Of 473 long bone
fragments, 222 had at least one right angle break and a further 35
elements had obscured surfaces. Removing these bones shifts the
frequency of human modied bones to a modest 2.3%. The problem
with identifying cut marks is that if individual butchers are skilled
they will not leave any evidence on bone as they attempt to prevent
damaging sharp tools.
There is a difference in the frequency of post-depositional
breakage between layers Brian and Genevieve with 53% of the
long bone sample exhibiting right-angled dry breaks in layer Brian
and 73% in layer Genevieve. This is not expected as any activity
occurring during the deposition of layer Brian such as trampling,
occurred directly on top of layer Genevieve.
In every spit with bone, there is evidence for heat alteration due
to re. In natural res temperatures can reach high enough values
to carbonize bone but not calicine them (David, 1990), making it
possible to identify the taphonomic agent responsible for the
burning. According to Lyman (1994), bone placed in a hearth for
25 min will produce a pattern of 75.5% of the sample becoming
carbonized and 24.5% calcined. If the bone is left in the hearth for
up to 6 h, only 5% of the bone will be carbonized and the remaining
95% will be calcined. In layer Brian a total of 12 elements were
scorched (yellow-red to purple-red), while 465 bones were
carbonized and 24 were extensively calcined. This pattern ts most
readily with Lymans (1994) 25 min re. As all elements are thor-
oughly burnt this suggests the bone was placed in the re to clean
up refuse as opposed to the effects of cooking. Even roasting meat
will produce regions of bone that are not carbonized as they are
protected by esh. In layer Genevieve 27 bones are carbonized and
the lack of calcined bone suggests the possibility that these remains
were not burnt through human behaviour but naturally, for
example through a brush re.
Other taphonomic factors affecting the sample were limited and
found only in layer Brian with 0.5% of the total assemblage
producing evidence for stage 2 weathering with minor exposure to
solar radiation, atmospheric humidity or temperature causing the
surface of the bone to start aking (Behrensmeyer, 1978). Root
etching was identied on 0.3% of the identied assemblage and
thus indicates limited vegetation growth.
4.3.6. Ostrich eggshell
If the ostrich eggshell in the assemblage was brought to the site
for consumption, there is only one egg represented in each layer by
weight. The average weight of three complete and empty eggshells
from Namaqualand is 259 g (Dewar, 2008). In layer Brian there is
a total of 132.5 g of shell and in Genevieve there is 14.9 g of shell.
The eggshell sample also shows evidence for heat alteration
throughout the spits, with a similar pattern of heat exposure as
seen in the bone for both layers. In layer Brian 53% of shell frag-
ments are burnt with 32 scorched, 136 carbonized and 15 calcined
while 57% of the shell in Genevieve is simply carbonized. Gathering
ostrich eggshell was practiced but not at the same frequency or
level of importance as has been suggested for other MSA sites along
the west coast (cf. Klein et al., 2004).
4.3.7. Comparison with Apollo 11
The sample size is small but a chi-squared test identied a similar
economic strategy was used in both layers Brian and Genevieve. In
both data sets, there is no evidence for a focussed economy and the
majority of ungulate and tortoise species that are locally available
todayare present in the assemblage. When the sample size increases
to over 100 elements per species, Shannons Evenness/diversity index
can be utilized to mathematically determine the relative evenness of
species diversity at Spitzkloof A and compare that value with Apollo
11 and sites from rich biomes. The MSA faunal assemblage at Apollo
11 (Thackeray, 1979; Vogelsang et al., 2010) is also representative of
the ungulate species that are available on the landscape today.
Thackeray (1979: 31) concluded that low ungulate species diversity,
including fauna adapted to withstand arid conditions, reects an
environment with a relatively low carrying capacity. This suggests
that the economic strategies utilised were similar between sites and
were more likely broad rather than focussed.
There are also a few differences between the faunal assemblages
at Apollo 11 and Spitzkloof A. The rst difference is taxonomic
abundance with a range of birds, a warthog (Phacochoerus sp.) and
equids present only at Apollo 11 (Thackeray, 1979). Although the
sample size at Apollo 11 is much larger (w20,000 in Thackeray,
1979 and 4500 in Vogelsang et al., 2010) and these species may
appear once the sample size at Spitzkloof A is increased. The second
difference is the ratio of rock-loving species to plains-loving species
of ungulates at the two sites. The ratio of ungulates at Spitzkloof A is
2:4 in favour of plains-loving species and at Apollo 11 it is 3:2 in
favour of rock-loving species (Thackeray, 1979: Table 5b). Vogelsang
et al. (2010) and Thackeray (1979) concluded that the hunting
strategy at Apollo 11 centred on the rocky hills, while the species
present at Spitzkloof A suggest the plains were favoured. Thirdly,
there is a difference in the relative frequency of small mammals,
tortoises and large mammals (Table 5). For this evaluation only the
data from the recent re-excavation of Apollo 11 (Vogelsang et al.,
2010) was included. The original faunal analysis of the Apollo 11
excavations reported by Thackeray (1979) did not include NISP
values only estimated MNI values and thus the data could not be
compared. While small mammals and tortoises dominate the
assemblage at Spitzkloof A, the faunal assemblage at Apollo 11 has
more large mammals at the expense of tortoises. A Chi-squared test
conrms the samples are signicantly different at the 95% con-
dence level (
c
2
¼211.4, df ¼2, p<0.05). The difference between
the abundance of tortoises and large mammals is most likely based
on the previously identied hunting zones. In rocky regions, there
is a low incidence of nding larger tortoises but the larger
mammals such as equids are available. In plains regions, the
ungulates are smaller but there is a high incidence of opportunis-
tically discovering larger tortoises.
Table 5
Comparison of the distribution of small mammals, tortoises and large mammals by
NISP at Spitzkloof Rockshelter A and Apollo 11.
Spitzkloof A Apollo 11
a
Small mammals 441 (58%) 107 (61%)
Tortoises 285 (38%) 8 (5%)
Large mammals 32 (4%) 60 (34%)
a
Vogelsang et al., 2010.
G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e108
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Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
4.4. Environmental evidence
The presence of gypsum throughout the entire deposit indicates
that the occupation of Spitzkloof A occurred during arid to semi-
arid climatic conditions (Dregne, 1976; Middleton, 2003).
However, there is a relative reduction in the presence of gypsum
crystals or cementation in the layers Brian and Genevieve. Two
Trigonephrus sp. land snail shells were identied from layer Brian.
Trigonephrus sp. dune snails live in relatively dry Mediterranean
climates (Roberts and Brink, 2002) but are less xeric than other
similar taxa (Dallas et al., 1991) requiring at least minimal moisture
for survival. Trigonephrus sp. are known to bury themselves during
very dry periods, laying dormant until rainfall or lower surface
temperatures allow them to resurface (Dallas et al., 1991).
The species list consists of arid-adapted species that are found
on the landscape today. The lack of riverine species might indicate
an inability of the hunters to catch them or it may indicate that the
tributary was not owing. Root etching is visible on very few
elements indicating poor growing conditions for vegetation.
Together these environmental proxies suggest that layers Brian and
Genevieve were deposited in an arid to semi-arid environment,
which may have been slightly more humid than overlying deposits
experienced.
5. Conclusion
Using the biogeographical model to interpret the archaeological
signature at Spitzkloof A suggests that during the occupations of
layers Brian and Genevieve, the region was a marginal arid to semi-
arid environment, not unlike the environment today. This inter-
pretation of the paleoenvironment is based on numerous lines of
evidence including the presence of arid adapted species, gypsum
and Trigonephrus sp. shells. The economic strategy is seemingly
a general opportunistic use of the available ungulates with small
mammals and tortoises especially abundant. Hunting is focused on
the plains rather than the immediate vicinity of the shelter, which
in conjunction with the potentially non-local yellow silcrete
suggests high levels of mobility. While the lithic analysis is
underway, if this model holds, the lithics should reect a pattern of
aexible and informal technology. The bone bead indicates that
people were making ornamentation but the small sample size
makes it unclear if they are in situ or if there has been vertical
movement from upper layers. Hopefully the geomorphological
study of the micromorphology samples will clarify this issue. While
these layers were deposited when the region was a marginal
environment, it remains to be seen if these people were modern or
what time period this represents. Future excavations of the shelter
will provide much needed larger samples sizes, and the dating
program under way will hopefully be fruitful.
Acknowledgments
The Namaqualand component of the project AMEMSA: Adap-
tation to Marginal Environments in the Middle Stone Agewas
funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of
Canada grant number 410-2009-1148. We are grateful to the
members of the South African Heritage and Resources Authority for
our excavation and export permits. Thanks also to Mr. Cloete at the
Municipality of the Richtersveld for his assistance with gaining
access to the site and arranging a water tank so we could survive in
this hard environment during excavation. The excavation team
consisted of Mark McGranaghan, Nadia Oertelt, Jaird Dewar and
Julianne Hills, all of whom we gratefully acknowledge. Finally, we
would also like to especially acknowledge Dave Halkett and his
expertise in Namaqualand Archaeology, without whom none of this
could have happened.
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G. Dewar, B. Stewart / Quaternary International xxx (2011) 1e1010
Please cite this article in press as: Dewar, G., Stewart, B., Preliminary results of excavations at Spitzkloof Rockshelter, Richtersveld, South Africa,
Quaternary International (2011), doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.046
... S, 17° 4'39.16" E) is ~250 m northeast from the shelters Spitzkloof A and B, which contain archaeological materials dating to the Middle and Later Stone Ages (Dewar & Stewart 2012, 2016aDewar et al. 2023) and are eroded from a folded outcrop of quartzite from the Stinkfontein subgroup (Frimmel 2003). About 4 m in front of Spitzkloof D, and ~3 m below the shelter's mouth, is a dry tributary of the Holgat River (Fig. 2). ...
... The mountain zebra is a water obligate species, suggesting the region was more humid and that it supported grasses when occupied. While eland has not been positively identified in this valley before, mountain zebras were present at the end of the last glacial maximum (LGM ~17 kcal BP), another cool and wet period (Dewar & Stewart 2012, 2017Dewar et al. 2023). The presence of a single marine shell (C. ...
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This paper describes the first excavations of Spitzkloof D rockshelter located in the semi-arid desert of northern Namaqualand, South Africa. The site is in a dry river valley 30 km south of the Orange River, which currently acts as a lifeline for pastoralists with mixed sheep and goat herds. A surface survey of the site revealed pottery, lithics, domesticate remains, ostrich eggshell (OES) fragments and jewellery, glass beads and iron fragments. The stratigraphy is complex reflecting multiple occupations with six layers consisting of large hearths, ash deposits, and multiple pits, some with potential votive (faunal) offerings in their base. Faunal analysis reveals a broad subsistence strategy consisting of low-intensity sheep-keeping combined with the hunting of wild species found on the landscape today. The presence of Equus zebra, a locally extinct water obligate species, suggests occupation during a climatic period that was more humid than today. Radiocarbon dates from the upper layers confirm a Little Ice Age occupation between AD 1667-1936, when the region was cooler and wetter, and a peak in radiocarbon dates indicates a population pulse in the region. Glass trade beads, iron implements, OES beads, as well as fish remains and a limpet shell, potentially indicate that the people occupying Spitzkloof D were part of an extensive trade/interaction network. Future analysis will include increasing sample sizes through continued excavation, detailed lithic analysis, and further radiocarbon dating.
... Although some may have been used to produce jewelry, they were probably exploited for nutrition. At Spitzkloof the Ostrich eggshell assemblages total <200 grams, which is less than the weight of a complete ostrich egg (Dewar 2012 & Stewart). However, over 7 kg is present at Pockenbank and more than 3 kgs at Apollo 11 (Vogelsang 1998). ...
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Chapter
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In growing numbers, archeologists are specializing in the analysis of excavated animal bones as clues to the environment and behavior of ancient peoples. This pathbreaking work provides a detailed discussion of the outstanding issues and methods of bone studies that will interest zooarcheologists as well as paleontologists who focus on reconstructing ecologies from bones. Because large samples of bones from archeological sites require tedious and time-consuming analysis, the authors also offer a set of computer programs that will greatly simplify the bone specialist's job. After setting forth the interpretive framework that governs their use of numbers in faunal analysis, Richard G. Klein and Kathryn Cruz-Uribe survey various measures of taxonomic abundance, review methods for estimating the sex and age composition of a fossil species sample, and then give examples to show how these measures and sex/age profiles can provide useful information about the past. In the second part of their book, the authors present the computer programs used to calculate and analyze each numerical measure or count discussed in the earlier chapters. These elegant and original programs, written in BASIC, can easily be used by anyone with a microcomputer or with access to large mainframe computers.