Heritage Cases

Since 2018, we have reopened the area where M. van der Ryst previously excavated the Later Stone Age (late Holocene) layers and we have started to excavate in the Pleistocene layers on a surface of two square meters. In parallel, we have reopened the test-trench dug by her team in the late 1990s to access stratigraphic profiles and to gain a refined understanding of sedimentary processes. The main goals of the multidisciplinary, field-orientated project at Olieboomspoort are to: (1) provide a chronological framework for the MSA layers; (2) clarify the stratigraphy and site formation processes; (3) technologically re-evaluate the lithic assemblage; and (4) test the site’s potential for organic preservation and associated palaeoenvironmental reconstructions. Our excavations have yielded abundant lithic and ochre pieces, alongside numerous faunal remains. A preliminary taxonomical appraisal of these fossil remains highlights the presence of various mammalian and reptilian taxa in the assemblage, including tortoises, snakes, leporids, small carnivores and several species of small to large ungulates. Taxonomic and anatomical identifications of the complete 2018-2019 faunal sample, including the material retrieved from the sieving refuse, need to be completed. A detailed taphonomic study is also required in order to explore the modalities of faunal assemblage accumulation, the role played by post-depositional processes, and to investigate the subsistence strategies of the MSA inhabitants of the shelter. The nearby presence of a river combined with a first geoarchaeological appraisal of the deposits suggest that water might have played a role in accumulating and/or disturbing the fossil material. In the case of a faunal assemblage primarily accumulated by humans as the result of butchery practices at the site, the faunal assemblage from Olieboomspoort constitutes a rare opportunity to document subsistence strategies in the interior of the southern African region, where such information is scarce. Finally, the faunal assemblage will serve as a proxy to document past habitats around the site during the Pleistocene, using both taxonomic composition and meso-wear analysis of ungulate teeth. The Master project aims at: -(1) identifying the origin of the faunal remains in the assemblage (anthropogenic versus other biotic agents, notably carnivores); -(2) evaluating the role played by water transport, abrasion and sorting in the accumulation and post-depositional modification of the faunal assemblage; -(3) documenting human butchery practices and animal exploitation patterns.