Heritage Cases

The proposed archaeological fieldwork at Mooifontein will form part of a larger project focused on the study and analysis of material culture concerning early Trek-farmer sites located in the north-eastern Cape and southern Free State. Mooifontein has been identified as one such site and additional complementary sites will be identified through on-going survey work in the area. Collectively these sites contain a material culture sequence from the early 19th century to the mid-20th century and will serve as comparative data with other farming sites such as Welkomskraal, which I studied for my Masters dissertation, Bulhoek, a trek-farmer site in the district of Steynsburg, and Leeuspruit, a trek-farmer site in the Rouxville district. The Trek-farmer research is currently registered as a research project at the National Museum, Bloemfontein and will evolve into a Ph.D. thesis. The proposed fieldwork will focus on the middens, specifically the surface collection of midden material, as well as excavations in the identified middens. The site will also be mapped to determine the layout of the farm to gain a complete picture of the cultural landscape. Collection of the material from the middens will not only help to protect this heritage in a professional manner, but the analysis of the recovered material will also provide a better understanding of the political-economy of this site, as well as other related Trek-farmer sites.