Afromontane foragers of the Late Pleistocene: Site formation, chronology and occupational pulsing at Melikane Rockshelter, Lesotho

Stewart, Brian; Dewar, Genevieve; Morley, Mike W.; Inglis, Robyn; Wheeler, Mark; Jacobs, Zenobia; Roberts, Richard G.

doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.11.028

Cited by 82 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 113 publications

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“…Those industries often have blades, backed artefacts, large side-scrapers, unifacial points and bifacial points, the last sometimes with distinct hollow-based morphologies (Carter, 1978;Clark, 1999;Kaplan, 1990;Mohapi, 2013;Opperman, 1996;Stewart et al, 2012;Wadley, 2005). None of these artefacts are present in our excavated sample and none were noted on the surface of the site.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Putslaagte 1 (PL1), the Doring River, and the later Middle Stone Age in southern Africa's Winter Rainfall Zone

Mackay

Sumner

Jacobs

et al. 2014

Quaternary International

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Existing data suggest weak human occupation of southern Africa's Winter Rainfall Zone (WRZ) during later Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3, the causes of which are unknown. Here we report briefly on the results of recent surveys of alluvial terrace sites of the Doring River in the WRZ, which document occupation over a broad expanse of the later Middle Stone Age (MSA) and Pleistocene Later Stone Age. We then report on test excavations at one terrace site, denoted Putslaagte site 1 (PL1), describe in detail the assemblage of flaked stone artefacts produced from that excavation, and present two OSL ages obtained from 0.8 m to 1.5 m below surface. The results suggest that a) artefact accumulations at PL1 are dense, b) the technological systems documented are characteristically MSA but differ in form from the range of systems known from other excavated sites in the region, and c) that the assemblages accumulated in MIS 3. Taken together with the survey data the results introduce new variation into the later MSA in southern Africa, and imply reorganisation of land use in the WRZ in late MIS 3 rather than abandonment. We suggest that a research emphasis on rock shelter deposits may have produced misleading depictions of regional occupation. AbstractExisting data suggest weak human occupation of southern Africa's Winter Rainfall Zone (WRZ) during later Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3, the causes of which are unknown. Here we report briefly on the results of recent surveys of alluvial terrace sites of the Doring River in the WRZ, which document occupation over a broad expanse of the later Middle Stone Age (MSA) and Pleistocene Later Stone Age. We then report on test excavations at one terrace site, denoted Putslaagte site 1 (PL1), describe in detail the assemblage of flaked stone artefacts produced from that excavation, and present two OSL ages obtained from 0.8 m and 1.5 m below surface. The results suggest that a) artefact accumulations at PL1 are extremely dense, b) the technological systems documented are characteristically MSA but differ in form from the range of systems known from other excavated sites in the region, and c) that the assemblages accumulated in MIS 3. Taken together with the survey data the results introduce new variation into the later MSA in southern Africa, and imply reorganisation of land use in the WRZ in late MIS 3 rather than abandonment. We suggest that a research emphasis on rock shelter deposits may have produced misleading depictions of regional occupation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Putslaagte 1 (PL1), the Doring River, and the later Middle Stone Age in southern Africa's Winter Rainfall Zone

Mackay

Sumner

Jacobs

et al. 2014

Quaternary International

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“…This included further work on the timing and seasonal patterns of human occupation in the region, based on excavations at predominantly shelter sites 4,5,7,16,19,[43][44][45][46][47][48] and later work on open-air sites 9,50-53 . These studies have largely supported Carter's initial findings and interpretations, and have improved the resolution of detail.…”

Section: The Archaeological Recordmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The first is relatively arid conditions which would have forced people into the moist highlands in search of water, plants and animals. 4,48,53,54 The second is a shift to temperatures warm enough to support varied vegetation, with a consequent range of animals, and with limited snow cover 5,41,48,49 . Given the low capacity for improved warmth, settlement under more arid cold conditions could not have occurred at the highest altitudes, as temperatures would have been intolerably cold and would have prevented plant growth and deterred animals.…”

Section: The Archaeological Recordmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For many sites, periods of absence are greater than those of occupation. 7,41,47,48 For the highest altitude sites, such as Belleview, Moshebi's Shelter and Ha Soloja (Figure 1), occupation ceases during known periods of very cold conditions, most recently the LGM 16,47,50 . Occupation resumes during warm periods, as is most clearly noted for Likoaeng 16,47,50,52 .…”

Section: The Archaeological Recordmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…43,52 Consequently, there have been continued calls, and recent efforts made, to extract palaeobotanical climate proxiesincluding charcoal, faunal remains, phytoliths and stable isotopes -from material recovered at archaeological excavations in the region. 4,7,9,19,48,59 Palaeoenvironmental reconstructions Detailed continuous palaeoenvironmental records from Lesotho are limited. 3,5,7 For example, the only pollen reconstruction for the eastern Lesotho highlands 60 was sampled at poor resolution and lacks chronology, and no information on site location is provided.…”

Section: Volume 112 | Number 7/8mentioning

confidence: 99%

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multi-disciplinary review of late Quaternary palaeoclimates and environments for Lesotho

Fitchett¹,

Grab²,

Bamford³

et al. 2016

S. Afr. J. Sci.

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Lesotho provides a unique context for palaeoclimatic research. The small country is entirely landlocked by South Africa, yet has considerable variation in topography, climate, and associated vegetation over an approximate east-west transect. The region has been of archaeological interest for over a century, and hosts many Early to Late Stone Age sites with occupation preceding 80 000 years before present. The eastern Lesotho highlands are of interest to periglacial and glacial geomorphologists because of their well-preserved relict landforms and contentious evidence for permafrost and niche glaciation during the late Quaternary. However, continuous proxy records for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions for Lesotho are scarce and hampered by a range of methodological shortfalls. These challenges include uncertain ages, poor sampling resolution, and proxies extracted from archaeological excavations for which there may be bias in selection. Inferences on palaeoclimates are thus based predominantly on archaeological and palaeogeomorphological evidence for discrete periods during the late Quaternary. This review paper presents a more detailed multidisciplinary synthesis of late Quaternary conditions in Lesotho. We simultaneously considered the varying data that contribute to the under-studied palaeoenvironmental record for southern Africa. The collective palaeoenvironmental data for eastern Lesotho were shown to be relatively contradictory, with considerable variations in contemporaneous palaeoclimatic conditions within the study area. We argue that although methodological challenges may contribute to this variation, the marked changes in topography result in contrasting late Quaternary palaeoenvironments. Such environments are characterised by similar contrasting microclimates and niche ecologies as are witnessed in the contemporary landscape. These spatial variations within a relatively small landlocked country are of importance in understanding broader southern African palaeoenvironmental change.

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Environmental Controls on Human Dispersal and Adaptation

Parker¹,

Underdown²

2023

Handbook of Archaeological Sciences

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Afromontane foragers of the Late Pleistocene: Site formation, chronology and occupational pulsing at Melikane Rockshelter, Lesotho

Cited by 82 publications

References 113 publications

Putslaagte 1 (PL1), the Doring River, and the later Middle Stone Age in southern Africa's Winter Rainfall Zone

Putslaagte 1 (PL1), the Doring River, and the later Middle Stone Age in southern Africa's Winter Rainfall Zone

multi-disciplinary review of late Quaternary palaeoclimates and environments for Lesotho

Environmental Controls on Human Dispersal and Adaptation

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