The faunal remains from the Makgabeng plateau, Limpopo Province
Date
2009-07-28T13:30:31Z
Authors
Holt, Sharon
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Abstract
The faunal remains from five sites in the Makgabeng plateau, Limpopo Province were
examined. Many of these shelters contain rock paintings of sheep and the occupations
span the later Holocene, which is the period during which livestock and ceramics
would have been introduced to this area. Was there a gradual change to herding in the
Makgabeng or was a herding way of life introduced abruptly, along with new material
culture indicative of the arrival of immigrants? Or did livestock herding in fact come
much later, with the Iron Age? Examination of the faunal remains will allow us to see
if there were any changes in the hunting strategies of the occupants through time.
Initially, it was hoped that livestock remains would be found among the faunal sample
that could shed light on the question of how, when and by whom livestock was
brought into this area. Some of the sites in the Makgabeng can be described as
dispersal phase sites while others are seen as aggregation phase site. Two of the
sites are situated in one drainage basin while two other ones are in another
drainage basin. It is possible that we are looking at two different groups of
people in two different areas of the Makgabeng. Of these groups, one or the
other may have had more access to livestock. But the faunal remains do not
shed conclusive evidence on any herder occupation at any of the sites
examined.