A microcontextual investigation of combustion features from Middle Stone Age sites in South Africa
Final Report Abstract
The Middle Stone Age (MSA) of southern Africa, spanning from ca. 250,000 to 30,000 years ago, has over the past several decades played a key role in our understanding of human behavioral evolution. Excavations at MSA sites contain evidence for some of the earliest symbolic expression, in the form of engraved objects and shell beads, and early technological advances. Many of the sites are located in caves and rockshelters where the sediments consist of finely-laminated deposits of ashes, charcoal and other debris associated with fires and human occupation. In this project we aimed to use geoarchaeology- or the application of geological concepts and methods to answer archaeological questions-to study these deposits. We focused largely on developing microscopic techniques to characterize the formation of these deposits and how they were preserved or altered over time. By taking this approach, we were able to treat the sediments as artifacts in their own right, and interpret past actions and behaviors carried out by the occupants at these sites. We originally started the project at two sites, Diepkloof and Sibudu, but soon expanded the project to include other important sites across South Africa. As such, we were able to conduct a regional study of anthropogenic sediments associated with the MSA. Our results showed that some of the deposits were impacted by chemical alteration and that prior to interpreting the archaeological significance of the sediments, we must first understand how natural processes have influenced the preservation of these deposits. By relating the formation of these deposits to human actions, we were able to show that the way that the sites were used over time changed over the duration of occupations and these changes were often related to how frequently or intensively these groups of hunter-gatherers used and maintained the sites. The shifts in intensity of use of the sites sometimes appear to be related more to cultural factors, whereas others suggested that environmental change likely played a role.
Publications
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2014. The distribution of authigenic minerals in the Middle Stone Age deposits of Sibudu (South Africa), and implications for the preservation of archaeological features. In European Society for the Study of Human Evolution, 4th Annual Meeting, Florence, Italy
Mentzer, S.M., Miller, C.E., Kloos, P., Wadley, L. and Conard, N.J.
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2015. A previously undescribed organic residue sheds light on heat treatment in the Middle Stone Age. Journal of human evolution, 85, pp. 22-34
Schmidt, P., Porraz, G., Bellot-Gurlet, L., February, E., Ligouis, B., Paris, C., Texier, P.J., Parkington, J.E., Miller, C.E., Nickel, K.G. and Conard, N.J.
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(2016). Site-formation processes at Elands bay cave, South Africa. Southern African Humanities, 29(1), pp. 69-128
Miller, C.E., Berthold, C., Mentzer, S.M., Leach, P., Ligouis, B., Tribolo, C., Parkington, J. and Porraz, G.
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(2017). Heat-induced alteration of glauconitic minerals in the Middle Stone Age levels of Blombos Cave, South Africa: implications for evaluating site structure and burning events. Journal of Archaeological Science 86, 81-100
Haaland, M.M., Friesem, D.E., Miller, C.E., Henshilwood, C.S.
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(2017). Recognizing fire in the Palaeolithic archaeological record. Current Anthropology 58, S175-S190
Goldberg, P., Miller, C.E., Mentzer, S.M.
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(2019). Cooked starchy food in hearths ca. 120 kya and 65 kya (MIS 5e and MIS 4) from Klasies River Cave, South Africa. Journal of human evolution, 131, pp. 210-227
Larbey, C., Mentzer, S.M., Ligouis, B., Wurz, S. and Jones, M.K.
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2019. Documenting archaeological thin sections in high‐resolution: A comparison of methods and discussion of applications. Geoarchaeology, 34(1), pp. 100-114
Haaland, M.M., Czechowski, M., Carpentier, F., Lejay, M. and Vandermeulen, B.
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(2020). Hidden in plain sight: A microanalytical study of a Middle Stone Age ochre piece trapped inside a micromorphological block sample. Geoarchaeology
Haaland, M.M., Strauss, A.M., Velliky, E.C., Mentzer, S.M., Miller, C.E., van Niekerk, K.L. and Henshilwood, C.S.
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(2021). Geoarchaeological investigation of occupation deposits in Blombos Cave in South Africa indicate changes in site use and settlement dynamics in the southern Cape during MIS 5b-4. Quaternary Research, 100, pp. 170-223
Haaland, M.M., Miller, C.E., Unhammer, O.F., Reynard, J.P., van Niekerk, K.L., Ligouis, B., Mentzer, S.M. and Henshilwood, C.S.
