Geoarchaeology at Gi, a middle stone age and later stone age site in the Northwest Kalahari

Helgren, David M.; Brooks, Alison S.

doi:10.1016/0305-4403(83)90051-1

Cited by 67 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…1 and 2c). Excavated in the 1970s (Brooks and Yellen, 1977;Brooks, 1978;Helgren and Brooks, 1983), ≠Gi was the first Stone Age site in Botswana to be thoroughly investigated and subsequently dated (Brooks et al, 1990). Although over 100 m² were excavated, this is estimated to be less than 20% of the total area of the site (Helgren and Brooks, 1983).…”

Section: Corner Cavementioning

confidence: 99%

“…3c) and MSA (units 4-5) layers and an intermediate industry. Importantly, the upper MSA layer was capped by a 20-60 cm thick limestone unit (Helgren and Brooks, 1983), sufficiently indurated to require a pneumatic breaker drill during excavation (Kuman, 1989). This supports strongly the integrity of the divide between the MSA and LSA assemblages.…”

Section: Corner Cavementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast to the Tsodilo Hills sites, the ≠Gi point assemblage was generally highly curated and commonly exhibited evidence of resharpening or recycling (Helgren and Brooks, 1983;Kuman, 1989). This behaviour complies with predictive models for high transport costs, but here is evident on artefacts produced chiefly in presumably local raw material.…”

Section: Raw Materials Transport As Part Of Lithic Production Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Going the distance: Mapping mobility in the Kalahari Desert during the Middle Stone Age through multi-site geochemical provenancing of silcrete artefacts

Nash

Coulson

Staurset

et al. 2016

Journal of Human Evolution

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This study utilises geochemical provenancing of silcrete raw materials, in combination with chaîne opératoire analyses, to explore lithic procurement and behavioural patterns in the northern Kalahari Desert during the Middle Stone Age (MSA). New data from the sites of Rhino Cave, Corner Cave, and ≠Gi in northwest Botswana, combined with earlier results from White Paintings Shelter, reveal that the long distance transport of silcrete for stone tool manufacture was a repeated and extensively used behaviour in this region. Silcrete was imported over distances of up to 295 km to all four sites, from locations along the Boteti River and around Lake Ngami. Significantly, closer known sources of silcrete of equivalent quality were largely bypassed. Silcrete artefacts were transported at various stages of production (as partially and fully prepared cores, blanks, and finished tools) and, with the exception of ≠Gi, in large volumes. The import occurred despite the abundance of locally available raw materials, which were also used to manufacture the same tool types. On the basis of regional palaeoenvironmental data, the timing of the majority of silcrete import from the Boteti River and Lake Ngami is constrained to regionally drier periods of the MSA. The results of our investigation challenge key assumptions underlying predictive models of human mobility that use distance-decay curves and drop-off rates. MSA peoples in the Kalahari appear to have been more mobile than anticipated, and repeatedly made costly choices with regard to both raw material selection and items to be transported. We conclude that (i) base transport cost has been overemphasised as a restrictive factor in predictive models, and (ii) factors such as source availability and preference, raw material quality, and potential sociocultural influences significantly shaped prehistoric landscape use choices.3

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Section: Corner Cavementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Corner Cavementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Raw Materials Transport As Part Of Lithic Production Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Going the distance: Mapping mobility in the Kalahari Desert during the Middle Stone Age through multi-site geochemical provenancing of silcrete artefacts

Nash

Coulson

Staurset

et al. 2016

Journal of Human Evolution

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“…Open-air 77 000±11 000 (TL) (Brooks et al 1990:62) Mainly non-local Minor Hunting site (Brooks et al 1990;Brooks et al 2006;Brooks and Yellen 1977;Helgren and Brooks 1983;Kuman 1989) Hwange National Park (Armstrong 1929(Armstrong , 1931Jones 1940 (Cooke 1950(Cooke , 1955(Cooke , 1957(Cooke , 1959Jones and Summers 1946;Summers 1955) Twin Rivers…”

Section: Other Comparative Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Untitled

2011

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Rhino Cave, located at the World Heritage site of Tsodilo Hills, is one of the three main Middle Stone Age (MSA) sites in Botswana. Initial investigations during the mid-1990s left unanswered a number of key questions regarding the early use of the cave. This prompted the current investigations, which have unearthed a wealth of MSA artifacts from a lag deposit. Results of a selectively employed chaîne opératoire analysis have revealed a very special set of behavioral patterns. It will be argued that the best-fit interpretation of the results from this investigation lies within the realm of ritualized behavior. The assemblage is characterized by an unexpectedly large number of MSA points, which are for the most part produced in non-locally acquired raw materials. These points are colorful, carefully and often elaborately made, and, once complete, never left the cave. They were either deliberately burned to the point where they could no longer be used, abandoned, or intentionally smashed. These artifacts were found together with tabular grinding slabs and pieces of the locally available pigment, specularite. This assemblage was recovered directly beneath a massive, virtually free-standing rock face that has been carved with hundreds of cupules of varying sizes and shapes. A section of the carved rock face was recovered from well within the MSA deposits in association with handheld grinding stones. INTRODUCTIONI t has been proposed that "collective ritual -with its formal characteristic of amplified, stereotypical, redundant display -might be expected to leave a loud archaeological signature" (Watts 2009: 62). According to a number of researchers (e.g., Knight 2009;Knight 2010;Power 1999Power , 2009Power and Aiello 1997;Watts 1999Watts , 2002Watts , 2009) the archaeological record of ochre use, dating from the late Middle Pleistocene, provides such a signature. Symbolism, a crucial feature of ritual behavior, has been central to the debate on behavioral modernity. . However, one area of investigation that could potentially reveal patterns of ritual behavior has received minimal attention within African MSA studies. This is the application of the chaîne opératoire. Results from this method identify sequences of conscious choices made by the original artifact makers. The combined results of these individual sequences can provide insight into behavior patterns which are indicative of broader culturally determined traits and norms. By applying this methodological approach to a site that contains unusual or atypical MSA features, it can identify other 'loud archaeological signatures'.As noted by McBrearty (2003: 514) "one of the most difficult tasks for the prehistorian is to identify the emergence of novel behaviors." The authors suggest that a set of novel behavioral patterns is a most apt description for the results that have emerged from a recent test excavation at Rhino Cave, located within the World Heritage site of Tsodilo Hills, Botswana. This site was initially excavated in the mid-1990s (Robbins et al...

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“…2011) [81]. The occupation deposit is undated, but it has been suggested to be of similar age as the nearby Gi site (Helgren & Brooks 1983;Brooks et al 1990) [112,64], whose assemblage is between 65 and 85 ka old. Another site in northwestern Botswana, Corner Cave, also features cupules linked to an MSA occupation predating 50 ka (Walker 2008(Walker , 2010; cf.…”

Section: Middle Stone Age (Msa)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Pleistocene Palaeoart of Africa

Bednarik¹

2013

Arts

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This comprehensive review of all currently known Pleistocene rock art of Africa shows that the majority of sites are located in the continent's south, but that the petroglyphs at some of them are of exceptionally great antiquity. Much the same applies to portable palaeoart of Africa. The current record is clearly one of paucity of evidence, in contrast to some other continents. Nevertheless, an initial synthesis is attempted, and some preliminary comparisons with the other continents are attempted. Certain parallels with the existing record of southern Asia are defined.

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Geoarchaeology at Gi, a middle stone age and later stone age site in the Northwest Kalahari

Cited by 67 publications

References 7 publications

Going the distance: Mapping mobility in the Kalahari Desert during the Middle Stone Age through multi-site geochemical provenancing of silcrete artefacts

Going the distance: Mapping mobility in the Kalahari Desert during the Middle Stone Age through multi-site geochemical provenancing of silcrete artefacts

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Pleistocene Palaeoart of Africa

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