The fish, the Shaman and the peregrination : San rock paintings of mormyrid fish as religious and social metaphors

Species-specific rock paintings of freshwater mormyrid fish in central and eastern Zimbabwe and the south-eastern mountains of South Africa are interpreted in terms of San shamanism. Elements of mormyrid appearance and physiology appear to have been foregrounded in order to more precisely nuance San perceptions of supernatural potency and extra-corporeal travel. Many of the south-eastern mountain ichthyoid paintings have not been widely accepted as representations of mormyrids because they do not correspond with the natural distribution of mormyrid fish. This discrepancy may be indicative of extensive forager social networks in eastern southern Africa during the late Holocene

Indigenous images of a colonial exotic : imaginings from Bushman southern Africa

Rock-art is a powerful and theoretically informed artefact that allows non-rock-art producing people an understanding of the worldview of the rock-artists. But the flow of information in such rock-art researches – ‘us’ observing ‘them’ via `their’ artefacts is often asymmetrical and can be disempowering to the rock-artproducing individuals and communities past and present. Fortunately, rock-art is also able to balance and even reverse this asymmetry. For example, there are certain ‘contact’ period Bushman rock engravings and rock paintings in southern Africa that were produced at and after the time of the colonisation of southern Africa by non-Bushmen. Some of the power relations between indigenes and colonists are made explicit in the form of rock-paintings and rock-engravings. Specifically, much of this rock-art shows how the Bushmen imagined and imaged the colonists

The magical arts of a raider nation : central South Afric's Korana rock art

Until recently, southern African rock art has been thought ‘San’ authored. But recent research reveals multiple rock art traditions. Khoekhoe herders produced finger-painted and rough-pecked geometric and ‘representational’ images. Europeans left quotidian names, dates and place markings. Bantu-speakers have initiation-related rock arts with recent political protest iterations. This diversity requires we use multiple sources of evidence to ascribe authorship, meaning and motivation. By paying attention to site preference, pigment, iconography, archaeology, ethnography and historiography another southern African rock art tradition is here identified. This rock art consists of red, white and orange finger and rough-brush painted humans, animals and aprons. A signature motif is the armed horse rider. There are also serpents, geometrics and paint smears. At three of 31 rock art sites recorded so far this rock art physically and conceptually interacts with San rock art. I suggest that this rock art is an 18th–19th century assemblage authored by ‘Korana’. Korana were !Kora-descended Khoekhoen into which other frontiers people insinuated themselves. Korana rock art speaks of political and militant concerns underpinned by a magical ‘occult economy’ and is an excellent case study of contingent identity formation

Aktivierende Archäologie: Kommentar zum Themenheft „Archäologie als Empowerment: Für wen und wie?"

We live in a paradoxical world in which humanity has accumulated more wealth than ever before – but we have distributed it less equitably than ever before (e.g., Christiansen and Jensen 2019). This is not a new insight. Most archaeologists, at least since the Processual – Post-Processual debates, acknowledge that they work within inequality. As Gabriel Moshenska (p. 49),1 quoting Collingwood puts it: “I know that all my life I have been engaged unawares in a political struggle, fighting against these things in the dark. Henceforth I shall fight in the daylight.” This quote nicely encapsulates the intent of this important Archaeology as Empowerment theme issue that marks the 10th anniversary of Forum Kritische Archäologie

Enclosing the Archaeological Commons?

What happens when we make gods out of ethical codes when conducting commercial archaeology

Taking stock : Identifying Khoekhoen herder rock art in Southern Africa

Recent archaeological research has identified a widespread southern African rock art tradition that materially affects the debate over what archaeology can tell us about prehistory in southern Africa. This tradition differs from the one attributed to the ancestors of today’s San in being dominated by rough-pecked and finger-painted geometric imagery. Using appearance, technique, age, geographic distribution, site preference, and relationship to known San-produced rock art, this article considers various candidates for its authorship—San foragers, Bantu-speaking farmers, Khoekhoen herders, European colonists, and multiethnic groupings— and concludes that it was predominantly Khoekhoen. The identity of the Khoekhoen, their origins, the route(s) by which they traveled, their relationship with foragers, and their material culture signature are contentious issues. The identification of a Khoekhoen rock art tradition provides another element for the study of the San-Khoekhoen relationship

The skeletal remains of Du Preezhoek, Pretoria, South Africa: a bioarchaeological investigation of a 19th-century pioneer family

The assessment of human skeletal remains can provide valuable insight into health and lifestyle of past populations. Skeletal remains of 11 individuals were exhumed, as part of a Heritage Impact Assessment, from the Du Preezhoek cemetery located on the western banks of the Apies River, next to the Old NZASM Bridge. The excavated cemetery dates to the latter half of the 19th century and contained the remains of early Pioneers. The aim of this study was to assess them for health indicators and also to try and establish their identity taking into account existing archaeological and archival data. Standard physical anthropological techniques were used to analyse these skeletons to determine their age, sex, ancestry, health, and diet. The remains consisted of three adult females, one adolescent individual of unknown sex between the age of 12-16 years, one child between the ages of 7-8 years, and six infants ranging between birth and 3 years of age. One of the adult females presented attributes associated with a mixed ancestry. Skeletal pathology observed included subperiosteal bone growth, Schmorl nodes on the lumbar vertebrae, and osteophytic lipping of the elbow and knee joints. Dental pathology included dental caries, dental calculus and enamel hypoplasia. The demographic and pathological information gathered through the physical anthropological analyses used in combination with archival sources, provided insight into these individuals’ lifestyles and a glimpse into pioneer life in 19th century Pretoria. The demographic profile suggested that this was a typical 19th century Pioneer family, possibly related to the Du Preez family. The presence of mixed ancestry is reflective of the early interaction of various South African populations, whereas pathological markers reveal some of the hardships associated with Pioneer life. The high death rate amongst infants along with the presence of enamel hypoplasia, subperiosteal bone growth, and high caries rates in adults is suggestive of a stressful lifestyle, possibly due to malnutrition and or disease. Degenerative pathology further reveals the strenuous physical activities engaged by early Pioneers on a daily basis. Overall the Du Preezhoek remains provides a glimpse into the life of one of Pretoria’s first Pioneer families.Poster presented at the University of Pretoria Health Sciences Faculty Day, August 2009, Pretoria, South Afric

Changing ecological concerns in rock-art subject matter of north Australia\u27s Keep River region

The Keep River region has a complex body of engraved and painted rock-art, distinct from but with links to regions to the east, west and south. At least four major periods of figurative rock-art have been identified with differing subject matters and ages. Significant changes in depictions of human figures and animals are evident, reflecting shifts in emphasis associated with ecological concerns and environmental change. We flesh out the relative rock-art chronology by highlighting these changes, from worlds dominated by humans to those dominated by mammals and birds, and finally to a recent world of reptiles and humans. Symbolic aspects of the imagery are also considered within a larger ecological approach