ANNALS

OF THE

SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM

VOLUME XXXVJII.

1.—The Bored Stones of South Africa. By A. J. H. Goopwin, M.A.,

F.R.S.S.Afr., University of Cape Town, and Hon. Keeper of

Ethnology in South African Museum.

(With 9 Text-figures and 16 Maps.)

(MS. received June 1944.)

PART I—GENERAL PRINCIPLES AND METHOD.

Ir is our intention to discuss the prehistoric and protohistoric examples

of the bored stones of the Union, area by area, and type by type. In

undertaking such a task it is essential to remember that the material

of such a survey is useless in itself: it has value only as a source of

legitimate deduction. It is obvious that we are dealing with a great

mass of undigested evidence, of a series of superposed and, in some

cases, completely independent cultural movements, into whose history

we are attempting to gain an insight.

Our evidence is bad. The very abundance of our material has

made us careless in the collection of data. Where stratigraphy has

been present it has been ignored, and in many instances no attempt

has been made to give or to record the exact localities of our finds.

Whatever results we may achieve here can only be regarded as

tentative and incomplete: a framework into which new material

can be built, permitting clearer, more precise deduction. Data are

here limited to the Union, though I had hoped to extend the field

further. The chances of discovery outside the Union are slight, and

only isolated areas have been searched. The distances between

specimen and specimen are too great to permit of legitimate deduction,

and the numbers of examples are too small to be of use at present.

It is most sincerely to be hoped that a similar study will be extended

to the Rhodesias, while the raw material for such a survey in the

Belgian Congo has already been collected and published.

VOL. XXXVII, PART I. 1

SEP 2 0 1947

2 Annals of the South African Museum.

INTRODUCTORY.

Of all the stone implements so abundantly found in South Africa,

the bored stone or “‘!kwe”* has attracted the most widespread

interest. The reasons for this popular interest are not far to seek.

They are the most easily recognizable implements of the Later Stone

Age, and the most widespread. Their symmetry, the trouble taken

in boring the central hole, its obvious artificial origin; the surprise

that so simple a people could have created so artistically simple a

form; and the abundance of material on superficial sites, have all

caused examples to be collected and kept by the finders as door-stops,

manger-weights, or paper-weights. They are frequently sent to

museums with the minimum of information, either singly or in bulk.

No knowledge of provenance, associations or the type of deposit is

available for over half the specimens. In some cases this is the

fault of the collector, in others the museum assistants are to blame,

more especially in the early days when cataloguing and marking were

done by minor assistants with no knowledge of the subject.

The bored stone is sufficiently widespread to need some sort of

explanation as a phenomenon, and numbers of legends have accumu-

lated regarding their use. Many of these are complete fabrications,

and it is essential to note that the Huropean is by no means the worst

offender. Native informants have gladly provided farmers and

archaeologists with invented theories, and quite as happily support

these by personal reminiscences. Some of these legends will be dealt

with as they arise.

As a result of all this, and owing to casual generalisations on the

part of those who should have known better, numerous inaccuracies

have been published. There is scarcely a single adequate description

in any scientific paper, and a thorough resurvey is therefore essential.

It was partly to have some factual basis for future generalisations

concerning size, shape, and distribution that I started collecting data

some twenty years ago. Other intentions were to provide a frame-

work into which local discoveries could be fitted, to discover if any

certain relationship existed between the bored stones and Later

Stone Age cultures, either locally or generally, to discover the limits

of tribal hunting areas, and to plot migrations. It was intended to

provide a general survey of distribution and association. This failed

at the time through lack of exact data accompanying the bored

stones.

* See Peringuey, Annals of the 8. Afr. Mus., vol. viii, 1911, p. 107.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 3

The present work consists of the digestion of a great quantity of

data, made available to me through the kindness of various museums

and private collectors. The work began in 1923, as a small part of

the vast amount of checking, measuring, comparison, and typological

and distributional study which led me to formulate the existing stone

implement classification. The work entailed has already been

cursorily dealt with elsewhere,* and need hardly be laboured here.

Independent field work by Col. Hardy, Dr. Hewitt, Dr. Heese,

Professor van Riet Lowe, myself and others, has borne out that the

so-called !kwe or !kibi (terms applied by Stow and other writers to

all forms of bored stone) are variously associable in southern Africa

with Smithfield, Wilton, coastal midden, and Bantu sites. The

insistent Bantu tradition in the Transvaal shows that they were used

in earlier days as make-weights for digging sticks (subsequently stated

to have been hoes, on the statement of an old male) by the women

of several tribes, notably the BaTlokwa under the chieftainess

MaNtatatisi. There the matter rested, except for a general accumula-

tion of proof of a somewhat similar nature which added to the list

of names of Transvaal Bantu tribes using bored stones. Engelbrecht

in his study of the Korana states that bored stones were used for

digging by that Hottentot tribe, the only satisfactory reference we |

have to their use by this people,t though the Bushman use of the

bored stone is well and consistently authenticated by early travellers

and explorers.

In 1926 this survey was dropped, after a considerable number of

measurements had been accumulated. When the war broke out, and

military duties hmited my ability to continue work in the field, I was

inspired by Major Oliver H. Myers (a name well known in Egyptian

archaeology) to take up the survey once again. My results are here

published completely for the first time, though a cyclostyled {

Preliminary Survey, in four parts, was published during 1942. In

the Preliminary Survey the known figures were listed, and an initial

attempt was made to formulate some of the theories dealt with more

* A. J. H. Goodwin, Man, 1927, Art. 14; also in Africa, vol. ii, 1929, pp. 174

et seq.

t Sir Langham Dale refers in an early publication to the use of bored stones

as digging-stick stones and as weapons of war by the Hottentots at Wupperthal,

and regrets the absence of further evidence.

t Goodwin, A. J. H., A Preliminary Survey of the Bored Stones of South Africa.

Published by the School of African Studies, the University of Cape Town. Cape

Town, 1942.

4. Annals of the South African Museum.

fully in the present paper. At that time no attempt was made to

discuss the migrations of the prehistoric types. The present publica-

tion therefore includes much material not previously published, and

in addition gives deductions and theories not given elsewhere.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES.

As this is the first full chorological survey attempted in South

Africa, it would be well to outline the general principles of our methods

as an aid to future workers. I here employ a fundamentally statistical

approach, which provides an ethnological tool as certain as that of

geology in the earlier prehistoric field, and of far greater importance

in the later phases of man’s history. Work of this nature should be

limited by certain strict rules. It depends fundamentally upon

deductions or logical judgments, made from available data, while

speculation (probability suggested by an insufficiency of available

data) must not be permitted to affect the main issues of the survey.

It may be cited as a fruitful field for future study.*

1. A survey should confine itself to strictly comparable data, in |

this case the bored stones of South Africa.

2. All available material and exact data should be obtained,

analysed, and employed without suppression. In South Africa only

one important source of material has been debarred from me, and all

available sources have been employed.

3. A fundamental basis for comparison should be sought, and in

the present work a few simple measurements are used.

4. A simple technique for analysis should be employed. Here I

have used the map and the centimetre graph paper. These represent

‘the study of dispersal and the analysis into localized types.

5. While the cultural uses of an element of culture should be

defined, these are not essentials to the validity of the survey. The

obvious failure in the present paper to differentiate absolutely and

precisely between such uses as digging-stones, knob-kerrie heads, etc.,

is admitted, but this does not affect the fundamental facts of

distribution.

6. Extraneous factors should be eliminated. Such points as the

exact petrology and attribution of types of stone are regarded as

unimportant to the survey. '

7. Local environment must be constantly studied, and the deduc-

tions made from distributional statistics measured against this highly

* See A. J. H. Goodwin, ‘“‘ Method in Prehistory,” S. Afr. Arch. Soc.

Handbook I, 1946, chap. xiii.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 4)

important ethnological factor. The intention here is to deduce the

geographical areas of attraction, migrational routes, and the natural

barriers confining them.

8. The study of attracters, barriers, and migration routes has a

local and a general application. It is local in that it defines our

specific routes and areas for future exact ethnological study, and

general in so far as it augments our knowledge of the fundamental

laws governing man’s movements and concentrations.

9. All reasonable deductions regarding the race, culture, mode of

life, etc., of the users should be employed. Where deduction is not

possible, probabilities may be stated as speculations worthy of

consideration, but must not be permitted to affect the major issues of

the survey. A clear distinction between deduction and speculation

must be observed.

10. Any general theories based upon the material must be

sufficiently inclusive to cover about nine-tenths of the available data,

about one-tenth being permitted for anomalous types and personal

peculiarities.

11. Speculations based upon casual study, even of large numbers

of single instances over a period of time, are extremely dangerous,

misleading, andincorrect. They belong to the realm of popular fancy.

Types and Ethnology.

Though the figures given in this study are divided into three main

groups—Prehistoric, Bantu, and Tlokwa—there are in reality four

series. The first two may be regarded as acceptable. The third is

slightly more speculative; the fourth is highly speculative at present,

but further evidence may provide convincing proof.

1. Prehistoric Series: Going back into the Later Stone Age, and

apparently not preceding that general era. These stones can be

associated with certainty at various sites with one or more of the

following elements: Smithfield B, C, N; Wilton; Coastal Middens;

Pottery; Rock-paintings; Petroglyphs. Apart from definite associa-

tion, they are generally associated, in that they appear with high

frequency from surface sites where those elements occur, or in the

immediate neighbourhood. Association is only specifically mentioned

in cases where it is certain. General association is mentioned in the

prefatory note preceding each area. Hxact association has proved to

be disappointingly rare.

2. Bantu Series: Belonging to the nineteenth century, and perhaps

the eighteenth, and demonstrably in use by a cattle-keeping people

6 Annals of the South African Museum.

(by reason of distribution) who practised agriculture and employed

the typically Mediterranean technique of terracing. There may or

may not be a direct association between the bored stone and proto-

historic gold working, but terracing provides an indubitable link

between the two complexes.

3. The Mantatees * drive into the Upper Molopo-Groenwater area:

This is historical, and the association of bored stones with the Tlokwa

of the period has similar historical backing. A slight element of

speculation enters here, not sufficient to condemn all the specimens,

but perhaps enough to raise doubts as to certain individual allocations

(p. 175).

4, The Mantatees refugee period: After their disastrous battle

with the Griquas near Litako and Kuruman, we know from various

sources that the Tlokwa refugees were scattered throughout the Cape

of Good Hope. We also know that bored stones of the large type

associable elsewhere with the Bantu are scattered over the same area.

Association is highly speculative, and for that reason the examples

are left in their places within the cadre of prehistoric series, and —

are not separated out.

General Typology.

In discussing the distribution of types it behoves us to consider

the value of the distributional method as applicable specifically to

the field of prehistory, employing the present material as an example.

The evidence at our disposal goes to show that the position is a

complicated one. In examining the “Bored Stones” we are not

dealing with a single cultural element, nor are we dealing with a

technique employed by a single cultural group. We are not even

dealing with a single period. To elucidate the position let me augment

the categories given earlier (Prehistoric, Bantu, Tlokwa) by discussing

the bored stone from the viewpoint of probable usage. The

arrangement is by size. “

i. The Bantu digging-stones, used by the women agriculturists

of the Eastern Transvaal, and carried by them through Kurechane,

Litako, and Kuruman, and, presumably, down the Groenwater valley

and across the Cape Province.

il. The prehistoric digging-stone, unassociated with agriculture,

* BaTlokwa and other tribes under the chieftainess MaNtatisi. The form

Makatees is also commonly used at the Cape for these people. “‘Tlokwa” would

only represent the nuclear tribe in this great migration which will be discussed in

detail later (p. 202).

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 7

and used by women food-collectors, of the general “‘Bushman”’

peoples of South Africa. It is vouched for as a Bushman tool, is

frequently depicted in paintings, and was in use until late in the

last century. The terms /kwe and /kibi are often applied to it in

local literature of the period.

iii. The stone-headed club represented in paintings. The Hotten-

tot (7) term kirt (presumably cognate with /kibi) seems to have been

generally applied to this weapon and its wooden derivative by the

early settlers, whence the Afrikaans knopkierte and the English

knobkerry or knobkirt. This weapon may well have been adopted by

the men of any of the South African tribes—Bantu, Hottentot, or

Bushman. It is obviously a man’s weapon. In this group we can

tentatively include the “‘macehead,” generally pyriform and carefully

tooled, deeply bored from one face only.

iv. Stone dagga-pipes for smoking hemp (Cannabis sativa). These

are historically late, having been introduced with hemp by the East

Coast Arabs probably from the Sofala region through Bantu tribes

on the Zambesi, from whence it spread northwards (e.g. to the Ba-

Shilange on the Lulua-Kasai) and southwards to the Sotho-Tswana

people in the Union. We may regard these as masculine, for amongst

most peoples the use of strong narcotics and stimulants is permitted

exclusively (or more generously) to the male.

v. The pebble disc, common only in certain areas, usually within

easy reach of the coast, where flat beach pebbles are easily available.

This is presumably a variant of the digging-stone, a woman’s tool.

The inland discs in contrast are generally of shale or some analogous

material.

vi. The edged disc and stone “‘arm-ring,”’ the former patently a

stage in the making of the latter. The term ‘“‘arm-ring” has been

questioned elsewhere.* If it is an ornament it is presumably male

(see Appendix II).

vu. A further type that may be watched for is the “ring”; a

small stone, with an index between 40 per cent. and 60 per cent., in

which the mouth of the bore exceeds the height of the stone. These

are products of the technique of boring, and obviously reflect the use

of a coarse drill or pecker. Even this slight variation may be cultural.

Mainly confined to the South Coast and the Cape.

vill. ““Stone beads,” bored stones less than 3 cm. in diameter, of

* Goodwin, A. J. H., ‘‘Edged Discs and Armrings,”’ S. Afr. J. Sci., 1943, vol. xl,

pp. 296-302.

8 Annals of the South African Museum.

which relatively few are represented here. These are certainly Bantu

in most instances.

ix. Elongated types. In general we have to presume that the

elongated examples are variants of the circular. There is, as yet,

no means by which we can link the two series with certainty, and here

again we must not lose sight of the possibility that we are dealing

with a separate cultural spread, quite unrelated to some or all of the

above.

Finally it must be remembered that we are dealing with implements

in three stages of manufacture: incompletely bored, completely bored,

and with the finished aperture enlarged by intensive usage. This

last will be dealt with further under the Use of Metal Tools.

Manufacture.

It is first essential to discuss briefly the method by which these

stones were bored and shaped. In general the technique seems to

have been everywhere the same, though variants will be noted.

A suitable pebble was taken, and the piercing process was begun by

pecking a hollow in the two opposing faces. This was done with a

stone pecker, an instrument shaped by use, and found on most rich

sites. In form it consists merely of an obtuse-angled natural or

shaped stone drill, blunted and battered by usage. Numbers of

discards occur at this stage. Some partly bored stones seem to have

been cast aside for no particular reason, others have broken as the

result of too hard a blow.

Once these two cup-shaped hollows met in the centre of the stone,

the resulting aperture would be enlarged by means of a stone reamer

or rimer. A long natural or shaped stone would be used, and would

be inserted and rotated by hand until the hole was large enough.

This rimer eventually developed a phallus-like form as a natural result

of usage (fig. 1).

These two stages (pecking and reaming) provided the simplest form

of bored stone, but in many cases further action was taken to shape

the stone more nearly to the maker’s fancy. In perhaps the majority

of cases the outer surface of the stone has been battered to shape, by

careful pitting over the whole surface by a laborious crumbling process.

This is apparently true only in the Prehistoric Series, and the process

is absent or rare among Bantu examples. It is also possible that

finished stones were sometimes polished over the whole surface, and

specimens with a black smoky polish are fairly frequent, though this

The Bored Stones of ‘South Africa. 9

==> =e

fae

)

Fic. 1.—Rimers, from: 1, a shelter near Wellington (Univ. Stell. Col.); 2, Noord-

hoek kitchen-midden (U.C.T. Col.); 3, Alexandra Hospital, Pinelands;

Stippling shows points of wear. (Hardy Col. U.C.T.)

10 Annals of the South African Museum.

may be the result of grass fires. In most cases I have noted that the

stone has been shaped or pecked, but these are not to be regarded as

unusual. In most cases evidence has not been submitted to me, and

in a number of specimens natural agencies may have produced a

similar effect.

In certain instances (notably, though not exclusively, in the Vaal

area, and related to the rare “‘pyriform”’ or “‘macehead”’ examples)

there is evidence of “‘tooling”’ over the whole surface. Pitting on the

pecked examples is regularly distributed, but on the tooled specimens

there appear to be distinct “chatter marks” or regular lines of pitting,

as though a metal tool had been employed. These lines of chatter

are generally to be observed more or less radially to the mouth of the

bore, covering the whole surface of the stone in much the same way

that chatter marks cover the face of a modern tooled foundation stone.

The Use of Metal Borers.

While there is some reason for the belief that metal borers of some

sort were employed in certain instances by the Bantu—and even

perhaps by late prehistoric peoples—there is no certain proof avail-

able. Two types of bore, the cylindrical and the conical (in contrast

to the usual hour-glass or biconical bore), have been attributed by

various writers to the use of metal borers. In all the specimens I have

examined the “cylindrical bore” is far more likely to have been the

result of hard wear in use, and cannot reasonably be attributed to the

use either of metal, or to the “‘reed and sand’’ method employed in

Neolithic Europe. Here and there the term “‘choke bored” is added

after the description of specimens; this is not my comment, but

refers to stones measured by my correspondents and helpers.

There would seem to be a fairly prevalent belief among Huropeans

that the use of a metal bit should produce a cylindrical hole. In

practice the conical and biconical bores can be more easily obtained

with a triangular metal borer. The cylindrical hole needs a borer of

such a type that it will permit of the escape of the powdered stone as

the hole is drilled. A European “jumper drill” with a cross-shaped

section would serve the purpose. It is far more likely that the Bantu

would employ a common native hoe-tang or axe-tang for the purpose,

which would yield a conical or biconical bore. This tool would consist

of a flat piece of iron, about a quarter of an inch thick, and tapering to

a rough point from a diameter of 2inches(5cm.). This would produce

just such types of bore as we find. There is seldom proof that iron

was employed on a particular specimen.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 11

The narrow conical bores are in a somewhat different category.

Oddly enough none of these have been attributed to the Bantu. In

size and proportions they appear to fall into the Prehistoric Series.

Diam. Ht. Mouths of Bore. Angle.

Leydsdorp. : a i:8 5:8 3°6 2-2 14°

Welbedacht : 10-6 7-4 3-0 1-4 1

Zwartruggens . 12-0 8-2 3-0 1-4 10°

Klerksdorp 11-0 6-8 4-0 1-6 20°

-Bloemhof A . 5 : 11-4 7:0 4-0 3:6) | lng

Tygerfontein, Hoopstad . 9-6 7:3 2-9 05 | 20°

Douglas . ‘ : : 10-2 9-5 3-4 Thos, 13°

Blaauwheuvel. 8-7 4-6 3°5 2-2 14°

Smithfield 9-0 5-1 4-0 2:5 212

Knysna . 9-0 4-9 4-6 2°8 i

The distribution is mainly confined to the Western Transvaal and

the Free State areas, where Bantu peoples have long existed. The

fact that all specimens fit perfectly into local Prehistoric Series, and in

addition their generally small size (compared with known Bantu

material) suggest that these are protohistoric and that iron was

obtainable from the neighbouring early Bantu. (See later, under

V.M.R. area.) The similarity in size of the last three examples is

suggestive.

An additional specimen (M.M.K. 1535), a large bead from Newlands,

Barkly West (4:9 x 3-7; bore about 0-8, tapering to 0-3 cm.), has quite

certainly been made with fencing wire or some similar thin metal.

This example is almost small enough to fall into the “bead” group.

It has split longitudinally.

The use of a tube for boring was known in Europe in Neolithic times.

A bamboo or reed was rotated in the stone, constantly fed with sand

and water as an abrasive. This action cut an ever-deepening circle

into the stone, producing a cylindrical bore in the stone and in addition

yielding a cylindrical core of stone of a type unknown here. In the

case of unfinished Huropean specimens this core stands isolated in the

incomplete bore; an unmistakable object. This again is absent in

South African sites.

The relationship of Bantu specimens to prehistoric is hardly dis-

cernible in the study of the bore, and we can presume that much the

same boring methods were used. The histograms of all Bantu

specimens, compared with 100 random Bushman examples, show a

slight difference only (pp. 185-191).

12 Annals of the South African Museum.

Hole Mouth. Hole Centre.

Range Max. Range Max

8 Frequency 8 Frequency.

BAaNntTU ; ; 1:9-8-7 5:0 cm. 1:1-7:7 2°45 cm

PREHISTORIC ; n 1:9-7:°5 3:9 cm. 0:5—4:6 2-2 em,

The largest of the Bantu hole-centres probably represents an old

well-used specimen in soft stone. The smallest Bushman figure

represents a small unfinished example. Further histograms may be

worked out from the figures given, and may have some regional value;

but owing to the unknown factors of material in both the bored stone

and the stones used for boring, the histograms would have little

value. The whole question of boring with metals will be dealt with

again.

““Sacredness”’ of the Bored Stone.

It is evident that these stones were considered by their makers as

of sufficient value to be shaped, smoothed, and finished off carefully.

This suggests that shape and size were of some importance to the pre-

historic users. Yet we can hardly attach any directly religious

symbolism or significance to these stones. That they may have

symbolized the female aspect of food-getting (agriculture or collecting)

is perfectly possible, but a directly phallic representation is unlikely

and without any factual justification. The use of the hoe among Bantu

agriculturalists as a symbol of womanhood depends on a double

foundation—the natural association of the hoe with the woman’s

life-work, and the use of the hoe in bride-price payments. This

second basis is lacking in the Prehistoric Series of bored stones, so

far as any available evidence goes.

To disprove the sacredness of the stones per se we may point out

the number of instances in which these bored stones have been used

as hammers or as upper grindstones; so frequent that we can only

attribute these uses to the makers themselves. This does not suggest

a “sacred object,” but rather one of the ordinary everyday tools of a

woman’s life, or a man’s weapon. It is of course quite possible that

these stones had a secondary phallic significance, as they were gener-

ally used by women for digging, but speculation of this sort is not

our affair.

The frequency with which completed stones are found split, so that

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 13

the two halves lie together, has been adduced as a proof of this sacred-

ness. It has been suggested that they were deliberately broken,

either on the death of the user, or to prevent the implement from

falling into enemy hands. The obvious implication is simpler than

this. A wooden digging-stick, if tight fitting, would be liable to

swell and to burst the stone if allowed to get wet. This suggests

chance fracture rather than “ritual breaking.”

S1zE AND SHAPE.*

In studying many hundreds of specimens, it has been found neces-

sary to reduce description to a minimum. Much of the material

has been measured at other centres, and a simple, uniform set of

measurements has had to be developed. Four direct measurements

are given for each complete circular specimen; and five for each of

the elongated examples. From these certain indices are developed.

Simplification of this sort can only be regarded as a conventional

expression of the stone. It does not present the shape of the stone

completely. Thus a sub-cylindrical form is not differentiated from

the true prolate, sphere, or oblate, though this may be noted in the

right-hand column. Evidence is not sufficient to yield results as to

variations in shape, and I cannot make any deductions from the

bulk of material that I have measured personally.

All these measurements have been taken in such a way as to

represent the stone in its original entirety. Thus if a stone has been

cleanly fractured, the shape is presumed to have been symmetrical,

and an allowance made. Such figures are approximate and are given

in brackets in all instances. They are accurate within a few milli-

metres. Worn specimens are similarly measured to allow for the

abrasion of wear.

For circular specimens the following measurements are given in

this order: maximum diameter and maximum height. These are

followed by two figures, index and cube. The index is the percentage

ratio of height to diameter, and depends upon the formula:

100 x ht.

diam.

The “‘cube” represents a square box into which the stone would

fit exactly, and is the product of the formula d? x h.

* For some remarks on the use of the bored stone as a pipe-bowl for hemp-

smoking, see Appendix I at the end of this work, also Laidler, P. W., in Trans.

Roy. Soc. 8. Afr., vol. xxvi, 1938, pp. 1-24.

14 Annals of the South African Museum.

These figures are followed by the external diameter of the larger

mouth of the bore, and finally the minimum diameter towards the

centre of the bore.

In the elongated examples the following figures are given: length,

width, height, cube, mouth of hole, and minimum bore. It has not

been found advisable to develop an index for this group. Cube is

the product of |. x w. x ht.

By circular specimens is meant those which appear to the eye to be

circular in plan; generally length does not exceed width by more

than 8 per cent. of the length.

In the case of the prehistoric circular examples we can divide our

specimens into rough terminological groups. The shapes depend

upon the vertical section of specimens (7.e. the index), while sizes

depend upon the cube. Where terms are used to designate a whole

group, the average index and the average cube should be used to

supply the term. I have here substituted “prolate” for the more

cumbersome “‘hypsisphere,”’ and give “oblate” as an alternative to

“oval” of the Preliminary Survey.

Prolate . over 110 per cent.; oversized . over 2000 cu. cm.

Spherical . 90-110 a large . . 1350-2000 ,,

Subspherical 70— 90 Ry large medium 800-1350 ,,

Oval (Oblate) 50-— 70 ae medium . 450-800 ,,

Suboval . 35-— 50 Hh small . : 180— 450 ss,

Oval disc . 20- 35 3 very small . under 180 _,,

Dise . . below 20 RY

The use of such terms cannot be hard and fast, and in discussing

groups the term “‘disc’”’ may be found to cover a group ranging from

15 per cent. to 40 per cent., while “sphere”’ may include specimens

with indices of 85 per cent. to 105 per cent. Similarly “large” might

apply to a group with a cube ranging from 1450 to 2200 cubic centi-

metres. These terms are given to help in the description of bored

stones in future scientific descriptions of implement types, though it is

most earnestly hoped that exact measurements will be given for each

individual specimen as well.

Cube, Material and Werght.

The term “‘cube” employed here is misleading unless certain

fundamentals are remembered. Owing to a strong mathematical

tradition in our own society, we are prone to believe that the weight

and volume of two spheres, one of 1000 cu. cm. and the other of

500 cu. cm., is in the relation of two to one. The “‘untutored savage,”

on the other hand, would regard a stone measuring 5-3 cm. in diameter

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 15

as only “‘slightly larger” than a sphere measuring 4-2 cm. in diameter,

and, of course, the difference in diameter becomes of greater or lesser

importance as the diameter of the spheres decreases or increases. The

idea of “‘size”’ (apart from the mathematical concepts of mass, etc.)

is probably a mental assessment of a combination of diameter and

expected weight. In practice this should mean that the larger the

type the greater the acceptable deviation in size (or the scatter when

the type is represented on a graph paper), though I have not found

this to be true in most instances given here.

It will be observed that neither the material nor the weight are

here regarded as of primary importance. Where they are known

they are given. The material can seldom be accurately analysed

without the partial destruction of a specimen, and even then chemical

or microscopic analysis would have to be carried out at suitable

centres for some two thousand specimens. Vague terms, such as

sandstone, shale, granite, soapstone, dolerite, slate, marble, quartzitic

sandstone, have little real significance, save that they suggest the

degree of hardness of the materials it was possible to work. Enough

evidence is produced to show that all these materials were used, and

were capable of being efficiently worked.

In a few instances, where a stone has distinctive local peculiarities

and might with certainty be attributed to a particular outcrop, exact

definition would be of great value; but even here it is to be observed

that the material used need not bear any direct relationship to local

petrology. Much of the material comes from a gravel source, and

shows evidence of river pebble origin. It may have been carried

by stream action for many miles from its source, or it may have

been carried by man. There is no means of telling. If we were

dealing with quarried stones (such as the bluestones at Stonehenge)

the source of material would be of immense value in showing the

direction of migration.

The exact assessment of weight is similarly of little value, as it is

part of our own mathematical tradition. While the original pebble

would probably have been chosen with an eye to weight, the boring

subsequently removed a variable and uncertain quantity of the

original stone. Weight has a broad value in dealing with unbroken

specimens, but in many instances the exact weight could not be

obtained from either the private or museum sources of material.

Where it is known it has been given.

An approximation to weight can be obtained from the external

dimensions, and “‘cube”’ in cubic centimetres can be roughly converted

16 Annals of the South African Museum.

into grammes by multiplying the cube by a factor. If the average

diameter of the stone (or the cube root of the “‘cube,”’ which is similar)

is greater than 13-0 cm., the factor willbe 1-6. Ifthe average diameter

lies between 6-0 cm. and 13-0 cm., use 1-55. Ifit is less than 6-0 cm.,

1-5 gives the approximation. Thus:

100 cu. cm. (root si 65) =150 grammes (about 5:5 oz. )

200 29 ( 29 5°85 ) =300 29 ( 99 ll 99 )

300) oe (ae GB) e265 3 Cee 1 Wb: )

500 39 ( 99 7: 94 ) =775 99 ( 99 1 99 Il OZ )

1000 _=SCé,, (,, 10:0 ) =1:55 kilos (ee 3) 14; ORS)

2000 29 ( 29 12-6 ) =3:1 29 ( 29 7 Panes. ry) )

4000 99 ( 99 15: 9 ) =6-4 99 ( 99 14 39 9 99 )

Weight has little relationship to shape, though it is obvious that,

with the biconical bore, the higher a stone in relationship to diameter,

the greater will be the quantity removed by boring. The material

of which a stone is composed has some effect, but only in extreme

cases (such as specular iron ore), and the figures above can be taken

as reasonable approximations in most instances.

Copying.

While in the Bantu Series there seems to have been no real attempt

to copy size or shape from traditional examples, the vast bulk of the

prehistoric examples conforms to one of a variety of local patterns.

These may all be the varied progeny of about seven prototypes

described later from the Transvaal and the Vet Marico area.

As the question of copying is important, for the validity of my

deductions depends upon it, we can study the subject shortly. It is

to be understood that I here use the terms “copied” and “‘selected”’

to carry the same general significance.

So far as one can judge it would seem easier for the untrained eye to

assess the relative proportions of two subspherical objects, and their

relative diameters, than to estimate relative volume. In actual

practice the assessment of relative weight can be very accurate too,

provided that the specific gravity of two objects is reasonably similar.

However this may be, two facts are strikingly brought out by the

plotting of our figures on graph paper.

i. The Bantu Series shows a wide and apparently haphazard

scatter, suggesting that (provided there was sufficient weight for the

purpose) neither proportions nor dimensions were very important.

ii. The Prehistoric Series, in contrast, shows well-defined grouping,

sufficiently distinct in most areas to prove that certain proportions

and sizes were achieved by processes of selection of natural stones,

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 17

or of copying an acceptable size by reducing a selected natural stone

by pecking.

The Bantu Series therefore raises no new problem, but the Pre-

historic material does. The first is the problem of copying. How

were the stones selected or copied? I have seen a Transvaal Bantu

select stones of equal size from a river gravel by comparing the size

of one stone directly with the cast left by another in the mud. The

result was the choice of a series of large pebbles or boulders none of

which varied more than an inch in diameter, about the range of error

found in the Prehistoric Series. It is therefore obviously possible

for that degree of accuracy to be obtained by simple means. In

smaller examples judgment by eye would be more exact, but peculiarly

enough the range of error in small examples appears to be much the

same as that in the larger.

It is obvious that there are two types of copying:

1. Parallel copying, where several copies are made from one original.

In this type the average dimensions of all copies approximate to those

of the original.

2. Serial copying, where a copy is made from an original, a second

copy made from the first, and so on. There may be a cumulative

error here, though this would in part be cancelled and corrected by the

chances of subsequent copying.

If we combine these two types of selection or copying, and make

two first copies from a single original, then make copies from these

two independently, we may get two graphical groups, each slightly

different in their graphical scatter. We can regard these as linked

groups. Curiously, this third graphical pattern is the most usual,

and can be observed in almost any area in South Africa. This may

be called “divergent copying.”

Deviations from the original may be stopped or controlled by

tradition, and tend to approach more closely to the original once

divergence is recognized. This stabilizes a “fashion” in shape and

proportions, probably as exact as those that govern the proportion

of brim to crown in our own choice of a hat in any year, and analogous

with our estimations of sizes in footballs and cricket balls, etc.

In some cases the doubled or linked products of divergent copying

are sufficiently close for us to ignore the difference, and to unite two

clusters under a single average. In other cases, there is such a distinct

line of demarcation that it has been thought more satisfactory to

keep the two clusters separate and treat them as linked. This

necessarily leads to anomalies in comparisons between types. It

VOW. XXXVI PART J. 2

18 Annals of the South African Museum.

therefore becomes essential in such cases to draw deductions in one

area, and re-apply them in the next.

These linked or twinned clusters may vary in diameter, and remain

constant in height; but this is not always true, and in the Vet-Marico

River area we get averages (11-1 8-7 cm. and 10-9 x7-3 cm.) that

show a similar diameter and variable height.

Peculiarities of this sort appear to be the rule rather than the

exception in the middle ranges of types, and it is difficult to know

just how they should be dealt with. The problem becomes more

difficult in focal areas where types are abundant. It becomes essential,

before any area is understood, to plot the position of each specimen

in that area on a piece of centimetre graph paper. The next essential

is to plot the specimens from each of the adjacent areas on separate

graph papers. Only the two dimensions, diameter and height, need

be used. Suitable adjustments of averages should then be made for

the local area, so that direct comparison becomes more easy and more

exact. Unhappily the publication of a series of graphs of this nature

would be too expensive, and only a few are published as examples. ©

Should any worker desire to develop this work further, either locally

or generally, the figures are given, and graphs can quickly be built

up from these. Thisis essential before local applications of the present

work can be completely understood.

In the section containing the accumulated material, the local

graphical clusters are represented by averages. Where only one or

two examples represent a cluster, the average is given in brackets.

Where more examples are known, there is no bracket.

Aberrant Forms.

Aberrant forms are here divided into two groups:

Erratics that have wandered in from surrounding areas; and

Anomalous, those that fit in with no local distribution.

These latter may be the product of individual variation on the part

of the maker, as, for instance, the prolate examples that constantly

crop up, presumably the result of local competition and emulation.

The ever-present factor of wrong location must be remembered.

For instance, a specimen shown to me at Cape Town eventually proved

to have come from the Klerksdorp district, almost 1000 miles away.

Such extreme instances are rare, but they exist. J. M. Bain and Dr.

Kannemeyer appear to be sinners in this respect. Both early

collectors presented batches of implements collected over a series of

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 19

years to the South African Museum, and in many instances a wrong

allocation is almost certain. Kannemeyer, for instance, was known

to have collected numbers of stones, from sites near Smithfield,

Burghersdorp, and elsewhere, to have secreted these in the houses of

friends, and finally to have sent them in bulk to the South African

Museum. Museums are not without blame in this respect. —

How to Use the Present Survey.

Results achieved here can only be tentative. Our knowledge of

any subject only leads us to a better digestion of further material.

By supplying some attempt at a framework on which local workers

may build, I hope to evoke additional knowledge from them. This

publication is out-of-date immediately the manuscript leaves my hands.

It should be the intention of local workers, now that this raw material

has been published, to get a more accurate knowledge of local types.

There are various problems that can only be dealt with adequately

by local workers, and we can discuss a few of these here.

1. The isolation of types of bored stone. This is here dealt with

by fitting the main dimensions of each stone to a simple graph and

observing the scatter. One or two examples are given to illustrate

method.

2. The isolation of areas of distribution of types. This has been

attempted here so far as my present knowledge permits, but much

remains to be done in the future. The term “area” is here used to

cover the approximation of a graphical dispersal to a natural or

environmental region, e.g. a river bed, a type of veld, an altitude, etc.

Finer adjustment of type to natural region should be possible locally,

and an extension and more exact definition of an area should result.

Remeasurement of available material may help us in this.

3. A full analysis of associable finds. The material should be

related to implement types, paintings, engravings, presence or absence

of pottery, shell midden, fishbones, stratification, skeletons, and any

other suitable elements of culture. Implement types should be

related to bored stone types wherever possible. Negative association

is Important. :

4, Extension of knowledge from the particular to the more general.

Once types have been isolated, local areas defined and associations

studied, this whole complex can be extended into surrounding areas,

from simple areas to areas of overlap (focal areas). Work should be

from the simple to the more complicated.

20 Annals of the South African Museum.

This principle of extending our knowledge from the simpler to the

more complicated is fundamental. So far the tendency has been all

in the other direction. Areas of abundance, such as the Free State,

Knysna, and the Cape, have been blindly worked, and various collec-

tions made by inexperienced workers, all seeking the same types of

evidence: bored stones, grind-stones, human skeletal remains,

pottery, and one or two easily recognizable stone implement types.

Collections of this haphazard type are often marked “Free State’,

“Cape Colony”, “Natal”, or “Northern Transvaal”. Even beads

and microliths are missed in many instances, so that our most in-

defatigable workers have in the past done by far the most harm. The

minimum of exact evidence that should be given with a collection is

the registered farm name (or map reference) and the district or nearest

town. If possible museums should ask for every available detail

of the discovery of each specimen, and record it in writing.

In certain instances, in spite of this lack of very exact evidence, it

can be shown that the number of types of bored stone in a definable

area 1s strictly hmited. This is observable in the Vet-Marico area,

for instance, and can be abundantly shown elsewhere. In other cases

a single type will cut across two or three defined areas and show an

independent distribution; an example of this is seen in the Natal

coastal belt and along our southern coast, where it is difficult to find

very precise limits to areas without subdividing them further than

our knowledge of exact provenance permits. This subdivision is

suggested for the Knysna-Tzitzikamma area, where forest, mountain,

and midden types may be discerned. Only further more detailed

evidence of the exact source of each example will prove or disprove

this.

If we show that certain types have a limited and definable distribu-

tion, then we have shown that the types exist, and that we are not

dealing with a chance distribution. It is important to recognize

the validity of this hypothesis, as, if we plot the size and shape of all

specimens from all areas in South Africa, we find that we are dealing

with what appears to be a purely chance distribution. Once the

examples are broken down into areas, the picture is very different.

Granted that we have “pure areas,’ such as the Swartland and

Grootrivier, it is obvious that deductions made in such areas should be

reapplied where a large variety of types exists. Logically we cannot

proceed in the opposite direction.

Those areas in which a great variety occurs we can call “‘focal”’

areas or areas of overlap. These are areas particularly attractive to

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 21

hunting and collecting peoples, and highways of slow migration.

They tend to be secondary cultural centres of settlement and consolida-

tion from whence new migrations will originate. We are therefore

dealing with a more complex problem here; we are studying numerous

overlapping types, the products of successive migrations or periods of

sojourn, or even of serial copying. Some of these can be related to the

products of people outside the area, and are described as erratic.

For these reasons comparison should constantly be made to parallels

from adjacent areas. In actual fact we might divide South Africa

into three general types of area: focal areas, migrational routes, and

marginal (or pure) areas where few people came. This underlying

division is basic. No one is directly interested in the distribution of

types; it is the deduction concerning man’s story and environment

that is of interest.

It might be argued that in those areas where large numbers of

specimens happen to have been collected, large numbers of types

occur, and that the number of types is in direct proportion to the

number of specimens that present-day man has collected. In fact

thisis not true. The number of specimens collected has every appear-

ance of being generally proportional to the original population, and

to the numbers of specimens available. The number of types may

therefore be regarded as related to the number of uses, and to the

number of cultural groups represented in the area over a period of

time, which would partly be a function of environment.

I refer elsewhere to the varied needs that this “bored stone”’ would

meet. No single cultural group felt all those needs. One group

might need only a digging-stone, another might add the need for a

knobkerry, another might use a dagga-pipe, and so on. We may

therefore deduce that the number of types represented is a product

of the number of cultural groups present in an area over a period of

time, multiplied by the number of uses to which this general form

could be put by each group. In other words, where prehistoric

density was highest, and migration most frequent, the greatest number

of types will occur, and be available for collection.

Region and Area.

In the Preliminary Survey the Union was divided into regions and

subdivided into areas. This arrangement will be generally adhered to

here, but with certain changes. Regions will receive Roman capital

numbers; areas will be referred to by two, three, or four initials;

types within an area by the use of small Roman figures.

22 Annals of the South African Museum.

One further difficulty arises: region and area in the Elongated

Series are coincident. Presumably the distribution of types is different,

but the number of examples known at present does not permit us to

make even this deduction with complete certainty. Here regions are

given initial letters, differing from those used for the Circular Series

unless the regions themselves coincide.

The region and the area are concepts based upon both distribution

and environment. In dealing with distribution it has seldom been

found possible to confine a single type to a single area. In some

instances types overlap areas, in others they may be confined to

smaller distributions within an area. This concept of a static area is

therefore a compromise. The second element in this compromise

consists of the various environmental factors which controlled the

movements and sojourns of early man. Here and there small areas

have been singled out, showing perhaps three sites. These necessarily

need further investigation, but the suggestion here is that they may

represent pure types with a limited and local distribution.

The environmental factors entailed will be dealt with later under the

headings “‘ Attracters”’ and “Barriers”’ (p. 117).

PART II.—PREHISTORIC CIRCULAR SPECIMENS.

| MATERIAL AND COMMENT.

The present part consists of a complete list of circular specimens

made available to me by various individuals and institutions. The

material is listed under sites, partly to reduce space, and partly to

permit of the wholesale removal of a single site into another area,

should future material make this necessary.

The term “‘site’? must be thought of in a very wide sense. In

almost all cases no site proper is given. In over half the specimens

only the district is known. The district may either be taken from the

name of the nearest town, or may agree with the administrative

districts of the Union. There is, for instance, no Kofhefontein district

in official publications. It will therefore be realised that a dozen

different collections of implements submitted to an institution as

from “‘Koffiefontein”’ might come from a dozen true sites within a

ten- or twenty-mile radius of that village. Where administrative

districts are cited the position is no better.

I have therefore made it a general rule to refrain from splitting

collections of implements presented at one time as having come from

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 23

a single provenance. Where two collections, generally by different

donors, given at different times or to different institutions, are marked

only by provenance I have had no compunction in dividing them and,

where necessary, placing material into two different areas or even

regions. The rule is not absolute, but has been infringed in two or

three instances at most.

Wherever the letters A, B, etc., are employed after a place-name

material has been split into presumed sites. The result will best be

seen by turning to Koffiefontein A and B series. It may be seen also

at Rustenburg, Lichtenburg, Bloemhof, etc. The administrative

districts covered by these last three names include 9020, 4295, and

840 square miles respectively. The area of Wales is 7360 square miles.

Other figures are given under the Free State Focal Region.

Overleaf is a schematic geographical representation, summarising

all the regions and areas discussed. The regions are numbered in

Roman figures in the order of their treatment. (See next page.)

List oF SOURCES.

In the following list I have added the names of persons who have

helped me in the collection or measurement of material, or by allowing

me access to the material at their disposal. I wish to record my most

grateful thanks for the very great help that these persons and institu-

tions have given me. I am no less grateful to those who have sent

material to me, either at the South African Museum, or at the Univer-

sity of Cape Town. Those who have been of most help have been

mentioned in the text under their own areas.

AMG =Albany Museum, Grahamstown, and Mr. F. Midgley.

ASJ =Archaeological Survey, Johannesburg, Mr. B. D. Malan and Miss J.

Haughton.

DC =Prof. M. R. Drennan, Department of Anatomy, University of Cape Town.

ELM =East London Museum, and Miss Courtney-Latimer.

HAC =Harger Archaeological Collection, including material from the old Chamber

of Mines Geological Collection, Dr. H. 8S. Harger and acting curator.

HC =Dr.C.H.T. D. Heese’s collection, Alt Stadt, Riversdale.

MFH =Dr. Mossop’s collection at Fish Hoek.

MMK =McGregor Museum, Kimberley, and Mr. B. D. Malan.

MW =Mr. Frans Malan’s collection, Groenberg, Wellington.

NMP =Natal Museum, Pietermaritzburg, Dr. R. Lawrence and assistant.

PEM =Port Elizabeth Museum, and Miss Hoekstra.

SAM =South African Museum, Cape Town.

SI =Stone Implement Collection, Durban Museum and Art Gallery, and Mr.

K. C. Chubb.

SR =Southern Rhodesia Museum, Bulawayo, and Mr. Neville Jones.

TMP =Transvaal Museum, Pretoria, and Miss J. Haughton.

UCT =University of Cape Town, Archaeological Collection.

WUA = Witwatersrand University, Department of Anatomy, and Dr. L. H. Wells.

24 Annals of the South African Museum.

SCHEMA.*

I. TRANSVAAL.

Eastern. ~~

Central. \

Southern. Ne

Il. Nata.

Highlands.

x Lowlands.

III. Vaat. NX —

Schoonspruit- Vaal. Ne

Vet-Marico Rivers. N

Bloemfontein-Sepani. \

/ VNaal-Harts. IV. FREE State.

JT. Koffiefontein A and B.

/ Ula. Vaat (LowER). Central Free State.

ye Middle Vaal. <-——> Alexandersfontein.

Vis Lower Vaal. Modder-Fauresmith.

Va South-East Free State.

Vi x

x \

V. WESTERN Bypass. VII. SourH-East.

Molopo-Groenwater. Upper Thornveld.

Upington-Hartbees. Lower Thornveld.

Bokkeveld. North and South Transkei.

SS VA

1 VIII. Lowianps. ve

VI. THIRSTLAND. Kast London. wee

Kaaienveld. Bushman’s River. “

Namaqualand. Port Elizabeth.

Winterveld. Zuney-Maitland Mines.

Trekveld. fo

Nieuveld-Goup.\, IX. SourH Coast. Pe

SS Sundays River.

Grootrivier.

‘. Tzitzikamma Caves.

Knysna-Tzitzikamma.

Swartberg.

Belvedere- Heidelberg.

Gouritz-Karoo.

XI. Care oF Goop Horr. X. AGULHAS. i

Hinterland. West Langeberg. /

Cape Flats. / Breederivier. “

Cape Middens. / Bot River.

Sandveld. Wa

Swartland.

* Detailed maps follow this section (pp. 109 et seq.).

I. THE TRANSVAAL REGION.

The northern boundary of the known distribution of circular bored

stones runs from the Dwarsberg and Witfonteinberg along the

Hoekberg. From here it passes northward towards the Blaauwberg,

eastward to Klein Letaba, then southward to include Barberton and

Swaziland. The Transvaal region includes most of the province itself

and a few sites in the north-eastern Free State. The northern

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 25

boundary coincides with the limits given above. From Swaziland

the southern boundary runs south-west to Harrismith, and then

includes the Wilge River basin and the Upper Vaalas far as Klerksdorp.

In the Wilge River section it overlaps the Natal Highlands region,

and part of the eastward extension of the Vet-Marico area.

The distribution of known material is not continuous. It starts

at 23° 50’ south, but no examples are known from the Limpopo and

few from the Olifants River basin. Prehistoric specimens are more

limited in this direction than the later Bantu examples, to be dealt

with in a subsequent part (Part V, p. 170).

There seems little reason to believe that the bored stone was Bantu

in origin, or that it was taken over and spread farther south by the

Bushmen. The evidence at Djebel Redeyef* and other North

African sites points to an immediately post-Capsian dating there, and

shows “‘Intercapsioneolithic” associations, which would here be

regarded as broadly Wilton. With similar associations at the two

extremes of the continent, it is probable that the Wilton peoples were

everywhere familiar with the bored stone, at least in certain phases

of that culture. The important question for the future to decide is

whether the term Wilton is more closely associable with the people

we call Hottentots, or with the Bushmen. Evidence on this point

is not yet convincing, though the association of Schofield’s “‘ Hottentot”’

pottery with the Wilton is important.

I regard the Transvaal as. the primary area of distribution of all

our South African prehistoric types, and this might well be called the

Prototype Area, so farasthe Unionisconcerned. The Free State region,

immediately north of the Orange River, provides a secondary area of

distribution to the Cape Province, a Deuterotype or Focal region.

This concept will be developed further in dealing with the migrations.

The literature on the Transvaal is extremely meagre, and more

has been written on the Bantu material than on the Prehistoric.

The notes I have on associations are of little value except for the

Vaal. It is hoped that future material (especially that found in the

vast districts of the northern and western Transvaal) will be more

accurately documented.

ET. EASTERN TRANSVAAL AREA.

This area is marked by few types; an area where absences are more

important than diversity. Our evidence so far is meagre, and the

* EK. Gobert, L’Anthropologie, xxiii, 1912, pp. 151 et seq.

26 Annals of the South African Museum.

first and second types listed below are separated in the light of

analogous material in other parts of the Transvaal region. )

* Type Diam. Ht. Index Cube Affinities

i (123 86 70:0 1070) OT. ii, NH. iii.

i. (105 80 762 880) CT. iv, VMR. iii.

Fie MOS AON NEVES 615

ive lO: 7 Min 4260) 64320 525) CT. vii.

There seems to be no relationship with the Southern Transvaal.

Ermelo and Lake Chrissie suggest a close relationship with the CT. 1

and i1. The area shows only specimens of 10-0 cm. and over in

diameter. The final specimen listed below (Hastern Transvaal)

suggests, by its size and type, the Ermelo area.

* Source Diam. Ht. Index Cube Bore Notes and refs.

BELFAST. —“—

TMP 1861 . 10-2 6:3 60:8 645 2-7 1:3

MALELANE.

TMP 8488 . 1ll-l 8:3.° 74-8) ) 1025) 75-3) 3-1

BARBERTON.

SAM 3022 . 10:3 57:2 625 ‘0

5:9 3 1-6

TMP 1912/12 10-2 4:3 42-1 450 4: 2-4 Found in chance

association with

Bantu specimen,

in Kaap R. wash.

J AKSLUST.

TMP 8040 . 10:2 5:6 54-9 585 38 3:3

LAKE CHRISSIE.

SAM 1733 . 10-0 76 76:0 760 43 3:5

ScHaGEN, NELSPRUIT.

WUA 1085 G. 11-2 5:1 45:5 740 4:3 1:8 Indeterminate basic

igneous rock.

ERMELO.

SAM 3183 . 12:3 80 65:0 1210 30 1:6

EZULWENI.

SP6w i: beeen 4:9 43-7 615 3-1 2:8

“EASTERN TRANSVAAL.”

SAM 3. eles 92 74:8 1405 3:1 3-0 Cylindrical bore.

CT. CenTraL TRANSVAAL (PROTOTYPE AREA).

I deal with the Hastern Transvaal first, as it appears to stand apart,

and to represent the eastward distribution of a limited number of

types (fig. 2). The types from the Central Transvaal agree with the

Kastern Transvaal series, but additional types are present, thus

showing the ET. area to be an area of absences, derived from OT.

* See pp. 13 and 14 for definitions of terms used above columns.

HEIGHT.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 27

DIAMETER.

Fia. 2.—Central Transvaal.

On the other side the CT. shows some affinity with the Molopo-

Groenwater stretch of the Western Bypass. The term “Prototype

Area”’ will explain itself when the part on Migrations is reached.

i 141 10-8 766 2150. MG.i.

ii. (12-2 G20 75-4 3870) | EL. a:

i) 11-7 78 66-7 970 VMB. i, MG. ii.

iv. (10-2 8:2 80-4 865) ET. ii.

v. (11-5 5-4 47-0 715)

vi. 10-0 5:4 54:0 540 NH.v.

vii. (10-8 42 38-9 490) ET. iv, MG. iv.

viii. 7-7 5:6 72-7 330 MG. v.

ix. (5-7 3:6 63-2 117) ST. iii, VH. vi.

As might be expected the Leydsdorp and New Agatha specimens,

from sites tucked away behind the Olifants River and the Drakensberg

and Murchison ranges, diverge slightly from the usual scatter. The

Button’s Kop example (CT. ix) is obviously an erratic, probably

related to the Southern Transvaal.

LEYDSDORP.

SAM 2824 12:7 7-7 606 £1240

ASJ 2/38/7 7:8 5:8 74:3 365

New AGATHA.

TMP 1447 11-4 53 =—8-2 690

‘“NORTHERN TRANSVAAL’”’ (?PIETERSBURG).

WOUA 250 10-8 4:2 38-9 490

Butrton’s Kop.

TMP 5437 aw 3:6 63:2 117

MOo.LsGat.

TMP 1496 9-8 5-7 58:2 550

POTGIETERSRUST.

SAM 4706 12-4 93 75:0 1430

WARMBATHS.

TMP 9162 7:6 4:9 65:4 285

PANKOP.

TMP 14:0 11-1 79:3 2180

WITFONTEIN.

SAM 7529 10:8 4:3 40-0 500

RUSTENBURG: A.

WUA 670 12-1 90 74:4 1320

TMP 8491 10-2 4:7 46:0 490

GRASMERE, VENTERSDORP.

ASJ 14/39 11:6 76 65:5 1025

KROMDRAAI, POTCHEFSTROOM.

Univ. Stell. 11:5 5:4 47-0 715

LICHTENBURG: A.

HHC 1042 11-5 8:0 69:6 1060

TMP 8487 10:2 78 76:5 810

SANNIESHOF, LICHTENBURG.

ASJ 29/42 9-8 5:6 57:2 530

VAALBOSPUTTE, LICHTENBURG.

WUA 1240 7:7 59 76:9 350

HEBRON.

TMP 7548 14:0 10:2 72-9 2000

WONDERBOOM.

TMP 8509 10-2 5-4 52-9 560

PRETORIA.

TMP 7560 146 10:5 714 £2240

3670 14-0) 4 81-4) 2235

1879 10-2 8:5 83-3 885

1469 10-2 5-1 50:0 530

2-9

3°6

3:6

4-8

3°6

4-4

2-9

4-2

hae A

= vo

1-6

2-2

1-4

2-4

17)

2-9

1-6

2-0

1-6

Cee

bo 62

—

2-2

1-7

1-9

1-7

Sindcslrs

Qwwa

Annals of the South African Museum.

Blue

schist.

micaceous

Conical bore.

Anorthosite.

Erratic.

Broken.

6 feet deep.

2-6 kg.

Woncerstone.

‘45 ke.

The Bored Stones of South Africa.

KENSINGTON, JOHANNESBURG.

WUA 67/1 10-2 6:0

EERSTEFABRIEKEN.

TMP 1876 11-4 7:8

BETHAL.

Univ. Stell. 13-7 10:6

TMP 5187 10:2 6-2

HaARRISMITH: A.

ASJ 14/40 14:3 10-9

ST. SouTHERN TRANSVAAL AREA.

58°8

610

1015

1990

645

2230

bo on

aT Or

2:7

4-]

‘88 kg., 12 feet deep.

Serpentine.

While there are a number of specimens from here, there are relatively

few types (fig. 3).

Be ae ACD

& bo ko vo

Type iv is an erratic.

1645

405

178

145)

NH. ii.

INE ve

INES vis CT ix.

An example included here in group ili (Johannesburg, 7-6 x 3-9) is an

erratic.

RUSTENBURG-BRITS RoapD.

ASJ 56/40 12:7 10-0

RiIEeTGAT, BRITS.

UCT 42/ 13:05. 10-5

CYFERBULT.

TMP 8045 8-9 5:9

VENTERSDORP Town LANDS.

HHC 1044 12-2 9-6

FREAN’S MILL, VENTERSDORP.

HHC 1058 6:5 4:5

_PoTCHEFSTROOM.

TMP 8461 12-7 9-4

VEREENIGING.

Univ. Stell. 6:9 2-4

SNYDERSDRIFT.

MMK 44 13-2) 1e4

ASVOELSKOP, JOHANNESBURG.

ASJ 47/37 8:5 4-7

nage] TIN LS) 3°9

MAGALIESBERG.

TMP 1848 5:7 4-2

78-7

80-1

66:3

78-7

69-2

74:0

34:8

1615

1735

470

1530

4-6

3°8

3°2

4-0

1-5

4-]

2-2

3-1

1-2

2-0

3°5

2-2

i-9

em bo

CO Or

1-3

The average, without this specimen, would read 6-0 x 4:2 cm.

Hammer.

Diabase or andesite.

Smooth.

Diabase. Hammer.

Pyriform.

Soapstone.

Erratic. SSV.

HEIGHT.

Il-

10-

Annals of the South African Museum.

DIAMETER.

Fic. 3.—Southern Transvaal.

ELorr’s CutrtTine, PRETORIA.

TMP 8038 13:3 9-7

BRONKHORSTSPRUIT.

TMP 1469 12:7 10-8

GERMISTON.

HHC 1253 6:3 4-0

SPRINGS.

TMP 2333 8:9 5-1

BaRNARD’S Kop, HEIDELBERG.

WUA 776 8-1 2-7

Grap, Petrus STEYN.

SAM 5025 6:0 3:7

STANDERTON: A.

MMK 1157 13:3 (9-4)

73-0

85-0

63-5

07:3

33°3

61-7

67-7

1705

1740

159

405

177

135

1665

5:3

4-2

2-0

3°5

2:7

2:8

4:2

2-7

1-1

2-3

1-7

2°5

2-8

L.S.A. Associations.

16 feet deep in al-

luvium, in ashes.

Found in spruit.

‘24 kg. Serpentine.

Smooth polished ser-

pentine. Ploughed

up.

SS. Damaged.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 31

Those interested in the Free State should turn to the Vaal Region

from here (p. 35). Ifthe Western Province of the Cape is of interest,

turn to the Western Bypass (p. 60) and Thirstland Regions (p. 64).

Il. NATAL REGION.

This appears to be a cul-de-sac with little relationship to areas to the

south or west. The main affinities are with the Central, Kastern, and

Southern Transvaal areas. Only one affinity exists with the Free

State (Bloemfontein-Sepani 1.), and that is cut off from Natal by the

Basutoland mountains and by the Vet-Marico area.

The Natal Region starts in the south-eastern Transvaal at

Standerton, then follows the Klip River to Vrede. From here the

distribution so far known coincides with Natal proper, Southern

Zululand, and a very small part of Griqualand East.

The region is divided into two areas—the Natal Highlands, and the

Natal Lowlands. The latter is the more limited, lying generally

below 2800 feet above sea-level (900 m.), running inland with the low

Mooi and Tugela valleys until that altitude is reached. The Highland

area seems generally restricted to levels above 2500 feet (800 m.),

but a stone from Tinley Manor, an anomalous example from Durban,

and three normal specimens from there suggest that the limit is not

everywhere related to altitude.

The Lowland types conform to a limited extent to the Strandveld

or coastal strip, and may prove to be related to a coastal people.

This would suggest that both areas were held by different cultural

groups at the same time, and that each was sufficiently strong to

hold back the other except where the Umgeni and Tugela valleys

provided easy access to the coast.

Certain of the Highland types are associable with Smithfield N.

elements, and a later survey of migrational routes will show that those

feeding Natal diverge from those leading to the Free State, north of

the Vaal River. There is thus reason to suppose that my original

hypothesis, relating the Smithfield N. series to Rhodesian origins, is

remarkably supported (though not proved) by this new evidence.*

NH. Natat HIGHLANDS.

i. (11-0 12:2 111-0 1475) Anomalous.

Hs) be 10-5 86:8 1535 Sita:

iii: 12-6 8-2 65-1 1300 ET. i, BS. i.

Thyo. Bell 6-9 75°8 570 Scattered group. SSV. ii and iii.

Ws), Beis) 5-3 56-9 480 ST. ii, CT. vi.

Yash C0) 3:6 51-4 176 ST. iii.

* Goodwin, Proc. Rhod. Sci. Ass., xxxiv, 1934.

32 Annals of the South African Museum.

STANDERTON B.

WUA 1037 11-6 810-4

VREDE.

VILE 7/34 7:0 3°8

Moo1rHorEk, UTRECHT.

WUA 1266 12:0 8:0

Acton HomEs.

SI 10 13-4 8-4

BERGVILLE.

PEM — E 6:5 4:5

EstTcouRT.

SI 11 12:9 10:9

BERGVLIET, EKENNERSDALE.

Q. E. Carter . 10-2 7:0

12:7 8-2

YORK.

NMP 2515 10-0 7:0

BALGOWAN.

ASJ 32/35 8:8 (6:5)

9-5 (5:5)

7:9 7:2

TINLEY MANoR, STANGER.

A. G. Wills 5 13-2 7:6

DURBAN.

ASJ 24/139 11:0 12-2

Sie one 13-1 7:3

Bg . 12:0 8:2

UR . 10-4 5:6

UNDERBERG.

SI9 . : 6:5 3:2

KOKSTAD.

SAM 4756. 9-6 5:7

CEDARVILLE.

SP227. ; 7:7 3:9

MATATIELE.

UCT 34/20 . 8:9 4:7

MACLEAR.

ELM — 12:5 9:0

** NATAL.”

NMP 99 11-7 10-2

90-0

54:3

66-7

62-7

69-2

84:3

68-6

64-5

70-0

57-6

111-0

95°7

68-3

53°8

49-2

59-4

50:7

52°8

72:0

87-1

1400

186

1150

1510

190

1815

730

1325

700

505

495

450

1325

1475

1255

1180

585

136

525

231

370

1405

1400

4-5

3°5

4-3

4-2

3°5

5:6

4-2

3:1

4-2

4-8

747

2°5

3'0

3°5

2:0

bo =

> v9

2°8

2:3

2-1

3:0

2:0

2-9

Pel

2:8

19 kg.

shale.

Indurated

Ss.

Paintings.

1-06 kg.

All associated with

Smithfield N. im-

plements.

Gritty Ss.

Anomalous.

Roughly triangular.

Smithfield N. associ-

ation.

2-65 kg.

The route to the Natal Highlands is discussed fully under Migrational

Routes.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 33

References.

Not much has been written on the Natal Highlands. P. J.

Kloppers * describes and illustrates a bored stone from the farm

Kalkkrans, Utrecht. It is irregularly quadrilateral in form, and

obviously has a low index. No indication whatsoever is given of the

size. Kloppers suggests that it may have been used as an axe (? adze)

ora hoe. This is highly possible, but the illustration suggests a type

very like Trevor’s Bantu examples from Pietersburg (p. 183).

NL. Natat LowLanpbs.

This series shows little relationship to any upcountry material.

The only similarity is the chance analogy between shale discs from

the South-Western Transvaal and discs from here. In the case of the

Transvaal specimens we are obviously dealing with the anomalous

local products of shale, and little value can reasonably be attached

to the similarity. Only one cluster from the Lowlands area is satis-

factory. The low index is the most regular feature, usually below

40 per cent.

(26m 5 e370 ae) BBP tie

itis (1 diy ba Dey a

fh, 1 OD IG oe

ee (Sh 32, 86:88). )

ve ED EO I a)

vi. (56 (2:7 48-2 | 95)

All are below 5:5 cm. in height, lower than the East London series,

and below the flattest of the Bushman’s River material. The two

comparisons given above probably have little value.

NKWALENI.

NMP — 5 Lass 15 12-0 ae 50 3-9 “34 ke.

Havetock, TucEeLta Movurts.

NIMS iene) 15-6 2:7 48-2 Goa i) -19hke:;

Umutotr Bracu, DuRBAN NorRTH.

A.G. Wills . 11-2 3:8 33-9 475

12-2 1:8 14:8 270

10-4 2:0 19-2 215 46

All from same pottery midden site.

4-3 ‘8 ~~ Pebble.

4-8

3°6 Hard black shale.

99 99

WILLow GRANGE, WEENEN.

SEL... . 14:6 5-4 37:0 ee 40 3:0 10 feet below surface.

PIETERMARITZBURG.

TMP 3199... 7:9 10 12-0 5 4.9 40 Anomalous.

* «'n Vierkantige Deurboorde Klipwerktuig,” S. Afr. J. Sci., 1935, xxxii, pp.

474-475.

VOL. XXXVII, PART 1. 3

34 Annals of the South African Museum.

RICHMOND.

NMP 2516 . 12:2 4-7 39:3 a. A eee 1-09 kg.

KARRIDENE.

Sli2Zo: Bed fs EV 3:3 24-1 aie 5:2 19 Described by J. G.

Cramb.

(10-2 29 28-5 = 5:6 .-) From Cramb’s illus-

tration.

Uvonco.

Se ue lO: 9 1:8.) 16:5 oe 34 1:8 10 feet deep.

28s . 12:9 2:0 15:5 ee 4:2 2-6

HARDING.

SHSi) : 8:7 3:2 36:8 ihe Oi eoril

Considerably more exact evidence from this Lowlands area should

yield better graphical grouping, and some clearer knowledge of the

associable implement types. Pottery, microlithic implements, bone

tools, the presence or absence of seashells should all be carefully

noted, and any new evidence sent to the writer or to the nearest

museum, or given reasonable publicity in some acceptable form.

The Transkei is similarly very badly represented, and evidence from

there would be welcomed. |

The relationship suggested above, between this area and other

coastal areas farther south, is interesting. There would seem to be

a flat coastal or lowland type from Natal to East London. The

Bushman’s River series consists only of specimens over 6:0 cm.

thick, and only one specimen has an index below 50 per cent. No

example from NL. reaches either figure. This refutes any idea of a

“Coastal Type” of bored stone, found exclusively at midden sites

along the coast from Natal to the Cape. The truth is far more

complicated than that, as the South Coast Region bears out.

Bibliography and References.

Literature on the Natal and Transvaal bored stones is scanty. One

or two references may be found in descriptions of sites, but with little

interest. Gooch * divided the bored stones he discovered between

the Cape and Natal into three groups: (1) the full sized, 5-7 lb., from

the Cape to Natal, globular in form, and of any material from quartzite

to shale. (2) Small form, 2-3 lb., “angular” like a thick perforated

disc. (3) A small form weighing about 2 lb., globular and occurring

in many materials, less abundant. He mentions the finding of a ring

near Camperdown; it was of indurated shale, and was discovered by

* W. D. Gooch, “‘Stone Age of South Africa,” J. Anthrop. Inst., vol. xi, 1881,

pp. 784-788, illus.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 30

Mr. Thresh. He describes the finding of what we here call a bladed

disc (apparently his type 2) at a “‘considerable depth in blown sand,

in the Red Hill railway cutting, Victoria County, Natal.” George

Leith * notes the finding of a bored stone near Pietermaritzburg.

Other instances might be mentioned.

A further note is given by J. G. Cramb + in a somewhat unsatisfying

paper. He describes a midden site, with decomposed shell-heaps,

typical midden chopping tools, etc., without a single suggestion of

Smithfield types described or illustrated in the text. He admits that

“it is obvious that there is little or no correlation between these

implements and those of the known phases of the Smithfield culture.”

He suggests that the variation described might have originated in a

coastal movement, and stresses the dissimilarity between this and the

numerous Strandloper shell middens of the Natal and Zululand coasts,

where pottery occurs. Differences between Natal midden sites were

noted by Gooch in 1881. Cramb’s second example, taken from his

drawing, is not included in the list of types above, but is listed

tentatively under Karridene.

Further Reading.

If primarily interested in the coastal belt, turn on to the South-

Hastern and South-Hast Lowlands Regions, and continue reading from

there (pp. 72 and 77).

Ill. VAAL REGION.

One of the great highways southward from the Transvaal region

very naturally passed along the Vaal River valley. As tributary

streams entered the main valley they provided lateral lines of move-

ment, either directly across the Vaal, or as feeding routes along which

(as in the case of the Harts River) new types were brought to the

lower reaches of the great highway. These types joined the slow

migrations southward.

I have thought fit to separate the Vaal region from both the

Transvaal and the Free State, but all three are intimately inter-

related, feeding one another and making the two provinces difficult

to understand. Perhaps the key lies in the National Museum,

Bloemfontein, but I am unable in the present circumstances to obtain

* J. Roy. Anthrop. Inst., vol. i, 1898.

{t “Smithfield Implements from a Natal Coastal Site,” Trans. Roy. Soc. S. Afr.,

1934, vol. xxii, pp. 205-223.

36 Annals of the South African Museum.

access to that collection. It is to be hoped that Dr. H. C. N. van

Hoepen’s forthcoming work on the bored stones will provide data for

a clearer view of the position.

The Schoonspruit appears to provide a feeder to the Vaal, with

little attempt to transgress the river southward. In contrast the

Vet-Marico River area has a double function. While it feeds the

Vaal River valley from the headwaters of the Marico, it also cuts

directly across the Vaal valley and seems to have peopled the northern

half of the Free State. This area is divided into a northern and a

southern stretch, but the division has no value apart from the

geographical distribution.

The Middle and Lower Vaal areas might be paired as another region,

as influences cut across from the Free State focus on the east. I have

therefore made them into a subregion, [IIa Vaal Region (Lower), to

permit division with further evidence.

SCV. ScHOONSPRUIT-VAAL AREA.

This area shows little real relationship with surrounding areas, and

many of the types seem to be anomalous. I do not regard it as

important.

i, (10:8 8:7. 180-5: 1015) | VMReainyenae

th) OS Fa SOG 645 OFS. ii, LV. v.

Ff, (Gel eI) eG 465) MG. v.

iv. 10:0 3:3 33-0 330 VMR. v.

ee GRA 270 VH. v, MV. xii.

vine WON, 1-2 sen 10-0 as

RUSTENBURG: B.

ASJ 49/36/5 . 7-9 3:8 481 230 eo. ole S

9:8 29 29:6 (280) 1-9) 1-8) ise:

LIcHTENBURG: B.

AMG 1760 7:3 4:4 60:3 23505 boo eS

ASJ 7/38 10:8 8 (7-4) e: 5-0 4:8 Flat disc.

13:0 Sz 0) ~ 50 39 Flat disc.

KLERKSDORP: A.

WUA\752 . 98 1:3 (13-3) 7:0 6:2 Slate disc.

894 9-8 AST (PATE) 3:0 2-4 Ironstone disc.

SLURRY, MAFEKING.

MMK 1894 . 7:8 73 93:6 AAD 32D OE 2D

SHEPPARD ISLAND.

ASJ 7/35/67 . 10-9 8-8 80-7 1050 40 3-0 Under 2 feet gravel.

One face ground.

7/35/7 . 106 8:5 80:2 955 54 2-4 Under 4 feet gravel.

7/35/68 . 9-1 75 = 82-4 620 32 3:0

7/35/48 . 10-5 35 33:3 385 2:9 2-4

7/35/47. 7-8 50 64-1 305 3:0 2-0

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 37

SEVENFONTEIN, KINGSWOOD.

MMK 1425 . 8:3 6-9 83-1 475 44 3-2 Ss. grinder.

TYGERFONTEIN 189, HoopsTaD.

ASJ 8/41 9-6 7-3) 16:0 675 (2:9 0:5) - Conical bore.

FouRTEEN STREAMS.

AMG 1352. 89 76 85:4 600 34 18

MIP 7528 . 10:5 16 15-2 of 3:8 3:6 Disc.

Slurry and Sevenfontein show some affinity with the Molopo-

Groenwater area (Western Bypass).

VMR. Vet-Marico RIvERs.

This provides a most important highway from the sources of the

Marico River in the Western Transvaal, across the Highveld, to the

Vaal. There is some movement along the Vaal, but far more im-

portant are the migrations along the Vet, the Valsch, and probably

the Rhenoster Rivers, to supply the dominant types in the northern

Free State. This area shows some affinities with the Transvaal,

and has been divided into a northern and a southern section. The

northern section includes the Marico sources, the Highveld, and the

upper reaches of the Vaal River as far as the Vaal Harts confluence:

the southern is listed from east to west, across the Free State to the

junction of the Vet with the Vaal.

Ie Gy 8 eT A TAO) | OAD

10-6 9-2 86-8 1035 BS. ii, SCV. 1.

loa? 7-6 71-0 870 CES. i.

iv. 11-3 6-6 58-4 845 BS. ii.

vs (@A Sey Ba 330) SCV. iv.

ll.

The most striking fact about the area is the paucity of types in

relation to the number of specimens (fig. 4). But just as striking

when the examples are plotted on a graph paper, is the very slight

variation between groups. Except for the last example (presumably

an erratic from the Schoonspruit-Vaal area), diameters range from

10-5 to 12:2 cm., and heights vary between 9-5 and 5:-8cm. The only

other area where an analogous type of distribution is discernible is in

the Central Free State, to the South, but only one type (VMR. iii and

CFS i) agrees. It would seem that we have here the logical outcome

of the theory of copying outlined above in Part I (p. 16).

The extraordinarily high proportion of conical bores in the northern

part of the area is extremely interesting and may prove important.

This will be touched on again when dealing with the Bantu material

in Part V. There is reason to believe that most (perhaps all) were

38 Annals of the South African Museum.

bored with metal tools by Bushmen living in some sort of association

with Sotho tribes, possibly as serfs.

WELBEDACHT.

SAM 4216

ZWARTRUGGENS.

SAM ZW

BULTFONTEIN.

HHC 1046

KLERKSDORP: B.

L. M. Earle

BLoEMHOF: A.

MMK 902

ASJ 5/35/BS.

WUA 1038

HEIGHT.

10-6

12-0

10:5

11-0

12-1

11-5

11-4

10-7

11-7

DIAMETER.

Trext-Fic. 4.—Vet Marico Rivers.

NortHERN (Marico-VAAL).

7-4

8-2

9-5

6:8

MII 1.

CNIOwWwW Pe

70-0

68-3

90-4

61-9

65:1

63°5

61-4

10-9

90:0

830

1180

1050

825

1230

965

910

860

795

(3:0

4-5

(4-0

WOOoonr

1-4)

2-6

1:6)

Fee

IR ASOS

Conical bore. Signs

of striation part

way down.

Conical bore.

2-1 kg. Specular iron

ore. 20 feet deep

Ss. conical bore.

Amyed. diabase.

Soapstone.

Conical bore.

Soapstone.

13kg. Ss.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 39

CHRISTIANIA Town LANDS.

HHC 1045 . 10-9 8:3 76:1 985 49 2-9 Diabase or andesite.

Top of flood-plain

alluvium. Outside

smoothed. Used

as grinder,

Van AASWEGENSHOEK, CHRISTIANIA.

MMK 1845 . 11-2 77 3868-7 965 4:7 2-6 Dolerite.

This last specimen was found with an Archidiskodon. See Dart,

Sain Je isci., vol. xxvi, 1929; p: 71d.

SOUTHERN (VET-VAAL).

BAVIAANSKRANZ.

PEM 614.V. 10:5 7:8 74-2 860 59 3:5

HARRISMITH: B.

ASJ 7/41 - 10-5 SoZ OL On LOLa I Ae 222

10-7 8-7 813 1000 45 3:8

10-5 75 71-4 830 52 4:0

KRANSFONTEIN, HARRISMITH.

Univ. Stell. . 11-7 8:6) a: o) Sea feta 2. 2h

PaRYS.

MMK 2147 . 11-6 Ci 61-2 955 5:3 46 Cyclindrical bore.

KROONSTAD.

MMK 1299 . 11-2 8-4 75:0 1055 5:5 2:9 Ss.

Univ. Stell. . 11-2 63 56-2 790 49 3-7

9-4 3°7 39-4 330 2:8 2-6 Shale. Erratic from

SSV.

WINBURG.

TMP 6468 . 10-5 TO oe 870 41 2:7

In Parapiso, BRANDFORT.

Univ. Stell. . 11-1 66 59:5 815 4:5 3:3 Shale. Pecked sur-

face.

NAPIER, BosHOF.

MMK 279 . 11:8 83 70:0 1155 4:5 2-9 Ventersdorp traver-

tine.

BuTHABUTHA.

SAM 1758 . 10:5 75 71-4 825 49 2-5

NORTHERN BASUTOLAND.

SAM 466 . 108 9- 84:2 1060

1 2:6 Quartzite Ss.

11:0 ‘6 69-0 920 3°3

Ss. Nodule.

He oo

Hs Oo

BS. BLOEMFONTEIN-SEPANI AREA.

This area is somewhat detached from the southern Free State,

and shows affinities with the Vaal. It is possible that it has affinities

with the south-eastern Free State, and that it was the route by which

40 Annals of the South African Museum.

material passed from the Vaal, along the western side of Basutoland,

then up the Orange to the Transkei. More evidence is essential to get

this clear. On the other hand the similarity with some of the

Winterveld types is abundantly clear.

1 13-0 8-4 64-6 1420 VH. ii, KA. i, NH. iii, TK. ii.

ti. (10-5 9-2 87-2 1035) VMR. ii, UTV. ii.

rhtig | (UL loe/ 6-5 55:1 900) VMR. iv.

ive (8:3 8:5 102:4 585) KA. iii, WV. vi.

v. (88 6-2 70-4 480) KA. ii, WV. vii, SEFS. vii, UTV. v.

vi. + (5° 3°8 69-4 108) KA. v, WV. ix, SEFS. xii, TK. v.

It will be seen that most of the comparisons for the first three types

lie to the north, while those from the latter three lie to the south.

The Transkei shows affinities with types i and vi. This last is also

recognizable in the south-eastern Free State. ;

Apart from the last type, all specimens exceed 8 cm. in diameter,

while most exceed 10-3cm. It becomes obvious, if we plot this series

against the Vet-Marico series, that individual examples from here

coincide more nearly with VMR. specimens than the type averages

would suggest. One last question needs comment. What is the

relationship between type BS. i and the Natal Highlands type in?

The fact that the bulk of the southern distribution of the Vet-Marico

River area and the Basutoland massives lie across the road between ~

suggests very strongly that the present area merely represents a

divergent branch, originating in a common source to the north,

probably ET. 1, or CT. ii, both of which show similarities to the Natal

Highlands, but less with the present area.

BLOEMFONTEIN.

TMP 1873 10:8 94 87:9 1095 3:3 2:5

1875 12-4 6-7 54:0 1030 69 3:3

ASJ — 8:3 8:°5 102-4 585 4-4 ye

TMP 1850 5:7 4:7 78-9 146 29 2:0

SEPANI.

SAM 2474 . 13:5 85 62:9 1550 75 £4:3

13:5 Wess © lazy ADA ab) Bo

12:1 86 71-1 1260 5:3 3:2

10:4 90 86-4 Cae) 425 32

11-1 6:3 56:3 UH, xO) Bez

8-8 6-2 70-4 480 41 3:2

4-9 2:9 59-2 70 2:0 :

The extreme paucity of material from this area is very much

regretted. It is possible that the averages given above have some

relation to fact, but little real value can be placed upon them until

Dr. E. C. N. van Hoepen publishes his work on the bored stones in

the National Museum, Bloemfontein.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 41

VH. Vaat-Harts ARBA.

We are now getting towards the middle reaches of the Vaal. The

most striking fact is the preponderance of examples over 11-0 cm. in

diameter, with a marked step between these and smaller types—

presumably representing a division between the digging-stick stone

_ andthe knobkerrie head. The larger elements recall, in a very general

way, the VMR. and ST. areas, implying that the types were intended

for the same function in all these areas.

ie ss) 11-0 79°8 2125 MG. i, NWT. i, MV. ii.

i 13-0 9-2 70-8 1555 IBS sure, MV Ectvi

ii. 11-4 9-8 85-9 1275 MF. u.

iv. 133 6-8 ol-1 1190

Vee (i-D 3°8 50-6 215) MV. xiii, SWT. ii, NES. iv.

vi. (5-0 3:5 70-0 87) NWT. vii, BS. vi.

Type 1 might reasonably be redivided into two types 13-4 x 8-7 cm.

and 12-8 x 9-8 cm. respectively. The former shows similarities with

BS. 1, the latter with ST.iand MV. iv.

SCHWEIZER REINEKE.

HHC 1043 . 13:0 100 77:0 1690 5:0 3-6 Diabase. 3 feet deep

on gravels.

PNP Si22 127 6-7 52:9 1080 4:2 2-2 Harts River gravels.

MMEG'993... (7-3) 41 56-2 218 3:1 2:5 Amygd. diabase.

Rolled.

BLoEMHOF B.

ASJ 13/41 . 14:5 11:4 78:6 2420 49 1:6

138 1l-l 80-4 2115 65 3:5

S/3o/80 . ) 12:0, 10:2. (85:0 1470 4-2 ae

MINT. 12-9 8-2 63°6 13865 5:9 3:3 Ss.

Asad aaojso). 11-0 10:0 90-9 1210 46 2:7 ‘Ss.

LEEUWKRAAL, HOopstTaD.

ASJ 7/35/6 . 13:4 75 56:0 1345 51 2:7 #£Surface.

BABERSLAGTE, HoopstaD.

ASJ 7/35/1 . 13:3 6-9 51:9 1220 47 2:9 6 feet deep.

HOopstTaD.

MMK 999. 14:0 G:2n 20 em 43 2-5 Ss)

CHRISTIANIA.

HHC 1045 . 13-6 95 70:00 1755 45 3-8

MMK 1292 5-1 3-9) 16-5 101 29 2:0 Amygd. diabase.

Grinder.

BETHELPELLA.

ASJ 5/35/BPS 48 3-1 64:6 7 2-7 1-2) Surface.

KOOPMANSFONTEIN.

MMK 418. 12:8 100 78:1 1640 46 2-9

42 Annals of the South African Museum.

NEWLANDS.

MMK 389. 134 105 784 1860 54 3-1 Ss.

Ms cha 4: 86 642 1520 50 3:8. Ss.

1249 . 12-5 9-277 73°61" 1440" 95-1) 3-5) Sst

1132 12 922) 82-1 5085-0) 0 92-30 Sse

VaAL-Harts CONFLUENCE.

ASJ 4/40/22 . 7:7 3:7 48-0 2G 3-2.) 2-5

Illa. VAAL REGION (LOWER).

The Griqualand stretch of the Vall River is marked by a variety

of types, some migrants down the Vaal, others cross movements to or

from the Free State Focal Area. A more exact knowledge of proven-

ance is essential, especially as to the relation of specimens to the river,

left or right bank, etc. At present the picture is somewhat kaleido-

scopic.

The region is a subdivision of the Vaal Region, and common types

hold the two areas (here called the Middle and the Lower Vaal) into

one whole, difficult to disentangle into two true areas. It is obvious

too that sites such as Rietpan and Botterhoek present types that show

affinity with Smithfield, Postmasburg, and Phillipstown. These

widely separated sites will be dealt with under Migrations. The

column of comparisons will suggest the interweaving of movements

to and from this stretch of the Vaal and surrounding areas.

MV. MippuLe VAAL.

i. (14:3 12-2 85:5 2500) SEFS.i, MG. i, WV. i.

rile Vo 11-4 80:7 1760) ) VER, SE Vesa

iii. 11-4 11-6 101-7 1505 LV. i.

iv. 12-5 9-6 76-9 1500 VH. ii, KB. ii, SEFS. iii, CT. ii.

v. (12:5 8-0 64-4 1260) BS.i, KA.i, NWT. ii.

vi. 11-5 9-0 78:3 1200 MF. iii.

vil. 10-5 7-9 75:2 870 KB. iv, ET. ii, VMR. iii.

vill. (12:3 4-6 37-4 700) Anomalous.

ix. 11-0 5:5 50-0 665 LV. iv, CT. v.

xe ERB} 5:0 53:7 430 AG. i, ST. ii.

ale) | THs) 6-3 87-2 385 LV. vi, KB. vi, MG. v, CES. iii.

MA) de? 4-] 56-9 213 SCV. v, ST. iii, VH. v.

xiii. 6-5 5-0 76-9 210 KA. iv. °

While it is obvious that sites from Barkly West to Gong-Gong and at

Kimberley show an overlap of MV. and LV. types, these have been

included here. Material from Katlani, Rietpan, etc., which would fit

better geographically into the Lower Vaal area, have also been

included here, as their graphical scatter conforms better. As our

exact knowledge of this whole province increases it may be better

to work from the geographical distribution of types and develop

new areas.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 43

RIVERVIEW ESTATE.

ASJ 5/35/55 . 11-0 8:2 74:5

16/40 . 10-0 8-1 81:0

WINDSORTON.

ASJ 15/41 . 116 11:3 97-4

11-6 8:9 78:8

SAM 1839 . 12:3 4:6 37-4

ASJ 15/41/19 W.10-8 5-7, 1) o2'8

SAM 1839 7:0 Don oak

SLYPKLIP, WINDSORTON.

ASJ 20/43 . 9:6 8:3 86-4

RIVERTON.

ASJ 36/32/16 12-5 (9-5) 79-6

MMK 1294 11:8 9-2 82-1

8:0 6:20 1-5

Goop Horr, PNIEL.

MMK 1488 . 11:2 108 96:4

PNIEL.

ASJ 61/88 . 11:5 9-0 78-2

5/85. 6-2 5:7 91-9

KANTEEN Kop.

ASD KK, ¥.. 6-5 4:4. 67-7

WINTER’S RUSH.

SAM 791 Basel! 66 81-5

BarkKLty WEST.

ASJ 22/41 13-2 116 87-8

WC 297 2 12-5 82 65-6

MMK 1492 9:8 4:4 44-9

WOUA 247 7:5 (4:5) 60-0

BaRKLY WEST TO GONG-GONG.

Van Alphen . 13-0 9:8 75-4

11-5 12:3 107-9

17s 10-2887 -2

12-4 9-2 74-3

12-5 79 63-2

10-9 74 67-9

8-0 6-5 81-2

7-9 64 81-0

6-9 6-4 92-8

6-9 5-1} 73-9

RIETPAN.

MMK 607. 145 12-4 85-5

2608 a ls-On e112: 86-2

26 van 1 93 5-2 55-9

489 9-1] 50 55:4

990

810

1520

1135

700

665

260

765

1485

1280

400

1355

1190

220

186

435

2020

1280

425

255

1655

1625

1415

1240

880

415

400

305

245

2610

1900

450

415

4-0

4-5

CoH G2 OD

bo oO bo CO C1

bo Or

2°8

G2 HR G9 09 GO OT OVE O9 O09

OS — CO © CO HP ©C CO 00

He O2ct

Sye5ien Er

ee WNW he wea

DaAODROARD: >

—

Ree ee

00 00 bo

Sohnge, Visser and

Lowe. Site VI.

Cylindrical bore.

Anomalous.

Ss.

Erratic. Cf. UH. v,

Radial cuts at

mouth.

Ss.

ad. Annals of the South African Museum.

KIMBERLEY.

MMK 1879 . 13-1 9:6 73-3) G50 o23 ole SS

1898 . 12:9 9:3) ik. La OOU eA) yer Ona S se

ASJ 4/40/21 . 10:5 7:2 68-5 TIONS 8 75) is

ASJ 8 . Bey Mlle, 5:5 49-1 690 3:3 2:7—

a j 9-4 D2 OOO 460 3:9. 2:7

MMK 1296 8:1 6-1 75:3 400 3:5 19 Ss. Grinder.

ce eee 5:9 177-6 340 3-7 1-9

ASJ 4/40/21. 7-4 5:8 78:4 5) Ro es 9 a

MMK 1296 6:4 4-7 73-4 wO2, Sl | 18885 Sse

ASJ 8. 6-9 Beis! | Oey 167. 30 2:5

AMG 1732 8 4:8 82:8 161 2:8 ‘9

SKANSKOP, KIMBERLEY.

MMK 1850 .— 8-8 5:1 58:0 400 39 3-0

Riet River, KIMBERLEY.

SAM — . 10:0 85 85:0 850 42 3:1

BoTTERHOEK, JAKOBSDAL.

MMI 997 92 14:2) 12:1 85:2" 2440" 4-7 © 2-8

1180 . 11:0 5:6 51-0 680 5:2) 2:6 7 oSs:

a - 68 4:7 69-1 Jie 3-2) 2:0) Sse

ROorroort.

ASJ 36/35/15 = 11-7 SI it 8 er 24 6-0 ee

10-8 LO rion 920 54 2-5

6-2 2°5

8-4 73°8 440 4-0

SCHMIDTSDRIF.

MMK 733 12-3 110-0 (81-3. 15154-39124 esse

SAM 4957 . 10-6 8:4 79-2 945 5-1 2-9

7-2 4:1 57:3 210 42 2-6

MIDDELPLAATS.

MMK 1488 . 10:8 5:2 48-2 605 3:9 2:3) iss:

KatTLAnt, Dovuguas.

PEM 614/0 . 11:3 90 796 1150 53 3:4

MAZELSFONTEIN.

MMK 1803 . 12-0 98 81-7 1410 45 3-1

The fact that certain of these Middle Vaal types recur at Douglas

and other sites below the Modder River junction suggests that these

are true Vaal types (MV. ili, ix, xi). They conform to LV. 1, iv, and vi

respectively, confirming the suggestion. The remainder probably

represent lateral movements into this valley, generally from the Free

State region, but sometimes from the Vaal-Harts, Southern Transvaal,

etc., suggesting that these last are also intimately related to the

Vaal valley.

LV. Lower VAAL.

Careful comparison of this area with the Middle Vaal, either geo-

graphically or graphically, will at once show that the division is

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 45

hardly justifiable at present. Sites in both series occur at Douglas,

etc., while types often correspond. There is a difference present,

but the MV. series has been used largely as a receptacle for the sites

showing mixed types, the number of averages is therefore greater

in that series. I suspect that we are dealing with material not from

two stretches of the river, but from two banks of the river. The

picture is not so simple as that, for at times, especially along the

stretch west of Barkly West village, the same types occur on both

banks. These two areas must yield, with further and more exact

knowledge, to more reasonable adjustment.

(IEG 10-@ 9551) 455) MVE aii:

ii. (13-4 60 448 1080) VH. iv.

iii. 10-3 9:0 87:3 955 BS. ii, SCV. i.

iv. (10-7 60 56-1 685) MV. ix.

v. (91 75 82-4 620) KB. v, SCV. iii.

vi. 8-2 5-7 70-0 385 MV. xi, KA. ii.

vii. (5-9 ley USS Ne NC hIKEA ye

While the MV. series shows the more general distribution, the LV.

material is more closely related to the Kaaienveld (p. 65).

Gone-Gone.

MMK 991. 6-4 16 25-0 66 -* 2-6 ~2:2 Ss.

DovUGLAS.

MMK 929 . 134 60 448 1080 55 33 Ss.

MSs 90 63 700 510) 44° 24

999°. 8:0 62 775 400 38 2:8

7-4. 5-6 75:7 305 34 1-9

1666 5:3 1:8 34:0 Y= Sap 1 Dips

St. Ciatr, DovuGLas.

SAM 702 . 11:6 11:0 94:8 1480 40 2-9 Ss.

10-0 8:5 85:0 S00), 3°59) 3:3

11-0 6-4 58-2 TO a2 ;

9-6 7-7 80-1 710 as ; Started.

MMK 258 . 10-4 5-5 52-9 By ZS Bll ISI,

SAM 702 i 8-6 74 86:0 SYED | Fats) | pI

8-2 6-1 74-4 ANO: 73:7. 2-2

8-0 5:3 66-2 390 84:5 ots

- BROADWATERS, DOUGLAS.

MMK 2105 . 10-2

Ne)

i=)

990 3:4 1:5 Soapstone. Partly

rebored later.

WITBOOM, GRIQUATOWN.

MMK 1291 . 10:8 90 833 1050 3:8 2-2

GRANGE.

PVE ye eS 10-7 9027") 149076:0 3-3

iS 8:0 5:3 62-4 385 3:8 2-5

In the McGregor Museum collection at Kimberley, a few outstanding

specimens occur. Some years ago Mr. H. G. Bryant of Prieska

46 Annals of the South African Museum.

presented the collection with a complete digging-stick. It consists of

a large bored stone mounted on a stick, perhaps an inch in diameter

and a yard in length; the end of the stick is shod with a buckhorn.

Three specimens from Griqualand West appear to be mace-heads,

possibly of a ceremonial nature. They are of hard igneous rock, tooled

over the whole surface. One has been tooled to a pyriform shape,

markedly pointed at one end; at the opposite pole there is a flat

platform, obviously prepared for boring. The remainder are ovals,

bored into one face only, presumably to take a suitable stick.

(Compare UTV. Aliwal North; type vii, SAM 1361, where the

example measuring 6-3 x 6-3 cm. is of analogous pyriform type.)

Illustrations of further Griquatown material can be found in EH. J./

Dunn’s book,* but the material itself is unhappily in Australia and

the figures are not available.

IV. FREE STATE FOCAL REGION.

This region has had to be rather awkwardly divided. A short

study of the Koffiefontein material will explain quite clearly why this

subdivision is necessary. It is due to the paucity of evidence of

exact provenance. All material should be referred to the smallest

unit of land, viz. a farm. SBoshof district covers about 5000 square

miles of territory, while Fauresmith district covers a little less.

Material marked by districts is therefore as precisely placed as material

from Britain marked by counties. Yorkshire with its 6000 square

miles compares with many districts in South Africa. Such terms as

Smithfield mean little more than this. Compare the areas given in

the beginning of this part (Part II, p. 23).

What makes the position even more difficult is that this region is

focal. It provides the area of attraction that seems to have con-

centrated and mingled every movement that passed between the

Basutoland massives and the Kaap Plateau, a belt 300 miles wide,

representing a bottle-neck of migration between the arid Kalahari

and the impassable mountains.

This region consists of the southern half of the Free State, and the

basins of the Modder, Riet, Kaffir, and Caledon Rivers, together with

the northern basin of the Orange and the junction of the Vaal with

the Orange River. At this last point the types seem to coincide with

the northernmost distribution of the Trekveld-Winterveld area.

* K.J. Dunn, The Bushmen. London, 1931. |

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 47

Immediately west of this region lie the Middle and Lower Vaal areas,

while to the north are the northern Free State and the Bloemfontein-

Sepani areas. To the east the Maluti range of the Drakensberg

confines the area absolutely.

As one would expect of a region served by a network of rivers,

divided only by low plateau country, and lying on the arid side of the

Drakensbergen, these perennial streams (though considerably reduced

by the end of the dry winter) have attracted man from all directions.

Cultural traits converge on the streams and cross and recross from a

number of sources, meeting and mingling, and at times combining to

form new cultural patterns. They create a jigsaw of distribution

difficult to deal with on a map.

My task has been rendered more difficult in this region, as war

conditions and service have prevented me from visiting the McGregor

Museum, Kimberley, for the purpose of measuring specimens. The

museum itself has been shorthanded and incapable of undertaking the

work. For the great quantity of additional material I have received

from this source I am indebted to an old student, B. D. Malan (now

attached to the Archaeological Survey at Johannesburg), who took

advantage of his presence in Kimberley to obtain this valuable

information. My earlier notes did not represent a tithe of the material

thus made available. I have been dissuaded from making use of

material from the National Museum, Bloemfontein, as Dr. E. C. N.

van Hoepen tells me he intends to publish this at some future

date.

Professor C. van Riet Lowe has shown this region to be the heart

of the Smithfield culture, especially of phase B. Indeed to under-

stand this region at all clearly the reader is referred to papers by that

author,* while a site list is given later. Several of the sites listed

here are described in these papers, and some knowledge of the relation-

ships existing between the various phases of the Smithfield culture,

the Wilton, and the bored stone can be gathered from those sources.

Other literature will be mentioned as we proceed. This is the focal

area of the Smithfield B culture, and most of our examples are

associated with this phase.

* Lowe and Cable, *“‘The lithicultural horizon . . . of the bored stone in the

Orange Free State,” S. Afr. J. Sci., 1927, vol. xxiv, pp. 506-513.

C. van Riet Lowe, “The Smithfield Industry in the Orange Free State,’”’ Ann. S.

Afr. Mus., 1929, vol. xxvii, pp. 151-234.

Sohnge, Visser, and Lowe, “The Archaeology of the Vaal River Basin,” Geological

Survey, Mem. 35. Pretoria, 1937.

48 Annals of the South African Museum.

K.A., K.B. KoFFIEFONTEIN AREA.

The material from this ill-defined area, including parts of the

Jakobsdal and Fauresmith districts, presents a very peculiar problem.

If all examples are taken together they cover the range of the Free

DIAMETER.

HEIGHT.

Fic. 5.—Koffiefontein A.

State types fairly comprehensively. If, however, they are divided

into two groups, related to the collections made by independent

institutions, the picture is very different. The series is therefore

arranged in two series, each with its own averages. The first series

(K.A.) is from the Archaeological Survey, Johannesburg, and from

the University of Cape Town collection only. These are from the

same sources, as I collected the latter example with Professor van

Riet Lowe from his sites. These are mainly from the Fauresmith

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 49

district, on the Koffiefontein town lands and neighbouring farms

(fig. 5). The other series (K.B.) consists of material sent in to

the McGregor Museum (apparently from the Jakobsdal side of

Koffiefontein) and to the Anatomy Department of the University of

the Witwatersrand, from comparable sites (fig. 6).

DIAMETER.

Fic. 6.—Koffiefontein B.

The result of this separation of material yields a picture of alternat-

ing types. There are two explanations possible. Hither we are

dealing with the function of two different distributions at Koffie-

fontein, or alternatively we are dealing with the same series at different

stages in the process of serial copying. If the former is true, the

parallel between the two series is the result of a remarkable coincidence.

If the latter, then we are presented with the products of a slow change

induced by copying over a period of time. We can tentatively regard

the two series as being chronologically and spatially separate, though

it is impossible to suggest which may be the earlier.

VOL. XXXVII, PART 1. 4,

50 Annals of the South African Museum.

It is at once evident that in a congested focal area, such as the

Free State, more exact evidence of provenance is essential. It may

even be necessary to mark specimens from a single apparently homo-

geneous site with such additional data as North, South, Central, etc.

A survey of a large area by the methods laid down in Method in

Prehistory (South African Archaeological Society, Handbook I,

1945, pp. 96 et seg.) may considerably increase our knowledge

of a local series. The extension of this ethnological technique

to a series of test sites, each a hundred yards square, would

provide evidence that could be checked by collation. The collection

of data in the field should not be difficult, the real work consists

of collation of material later, which would provide a major task.

Such evidence is not available at present, and is not likely to be

obtainable for some time after the war. The average figures for

the two groups are therefore given, and the data is separated

accordingly.

K.A. KCB.

in 12:3) (98:3) 967-5) 9 1255 i. (14:7 10-1 68:7 2185)

ii} 18'S.) 05:07) 167-0) Hos ii. 126 10:1 80:0 1605

iii. (7-5 7-5 1000 420) iii. (12-8 73 57-0 1195)

iva 6:6 TOs eos iv. 10-0 7-8 78:0 780

v. 56 39 700 122 v. 85 76 89-4 550

vi 65 1:7 261 72 vi. 7-5 59 78:9 330

vii, 7-5 49 653 295

vii, 5-5 45 81-9 136

ix. 4:8 31 64-6 71

x. (3-5 2-3 65-7 28)

While no comparisons are given here, other areas and groups are

compared to these two series, and a cross reference should quickly

show the relationship of the various surrounding averages. Koffie-

fontein B provides the material for the Winterveld migration.

KoFFIEFONTEIN A (ASJ anp UCT onty).

ASJ 10/41 . 13-5 90 66:7 1640 58 2:6

64/38 . 12:0 °(8:0) 66:7 1150 5-5 a

LOA ey 2 8:0 714 1005 54 3:5

G4/38 0 eee OG) aed 525 3:0 2:8

8-9 6-3 70:8 500 3:9 2:9

9-1 6-0 65-9 495 46 2-7

Ter 8-2 106-5 485 47 3-6 Hammer.

10/41 9-4 5:5) ~ 60-1 485 4:2 2:5

64/38 8-6 6-1 70-9 450 4:2 2-7

(9-0) (5:5) 61-1 445 30 1-5 Fragmentary.

8-2 5:8 70°77 390 45 3:4

8:5 5:3 62:3 385 40 2:2 Grinder.

Te 6-9 94:5 370) 424 O°7

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 51

KOFFIEFONTEIN A (ASJ anp UCT onLy)—continued.

ASJ 64/38 6:7 5:2. 776 935 (8-1 2-4

68 45 662 205 35 24

64. 4671-9, 9 190 | 2-9) 1-7

29/35 63 46 73:0 18 39 23

10/41 6:0) 863.3) 1 137 282-8) F1-2

64/38 DoS LOG 7 | 123.5 3-0 18

By aoa Gao TT 3-0. 18

50 44 880 110 28 23

WOMI5197. 61 2-0 32-8 Tle OD ES

ASJ 64/38 70 13 186 64-3308

I suspect that the first specimen listed above represents a group of

its own, and that it really belongs, in spite of its accession number, to

series B. I make this deduction from material listed later under the

Winterveld area, that suggests closer affinities with Koffiefontein B

than with the A series, though types represented in both are present

in WV.

KOFFIEFONTEIN B (MMK anp WUA ownty).

MMK 1310 . 14:7 10-1 68-7 2185 42 2:0

Wi 226). 12-8) 10:3 80-5 - 1690 Gl 3-7

1100a. 12-2 99° 81-47) 4-5 5 Ss. 1-84 kg.

MMK 1432 . 11:7 105 89-7 1440 43 2-6

WUA 235 . 11:8 96) "8i-3 ) 1335), 5:4 3:4 1-8 ke:

MMK 1311 . 12:8 73 57:0 1200 4:8 3:2 Mudstone.

1310 . 10:5 Onn LO 872 3-6 ae

WUA 232 . 10:0 8-1 81-0 810 43 3-0 Irreg. Ss.

236 a7 7:2 74:2 680 43 2-4

MMIKGWSI3 >. 8:7 Sosa G15, 36 oo:

WUA 11008. 8-8 7:8 88-6 605 4-1 : Ss.

HOOE 8-7 76 87:3 GD) AR Se

789A. 8-4 76 90-0 5385 45 3-1 Subcylindrical.

231 8-3 7-1 85-5 490 4-1 2-2 Mudstone.

MMK 398 7:8 6-2 79-5 SoO Mach 2.0

PSLON 7822 5-4 65-9 365 3:8 2-4

WUA1100F. 7:4 6-3 85-1 345 24 .. 0-45 kg.

HOOD. 1-7 5-7 74-0 340 24 41:8 #£Ss. 0-54 kg.

230) 1D 6-0 80-0 S30) 2-400) 3.

MMK 1791 8-1 4-9 60-5 320 46 2:6

2638 7:8 4:9 62:8 300 3:0 2:3

WUA 227 74 5:0 67:6 21 POS) Goro: SS

234 7-0 56 80-0 Zion wie 02 8 223

MMK 1432 7:0 4-6 65:7 259) 3-99 2-7

WUA 7898 55 5:2 94-5 155 30 1:7

MMK 1745 5-5 4:2 76:4 127 2-6 1:5 Four faces ground.

WUA 237 5-4 40 74-0 Phe oF Olea! ta OSs

MMK 1536 5:5 2-7 48-7 83) 3:6) 2:0

1637 4-7 Be ther 82 2:5 1-4

1717 4-7 3:1 66-0 68 2:6 1:2

1537 4-] 36 8678-0 Ol) 1-5: 70:6

2227 4-] 3-1 75-6 Bye) apres © Le

1891 3-5 PAB (CSET) 282-1) 0:9

52 Annals of the South African Museum.

OTHER FREE STATE SITES.

The extraordinary richness of this area, and the vagaries of collec-

tion make it impossible to give any real picture. What additional

evidence is available should be collected by the various institutions

concerned before it is utterly lost. All that I can hope to do here is to

discuss those patches that appear to provide culturally “pure” series,

in order to provide data for the isolation of types by distribution when

further more exact evidence is available. Sites are therefore grouped

by typology rather than on geographical grounds. With nomadic

peoples wandering in relation to the varying availability of water in

an area such as this, that is all we can at present hope to do.

Many types can be linked with the Middle and Lower Vaal areas.

Some types are very “dominant” or persistent, others appear to be

recessive, and to occur in one or two areas only. Perhaps this is

important, more especially when types persist over great areas or

cover long distances, such types should repay watching.

The main reason why the Free State is such a difficult area lies in

the plateau structure of almost the entire area. This plain is cut, ©

never very deeply, by a number of rivers flowing west to the Vaal,

to yield a down-like countryside, never impeding migrations and

minor movements in any direction. The reasons for analogies on the

Middle and Lower Vaal should therefore be obvious as well.

CFS. CENTRAL FREE STATE GROUP.

This group is mainly characterised by the relative closeness of the

averages. All diameters lie between 7-5 and 11-3 cm. and all heights

are below 8-0 cm. This gives the impression that a distribution such as

that given above for the Vaal-Harts area, and a scatter such as this,

would cover most of the Free State types. Alternatively the NWT.

area added to this group would yield much the same result. The CFS

material thus appears to be a fundamental component of the region.

i. (11-0 7:0 63-6 845) VMR. iii.

iis © 3925 75 79-0 680 MF. v, KB. iv, MFG. v, LV. iii, SCV. ii.

ii. 8-4 6-5 77-4 460 SEES. vii.

iv. 8-3 4:7 56-6 325 SEFS. viii.

EAGueE’s Nest (PETRUSBERG-BosHoF RD.).

WA 669) LIEl 77-00 163-10e) SG5n 46 29

ASJ 11/40 . 99 73 73-4 680 49 3-6 Grinder.

94 75 800 665 44 2-7

SAM 4601 . (85) 63 741 455 (3-8) (2:7) Broken.

8-5 AuTi 63:b0) vol 5eeea6 (ea)

ASJ 11/40 8:2 16:6 180-5 445) 2-0) | 12-6

SAM 4601 2 7-6 sola S408 vag Flog

M. C. Burkitt’s example from this site (South Africa’s Past in Stone and Paint,

p. 94) is much smaller, measuring approximately 5-7 x 4-7 em. Compare KB. viii.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 53

BLAAUWHEUVEL.

ASJ 25/35 8:9 6:5 73:0 515 45 3-0

8-7 4-6 652-9 350 (3-5 2-3) Conical bore.

8:4 4:9 58-3 3450) oa 2:6

8:2 4:9 60:5 320 44 2-9

DRIEKOPSEILAND.

ASJ 14/42 . 9:5 (eS Lo 695 3:9

GOEIEMANSBERG, LUCKHOFF.

WIWIACA/39 . 9°77 7:3 75:3 685 34 1-1 Ss. -82 kg.

LUCKHOFF.

SAM 4684 . 9-2 74 80-4 625 40 2:3 Shale or Ss.

PLOOYSBURG.

MMK 2636 . 8-4 4:4 52-4 310 73:0) 225

EmMavs.

MMK 1294 . 11-0 71 64:5 860 5:8 3-4 Shale.

AG. ALEXANDERSFONTEIN GROUP.

As would be expected this group shows some relationship to

Kimberley. Only two types of any value are represented. All

specimens are small, the largest having a diameter of 9-0 cm. This

suggests a general affinity with CES. iv, with the addition of even

smaller elements.

(9-0 5:2 62-8 425) MV. xi.

ms ((7e33 2-8 38:3 150) Anomalous.

(46 2:2 47-5 48)

Banx’s DRIFT.

MMK 1897 . 9:0 4:8 53:3 400 4:2 3-0 Epidote diabase.

1184. 4:5 2-4 53-3 DO 2:2 2S SS:

ALEXANDERSFONTEIN.

ASJ 36/35/1 . 9-0 5:6 62-2 450), “4022 4s

. 7:3 2°38 38-3 150 2:3 1:9 Anomalous.

4-8 2:0 41-7 46 2:0 1:6

MF. MoppER-FAURESMITH GROUP.

These sites may be taken somewhat uncomfortably together. I

can see no reason why Fauresmith district should associate itself

with the Modder River, and yet show no real relationship with the

Riet River which lies nearer. The Modder River site is immediately

below the junction of the Riet and Modder, where the railway crosses

from Kimberley southward. The nearest point in the Fauresmith

district is perhaps 30 miles, and part of Jakobsdal district intervenes.

ig ood 11-2 85-5 1920 MV. ii.

ii. 11-4 Sz 85-1 1260 als sits

iii. (11-5 8:5 74-0 1125) KA.i, VMR.i, SWT. i.

iv. (9-2 10-5 114-1 890) Anomalous.

We oX0) 74 82-2 600 KB. v, SSV. ii, CFS. i.

vi. 6-0 3:8 63-3 137 KA. v.

54 Annals of the South African Museum.

Mopper RIVER.

MMK 1297 12h LL - Gs 2 S02 18704: Gi 2-0) seis:

A049 3 11-9) 10:26 28): 7) AAD onl oul Ss.

Dain | les 9°62 5 S2:08 Ost de 5:G ose Ss.

SAM 815 . 11-5 86 746 1140 49 3:6

MMK 756 11-4 S47 iat 10999) Sea 973-0

WUA 607 . 9-6 6:9 72:0 G25 me D a as

MMK 192 . 6-2 36 38-1 lipishy, oe iiss}

FavRESMITH DISTRICT.

ASJ 26/35/5 . 13:7 11:0 803 2065 5-7 3-3

66/38 = 13-0. 11-0), (84-65) 1860) 5-8 93-7

23/39 . 10d (9:6) 91-4) 1060) 3-2) 02-7

92 10:5 114-1 890 3:4 2:6

28/36, -% { (9:0). (7-5)? 283°3 (G05): 02:7: 231 Fragmentary.

28/35. 9-] 7-1 78:0 590 42 2-6

6:0 Ae Sema miler t55)) 3422-0

6:5 3°55 86-38 VAT ssn

KLIPPLAAT, FAURESMITH.

WUA A/81 . 6-1 4:4 72-1 165 2-7 16 8feet deep. Diabase.

AVALON.

ASJ 9/38/11 . 8-9 8:0 90:0 635 42 1:7 Surface pecked. One

face flattened.

RamMauH MANorR.

MMK 185. 5-2 3:4 65:4 92 28 1:4

SEFS. SoutH-EASteERN FREE STATE.

Held together by the Smithfield series, these sites show some

homogeneity. The Smithfield material appears to be of less real

value than was at first thought. I have been able to discover that

Dr. Kannemeyer was in the habit of leaving collections of stone

implements at the homes of his country patients, from where they

would be collected at a later date, put together and sent to Dr.

Péringuey at the South African Museum. It is perfectly possible

that the bulk of the collection is from the neighbourhood of Smith-

field, but it is probable that individual examples came from neigh-

bouring districts—Bethulie, Rouxville, and perhaps even from

Burghersdorp and Aliwal North, where he was a fairly regular visitor.

These last two districts lie on the southern side of the Orange River,

outside this region.

i. (14:2 12-4 87:3 2500) Bethulie dist. MV. i, WV. i.

li. 12-4 12-] 96-8 1860 MV. iii.

iii. 12-5 10-0 80-0 1565 KB. ii.

Tie WARD 7:5 62-5 1080 KA. i.

we (GE) 8:8 88-1 860)

was) ORL 7-0 69-8 715 KB. iv, WV. v.

Vil SO 6-3 70-1 500 KA. ii, WV. vii, CES. iii.

Vili, 87 5:3 60-9 400 KA. ii, AG. i, CFS. iv.

1x.) 74 5:7 77-0 310 KB. vi.

xea” 0:0 4-4 13°3 158 KB. viii, WV. ix.

oath (F/G) 2-0 26:7 -- ) Herschel only.

XTi eo-O 2-9 58:0 67 KGB ix Vie xe

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 55

This area shows a fairly considerable resemblance to the two series,

Koffiefontein A and B, taken together. Types vii, vill above are a

twinned cluster. Type v shows a general resemblance to individual

specimens in NWT. i, MV. vu, LV, i, etc. It is an unconvincing

sroup in itself, and no comparisons have therefore been made.

SMITHFIELD. :

SAM T1177’ . 13:0. 11-5 885 1945 4-4

Kann. . 12-4 12:4 1000 1905 60 3:5 Granite.

125 11:33 90:0 1770 2:5 Started. Hole 3-2

cm. deep.

1850 . 13:0 10-4 80:0 1760 56 2:5

13-2 99 75:0 1725 5:4 2-9 Ironstone nodule.

12-0 95 79:1 1870 5:0 3:0. Ironstone nodule.

12-0 8:0 66:7 1150 4:2 2-8 Coarse ss.

Kann. 10:5 8:5 80-4 925 34 3:0 Subcylindrical.

822 11-1 70 63-9 8659) 3°2) 7 2-9 Ss.

796 9-2 9-2 100-0 780 83:3 os

822 QOS) Os 3-7 805 (4:2) (2:6) Shale fragment.

1117 10-0 75 75:0 150) 3°3 aw. Ss.

1830 10:3 70 68:0 745 4-1 a Coarse Ss. Pecked.

796 10:1 7-1 70-0 715 4:3 2:0 Ss. Pecked.

796 10-2 6:5 63:5 675 40 2-1 Ss. Pecked.

822 9-5 10) isa 630 40 2-5 Sandy shale.

ILI 9:6 6:7 70-0 Gb e422 oe Os.

1830 9-0 6-4 71-1 520 40 2:3 Ss. Pecked.

Kann 92 (6:0) 65-2 510 3:9 (2:5) Hollow in centre.

Nodule.

1830 9-0 5:1 56-7 415 (4:0 2-5) Shale. Conical bore.

822 8-9 66 74-2 525 3:0 ie

1830 8-9 6:0 67-4 475 3:5 2:2 Quartzitic Ss.

1117 8:6 6:0 70:0 445 3°5 a Ss.

1830 (8-4) 5:4 64-2 380 45 3:0. Ss.

Wer DS oro 345 3:5 (2:6) Nodule.e Hollow

centre.

71 5:7 80:3 285 30 18 Nodulee Hollow

centre.

6:6 5:2 78:8 226° 3-08) Lea SS:

1880 . 60 5:0 = 83-3 180 3:0 1:0 #Nodule

ETA, eo TO 3°38 54:3 S54 2 One ass-

796 6-4 4:4 68-7 180 2:9 1-0 Ss. pebble. Pecked.

Kann. . 6:5 4:2 64-6 Ti 2:85), AOS ecked.

i 6:0 4:0 66-7 144 2-8 At Ss.

5:8 4:3 74-1 145 2-2 1:5 Fine grained nodule.

1830 . 4:8 29 60-4 67 2:9 1:3. Ss. Pecked. Fine

example.

iss, 46 3:0 65:2 63 2:0 0:8

SMITHFIELD Poort.

SAM 797 29 4:6 77-9 160 2:0 1:0 MHollowcentre. Pos-

sibly metal bored.

Smithfield C.

PHILIPPOLIS.

ASJ 9/38/6 . 12:2 72 59:0 1070 4:7

(or)

56 Annals of the South African Museum.

BETHULIE.

MMK 2237 Ae Ae Sion DOONT cts iaed

LO 10:25 78527 Aa 83:5) 2-4:

TMP 1859 7:6 5:6 73-7 Byaay 1) Bis) 4 2

MMK 2237 5:8 3:0 51:7 101 2:8 1-4

Custozza, ZASTRON.

WUAA/I.. 4-9 26 53-1 G20 92-2) ales ‘07 kg.

HERSCHEL.

SAM 496 ; 7-6 2:0 26:3 115” 631

WELTEVREDE, FAURESMITH.

WUA A/41 . 12-7 6-6 52:0 1065

A/40 . 10-2 6-2 60-7 645

iro)

4-9 Mudstone. Cyl. bore.

2-8 -82 ke.

ASSOCIATIONS IN THE FREE STATE.

The question of the association of the bored stone in the Free State

has been cleared up once and for all by Professor C. van Riet Lowe

in his field research in that area. Much of the material was destroyed,

or labels were burnt, in a fire at the University of the Witwatersrand

some years ago, but his notes still remain, and the following is a list

of the sites on which he could definitely associate bored stones with

Smithfield B implements. Even in cases where the material has

survived the implements are often too broken to be reasonably

measured. The fact of association is sufficient. Farm names and

numbers are given.

Avalon 554. Mokari 50.

Bankfontein 417.

Blaauwbanksdrift 195.

Brakfontein 231.

De Kiel Oost 101.

Die Aar 232.

HKagle’s Nest 550.

I] Paradiso.

Koffiefontein Town Lands.

Klein Philippolis.

Koningfontein.

Kopjeskraal.

Lockshoek 192.

Paardenvallei 668.

Pramberg 15.

Rooibrak 106.

Smithfield.

Spitzkop 155.

Slagtkraal Drift.

Telegraaffontein 644.

Tygerfontein.

Uitdraai 357.

Wagenmakersdrift 24.

Weenkop 434.

Wepener Town Lands.

The Pramberg specimen is pyriform, the Tygerfontein example is an

unfinished conical-bored example.

The list is taken from van Riet

Lowe’s field-notes and is probably not complete, as many sites listed

there merely state, “full range of implements.” These have not been

included, nor have the sites where borers only are mentioned.

—_

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 57

LITERATURE ON THE FREE STATE REGION.

In addition to the papers written by Professor C. van Riet Lowe,

and noted above, there is a certain amount of literature on this region.

Rey. 8. 8. Dornan writing in 1909 * notes that “‘ The first immigrants

came principally from the Cape Colony, from where they were hunted

out by Dutch commandoes. These bands lived in what is now known

as the conquered territory, and their centre was a cave in the neigh-

bourhood of Hermon, to the west of this country near Wepener. The

Bushman name for this part was Qibing—a locative case from Qibi, a

digging stick.”” We may note that the letter “q”’ is here used as a

click, and that, if the derivation is correct, the locative follows the

Sotho, not the Bushman form. He continues (p. 443): “The roots

were dug up with a digging-stick called the Qibi, a straight, tough

piece of wood about three feet long, pointed at the end. It was

inserted into a circular stone and wedged tight. The labour taken to

round and bore these stones with no tools but their hands (s2c) must

have been immense.”

Perhaps the most interesting account, historically if for no other

reason, comes from the pen of Dr. D. R. Kannemeyer, to whom the

South African Museum is indebted for the large collection of stones

listed here from Smithfield, Albert District, and some from Burghers-

dorp. His paper is almost impossible to obtain to-day, and extracts

may therefore be quoted from it. It is to be remembered that

Kannemeyer uses his own orthography in writing Bushman, using an

apostrophe followed by a consonant to designate the appropriate

clicks. In addition this was a popular article, and he makes various

statements without much support.

“Lying scattered over the country, but most frequently found in

the beds of the springs, or in their neighbourhood, these round per-

forated ‘ka ‘ka ‘kouwie, or digging-stick stones, still occur in fairly

abundant numbers. They are often unearthed by the plough. They

are becoming scarcer than they used to be... . . Yet I have managed

to collect about two hundred during the last few years, the largest

weighing close upon seven pounds, the smallest one ounce.

“These perforated stones were used by the women to weight the

* Dornan, ‘‘Notes on the Bushmen of Basutoland,” Trans. 8. Afr. Phil. Soc.,

vol. xviii, pp. 437-450.

7 D. R. Kannemeyer, ‘Stone Implements,’ Cape Illustrated Magazine, vol. i,

1890, pp. 120-130.

58 Annals of the South African Museum.

‘cbr or sharp-pointed fire-hardened stakes employed in digging

taauwing or bulbs, and ‘taau ‘tke ‘tkaubitse, or termite larvae. They

were secured by one or two wedges, or rested on a bulge left in the

middle or upper part of the stick. The pitfalls used for entrapping

game were also dug by means of these weighted digging-sticks.

“There can be no doubt that these digging-sticks were intended for

and used as pick-weights, not as war weapons, nor are they relics

(war-weapons), as Col. Bowker once thought, of an earlier pre-historic

race preceding the Bushman, who, finding them ready to hand,

adapted them to the uses they put them to.

a . what a tale of maternal love and care, what a fond desire to

gratify and amuse their tender offspring do these toy ‘ka ‘ka ‘kouwtes

reveal! In weight an ounce, and only fit to be used by very young

children, they were not very efficient instruments.

“Some of these ‘stick-stones’ were made of traprock. These were

invariably more carefully finished, rounded and smoothened than

those made from sandstone, and must have required a great deal of

expenditure of time and trouble to complete, especially when we

consider the imperfect appliances at command. The older series

shows the most careful workmanship. They are scarcer than the

less highly finished ones, to which I shall presently allude, for they

are found more deeply buried. They were perforated by means of

wedge-shaped stone borers or rimers. . . . Many of these have their

boring end worn down to great smoothness, and show a complete

abrasion of the salient ridges, which gave the necessary grip... .

Several are only partially used, or not at all.

“When contact with other nations gave the Bushmen iron, the

stone drill was discarded. As a rule these later metal-drilled stones

were not so carefully finished. They have a roughish and uniform

bore, and have their shortest diameter in the line of perforation. .. .

In the older stone-drilled ones the aperture is highly polished and

double bell-mouthed, and is made along the longest diameter. This

latter peculiarity is so constant that it may almost be considered as a

diagnostic mark of age. In all cases the stone was first rounded and

then perforated, as these numerous examples, ranging through all

stages of the process, show. . .

“That the cruder and less carefully finished stones are the most

recent in time is proved by various considerations—for instance their

fresh look, their superficiality, and the partially perforated state in

which so many of them are found.

“Occasionally they were used for other than digging purposes. I

have found one on which one side shows evident signs of having been

used as a muller, on the other it has one of the grooves for polishing

the stone (? bone) arrowheads.”

With reference to Kannemeyer’s suggestion that the small bored

stones were made for children, mention may be made of the evidence

of Mr. Turner of British Bechuanaland, who told Miss M. Wilman

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 59

of the McGregor Museum, Kimberley, that he had once seen a family

of Bushmen, all of whom carried digging-sticks. The children had

small specimens. Whether these were made for the use of children

or were picked up by them and used in imitation of their elders it is

not known. This statement, made by Mr. Robert Turner, of

Lukasdam, Postmasburg, is the more surprising when we realise that

the only specimen that comes from that farm is an exceptionally large

soapstone example (MMK 191), and none of the Postmasburg material

is less than 10-8 cm. in diameter. While it is perfectly possible that

small examples were used by children, it is as likely that these were

originally knobkerrie heads. The point has little importance in the

present paper, as in any case we are dealing with examples by size

and form, and have to discard any attempts to say how individual

specimens were used.

An illuminating extract from a letter by Dr. Kannemeyer to Dr.

Péringuey of the South African Museum, dated 3rd May 1909, gives

us some information on the source of the above article, and may well

be published here:

“My informant who gave me the names of the different implements,

etc., was an intelligent Cape-boy, whose father was a child of Landrost

Vollenheim of Swellendam during the Dutch régime. He was brought

up on a mission station in the interior where mostly Bushmen were

located, and he spoke their language fluently and had seen their

handicrafts. I had only one interview with him: he died before I

could pump him further. He called them ‘Ka ‘Ka 'Kouwvie (the

digging-stick) and the—(here follows a sketch of a typical Smithfield

B endscraper)—skinning flake, ’kuon.”’

Further reading on the Bushmen in the Free State can be found

in Ellenberger and MacGregor,* though we need hardly subscribe

to their theories on the origins of the Bushmen.

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READING.

We have now reached the end of our first major migrational move-

ment, and have discussed the end-products in a heavily ‘‘documented”’

focal area. The Thirstland Region, south of the Orange River, seems

to have held back migration for a considerable time. From the

Orange River southward we follow a second series of migrations,

distinct from those that fed the Free State, but fed from that region.

* Ellenberger and MacGregor, History of the Basuto. London, 1912.

60 Annals of the South African Museum.

The reader is asked to turn on to the South-Eastern Region if his

interest lies in that direction (p. 72). If the Namaqualand route is

to be followed, he should turn to the Thirstland Region, and study

the Kaaienveld and Namaqualand areas (p. 64), ignoring the Trekveld

and Winterveld. Finally, if the southern end of the continent is his

field, he should turn to the Trekveld, Winterveld, and Roggeveld,

or follow the Karoo route to the South Coast, and finally to the Cape

Region (pp. 81, 97). We have reached the parting of the ways.

We now turn back to Region I, to study the Western Bypass, by

which types have passed down the eastern side of the Kalahari, deep

into the Thirstland Region, to the Bokkeveld.

V. WESTERN BYPASS.

We return now to Region I, the Transvaal, and from its western

end we trace the pathway of a major migration, five hundred miles in

length. The route started in the Vryburg district and touched the

sources of the Molopo River; from here the path can be traced south-

ward, parallel to the Vaal but 80 miles farther west. The Groenwater

River is followed to the Orange, where there is some lateral movement

between Kakamas and Prieska, then the highway seems to follow

the Hartbees stream, deep into the flank of the Trekveld and Winter-

veld areas, to Groetvloer, van Wyksvlei, and on to the Bokkeveld area.

The Molopo-Groenwater section coincides generally with the route

taken by the MaNtatisi movement a century ago, and it is possible

that some individual examples may belong to that Bantu movement,

but I would suggest that, whoever may have followed this route in

recent years, it represents the eastern border of a great triangle of

roads, related to the Kalahari border. We are dealing now with the

north-south route and with movements east and west along the

Orange River bed above the Aughrabies Falls, but the Molopo river-

bed itself must have provided another route in good years, probably

feeding the Namaqualand area. Further knowledge of the unknown

desert should give us this information.

The crossroads, where this great highway leaves the Groenwater

valley to follow the Brak and Hartbees Rivers, south of the Orange,

would have been difficult to recognise, had it not been for energetic

help provided by Mr. C. Wilmot, postmaster of Prieska, who has

collected a number of important specimens, through the co-operation

of farmers in that general area, and has sent them to the South African

Museum. All the examples from about here, with numbers SAM

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 61

5014 and over, have been submitted through him, each with the most

exact possible provenance. I would therefore like to thank him for

his keen co-operation and help. Specimens with numbers higher

than SAM 5042 arrived too late for inclusion in type averages.

The Bypass has been divided into three areas: the Molopo-

Groenwater, the central Upington-Hartbees area, and the Southern

or Bokkeveld area. The first shows affinities with the Transvaal

generally, and with the Vaal-Harts area. There seems to have been

some lateral exchange with the Middle Vaal as well, but farther south

contacts do not seem to be so evident.

Typical of the two northern areas on the Bypass, is a gap between

types with a thickness of 10-5 cm. and 7-5cm. The thicker types are

lost in the southernmost area, but the thickness of the remainder

increases slightly to a limit of 8-0 cm., here the upward limit.

We may epitomise the changes that occur by giving the measure-

ments of each of the averages in columns, with their parallels opposite

them. Types which do not recur are left out.

MG. UH. BY.

te Llssey/ 11-2 Ie 225 11:3

TMi 114383 7:2 li. 12:0 7:3 rit, 4 1peel 7:7

ii. 10:8 6:5 iv. 10-7 6:8 li. 10:3 7:2

Vile e025 4:2 Vv 7-1 5:5

I think the picture given provides an unassailable argument in

favour of the approach to the whole subject, here used for the first

time (see map 8).

MG. Motopo-GROENWATER AREA.

ie | 1s 27/ 11-2 81-8 2100 Uli Vine Ve

n. 12-3 7-2 58°8 1090 UPS: BY, 11:

gute, -LO:8 6-5 60-0 760 UH. iv, BV. iii, NES. ii, VMB. iv.

aye (L1-O 4-4 40-0 530) ET. iv, CT. vii.

Wo) toi 6-0 70-6 435 MV. xi, LV. vi, SCV. iii.

vi. 6:5 4-2 64-6 177 Wilals amg Sule sinks

Specimens marked MMK 2078-9 from the Kuruman area yield a

single group with the Wolhaarkop example (MG. v). These might

just as well have been included with the Middle or Lower Vaal areas,

and show a lateral movement from that river. This movement will

be discussed later in dealing with Migrations.

RooIBERG, VRYBURG.

SAM 1104 . 12-6 68 53:0 1080 4:0 2:5 Ss. Fine radial cuts

at both mouths.

VRYBURG A.

MMK 488 . 143 10-8 75:5 2210

679 . 12:7 10-8 850 1740

out

km OO

or 00

hoe

62 Annals of the South African Museum.

KURUMAN.

MMK 920 12-2 75 60:2 1200 5:0 3:6

ASJ 23/39 11:3 At Bylo Bayi Backes.) 94583

MMK 2078 9-0 6:1 67-8 500 .3:8 1-9

2079 8°5 6:7 78-8 485 34 1-7

2078 8-8 5:8 66-0 450 4-1 1:7

717 6:0 AloRy 1 Pflloy/ 15a 3: 4e 4!

POSTMASBURG.

MIMKe 252)" 27) 14°37. 12-09) 83-9" 942455) 5-3 See

2709 . 10:8 6-2 57-4 125) aS) ane O

W OLHAARKOP.

MMK 1285 . 7:9 5-5 70:0 3400) 14: Ores

MAtTZApP.

ASJ 36/35/19 10-7 45 41:0 S60) io:O uae

KLIPFONTEIN, NIEKERK’S HOPE.

SAM 5015 . 12:3 11:1 £490:0 1680 58 3:5

GoUupP.

MMK 1487 . 6-9 4:1 60:0 195 2:9 1-7

BULFONTEIN, KOEGAS.

SAM 5032 . 11-9 70 59:0 1000 41 43:6 #£Hard tale. Pecked.

NUWEVLEI, Koxcas.

SAM 5047 . 9-0 5:8 64:4 470 44 1:6 Granitic rock.

ERFrust, Groot NAUTE.

SAM 5034 . 10-5 6:8 64:8 750 3:3 3:2 Hard tale. Smooth.

Beautiful —_ speci-

men.

The Nuwevlei example arrived too late to be included in the type

averages, but it agrees well with type v.

UH. Urincton-HARTBEES AREA.

This distribution cuts down to the centre of the dry country between

the Orange River and the south-western Cape, with its winter rains.

From here on it is probably lost in the surrounding distributions.

Type iii appears again in the Roggeveld, and type iv at Calvinia.

te l2eo 11:3 90-3 1770 MG. i.

ii. (16-2 5-2 32-1 1365) Possibly Bantu.

lii. 12-0 1-3 61-0 1050 MG. ii, BV. ii.

iv. 10-7 6:8 63°5 780 MG. iii, BV. iii.

Vial 5:5 77-4 275 MG. vi, TV. iii.

VROUPAN, WILDEBEESPAN.

SAM 5017 . 7:8 5:0 64:0 305 31° 2:4

KLIPDRIFT.

PEM 614p . 12:0 6-8 56-7 980 42 2-6

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 63

ERENSPAN, REDLANDS.

SAM 5036 . 12:6 75 60°00 1190 54 4:0 2aS8:

WITVLEI, FRANSENHOF, PRIESKA.

SAM 5043. . 140 12:0 85:7 2350 5:2 3:8 Greyss. Erratic.

MIDDELWATER, PRIESKA.

SAM 5030 . 11:0 6-8 61:8 830 3:5 1:2 Pecked.

UITDRAAI, PRIESKA.

SAM 50385. «13-2 (11:0) 83:3 1915 4-5 x 3-0) Ovalhole. Signs of

sharpening at one

mouth. Soft taley

sandstone.

UPINGTON.

SAM 412 . 11:8 deo (63:5) 1045)" 4-1) 2-8

MMK 697. 10:3 6-8 66-0 720 48 2-4

ErRFsE PLaas, HoPETOWN.

SAM 5042 . 10:1 65 64:3 665 4-4 as Dolerite. Battered.

KENHARDT.

Univ. Stell. . 12-0 73 60:8 1050 40 2:3

MMK 265 . 16:2 52 32:1 13865 3:9 1-9 ? MaNtatisi.

GROOTVLOER.

SAM ’94 elt Go ica 89-4 PIG D: | 329) 9 22-5

KEURFONTEIN, VOSBURG.

UCT 36/— . 12:8 116 90-6 1900 4:2 2:6 Smithfield B. Assoc.

UCT 36/— . 6:3 5:4 885-7 2A Oe eal] Do. do.

GROOTFOURIESKOLK, SPRINGBOKPOORTJE.

Sabogal: 2 11-8 (11-0) 9372 1530 49 .. Soapstone; very

irregular. Worn,

unfinished.

PooRTJE, OMDRAAIVLEI.

SAM 5044 . 13:5 68 504 1240 53 3:7 Ss.

VANWYKSVLEI.

SANEI25 y=) 7-3 6:0 82-2 320 2:8 1:9

The Witvlei and Poortje specimens arrived too late to be included

under the type averages. Both fail to agree well with local types.

The first is an erratic that merely brings the MG. 1 type a few miles

farther south, to the southern bank of the Orange River. The Poortje

example is somewhat anomalous, though it may be a variant of

group UH. iu.

It may be noted here that the Trekveld Area (p. 69) seems to have

some affinities with these first two stages in the Western Bypass, but

not with the further extension to the Bokkeveld area. These will be

discussed later under Migrations. Probably we are dealing with a

divergence of types into two routes—the Trekveld and the Bokkeveld.

If this is so it may in time permit us to differentiate between types

64 Annals of the South African Museum.

that passed to the Bokkeveld, and types that entered the Trekveld,

thus providing the foundation for some more exact definition of the

two groups of people who took the diverging roads.

BV. BoKKEVELD AREA.

This represents the final coherent distribution of this series. Larger

types, with a thickness greater than 8-0 cm., have disappeared, but

except for the anomalous example from Calvinia, the various types are

all represented along the Western Bypass.

i. (14-0 8-9 63-6 1745) Anomalous.

i. 12-4 Corl 63:8 1150 MG. ii, UH. iii.

ii. (10-3 7-2 69-8 740) MG. iii, UH. iv.

HoNDEKLIP Bay.

SAM 4930 . 12:6 78 61:9 1240 4-7 2:6

KLAVER.

Univ. Stell. . 12:0 79 659 1140 29 2-5

CALVINIA.

SAM 410 . 14:0 89 636 1745 40 2-7 Anomalous.

AQ30, ° 2 32-5 4 15922) LEGON 4-0; eee 2

410 . 10-4 TO) “57-3 150 3:95 92:3

Univ. Stell. . 10-1 io daa 145° “39 ee

VI. THIRSTLAND REGION.

This wide region could never have been thickly or regularly

inhabited. If recent climatic conditions are reflected in the present

day, then this is an area of long droughts, sometimes lasting seven

years, then a short spell of wet years, when there is high fertility,

plentiful water and reasonable cloud cover. This has always been an

area of game, plains-loving springbok being the most typical animal.

Possibly giraffe, buffalo, zebra, and elephant lived here, though

sporadic bones of these animals suggest that they were migratory.

Game migration has been stopped by essential jackal-proof fencing

in this region, and most of the game has died as a result of drought

in this typical dry-scrub country.

The region lies south of the Orange River, from about 25° east to

the west coast. In the south it is bounded by the Roggeveld moun-

tains, the Nieuwveld mountains and the Sneeuwberg, roughly along

the parallel 32° soufh. The whole area is arid, increasingly so from

east to west. It is divided into the Kaaienveld, near Prieska; the

Namaqualand area, farther west, together forming the western

highway; the Trekveld and Winterveld areas which probably provide

a focus for all the remainder. From here we may turn on to the

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 65

Nieuwveld-Goup area that links with the Little Karoo and Sundays

River to the south-east, to form the southward highway, and with

the South Coast Region (p. 81).

KV. KAAIENVELD.

This area partly coincides with the Upington-Hartbees area, and

marks the crossing of two roads.

ros kL 13:3. 101-6 2250)

me LL 8:8 80-0 1085 LV. iti, NQL. i, MV. vi.

it.» Vib 5:4 47-0 715 MV. ix.

iv. 9:2 7:4 80-4 625 LV. v, NQL. iii.

wa (0-9 6-9 100-0 330) MV. xi.

(

vier (8:5 4-0 47-0 290) WY. viii.

Group i might well be divided into two, 12-0 x 8-8 and 10-9 x 8-8 cm.

The former related to Namaqualand 1, the latter to Namaqualand u.

The single example from Prieska, forming type v, agrees well with

a single specimen from Barkly West to Gonggong (6-9x6-4). In

general there is considerable agreement with the Middle Vaal.

** BUSHMANLAND.”’

SAM 1587 . 12:0 13:2 110:°0 1900 3-9 2-0 Anomalous.

te a 12-2 5:5 45-0 820 40 2:3

MARYDALE.

SAM 5022... 10-9 87 79:8 10385 40 2:2 #£z¥Fine ss. Bore and

stone deeply pati-

nated.

WITFONTEIN.

SAM 5033 < 12:0 89 742 1280 44 $19 #£Pecked.

PRIESKA.

MNIKers49 2 14-2 «13-5 )=— «95-1 2720 «49 28 Ss Ss.

12-0 So ed p40) 9 5:4 SI Ss.

10-9 SO esa-a 1080" 63-0" 2-5” Ss:

SAM 4607 . 10:6 8-8 83-0 990. 39. 23

MMK 1849 . 12-4 Dro aed 815 4:6 2:2 #£Ss. Grinder.

HHC 1047 9-5 7-5 "79-0 GiD a2" 2-5

MMK 2108 9-4 76 80:9 670 3:2 2:2 Ss. Smoothed.

SAM 4868 . 9-2 74 80-4 625, 4-0 2-7

TMP 8934 . 9-2 7-0: ~ 76-1 590 3:8 21

SAM 1099 6-9 6-9 100-0 BaUMeow aD

MMK 2108 8:3 4:2 50°6 290 35 1:8 Erratic.

BAaNGHOEK, HoOPETOWN.

SAM 5037. 118 50 42-4 695 45 2-3. Bad shape. Sandy

shale.

STOFBAKKIES, PRIESKA.

SAM 5014 . 11-4 Son d4-by 105) 4-6) 3-02 | Ss:

VIGILANTSPUT, PRIESKA.

SAM 5020 . 11-5 5:4 47:0 RS era4e 2-2) Ss:

10-4 (5-1) 49:0 58be ~5:1) 2-6 ~ ‘Hard tale. Worn.

VOL. XXXVII, PART l. 5

66 Annals of the South African Museum.

KEIKAMSPOORT, PRIESKA.

SAM 5045 . 11:9 84 706 1190 46 2-9 Shale.

‘*KAATENBULT.”’

ASJ 14/41 . 9-0 75 83°3 605 4:8 3-5

MaRITZDAM.

SAM 5040. 11-9 91 765 1290 41 23 Ss. Pecked.

ONGERS SIDING.

SAM 5046 . 10-5 8:5 81:0 9403-6) 2-7 se

JOHNSTON'S PAN, GROOTDOORN.

SAM 5019 . 10-9 90 82:6 1070 46 2-6 Hard talcy shale.

Victoria West A.

Sharples 10 . 8-9 7-1 80-0 560 3-0

4. 86 38 442 280 28 2.0

The specimens from Keikamspoort and Ongers Siding arrived too

late for inclusion in the type averages. Both conform to the average

KV. u.

NQL. NaMAQuaLAND AREA.

This is the end of a westward movement along the Orange River

valley from the Kaaienveld, Trekveld, and Winterveld areas. Though

there is no evidence from the north bank of the Orange, I suspect

that the Molopo River also brought types directly across the southern

Kalahari to this area; probably types iv and v from MV.

ry 1122 9-4 ie 1375 KV. i, MV. va; DiVoae

li. 10-6 8-5 81-9 955 KV. ii, LV. iti, MV. vii.

iii. 9-0 7-4 82-2 600 KV. iv, LV. v.

hye |, ate 5-1 57-9 385 LV. vi, MV. x.

v. (4:2 3:3 78:5 58) WY. x, MV. xiv.

Types 1 and 1 above represent the results of divergent copying from

KV.u. These two, with type iii, can be traced from the Lower Vaal,

through the Kaaienveld. The types present in the Trekveld and

Winterveld areas (over 12:5 cm. in diameter and 10-0 cm. in height)

are absent here, and indeed no examples over that height occur in

this area. They probably represent an independent spread which

never reached Namaqualand.

‘*NAMAQUALAND.”’

ASJ 49/36/6 . 12-3 SO) l-o 134) 4 Dea

STEINKOPF.

NMP 2080 12:5 99 792 1545 54 2-2

2592 11-0 88 800 1065 56 2:5

2342/p. 10-7 8:4 78:5 960 59 2-8

2577/a . 10-1 8:4 83-1 855 48 2-1

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 67

NMP 2342/F. 8-8 7:5 85-2 590 5:3 2:8

2342/B . 8-8 7:3 81:8 565 = 4-1 2-0

2342/6 < . 8:9 bel bT-3 405 80 3:0

2577 8-3 4-9 59-0 340 3°8 Pepe

2048 4:2 So OLD yoy Poa an bol Erratic.

CoNCORDIA.

SAM 1394 . 12-0 96 800 1380 41 2-0

9-5 73 76-8 660 40 2-2

OOKIEP.

MMP 2517 . 93 5:3 57-0 630 48 2-9

KAMIESKROON (BOWESDORP).

SAM 1763 . 11-6 95 81:9 1280 54 3-0

GaRIES.

Dreyer Coll. . 11-0 90 81:9 1090 2-4 2-3 Soapstone.

We now return once again to Prieska and the junction of the Vaal

with the Orange, and trace a separate movement southward from

there. This is related to the beds of the Brak and Ongers Rivers.

WV. WINTERVELD.

The Trekveld and Winterveld areas were originally taken together,

but apart from a few overlapping examples, the two show very distinct

distributions of types. The Winterveld appears to provide a great

highway, from Prieska and the junction of the Vaal and Orange Rivers

to the headwaters of the Sundays River in the Koudeveld, making

use of the Brak and Ongers Rivers.

i. 14-6 13-0 89-9 2770 MV. i.

ii. 14-6 10-1 69-9 2150 NG. i.

tit) 12-9 9-0 69-8 1495 NQL. i, KA. i.

ive 10:9 10-1 92-7 1200 MF. ii.

v. 10-0 7-5 75-0 750 KV. iv, KB. iv, CFS. ii, SWB. iv.

vay celal 8-5 104-9 560 KA. iii, BS. iv, KB. v.

viable ath 5:8 63-7 480 NQL. iv, KA. ii, AG. i, BS. v.

Vili. (8-5 4-3 50-6 310) CES. iv.

pe (977, 4:3 75:5 140) MICAS Vy, (BSivi-

Ke oe 2-5 67-6 35 Probably all beads KB. x.

The comparisons with Koffiefontein A and B suggest that this area

is the continuation of a migration from the south-western Free State.

The parallels, in the smaller types, with the Bloemfontein-Sepani area _

seem to carry the migration nearer to its origin.

BELMONT.

MMI 178. 14-2 12-2 85:9. 2460" 4-8 32-9

LE58: 3°8 3:3 86-9 48 1:3 0:5

HoPEeTowN.

SAM 757 . 4-0 2-1 + 52-5 34 2-1]

68 Annals of the South African Museum.

BaNGHOEK, HoPETOWN.

SAM 5039 . = 9-2 6-0

PAARDEKLOOF, WELGEVONDEN.

SAM 5027 . 12:8 9-1

VREDE, UPINGTON.

SAM 5041 . 12:1 (9-0)

GOODHOPE, PRIESKA.

SAM 5029 . 14:8 9-9

ROoIvLOER, OMDRAAISVLEI.

SAM 5088 . 14:5 (12:5)

PLAATSMABOK.

SAM 5021 . 144 # 10-0

FarIrvIEW, PooRTJE.

SAM 5023 . 12:9 (9-2)

KALKAAR, CARNARVON.

SAM 5048 . 13:0 8:6

CARNARVON.

SAM 1098 9-6 8:0

PEM 615 V.. 8-1 8:5

BRITSTOWN.

Heese Coll.1. 15:0 13°4

2. 14-7 10:4

Ba le) 9-1

SAM 2469 . 108 10-2

Heese Coll.4. 10:7 = (7:3)

SAM 1753 . 10:2 7:3

Heese Coll. 5 9-7 8:0

17 9:8 7:4.

Pall ets) 5:7

Ch G7) 4:3

Il 48 (2:7

MIDDELWATER, BRITSTOWN.

Heese Coll. A 3-1

B 2-4.

PHILIPSTOWN.

MMK 1111 . 14:2

HANOVER.

Sis: - 10-1

Ge a, 85d

OH as cil

GRAAFF REINET.

SAM 3206. 13-0

F. Malan Coll. 8-7

J ANSENVILLE.

PEM 6l4w . 12°8

11:0

2°8

2-3

510

1490

1545

2170

2630

2075

1530

1455

740

560

3015

2245

1535

1190

835

760

750

710

515

140

2500

735

310

1510

445

1460

1370

Ne)

He i

OTD TO) nes Tee les) ON he lye

HE RAADANWOSSNWH

@ ©

2-7

4-3

3:6

2-4

em bo

~I bo

ae ee RO Pe a COOL

Drmowok KR? TOR

0-7

2-9

Just started. Ham-

mer.

“Cantaloupe quar-

tering’ at one

end. Ss.

Oval cylindrical

bore. Split. Ss.

Soapstone. Oval

hole.

Quartzitic Ss.

Started.

Fine granitic rock.

Hard tale. Oval

bore.

Sandy shale.

Anomalous.

Bead. Metal bored.

5 Bead. Metal bored.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 69

TV. TREKVELD.

The Trekveld and Winterveld were originally taken together as one

great area. While the Winterveld shows a distinct highway, the

Trekveld does not; it appears, so far, to be a backwater, with little

real relationship to surrounding areas.

i.. 13-8 10-4 76-1 1980 MG. i.

i. (11-4 9-5 83:3 1235) KV. ii, NQL. i.

iii. 7:3 4-2 57°5 225 MV. xu.

THREE SISTERS.

MMK 1302 . 13-4 99 73:9 1780 42 2-2

Victoria WssT B.

ELM 1 4-02 ie? 9 80:3 2305 7 4:0) 73-3

SAM 1494 . 13:8 100 725 1905 55 3:3

11-4 95 83:3 1235 48 2-6

1662. —«. 7:5 4:0 53:3 225 29 2-0

Sharples 7 . 71 4:3 60:6 220-5 2-5 :

ELIASLAAGTE.

MMK 39 : 7-4. 4:4 59-5 240 30 41:7

BRANDVLEI.

SAM 4998. 7:5 4:1 54:6 2308) 3:8) 1 2:3

KALABASPUT, VANWYKSVLEI.

SAM 5049 . 13:55 10:0 74:0 1825 54 3:1 Sandy shale.

BLAAUWKRANS, CARNARVON.

SAM 5050 . 134 100 736 1795 61 2:4 Sandy shale.

We have already noted the analogies between this and the Upington

Hartbees area, and have suggested the possibility that the Trekveld

may be in part related to the Western Bypass.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND COMMENTARY.

Not very much has been written on the bored stones of this region,

but what has been written has some interest. E. J. Dunn * describes

bored stones he collected from various sites in and outside this region,

and adds: “The knowledge of the manner in which they were made,

however, remains, for the same old Bushwoman that showed me the

manner of affixing stone flakes to arrow-shafts described the method,

and particularly mentioned the long-pointed stones of hard material,

which, she said, were obtained from the Kiljan Veldt.” This last is

certainly a misinterpretation of Kaaien Bult (or Kaaien Veld). In

much the same way he gives Zak River as ‘‘Leek River” in giving an

* “Stone Implements of South Africa,” in Trans. §.A. Phil. Soc., vol. ii, 1879-80,

pp. 6-22.

70 Annals of the South African Museum.

account of this old woman’s methods of attaching stone tips to arrows.

This error he partly rectifies in his later work * written thirty years

after he had left “the Colony,’’ and here makes Kiljan Veldt into

Kijan Veldt. In this latter book he gives a somewhat fuller account

of the making of the bored stone, on p. 77 onwards. His illustrations

are excellent, but unhappily, as only one view of each stone is given,

little can be deduced of a type helpful to us here. In one or two

instances it has been found possible to make use of his illustrations,

but such evidence is suspect. The collection itself is now in Australia,

providing that continent with a relatively useless hoard, and at the

same time depriving this continent of valuable material.

W. D. Gooch + comments rather bitterly on Dunn’s work and says

that he himself, Bleek, and Bowker all failed to find a Bushman capable

of making a bored stone, while Dunn had succeeded.

Dr. Bleek seems to have had better luck later, as a letter from his

daughter, Miss D. F. Bleek, shows:

“With regard to the question of boring I may mention what an old

Bushman woman told me at Kenhardt in 1911. She was the same

woman who had been photographed with a digging-stick at Salt River

in 1884; the picture forms the decoration on the cover of ‘Specimens

of Bushman Folklore.’ She told me that women bored them, not men;

that she had bored one herself; that it had not taken her very long;

that it had been done by iron. She was speaking Afrikaans and said

‘met e eister’, and made the motion of twirling with her hands. Of

course the earlier ones must have been made with stone borers, but

in the years 1840 to 1850 when she was young, iron must have been

obtainable.

“The !Xam Bushman have a verb /kiyu, to knock down by a throw.

Their word for a kiriis /kéken. Their kiris were made by nature, just

a stick that happened to have a knob on it. The Nama for a kiri

is /hoas.”

NG. NIEUVELD-GOUP.

Contrary to my usual custom, I have found it advisable to split

a single museum-accession group: the Aberdeen series, PEM 514 F,

is divided into Aberdeen A, considered here, and Aberdeen B, to be

considered under Sundays River area. It seems clear that the ten

specimens sent to the Port Elizabeth Museum were not from a single

site. Some link with the Thirstland Region, others are related to the

Gamtoos, Klein, and Sundays River basin. It is interesting to note

* EK. J. Dunn, The Bushman. London, 1931.

+ “Stone Age of South Africa,” J. Roy. Anthrop. Inst., vol. xi, 1881, pp. 124-82.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 71

that this series shows no relationship with sites at Jansenville and

Graaff Reinet.

Averages from here are not convincing, but littie is really known of

this area. It is related to the Zwartberg and to the Gouritz basin

to the south, and Winterveld and Kaaienveld to the north.

i. (146 10-1 69:5 2160) WV. ii.

ii. (121 11:0 90-5 1600)

iii, 11-4 81 705 ° 1050 # XK. vii, ZW. iii.

v. (10-5 61 58-1 675) GK. iv.

SUTHERLAND.

Drennan Coll. 11-6 8-1 69:8 940 4:8 2:3

10:6 8:1 76-4 O10 4-27) 2-1

BEAUFORT WEST.

SAM 803 4 AO.) 0-8 215, 4-2 us

WViWANIO4O 2 «12-2 )«=«6 11-0 0S 9071 )3=ss«d63 <e HSCOD

MURRAYSBURG.

SAM 767 . 12:0 10:9 90:8 1570 4-1] 2-5

ABERDEEN A.

PRE GI4n Ss 14-8 10:1 68:2- 2210. 3-7 41:8

11-9 82 689 1160 49 2-2

11-2 80 714 1005 46 2-7

10-5 6-1 58-1 675 4-1 rae Anomalous.

The last specimen listed may belong to Aberdeen B, Sundays

River area.

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READING.

Those readers who are primarily interested in the Cape Region

should now turn to the Sundays River, Gouritz Karoo (pp. 82, 92),

then continue with the South Coast Region (p. 81), finishing with

the Sandveld and Swartland areas (p. 106).

For those who are interested in what lies to the east, we now return

once again to the Orange River, this time to the eastern end. From

here we take up the south-western route where we last left it, at

Smithfield (p. 60).

EASTERN PROVINCE OF THE CAPE.

We now turn from the Free State, the area of highest concentration

of Smithfield types, towards the south-east, to the area of the greatest

efflorescence of Bushman paintings.

Many of the sites mentioned below, both in the South-Hastern

Region and in the Lowlands, have been described as paintings sites by

Burkitt, Hewitt, myself, and others. The fourfold association of

paintings, bored stones, implement types, and skeletal material is

never very clearly expressed, but the main cultures in this general

72 Annals of the South African Museum.

area during the Later Stone Age were Wilton and Smithfield C, both

fundamentally cave cultures, and a certain quantity of Smithfield B

material on surface sites. The two former are associable with paint-

ings, though no attempt has yet been made to analyse stylistic groups

in relation to deposits. The last culture mentioned is, so far as I

know, not associable with any art forms in the Eastern Province of

the Cape, but it can be associated with certainty with the bored stone

in several instances.

The Clarke’s Siding site, on Victory Farm, is referred to by Burkitt,*

and by Miss Tongue f who covers much of this area in her portfolio

of paintings. Additional references to the art of this part of the Cape

Province can be obtained from the works of Miss D. F. Bleek, in

collaboration with others.{

I would suggest that the areas below the mountain ranges have been

fed at various periods by highways which have at times crossed one

another, often at right angles. One important route, from the Free

State along (or more probably, over) the southern slopes of the

Basutoland mountains, which fed the Northern Transkei and Hast

London areas, is so far unknown (see pp. 75, 77).

Various types can be traced along the coast as far as the Knysna-

Tzitzikamma and the Belvedere-Heidelberg (Cape) areas.

VII. SOUTH-EASTERN REGION.

This region starts at the confluence of the Seacow and Orange

Rivers, at 25° E. long. It includes the stretch between the Orange

and the Witteberg and Elandsberg, then continues to include the

Transkei, so far asitis known. The region is dealt with in three areas:

Upper Thornveld, Lower Thornveld, and Transkei. The whole

Thornveld is so named as it coincides well with the southern portion

of Regional Division 5: The Cape Thornveld, in the Union Year Book

22, 1941, p. 992. So far as the Upper Thornveld area is concerned

the term has little real environmental value. Possibly a better term

for the Upper Thornveld would have been New Hantamveld, according

to the publication of Dr. KE. A. Nobbs,§ which came to hand after

these terms had been chosen.

* M. C. Burkitt, South Africa’s Past in Stone and Paint. Cambridge, 1928.

t Helen Tongue, Bushman Paintings. Oxford, 1909.

t Stow and Bleek, Rock Paintings in South Africa. Methuen, 1930. Van der

Riet and Bleek, More Rock Paintings in South Africa, Methuen, 1940.

§ E. A. Nobbs, Veld. Privately published. Lynedoch, Cape, 1941. Museum

copy received 9th January 1942.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 73

UTYV. Uprer THORNVELD.

This area covers the open plains between the Orange River and the

first great mountain step towards the sea, formed by the Kikvorsch-

berg, Zuurberg, Bamboesberg, and Stormberg ranges. The country

here is dry, with a summer rainfall of 10 inches to the west, increasing

to 20 inches to the east, but the Orange River is easily accessible in

times of drought, and is fed by winter snow and rain from the Basuto-

land mountains. This appears to have been the route by which the

rivers to the south-east were approached, especially the Kei and Fish

Rivers. It can be regarded as a fairly general “‘feeder”’ area.

mio |6M-0 | °84:60«©— («1860 ~ SEES. ii, ME. i, KTZ. i, GR. STK. i.

ii. (14-0 8-4 60:0 1650) PE. ii, STK. ii.

iii. (10-7 91 85:0 1040) KV. ii, SEFS. v.

iv. (11-0 6-6 60-0 800) PE. iv, BDV. iii.

v. 86 6-4 75-0 470 WV. vii, SEFS. vii, CFS. iii, KA. ii,

KTZ. xiii, BH. vii.

vi. (63 6:3 100-0 255)

sain 7 3 4-7 64-0 250 LTV. v, BDV. vi.

viii, 5-4 38 70-4 113 +Britstown. SEFS. xii, MF. vi, KA. v,

BH. xiv, STK. v.

It is worthy of note that type i is confined to the immediate neigh-

bourhood of the Stormberg, while type vii occurs only at Colesberg,

Aliwal North, and Burghersdorp. Type v is extremely persistent all

through the South-Hastern Region and eventually seems to become a

lowland type, though not associable with true coastal middens.

Starting from the Free State, where it appears to be a fairly general

form, it passes through the present area to Knysna, apparently by

way of Graaff Reinet, where a single analogy is known. After Knysna

it passes along the coast into the Belvedere-Heidelberg area, but gets

no farther than Still Bay.

It is important to note that the Upper Thornveld feeds the Southern

Transkei directly, without any types common to both passing through

the Lower Thornveld.

Only two examples have a thickness between 7:0 cm. and 10-4 cm.

Diameters are fairly evenly distributed from 5-0 cm. to 14:0 cm.

CoLESBERG.

MMK 1304 . 5:0 3:8 76:0 Ooms? yack Ss. Hollow centre.

NAAUWPOORT.

PEM 615Q . IL-1 6-1 55-0 Zine Gr3) 9 1 3%8:

ALBERT DISTRICT.

AMG 132 . 10:

SAM Alb. )

(e2)

—

j=)

ke! DO

QO ww

74 Annals of the South African Museum.

BURGHERSDORP.

SAM 84. « 12°8: S1E3 2) 88°3> F850" 2-6 =e

140 84 600 1645 50 2:8

TMP 1849 . 7-0 4:3 61-4 Paki li scl le Sle

SAM Kann.. 60 42 70:0 151 26 1:8

84. Rape 3 3:5 66:0 99° 2:3) 15

Attiwat Norra. .

ELM 50 . 120 11:5 95:8 1655 5:2 3-2 °#£Dolerite.

Drennan Coll. 11-0 70 63-6 845 45 34 LimySs. Broken.

SAM 1316. 9-0 5-6 62:6 455 4:1 2-9

8:0 6:8 85:0 “sey eT “7

7-5 5-4 72-0 305 3:0 2-2

6-3 6-3 100-0 250.0) gS eae Pyriform mace head.

5:0 3:9 78:0 OT 2 bee

Rossouw.

Univ. Stell. . 13-4 I1-1 85:4 1995 44 2:8

QUEENSTOWN-DORDRECHT RD.

ASJ 2/36 a 1387 ol0:45 375:9) 1950) 5-0,

DORDRECHT.

NMP 96 fs 8-5 6-4 75:3 460 46 2-2

CLARKS SIDING, DORDRECHT.

SAM1756 . 7:7 (5-0) 649 295 4:8

70 (5:0) 71:4 245 33

3-8

3-1

1:8 p. 138.)

73 3-8 | 52:0 205 1-6

LTV. Lowrer THORNVELD.

This area covers the belt of high country between the south-eastern

limits of the Upper Thornveld and the Winterberg range. It includes

most of the Upper Fish River and Upper Kei River basins. The climate

is far more agreeable here, the rainfall is between 20 and 30 inches, and

this has once been excellent game country. The rivers flow regularly

except in the driest months of the year, when pools are available.

Types are fairly regular.

1. (LS 9-0 78-2 1190) UTYV. ii, BMR. u.

i. 10-6 8-1 76-4 910 KB. iv.

ii. 10-6 5-7 53°8 640 NV. iv.

UVic Ss 5:6 65-9 405 WV. vii, KA. ii, KTZ. xv, EL. iii.

View aO) 4-7 67-1 220 UTV. vi, TV. iii, KB. vii.

Probably types i and ii are the same. This area appears to show

greater affinity with the western part of the Free State than with the

eastern. This suggests that Norval’s Pont and Bethulie were the

paths by which these types reached their present area from an origin

near Koffiefontein. Only two types show any real affinity with the

Upper Thornveld.

Notice the very marked gap between specimens 6-2 cm. thick and

(See Burkitt, op. cit.,

ae “ae a > i ae

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 75

8-0 cm. thick, and also the lack of any examples over 9-0 cm. in height.

Diameters vary from 6-6 cm. to 11-8 cm.

GLEN GREY.

SAM 3008 . 6:8 5:0 73:5 231 3:2 2-0 Smithfield B imple-

ments.

ADAMSON’S BANK, QUEENSTOWN.

SAM 4564 . 7:3 4:6 63:0 255). ar, | Le?

THORNEYCROFT, QUEENSTOWN.

ELM 78 6 UTED) 5:0 45:4 605 50 2:0 0-92 kg.

QUEENSTOWN.

SAM 4565 . 11:8 8:9 75:4 1235 48 2-7

WUA 1159 . 10:0 6:2 62:0 620 56 2:6 Gritstone.

SAM 4565 8-6 5:4 62:8 400 34 1:8

TARKASTAD.

SAM 667 . 11-2 90 803 1130 3-2 41:5 Ss.

STEYNSBURG. .

ASJ 61/36 11-2 8°29 73:2 71030 4:7 _ 2-6

3 10:7 8:2 76:6 940 3-7 :

ELM 45 . 10-0 8:0 80-0 800 40 1-7 0:91 kg.

ASJ 61/36 . 88 5:9 67:0 455 3:7 2:6

ay Sl 5-6 69-2 365 39 1:8

55 7:9 5:5 69-8 34599) 3-5) | 2-1

F. Malan 6-6 4] 62-1 179 3:8 # 41:9

THEBUS.

ELM 84 - 10-5 6-0 57-1 660 40 3:2 1-02 kg.

HOFMEYR.

Unive stell. - 10-7 56 52:3 640 4:0 0-9 Grinder.

9-1 5:0 55-0 ALS *3-8) 227 9 Ss.

8-3 5-7 «68-7 B90 Boro 2k

MIDDELBURG.

Drennan Coll. 7:3 50 685 2Gornat | ole7 Shale.

NTK. anp STK. TRANSKEI.

Only two sites belong to the Northern Transkei, and neither of the

specimens show any relationship to either the Southern Transkei or

to Natal. These are listed below under their sites, but are not included

in the present type averages. The Southern Transkei is related to the

lower reaches of the Great Kei River, and the averages given are

deduced from this area (STK.) only.

i727) 11-0 863 1775) UTV.

Hee LS-5 7:9 59-0 1440 UTV.

lili. 12-4 8:3 68-0 1265 KA.

iv .

ete FS ee

e e e

7:8 84-0 675 CES.) i:

(5-4 4-0 74:3 125) UTV. viii, KA. v, SEES. viii.

Almost all these Southern Transkei examples lie between 7-5 and

8°5 cm. in thickness. Only three specimens lie outside this range

76 Annals of the South African Museum.

(typesiandv). The relationship between this area, the Central Free

State, and Koffiefontein A is marked, but almost all types show a

relationship with the Upper Thornveld. The complete absence of

any affinity with the Lower Thornveld is important. Obviously the

routes passing through the Lower Thornveld missed the Southern

Transkei completely.

The Northern Transkei provides a different set of problems. Pre-

sumably the routes that fed this little-known area came up the Orange

River to Qacha’s Nek. This question, which will be enlarged upon

under Migrations, can only be cleared up in Basutoland itself, where

archaeological research is at present difficult. Careful collection of

material from both the Southern and the Northern Transkei should

clarify the relationship between these two areas.

Nortu (NTK.).

THABANKULU.

TMP 7375 . 14:0 70 50:0 1370 5:4 2:0

XUKA DRIFT.

SI30 . . 10-7 74 69-1 850 40 2:8

SoutH (STK.).

Fort MALAN.

AMG — yy Bhd) 3:4 59-4 82 20 1:8 ‘*Choke bored.”

CATHCART Downs.

ELM 98 - 127 PO 86°39 1775 o- 25) 837 eeee

100 4 diesels) 80 50:3 1460 42 30 2:26 kg.

97 - els 85 68:0 1330 45 25 18kg. Redss.

96 ce (Sl) SO OOL8 605 45 3-2

Happy VALLEY, CATHCART.

ELM 94 > 14-2 8-0 56:3 1615 40 2:7 2-27 kg.

93 py ag B24 75 79:0 675 3-2 2-7 GO: Oikas

KINGWILLIAMSTOWN.

Drennan Coll. . 12:7 8:4 66:1 1335 3:0 38 Dolerite.

12-9 7-6) 1 58°9) 1265) 3:9" 2 ess:

11-9 79 664 $1120 46 25 #£zPecked.

East Lonpon B.

SAM 520 a) O28 8:0 81-6 770 44 2-4 Midden site. Shale.

Drse NEK.

ELM 44 a? On; 7:7 83:8 650 3:5 2:2 0-91 kg.

BALLINAFAD, COMMITTEER’S DRIFT. -

AMG — - 60 4-7 79-1 7a 28-1

We now turn along the coast to study lowland types, and the

intrusive elements brought in at various points by rivers whose basins

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 17

lie partly behind the parallel rows of mountain ranges, but which

debouch at points along the coast.

VIII. SOUTH-EAST LOWLANDS REGION.

This consists of the lowlands between Port Elizabeth and Hast

London. The region is difficult to understand, but certain fairly

localised areas occur, and should provide a skeleton for future research

by the four museums which happen to be included in this area. One

point that should certainly be watched is the distribution of types by

index, those with an index below 40 per cent. being apparently coastal.

Diameter too seems important. I suggested in the Preliminary Survey

that there were three parts to this region: Hast London to the Great

Fish River, where diameters between 8°5 and 12:8 cm. are met;

Fish River to Sundays River, where diameters from 4:9 to 8-3 cm.

and from 10-8 to 14-9 cm. are encountered; and finally in the Port

Elizabeth area, where diameters lie between 8:9 and 15-2cm. A little

new evidence has changed that picture slightly, and I have been able

to divide the Region into five areas, some of only slight importance

and size, but all highly suggestive.

We are reaching a part of the country where we have a difficult

double flow of migration. There are the feeding lines from the

inland areas down the great rivers to the coast, and across these are

obvious lateral movements along the coast. In this region the rivers

are still more important than the coastal highways, but as we go

south and west this changes, and coastal or lateral movements become

more dominant than the river routes. The reason for this obviously

lies in the parallel rows of mountains, enclosing narrow valleys, typical

of the southernmost littoral, forming a more effective barrier between

the inland plateau and the coast.

EL. East Lonpon AREA.

Types here show bad grouping, but all are limited to 8-3 to 12-7 cm.

in diameter, and to 3-0 to 7:5 cm. in height.

Pol) 74 163-2) 1015) | BMR iv,

ii. 120 5:4 45-0 780 NL. ii.

ii, (88 5-7 64:8 440) LTV. iv, UTV. v.

iv. (103 35 34-0 375)

v. (85 40 47-0 290) ZMM.i.

The comparison with the single specimen from the Natal Lowlands

is given for what it is worth. There is no relationship whatsoever

(ito aay Annals of the South African Museum.

discernible with the neighbouring Transkeian material, which lies

between Natal and Kast London.

KWwELEGHA R.

ELM 83 - 12:0 75 62:5 1080 45 2:2 1:9kg. Quartz.

NaHOoon.

SAM 1495 . (12-5) 5-2 41-6 820 (4:4) (2-2) Midden. Fragment.

ELM 71 Ae) 5:2 61:8 375 40 2:2 —0-57 kg.

Hast Lonpon A.

SAM — . 109 51 46:9 605 50 5-5 Rocklands. Sub-

triangular.

ELM 34 - 10-0 4:0 40-0 400 30 1:2 0-57 kg. Park Gates.

CovE Rock.

ELM 89 Ae Iie 75 63°38 1025 45 3-0 1:36 kg. Dolerite.

75 aah LA) 5:0 39-2 805 30 2-0

— Sai 4:0 45-7 305 2-7 1:2 0-45 kg. Dolerite.

GuLu RIVER.

ELM 107 Br likey 60 51-1 820 45 2.

3:0 . “yen all

5 1:14kg. Grinder.

‘5 0-57 kg.

103 5 les 28:5 3303 Dolerite.

Fort BEAUFORT.

AMG — . 10:9 70 64:2 830 66 2:7

11:8 4:8 40-7 670 4:0 2-0

UNIONDALE, ALBANY.

AMG — a0) So3 4:0 48-2 275 49 2-0 Shelter. Wilton layer

underlying Smith-

field.

PAARDEKRAAL,

AMG 2887 . 9:2 6:3 68:5 5385 1-8 2:5 Choke bored.

BMR. BusHmMans RIvEeR AREA.

Types here are again limited in size. Diameters lie between 10-2

and 14-8 cm. and heights between 6-0 and 9-8 cm., apart from a single

thick specimen which is either anomalous or an erratic from the

Knysna-Tzitzikamma area.

i. (14-9 UX 48-3 1600) Burghersdorp. BH. i.

li. 12-0 9-4 78:3 1355

iii. (10-6 11:9 112:3 1340) KYTZ. iii.

thy, | Liter 6-0 59-0 945 Aliwal North. KTZ. vi, EL. i.

v. 10-4 Pal 74-0 835 NO We thx

Further comment on this area will follow the Port Elizabeth material.

There are few affinities with surrounding areas. Types ii and v here

suggest a general similarity to LTV. 1 and ui respectively, but not

close. The main affinities are with Knysna-Tzitzikamma, an area

some little distance away (p. 85).

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 79

ADELAIDE.

ELM 87 pene) 70 56:0 1095 40 #£2-2 1-47 ke.

Borua’s Post.

AMG 634 . 106 1

19 112-3 1340

699 ies 10:3 7:7

5-5 ‘0 Erratic. KTZ. iu.

74:8 815 4-6 9

Fort Brown.

AMG — 51 MELA: 69 56-1 1045 50 2:5

656 . 10:5 Weak = 7ie33R3 850 5:7 3:0

Fiso RIveEr.

AMG. 703 5) a llZs®) leZenAs8:3 NG00) 5-2). 3-5) 12-0 ket

636 = liber 8-9e 6-1 L220) (95:5) 3

SIDBURY.

AMG 1568 . 11:8 PAE DO IBD ne G8) 9 Biol

ALICEDALE.

AMG 1643 . 11-5 80 69-1 1060 54 2-0

et . 11:0 68 61-9 825 56 2-0

RBM 6I4 Y . 11-7 6-1 52-3 835 5:8 3:2

SANDFLATS.

AMG 1561 . 11-7 Oe 82-9 s3s0e 4-50 223

BUSHMAN’S RIVER.

PEM 614B . 13-1 9-2 0-1 80 5-2 oor 20) koe

PE. Port ELizABETH AREA.

A scattered and wide distribution that should react to future

careful collection and association with coastal midden materials,

inland caves, river sites, and soon. It is obvious that the local rivers

make the picture difficult to see.

re (o°9 10°8 77:8 2085) UTV.i.

ii. 13-5 eu 57:0 1405 Kai WV er.

iii, (15-2 530) 34-7 |) 1995)

iv. (10-4 68 65-4 735) ZWB. iv.

v. 11-4 53 46-5 690 EL. ii.

vi. (10:8 3:9 36-2 455) BL. iv.

vii. 9-3 46 49-5 400 KZ. xiii.

viii. 7-7 5-1 66-2 305 UTV. vii.

ix. (3:3 3-5 108-1 35)

There are general similarities to the Upper Thornveld and to Hast

London. The link with the former is obviously by way of Cradock

and the Fish River, from a common origin.

CRADOCK.

AMG — sueleo MeO EDG:S aoe Orin! 238

ASJ 4/35/2 . 9-0 4:5 50:0 365 (4:0) 2-1

4/35/— . 8-1 5-5 67-9 360 3=64:0 an

4/35/28 . 7:5 46 61:3 PAY BB} 18)

80 Annals of the South African Museum.

SOMERSET FEAST.

AMG 1618 . 13-9 8-5 683 1640 5:5 3:4 One pole flattened.

11:0 (5-5) 50-0 665 5:0 2:5 Both poles flattened.

9-7 4:8 49-5 455 4:4 1-9 Battered!

7:2 4-8 66:7 250 4:5 2-0 Pecked. Grinder.

GRAHAMSTOWN.

AMG E580). 2 114235 10-5) 2 73:4 2150) 822) 2-0

NMP 100 . 10-4 6-7 64-4 720 3:4. 1-9 Idee

TOOTABI.

PEM 614Q . 10:8 3:9 36-2 455 45 25 5-8 kg.

Port ELIzABETH.

AMG 630 2 1325) 1 82-2 2025 etd ee

HumeEwoop, P.E.

PEM 615T . 13-4 73 542 13810 4:7 13 #£4241:8kg.

59 5 thes} 50 44-0 640 45 2-5 Oval hole.

i 8-9 4-6 . 51-7 365 3:2 19 0-45 kg.

a 8-2 50 61-0 339 25 .. Obekee

South Enp, P.E.

PEM 68/ 12-0 54 45:0 780 50 2-8 0-95kg. 14feet deep.

5 10-4 6-8 65-2 735 5:0 2:7 “Oke -

ss 3-2 3:3 103-1 34 2:38 16 0-09 kg.

CaPE RECIFE.

PEM 614A . 13-4 75 56-1 13850 46 2-2

15-2 53 34-7 1225 53 2-6 Anomalous. Angu-

lar.

The Port Elizabeth area appears to be a migrationary intrusive

route from upcountry to the coast. It shows only one type similar

to those from Knysna-Tzitzikamma, and, like the Sundays River

route and the localised Zuney-Maitland Mines material, this area cuts

off the Bushman’s River types (where three averages conform to the

Tzitzikamma range) from farther west. This would suggest that the

Bushman’s River material was later, and spread across existing

populated areas to flourish again on the far side of them—presumably

the spread was from BR. to KTZ., though this is by no means certain,

as the opposite migration of a limited number of types would be

perfectly plausible. My presumption rests upon the supposition that

areas of attraction will tend to collect surrounding types early, digest

and assimilate them into a secondary cultural centre, then launch

them forth once again as new migrations in new patterns.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND COMMENTS.

J. C. Rickard,* one of the most efficient archaeologists who has

worked in this country, drew material from here and from Kast London.

* J. C. Rickard, ‘“‘ Notes on some Neolithic Implements from South Africa,”

Cambs. Antiq. Soc., Comm. V, 7, 1881, pp. 67-74.

ie” ma ae we

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 81

He associated bored stones with his Earlier Midden (pottery scarce

or absent) period, at a site at North End, Port Elizabeth. At Hast

London he likewise associated a small bored stone with his Later

Midden (no cutting implements, but ornamented pottery, etc.) period.

This and the associated paper are valuable, and have never received

the attention they have merited in this country.

ZMM. ZuNEY-MAITLAND MINES.

These few examples certainly form a series of extremely small types.

Diameters lie between 5:0 and 8-0 cm. only, and the heights do not

exceed 4-5 cm.

i. (7:

i. 5:

Possibly this area should be included in the South Coast Region,

but until further material is available it may well remain in association

with Port Elizabeth. Only the Knysna-Tzitzikamma and the

Belvedere-Heidelberg parallels are important, Hast London and the

Transkei less so, while the suggested parallel with the Trekveld has

no real value. There appears to be no relationship with Sundays

River, Tzitzikamma caves, or with Bushman’s River.

Much that has been said immediately above about the Bushman’s

River area in relation to Port Elizabeth would probably apply here.

9 52-7 Zo) ICD. xvi, BE xa EL. vy EV. ii.

3° 56-4 94 KEE Zs avilt) Dy xiv ee yi;

ZUNEY, ALEXANDRIA.

Univ. Stell. . 7-5 4-4 58-9 24s Oe At

5:6 2-6 46-0 81 2-8 0-9 Slightly oval stone.

ZO eL7

Mairtanp Mines Farm.

PEM 615/A. 79 3:

5S) 3:

3 0-17 kg.

CO Or

for)

@¢

—

(5%)

Obviously all knob-kerrie heads—no digging stones.

IX. SOUTH COAST REGION.

Rivers are important in a somewhat different way in this region.

Before they had been highways. Now they appear to be backwaters

of distribution. Along the South Coast the coast provides a 300-foot

shelf, rising gently from the narrow strip of sand or soil that con-

stitutes the Middle Stone Age 20-foot raised beach. This open belt

is wide enough to keep wandering peoples near the coast, and varies

from 5 to 15 miles in depth. Behind it stand serried rows of moun-

‘tains, two, three, or four deep, rising to heights of 5000 feet, and

VOL. XX XVII, PART 1. 6

82 Annals of the South African Museum.

dropping steeply to enclose valleys 1000 or 2000 feet above sea-level.

Finally, behind all this stands the lip of the plateau starting at 3000

feet and rising slowly until 4000 feet is reached, with higher mountains

standing out of the plains. The mountains thus form highly effective

barriers between the inland plateau and the coast. The result of this

has been that the enclosed parallel valleys are fed by T-shaped or

cross-shaped streams, running from east and west, then meeting to

pass southwards to the coast through some lovely entrenched valleys

in the mountain ranges. Peoples seem here and there to have been

caught up in the valleys of these T-streams, and types have a local

distribution, only partly reflected at the coastal peneplain where the

river debouches into the sea and immediately on either side (e.g.

Grootrivier).

Added to this, the whole stretch of country from Riversdale to the

Gamtoos River mouth was thickly forested before 1875 when a

devastating fire denuded all but the deepest valleys from Riversdale

to the Knysna River, while even across that river game was roasted

where it stood. There are thus three types of environment present

in a confined area—upland plain, forest, and coastal midden country.

This will be referred to once again when we deal with the various areas.

SR. Sunpays River AREA.

This river drains the plateau country and has its sources in the

Nieuwveld and Goup. In the Preliminary Survey I included the

whole basin as a single area, but the Nieuwveld appears to have only

one point of contact, Aberdeen district. As I explained above, the

PEM 614 F series has been divided into two, and I have found it

necessary to do the same with the ELM 70 specimens. The museum

divides this group into 70, 70 A,and 70 B. This last has been included

under the Knysna series. The series is mainly coastal midden.

i (98° 73 745 700) KTZ, ix, ZWBoive Wives

Way SPC 7-0 80-4 530

Le) S26 5:0 56:8 390 KTZ. xiii.

Vier (do ol 70:8 265) UTV. vi.

Specimens are confined to heights from 4-5 to 7-5 cm., and diameters

between 7-0 cm. and 10°0 cm.

ABERDEEN B.

PEM 614F . 8-9 75 84:3 595 40 2-2

9-3 5-6 60:7 485 40 ae

8:5 64 75:3 460 40 2-1

9-0 5:0 955-6 405 32 2-0

8:5 4:7 55:3 340 38 2-2

7:0 5:2 74:3 255 34 2:2

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 83

Kirin Rivier A, HANKEY.

ELM 70A . 8-7 70 80-0 530) 3°2) = Ey,

70 Be (is) 5:0 66-7 280 3:2 1:5

GamToos River, HANKEY.

PEM 615C . 9-7 75 77-4 705 44 1-6

Po 3979 Ge aed 695 44 2-4

Cre trs'9 45 50:5 350) 2 1-7

TZITZIKAMMA AND KNnySNA AREAS.

The next two areas need a little explanation. It was pointed out

earlier that before 1875 the Riversdale-Gamtoos belt was a single

forest area. To-day there is a distinct change in environment at

about the George-Mossel Bay line, which was absent or only slightly

important to the makers of the bored stones. Types thus cut directly

across present boundaries, but the wide stretch of the Knysna River

seems to have provided some sort of barrier, and may be taken as a

boundary between areas.

The vast numbers of specimens that have been marked “ Knysna”

have made it difficult to discover anything very definite about that

locality. We seem to be presented with so many types that they

suggest that our system has broken down, and that we are dealing

with a completely haphazard distribution of types. Further analysis

shows that this is not the case.

Only one mode of analytical approach can be fairly employed at

present, the subtractive method, based upon our knowledge of indi-

vidual sites. I have therefore subtracted the following sites from the

whole, and present them as a single area, overlapping the Knysna-

Tzitzikamma area :—

ASSEGAIBOS. ROBBERG CAVES.

TZITZIKAMMA Mountains. HAsTERN HEADS CAVE.

TZITZIKAMMA CAVES. Heaps Roap.

Forrest Hau SHELTER. WOODBOURNE.

To these I have added one example from the Tzitzikamma Middens,

one from Hankey, and three from Knysna, all of which agree with the

types developed from the above series.

As to the remainder, I have perforce had to group all of them

together. If we had more information we should probably find that

the list given above covers the cave or shelter types, while others

that are represented in the Belvedere-Heidelberg area may eventually

yield a Coastal Midden series and a Coastal Plain or Forest series.

84 Annals of the South African Museum.

This possibility should be looked for as further specimens are collected;

it is discussed later under the appropriate areas.

Here we have a supreme example of the need for an exact provenance

for each specimen. This area is split by gorges and divided by almost

impenetrable forests, traversed only by elephant paths. It yields

three distinct environmental belts, each roughly related to altitude,

the 20-foot coastal belt, typified by open middens and cave middens;

the forested gorges and country rising to the 300-foot level; and finally

the grassy foothills immediately below the mountain ranges. This

differentiation should be reflected with varying intensity from the

Gamtoos to the Gouritz Rivers and perhaps farther along the coast

in both directions.

GR. GROOTRIVIER.

The Grootrivier is the western affluent of the Gamtoos River. It

seems to provide a backwater where only one type occurs:

13-0 11-8 90-8 1995 KTZ. i.

This obviously links with type i from Knysna-Tzitzikamma and

is probably related to examples at Port Elizabeth, Ladismith,

Victoria West, and elsewhere. It suggests a movement along the

valleys at the Cape, which only now and then found its way to the

coast.

WILLOWMORE.

PEM 1429/87) Us: We 85-4 29 aol 2A

FULLARTON.

PEM 614X. 12:9 116 90-1 20830 48 23

MILLER.

PEM 614Z . 12-4 12:2 984 1875 43 £43:8

TZC. TzirzikAMMA CAVES.

This area partly overlaps the Knysna-Tzitzikamma area, and

enough has been said above to explain the position.

i, 11-8 4:9 “41-5 | 680 PE. v, BH. iv.

ii, 140 3:4 245 (665)

ih, OH GE SR a Cl ae

iv. 10-6 2-2 | 20:7) (045) BEL. xii.

v. (75 45 59:0 225) ZMM.i, SR. iv, DBV. vi.

Vin Or led Tee 65)

It will be observed that most of the indices lie below 41-0 per cent.,

while all specimens are Jess than 5°5 cm. in thickness.. Only one type

ih,

Sa ee.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 85

runs through the Belvedere-Heidelberg area, where it is represented

at the two extremes and at Mossel Bay (type TZC.i). This latter I

have compared with BH. iv (11-7 x 5-4 cm.) and type TZC. iv with

BH. xii (8-7 x 2:6 cm.) as I believe the BH. series to be derived from

these; the larger type persists farther west as BOT.1i, which suggests

a coastal type.

Kern River B, HANKEY.

ELM 70B . 13-7 3°5 25:5 (660) 3:7 3-2 0-91keg. Limestone.

ASSEGAAIBOS. i

PEM 615/F . 12-2 S1 41-8 UGOP e183) 1-6) 70777) ko. One face

concave.

TZITZIKAMMA MOUNTAINS.

PEM 615/0 . 7-4 4-4 59-4 240 36 41:9 0-3kg. With female

skeleton.

9:7 3-1 20:5 (290) 30 2:6

TZITZIKAMMA CAVES.

PEM 1410 . 14:6 4-2 28:8 (895) 41 2-9

Pee! Le 30 27-1 (exe “aires ilar)

TZITZIKAMMA MIDDENS.

PEM 94 ey ess 4:4 38-5 580 42 2-2

Forest Hatt SHELTER.

Univ. Stell. . 10-0 4:0 40:0 400 5-1

RoBBERG CAVES.

ASJ 11/42 . 11:5 5:2 45-2 G9IOs Wade 2-2

‘ 13-6 2 19-1 (480) 5-0 : Trreg.

SAM 2981 . 11-0 2-37 120-9 (278) 2:00 eit

11-0 2-1 19-1 (254) 2-4 2-2

ASJ 11/42 . 10-2 2-2 21-6 (229) 5:0 3-2 Irreg.

EASTERN HEADS CAVE.

SAM Bain . 6-2 Ui) 271-4 65 23 #£421:8

Heaps Roan.

PEM 615/P . 10:3 3:1 30-1 330 3:9 2:6 With skeletons.

WooDBOURNE.

A.W.Robinson 7:6 4-6 60-5 265 3:5 2-4 Chalky limestone.

Odd grooves, ap-

parently not re-

lated to artefact.

KNYSNA.

SAM 1832 . 10-5 2-0. 19°0 — (220) 2:0- 1-0

Ps). 12-0 54 45-0 (80 onl 5 2-7

A.W. Robinson 12-2 4:8 39:5 WS) 9-7. 271) Ss. pebble:

KTZ. Knysna-TZITZIKAMMA AREA.

The multiplicity of types here is somewhat terrifying, but most of

them are reproduced in surrounding areas, either as directly analogous

86 Annals of the South African Museum.

groups, or as the results of divergent copying. This area is therefore

to be regarded as focal.

i, (13-3 12-0 89-8 2120) \ GRS, ULV

Toh, | 1a 9-0 68-2 1570 SWB. i, BH. ii, WV. iii.

iii. (10-5 12-2)" 116-2 1345) BMR. iii.

iv. 12-1 8-7 71-9 1275 SWB. ii, BH. ii.

v. 12-8 7-4 57-8 1210 IBID Ti

vi. 11-4 Tee 63-1 935 BMR. iv, EL. i.

vii. 10-2 8:7 85:3 805 BH. iii.

viii. 11-0 6:2 56-4 750 UTV. iv, NV. iv, BDV. iii.

ix. 10-0 7-4 74-0 740 SWB. iv, BMR. v.

xe tO 7:9 86-8 655 STK. iv.

Kis O22 6-6 71-7 560 BH... vi, GRKoiv,, BOR sir

xii. 10-4 4-4 42-3 480 PE. vi, BDV. v.

Kili, 8-5 6-2 72-9 450 UTYV. v, BH. vii, WV. vii.

xiv. 9:3 5-0 53:8 430 PE. vii, SR. iii, BH. viii.

xv. 80 5:3 66:7 330 PE. viii.

Xvi. 9-2 3:0 32:6 255 BH. xii.

xvii. 7:8 4-0 64-1 245 BH. xi, ZM. iv.

Qiang) (7/2! 2-8 40-0 140) CF. vi.

xix. (4:5 3:0 66-7 61) BH. xiv.

xx. (5-0 1-4 28-0 35)

Types xi and xii are divided into two groups partly on analogy |

with Belvedere-Heidelberg, but also because there appears to be a

double distribution presented here: one linking with the Upper

Thornveld, where the distribution of type xiii was shortly discussed.

Types vil, xX, Xlv, xvi, and xviii all include material from the

Tzitzikamma middens, and are also related to the Sundays River

middens or to those of the Belvedere-Heidelberg area. I would

therefore suggest that they represent a mdden series, separable from

the remainder.

Types ii, iv, and ix are related to the Zwartberg area, and so repre-

sent an inland series. Type 1 is too closely related to the Grootrivier

to be mistaken. it is also an extreme type and therefore more

certainly analogous. The comparison with the Upper Thornveld is

not so exact, but is suggestive. Type viii is related to Nieuwveld

material and is also an inland type.

Types i, lll, V, Vi, ix, x are absent in area BH.; see the note given

at the conclusion of the figures for the present area.

TZITZIKAMMA MIDDENS.

PEM 94 . 98 89 90:4 885 3:8 2-1 1-2 kg.

88 75 864 580 3:3 Lo 0-8 kg.

93 49 52:2 425 3:9 2-4 0-53 kg.

9:27 53-3) oD oO 4-3) oes

TIA DAES esta lS SI hS7/ 4 0-18 kg.

Dr Poort.

ASJ 8/36 . AN rete ahete WAlda SSO). veksy sos

Ti7 8-9") 76:1 -1220) 3:9) -2°5

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 87

Der Poort—continued.

ASJ 8/36. 11-2 7:8 69:6 980 4:4. 2-9

115 7:3 63:55 965 50 2:5

9-9 8-4. 84:8 825 3:9 2-1

11:0 63 57:3 760 43 £2-4

9-] 5:3 58:2 440 3:3 2:3

7:9 6:5 82:3 405 3:5 2:9

92 46 50:0 '390 38 2:6

84 5-1 60:7 360 3:7 2:0

82 41 500 275 30 19

Knysna AREA.

AMG 1578 5 MIB) pace! 91-2 2295 4:5 2-9 Pecked.

SAM 1114 - 13:0 11-5 88:5 1945 4-2 2-2 Ss. Pecked.

12:9 9-5 73:6 1580 4:5 2°8 Ss. Pecked.

Drennan Coll. . 13:6 85 62:5 1570 41 2:7 Ss. Pecked. Slight

cuts at narrower

mouth.

A.W. Robinson 13:0 93 £715 1570 3-8 $1:8 Coarse Ss. Pecked.

10-5 12-2 116-2 1345 48 2-2 Coarse Ss. Pecked.

13 2 OS2d UL o40) seo: an 2k Coarse Ss.

12°66 8:4 66:7 335 4:9) 2-2 Coarse Ss.

SAM Bain 5 B20) 7:4 56:9 1250 4:0 2-6

A.W.Robinson 11:6 86 74:1 1155 59 2-2 Ss. Pecked.

SAM 1114 - 10:5 9:0 85:7 995 4:8 2:5

Sharples 17 a 0-485) 802275920) 4:3 hs Pyriform mace.

Hole. 5 cm. deep.

SAM 1832 see OD-Sa1 6 G05) taco 19,

A.W.Robinson 11:5 68 £583 900 49 2-9 Coarse Ss.

UCT 23/18 ee 1-3 16:9) 61-0) 850) 3-9) 2:1

TMP 1868 . 10-2 7:6 74:5 790 4:7 1:9

A.W. Robinson 10:2 7:6 74:55 790 40 1:8 Coarse Ss.

NO-Gee G23 spoueSie soO0s. 420) | 225 Coarse Ss.

SAM Bain . 10:0 7:5 75:0 750 4:5 2:2

Ep Seis! tsi 6-0 54:5 730 5:0 2:5 Coarse Ss.

SAM 1832 fGen 8:08 83:3 foo) 2:6 2-2

UCT 23/18 Pel Oo en G:O) )vo4-5) 25 3-6) 2-1

SAM 1114 9-47 78:0 “85-1 705 4-1 . 2-4

SAM Bain Oi ein) 14:2) * 680) = 43° >. 2-1 Coarse Ss. Pecked.

A.W.Robinson 9:7 7:2 74:2 680 4:0 2:6 Very coarse Ss.

92 79 85-8 670 38 2:0 Ss.

SAM 1114 90 80 889 650 40 3:5 Coarse Ss.

A. W. Robinson 86 80 93:0 590 3:5 2:2 Coarse Ss.

Sharples 19 9-4. 6:7 70:2 590 4-] 1:8

A. W. Robinson 94 66 70:1 585 34 21 Coarse Ss.

SAM 1832 89 73 82:0 580 4-3 ms Coarse Ss. Pecked.

9-9 5:4 54-5 530 4:3 5 ” 2”

SAM 1114 9-055 6:6) 73:09 -535)-4-0 Se Ss. Pecked.

A. W. Robinson O22 Gea 68-5) 2 535n 4k 1:8 Coarse Ss.

103 48 466 510 62 3:2 Ss.z

10:8 43 40:0 500 4-2 2:0 Ss.

Sharples 5 9-7 53 544 500 36 1:8

SAM 1114 10-4 44 42-3 475 5:4 1-8

A. W. Robinson 93 54 58-1 465 3:9 1-8 _ Ss.

SAM 1114 88 58 659 450 40 2-6

85 6:2 72:9 450 4:5 2:1

UCT 23 92 10:0 44 440 440 40 2-1 =TM.Ss.

93 51 548 440 29 1:9 TM.Ss.

A. W. Robinson 86 59 683 435 3-6 2:0 Coarse Ss.

10:37 4:0) 38:8") 425° 93-7 2-2 vs

8:9) 95-2.) 158-4, 7410) 3:9 2:3 Coarse Ss. Pecked.

88 Annals of the South African Museum.

Knysna AREA—continued.

UCT— . . 95 4:5 47-4 405° 4:0 2:2) TM. Ss:

SAM 1635 - 90 50 555 405 44 2:4

A.W.Robinson 9:0 4:9 54:4 400 (4:6 2-8) Coarse Ss. Conical

bore.

(8:8) 53 60:2 400 3:5 2-1 ‘Fragment. Coarse

Ss.

84 55 65:4 390 3-2 1:9 Coarse Ss.

91 44 483 365 3-4. 41:6 Ss.

SAM 1832 80 54 67:5 355 3:9 2:0

A.W.Robinson 9:6 3-7 37:5 340 2-5 2:2 Ss. pebble.

8:0 50 641 305 24 1:8

95 3:0 31: 270 3-0 2-4 Slatey shale.

8-0 41 51-2 260 3:5 41:7 Coarse Ss.

7-6) 23°87) 50°05 9220) 2-Sae len Sandy shale.

SAM 1114 eon dO 9 Ol On 2202-8

O22 2-4 26205) 2a ee

Sharples 16 8:6 2:8: 33:0) 200) 3-0 >) 2°3))))Brokenr

A.W.Robinson 7:0 3:3 47:1 160 3:2 41-9 Ss. Grinder.

SAM 1474 oi 457 3-0 an G6A7 61 1:7 0-8 Iron bored. Ss.

Anomalous.

1114 50 1:6 32:0 40 25 1:3

1832 50 1:2 24-0 30 2:0 1:2

WILDERNESS.

MMK 508 yp 23 Tl bier Ota) 4A See

The South African Museum series, numbered 1833, presented by

J. 8. Henkel in 1915, was said by Dr. Péringuey to have come from

sites “between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay.’ He asked Henkel

for further information, but no reply was received on this

question. The scatter of the various types strongly suggests a

midden series.

In comparing graphs of the Knysna-Tzitzikamma and the Belvedere-

Heidelberg series the following points of difference are important :—

i. None of the BH. specimens is thicker than 9-5 cm.

u. The KTZ. shows a marked gap between 9-5 cm. and 11-5 cm.

Types KTZ. i and i are therefore absent in BH.

il. In the BH. specimens an analogous marked gap is seen

between 7:0 and 8-0 cm. in thickness.

iv. The KTZ. series shows types v, vi, 1x, and x between these

two limits. These are again absent in BH. They seem to have

their origins to the north-east.

These points suggest strongly that the sources for K TZ. 1, iii, v, vi, ix,

and x were not in touch with BH. Unluckily most of these sources

are not known to us with any certainty.

My thanks are due to Mr. A. W. Robinson of Plumstead for his

courtesy and kindness in allowing me access to his collection and

notes.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 89

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

There is little comment by early writers on this part of the country.

Sparrman * is the only writer to mention the bored stone from any-

where in this region. He describes a chance meeting with some

Bushmen in the Lange Kloof leading from George to Uniondale.

““Most of these refugees carried a thick, stout staff, generally headed

with a heavy gritstone of 2 lb. weight or more, rounded off, and with

a hole bored through the middle of it, to increase the force of the stick

for digging up roots and bulbs from the ground.”

SWB. SwaRTBERG AREA.

This inland area, related to the valley between the Kammanassi

and Swartberg ranges, seems to be another backwater.

i, (13-8 9-5 68-5 1795), TAS i.

ue 125 8-2 65-6 1280 KTZ. iv, BH. ii.

ii. 11-4 8-4 73°7 1090 BH. iii, NW. iii.

iv. (10-2 7-1 70-0 730) K'TZ. ix, WV. v.

The relationship between this area and Knysna-Tzitzikamma is

very evident, and helps to explain the multiplicity of types in that

area. These are, of course, all inland types, and therefore provide

a clue to the composition of KTZ. No examples show a thickness

less than 7-0 cm., or greater than 10:0 cm. This again precludes any

relationship between this series and KTZ. i and iii.

SwARTBERG.

SAM 516. . 123 85 69-1 1285 46 3-0

MP. . 11-6 8:3 71:5 1120 4-2 2-1

ae LOM ie Orn GOs wlio) 403 eo

VOORUITZICHT.

Oudts. Mus. . 13:0 80 61:5 1350 4:7 2-7

OUDTSHOORN.

PEM 614M . 136 99 72:8 1830 50 2-3. Kammatie.

A. B. Pocock . 14:0 9-0 64:3 1765 46 # 3:5

MMK 588 Pe Ge Oe 8-4 225.9 5-1 2223 Koetzee’s Poort.

Oudts. Mus. . 11:0 80 72:7 970 4-0 :

PEM 614M . 102 7:2 706 740 = 6:3

‘HAZENJACHT.

Oudts. Mus. . 12:0 79 65:8 1140 4:0 2-6

BH. BELVEDERE-HEIDELBERG.

This area shows fundamental similarities to the Knysna-Tzi-

tzikamma area, but other factors affect it, notably the presence of the

* Sparrman: A Voyage to the Cape of Good Hope. 1786. First edition, p. 328;

second edition, p. 307.

90 Annals of the South African Museum.

Gouritz River. I have already assessed the environmental factors

here, and need hardly recapitulate. The Grootrivier element is absent

in this area.

i. (15-9 6-9 43-4 1745) BMB.¥i, PE. iii.

ii. (12-6 8:7 69-9 1385) KTZ. ii and iv, ZW. ii, WV. iii.

ii. 10-7 8:2 75:0 1000 KTZ. vii, NV. iii.

iv. 11-7 5-4 46:1 740 BOT. i (TZC. i).

Won keke) 93 110°8 670 WV. vi.

vi. (9:6 6:4 66:7 590) BOT. ii, GK. iv, KTZ. xi.

vii. 8-7 6:3 72-4 475 KTZ. xiii, UTV. v.

viii. 9-1 4:7 51:6 390 KTZ. xiv, BOT. iv.

vba (78) 6:1 80:2 350)

x eG 5:2 68:4 300

xe) Se) 4-3 53:1 280 WV.* viii.

Xi, | O-7 2:6 30:0 200 KTZ. xv (TZC. iv).

xii. (7:0 3°8 54:3 186) BOT. v.

XLV 3°3 62:3 93 KTZ. xviii, UTV. viii.

There appear to be two main groups here, those with heights less

than 7-0 cm., and those with heights greater than 8-0 cm. (types i, u,

ill, and v). These latter appear to be znland types. While I have

added comparisons for type 1, these are unsatisfactory. Affinities with

the Swartberg and with the Winterveld and the Nieuwveld areas

suggest that ii, 111, v, and xi are inland types. Type vill is a persistent

coastal midden type, and appears in the Port Elizabeth, Sundays River,

and Knysna areas. Type vii is also very persistent and can be traced

from the Free State, through the Upper Thornveld (where the dis-

tribution is more fully given) to here. It is almost certainly a lowland

type here, though not necessarily associable with middens. Still

Bay is the last site at which it occurs, and it may be regarded as almost

certainly Wilton. Type vii may be related to type vi, which occurs

in the Gouritz-Karoo area and Bot River.

The gap between 7-0 cm. and 8-0 cm. in thickness is not evident in

the KTZ. series. The thickest example from here is 9-6 cm. Contrast

this with KTZ.

BurFFALO POINT.

A.W.Robinson 5:1 3:8 74:5 oe) Bee a Sandy shale.

WESTFORD, BELVEDERE.

SAM 4895 - (G1-O))) 8:4 76:47 OTD 4-555 2:5 ess:

10:2. 8-1 79:4 840 4:3. .2°2) “Sst

12:1 (5:0) 41:3 730 42 2:7 Bad condition.

88 41 466 320 3:3 19 Circumference

abraded TM. Ss.

90 40 444 325 44 23 ~& Ssz

OAKHURST CAVE.

UCT — 91 96 105-4 795 3:5 2:6 Grave VI A.

76 60 78:9 345 3:7 2:2 Grave X.

— a

The Bored Stones of South

BERGPLAATS CAVE.

SAM 1635 ? 90 5:7 63:3 460 3:7

KAAIMANS RIVER.

SAM 1635 : 94 51 542 450 43

LIMBERLOST, WILDERNESS.

AMG 3001 ; 91 29 319 240 5-1

GEORGE COAST.

TMP 9174 15-9 69 43:4 1745 46:3

L-l 8:2) 73-8 1010 °5-4

8-9 85-1 eboi-2 405 4-2

GREAT BRAK.

SAM 4838 : 86 64 74:0 475 3:8

HARTENBOS.

SAM 1635 124054) 775-0 = 2807 | 23-6

Mosset Bay.

MMK 865 12-8 92 71-9 1510 5-0

SAM 1777 p24 8-2) 66-1 | 1260 4-6

1635 10:8 81 75:0 945 4:0

M.B. Library PP 85-3) 47-8) 1655. = 457k

97 64 660 610 4:3

MMK 705 83 6:7 80-1 460 3-9

SAM 1635 8-7 44 506 305 3:5

76 50 65-8 290 3-2

$-O8) 25-0) 962-5 9325, 3-5

8-2 4-5 54-8 305° | 3-5

1586 8-0 4-5 56-2) 290 4-5

TMP 1853 Sou ee wrol-s. FO5= (3-9

Gouritz River Mout.

SAM 506. ie 29-G) 16:4 66:7" 9590: | 3:7

9-4 5-2 55:3 460 —3-4

8:4 46-5 77:33 460 4:0

92 48 55-8 405 4-5

OF 4:51 44:5. 350 5-1

mOn 7-3-8) 54-3" 8b 2-8

| 50 2-4 48-0 60 2-0

StrL Bay.

HHC 1057 ; 87 60 69:0 455 3:0

BLOEMBOS.

Heese Coll. 7. 76 60 $78:9 345 £3:8

18. S-1- 4-1 50-6" 270° 4-6

14. Sule 24cm 150) 62-8

10: 5-9 (3:7) 162-7. 130° 3:1

Se 75-0) 3-6) 72:0 90 2-0

RIVERSDALE.

PEM 615 H 74 94 1272 515 4-5

Heese Coll. 6. 89 89 100:0 705 3-4

HEIDELBERG.

SAM — . ek -Our 5-60 s46-08 | S05. 5-6

Africa.

2-0

2:3

1-8

1-9

1-2

ee ND

ke GO Hy H= 00

GO 1

TMS. pebble.

Oval hole.

Coastal midden.

Ss.

Pecked.

Ss. Squarish.

Slightly triangular.

Found at depth.

92 Annals of the South African Museum.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

There is little local literature of value on the bored stone, though

papers by Dr. C. H. T. D. Heese are important in throwing light on

associated Wilton material from Bloembos and Riversdale. The two

specimens from Oakhurst are associated in Goodwin * with Smithfield

B material, Grave VI A with certainty, Grave X with slightly less

certainty. They are illustrated in Plate V, C (centre of picture) and

Plate VI, A (left of picture).

GK. Gouritz Karoo AREA.

The Gouritz River is a cross-shaped stream, draining the Little

Karoo by the Touws River affluent; the Great Karoo by the Gamka

River; and the Armoed valley by the Olifants tributary. It is a

wide area, and therefore grouping is bad, but there is a certain unity,

and types link with sites near the Gouritz mouth in the Belvedere-

Heidelberg area. This is most noticeable at Bloembos. The most

provoking specimens are from Bellair, they fail to link with any local

types.

i. (125 7:6 60:8 1285) SWB. ii (Bellair).

ii, (132 5:5 41-6 960) (Bellair).

iii. 10-4 58 655-7 625. NV. iv.

iv. (92 64 70-0 540) BH. vi, KTZ. xi.

vy. (102 35 348 380)

vi) (con) G20 S27 355) BH. ix.

The larger specimen from Bellair shows some resemblance to a

Swartberg type, while type ili suggests an affinity with an Aberdeen

specimen from the Nieuwveld area. Only one specimen (from

Bellair) is thicker than 6-5 cm. The peculiar coincidence that both

Bellair specimens are anomalous, though submitted at different times,

probably means that they are single representatives of local and

normal types not yet adequately represented from other sites.

NELSPOORT.

Sharples E

Sharples 18 . 10-2 6-1 60-0 635 5-1 25

LAINGSBURG.

Heese Coll. 19 9-4 6-1 64-9 540 49 2:5

Hex RIver.

SAM 765 : 9:0 65 72-2 525. are, 2:0

ANYSBERG.

SAM 175 Lh) 6-4 58-2 Tio. 4:4 | 2-4

* Goodwin, “The Oakhurst Shelter,” Trans. Roy. Soc. S. Afr., vol. xxv, 1938,

pp. 251 and 254.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 93

BELLAIR.

SAM 367 = ais 76 60-8 1285 5:5 2-5 Anomalous.

178 a, la 5-5 41:6 960 5:0 2-4 Anomalous.

SANDFONTEIN.

SAM 176 ‘ 7:5 6-4 85:3 360 46 2:8

BUSHMANSFONTEIN.

SAM 180 . 10:0 5-5 55:0 550 4:0 2-2

PRINCE ALBERT.

SAM 694 Bn LO=2 3:00 2 oDre 375 44 2-8

7:6 6-1 80:3 350 46 3:0

ARMOED, GOURITZ BASIN.

MMK 504 . 10-6 5:8 50°3 650) 95:85) 223

VREYERSBERG CAVE, GouRITZ R.

EH EC1050 = 29°5 5:5 =: BT -9) A957 93:9) 7 1-95) 0-72) ke.

MELKHOUTFONTEIN, GOURITZ R.

HHC 1055 . 10:5 30M oor 385 3:9 1-9

X. AGULHAS REGION.

This region lies east of the Hottentots Holland range and includes

several wide valleys between mountains. I have divided it into

three areas—West Langeberg, the Breede River, and the Bot River

Valley. To the north the boundary appears to be the Keeromberg

and the Langeberg as far as Heidelberg (Cape), where the coast is

reached.

WL. West LANGEBERG.

This consists of sites surrounding the western end of the Langeberg

range. It is surprising to find a mountain range forming the centre

of an area, but considerable new material submitted by Mr. G. Keet,

from Montagu, SAM 5018, has changed our knowledge of this area

very considerably. I would like to take this opportunity to thank

him for the trouble he has taken in this matter.

is ISOM 10:8" 83-1 S25 CHn ii

ii. (12-0 SO | Wee) Ma) IDA ie a

iii. (10-0 Wl | a 770) SV. iii.

iv. 11-4 4-3 42-1 625. BH. iv.

v. 12:5 3:2 25-8 510 CH. ix.

vi. (7-5 49 65-4 275) BDV. v.

vii. (7-6 21) 7 ZIGPI| 185)

viii. (5-9 5-0 848 175)

Type i is reminiscent of the Grootrivier material, and perhaps

Ladismith supplies the link here. The gap in thickness, a notable

94 Annals of the South African Museum.

feature, occurs between 5:0 and 7-5 cm. The greatest thickness is

Lt-0 sem:

WORCESTER.

SAM Bain . 14:0 105 75:0 2060 52 2:3

10-0 ie lew 770 =4-4 *

INMIP 2631) ioe eles 5:1 45:1 640 3-8 2-1

SAM Bain . 12-4 3:4 27-6 525 37 2:0

12-0 3:5 29-2 505 = 33-0 a

246 7:2 4:8 66-7 250i os ae

164 a Ook 50 81-9 185 26 1-8

Heese Coll. 15 7-6 3-2 42-1 185° 2°74 O28 alee

ROBERTSON B.

SAM Bain. 13:2 2:7 20-5 500 50 3:5

MontTacu.

SAM 5018 12:7 I1-1 87-4 1790 46 2-6 Fine shale.

12-6 104 825 1650 49 2-6 Shale. Shaped.

12-0 8:8 73:3 1270 44 1-9 Reddish Ss. Erratic.

39 8-0 80:8 785 46 2-4 Ss. Shaped.

11-5 5-1 44-4 675 774-500 r TMSs. pebble.

11-2 4:5 40-2 565 40 1:4 Shale.

7:8 50 64-1 300-7 2:4) Eee: Shaped. Shale.

Signs of a groove

on one face, as

though broken and

rebored.

BARRYDALE.

Univ. Stell. . 5:7 5:0 = 87:7 162 3-1 (2:2

LADISMITH.

MIMKG 503" 27 13:0) lt 85-4 Sie to:eee-O,

BDV. BREEDE VALLEY.

As is to be expected, the long wide valley of the Breede, running

from Tulbagh and Ceres almost to Heidelberg, shows similarities with

the West Langeberg, which forms the northern section of its catchment

area for part of its length.

Pas) 9-0 70-3 1375 BH. 1, Wikia SWoae

tly, Pts} 8-1 63:3 1330 BE au:

ils Lake) 6-6 60-0 800 CH. v, SV. ii.

tv (9:0 7:8 86-7 630) BOT. ii, CH. viii.

v. 10-0 4-3 43-0 430 BOD ive S Vena.

val | 14 4-2 48-3 220 WL. vi, BH. xi, BOT. vy, Ciena

Types i and 11 are obviously the result of divergent copying. An

analogous example in the same shapes and sizes is to be seen in KTZ.

iiandiv. There is a gap in thickness from 5-0 to 6:0 cm.

CERES.

Univ. Stell. 12:8 8 204 sald oa 2

NMP 2585 . 11-0 65 60-0 785 41 aw

9-2 79 85-9 670 46 2-8

F. Malan Coll. 6-4 3h) ons 1527 veel Ratelfontein.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 95

GouDINI.

SAM Botha . 13-0 8-2 63:0 1385 4:8 3:2

13-0 80 61:5 1350 5:8 2-9

12-3 (8-0) 65-0 1200 4:9 ay

74 (45) 60:8 245 2:5 1:8 Shale. Broken.

VILLIERSDORP.

UCT 43/14 12:3 90 73-2 1500 40 2-6 Tertiary Ss.

Univ. Stell. 11-5 60 52-2 795 4:0 ae

UCT 43/14 109 4:7 43:1 560 46 2-7 Surf quartzite.

96) 94:2) 4377, 390. 32) 1b Se

75 42 56:0 235 35 1:4 TMSs.

RoBeErtson A.

SAM 395 . 13:5 88 65-2 1605 48 3-2 Radial cuts at one

mouth.

LECHASSEUR, ROBERTSON.

WCi43/s .) 7-0 4-1 58:6 200 3:4 41:6 10 feet deep in lime-

stone.

SWELLENDAM Dist.

SAM 179 . 13-0 90 69-2 1520 48 2-5

is) 13-0 880 61-5) 1350 4.2 21

Pie olIc3evn7-O) 161-9) 18954 4:45 2:2

181 . 105 70 667 770 40 22

etal . 88 76 86:3 590 36 2-0

1799 . 100 40 400 400 34 21

369 . 69 4:3. 62:3 20574) 221 7) 1-4

Kruis River, HEIDELBERG.

HHC 1051 . 10-0 4:5 45:0 450 40 2-2 Grinder.

Cape INFANTA.

F.MalanColl. 4-9 4-9 100-0 fe) GRD on Anomalous. May be

a hammerstone.

TMSs.

BOT. Bot River VALLEY.

This little enclosed area appears to have types of its own.

a (12-2 58 47-5 865) BH. iv, CH. vi, CF. ii, CM. vi.

li. 10-4 6-5 62-5 705 BH. vi.

mal, 2 (Pell 7-1 78:3 590) BDV. iv, CH. viii.

iv.) 9:6 4-2 43-5 385 BDV. v, BH. viii.

Vere ec 38 51:3 210) WL. vii, BDV. vi, BH. xiii, CF. vii, CM. xv.

There is a gap in thickness between 4:1 cm. and 5-7 cm. The

thickest specimens measure 7-1 cm. This shows a considerable

relationship with most surrounding areas, and probably represents

the most important components of those nearby areas showing

heights below 7:1 cm.

The midden-filled cave at Kip Kop has been described somewhat

briefly by the writer.*

* Goodwin, Annals S. Afr. Museum, xxiv, 5, 1938.

96 Annals of the South African Museum.

CALEDON.

SAM 786. 2) LOM 6-9) SiG2 Hie) Soount4- 5 a le

100 68 68:0 680 3:8

Kuiie Kop Cave, HERMANUS.

SAM 4776 . 12°29 5:8 47-5" 865: ~6-0 Be Midden associations.

Patterson . 87 j%T4 86:4 550 59 2-2 #£White Ss.

10-4 3:9 375 420 3:6 2-3 Surface quartzite.

SAM 4776 a ee ee 5 Bille} SYN el) Te(s}

Diz Monp, HERMANUS.

L.B.Goldschmidt 7:4 3:8 51:3 210 3-8 1:8 TMS. pebble, W.

bank of lagoon.

Midden. Erratic.

HawstTon.

MMK 1253 a ALOSGs= 95-8) 547 GSO s ao.S Wms Ss.

KLEINMOND.

ASJ 4/35/3 J OA il) 17525) O80) 2) oso aad

88 71 806 550 45 2-6

Betty’s Bay.

Miss Pirie : 95 4:9 52:6 445 3-8 2:0 £Grinder.

HANGKLIP.

SAM 786. A OZ 6:4 we G27 Guo? mime mS

ODA AA Ole oO Mn Somme

COMMENTARY.

Once again there is an absence of literature on the bored stone in

this region. Some of the South African Museum specimens marked

as from Swellendam may have come from north of the Langeberg,

but those marked with farm names in addition have been correctly

allocated here. |

A more important difficulty arises with the medium oblate (12-5 x 3-2

cm.) group from West Langeberg area. This group depends upon

material submitted by one man, J. M. Bain, who often presented

accumulations of unmarked specimens to the South African Museum.

These were marked “Bain, ’05” or “‘ Bain ’08,”’ and are discarded as

valueless. Other examples have a district name written on them by

museum authorities. Where there is positive evidence of error these

have been discarded. There are, for instance, a specimen marked

“Montagu,” but made from Knysna district material, and a specimen

marked “‘Cape Flats”’ over Bain’s original allocation to Storms River,

Tzitzikamma. These are both rejected as unsuitable, though the

Storms River example will be made use of in a paper discussing

dagga-pipes. Those typological groups that bear Bain’s name are

thus open to suspicion, though where the evidence is supported by

other examples, they may be regarded as completely acceptable.

This difficulty arises once again in the Cape Region, and should be

noted.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 97

I have drawn attention to the gap which occurs regularly in the

graphical distribution in different areas. I do not know what it

means, but I presume that it marks a development in the technique

of boring stone. It may also help us in our knowledge of migrations.

This phenomenon continues in the Cape Region.

XI. CAPE REGION,

This region is enclosed by the Hottentots Holland range and by

the Drakenstein to the east, by the Olifants River range to the north-

east, and probably by the Piquetberg range to the north. It thus

approaches the Bokkeveld area to the north, and the Winterveld

area to the north-east, but is cut off from both by the archaeologically

unknown valley of the Doorn River. On the east it joins the Agulhas

Region, or is cut off from it by narrow mountain ranges. The Cape

Peninsula is treated as a sub-region.

We are now well within the area covered by Péringuey in his “Stone

Ages of South Africa,” * and the reader may turn to that volume for

the chapter on the bored stone.

The materials used in this whole region consist of shales from the

Malmesbury Beds, and sandstone from the Table Mountain series,

and in a few instances of granites from intercalated lavas in the

Malmesbury Beds. These materials seem mainly to have been used

in their beach-pebble form, and this must have been a factor in the

choice of size and shape. The slates and shales naturally tend to

achieve flatter pebble forms than the harder and less schistose sand-

stones and granites. The latter rock is rare or very coarsely weathered

in beach or river gravels.

In all these areas there is a marked gap either between 7-0 and 8-0

em. in thickness, or between 9-0 cm. and 10-0 cm. This should be

watched. At times this is replaced by a complete absence of types

thicker than 7-0 or 9-0 cm., again suggesting that there is some

importance in this gap.

CH. Carr HINTERLAND.

This rather confined area consists of the western slopes of the

Hottentots Holland range and the areas immediately adjacent. One

small sub-area, typified by a single type of small bored stone, is included

here as type xi. To the west it merges with the Cape Peninsula,

and is only separated from it by the low-lying sandy expanse, broken

* Annals 8. Afr. Mus., viii, 1912.

VOL. XXXVII, PART I. 7

98 Annals of the South African Museum.

here and there by granitic, Table Mountain Sandstone, or surface

quartzite outcrops, that is known to-day generally as the Cape Flats.

This stretch of country irked the early settlers and proved difficult

to cross by ox-waggon or on foot. The 30-mile journey by perfect

modern roads to-day does not in any way represent the two days’

heavy walking through dune sand that originally provided a marked

barrier. It is obvious that the firmer seasand on either side of the

peninsula would have provided the only easy ways of access to the

peninsula proper.

1 (16-7 2:9 59-3 2760) Cf. Hout Bay. ? MaNtatisi.

ii. 12-8 10-3 80-4 1690 WL. i.

iii. 12-2 7-4 60-6 1010 GK. i, BV. ii, CM. iii.

yg) LI) Ty) 71:8 965 BH. iii, CF. i.

ven EO 6-8 61-8 825 BDV. i, CM. vii, BOT. ii.

va (dd-9 5-7 47-9 810) BH. iv, BOT. i, CF. ii, CM. vi.

vil. (12-7 4-3 33°8 695) Anomalous.

vain, 8)33 7:5 80-6 650 BDV. iv, BOT. iii.

xy | O° 5:1 52-6 480

xe Oat 5:8 63-7 480 GK. iv, CM. xi.

Rin Ss 6-0 73-2 405 GK. v, CM. xii.

XAT Sac 4-3 51:8 285 BE aa:

xiii. (4:0 2-4 60-0 38)

Type xii is local, and occurs in Ida’s Valley (Stellenbosch), at

Vlottenberg and Somerset Strand only. It is absent at Kogel Bay

and from the far more representative series from Gordon’s Bay.

Types iv and v are a pair, and type vill may eventually yield to

subdivision. There is a marked gap between types ii and iil.

Major Jardine’s collection, marked as from Gordon’s Bay, is partly

from his farm, “‘Applegarth,” situated immediately north of Sir

Lowry’s Pass on the western slope of the Hottentots Holland. It is

thus within four or five miles of Gordon’s Bay, but does not necessarily

consist of midden types. All other materials from Gordon’s Bay are

from midden sites which show no formal implements. Pottery

occurs on the recent surfaces only and is absent from most middens.

My thanks are due to Major Jardine for his courtesy in permitting

me to make use of his material.

There is a complete absence of types between 8-6 and 9-6 cm. in

thickness.

HELDERBERG.

UCT 44/1 . 4:0 2-4 60-0 38 1:9 1-1 Extremely small.

STELLENBOSCH.

AMG 1549 . 16-7 9:9 593 2760 5-3 2-8 Compare Hout Bay.

UCT 27/10: . 12:0) 10-0)" 91-7) 1585 3:3 1:6.) Brobably jmmieraredt

bored.

SAM 3428 . 11:0 -7:6 69-0 920 4:0 te TMSs. pebble.

~The Bored Stones of South Africa. 99

STELLENBOSCH—continued.

SAM 4959 . 10-7 6:7 62-6 770 41 #=$1:9 Gustrouw.

ats) 9-2 5-6 60-8 A> 3-1 2:8

Wem zr ls. . 8-2 6:28) 75:6 Alay a:9) 21 TMSs. pebble.

43/20 9-5 5-1 653-4 460 3:8 2:0 TMS.

Ipa’s VALLEY.

SAM — : 8-1 AE OO an etOL i arO. 1420

VLOTTENBERG.

Wernatis . 12:3 72 585 1090 4:2 2-1 Used as hammer.

Univ. Stell. . 8-4. 4-5 53-6 S20 osc

SoMERSET STRAND A.

SAM — : 8-2 4:0 48:8 QiOw mute wlll,

Gorpon’s Bay.

Jardine Coll.. 13-4 OG eile (725. 73:0 ik

12-4 78 62:9 1200 4-1 M72

12-3 G2.) 58-5" (1090) > 3°8) 3-2

SAM ws '. 11:8 1-4) 62-7" ~ 1020 5-4 ;

Jardine Coll.. 11:1 TSS) pil c OTD: 3S 22

10-8 8-2 75-9 960 2-9 ae

12-7 5:8 45-0 925 (4:5 x 2:5) Oval, tubular hole.

10:8 76 70-4 885 41 2-1

11-1 70 63-1 860 41 2-0

Univ. Stell. . 11-0 fal 64-5 860 4:3 3:0

Jardine Coll.. 11-4 6:6 57-9 Shon to Sh eee

Cmrasi21 <li 6:7 60-0 825) ) aay 2%. Grinder.) “IMS:

Jardine Coll... 11-9 5:1) 47-9 810 5:1 2:5

10°5 65 61:9 alin Wiese D4)

Univ. Stell. . (9:1) 8-6 (94-5) 710 4:0 2-0 Coarse Ss.

AMG 1646 . 12:7 4:3 33:8 695 50 2:3

Jardine Coll. . 9-8 70 71:4 G70) 9-2-9) 1-9

9-2 76 82-6 645 70 1-1

9-2 7-5 ©6815 635 3°5 itt

UCT — 4: 70 74-4 620 4:2 oe

Jardine Coll.. 10-0 A PAL) 520) 3-8). 2-5

Univ. Stell. . (9-3) 6:0 64:5 520° 3:8 3-5

8:3 6:6 80-0 Aa 1325 Be

Jardine Coll. . 8:9 5-5 61-8 ASD en ooo

SAM 1775 8-4 6:0 71-4 425 AY fe Both holes started.

8-4 5:4 64:3 380 39 3-6

Kocet Bay, MIppDENS.

WiWAS2545 2 °13-0 10:3 78:5 1740 44 (1-3 2:-3ke. Surf quartz.

2500 7.2 9-0 5:9 65-6 480 40 2-3 Calcareous Ss.

CAPE PENINSULA SUB-REGION.

Just as it was found possible to suggest the presence of various

cultural groups in the Knysna-Tzitzikamma and Belvedere-Heidelberg

areas, so we find that the Cape Peninsula provided a focus of attraction

for various peoples. Here too the country was at one time heavily

wooded, as such names as Hout Bay, Rondedoornbosjen, etc., would

imply, and we do not get a true picture of the prehistoric scene among

to-days’ oak and pine forests. From Constantia Nek to Hout Bay was

100 Annals of the South African Museum.

a single forest of mixed type. The same was true of Tamboer’s Kloof

above Cape Town. To reach Simonstown, van der Stel was forced

to hack his way through thick natural scrub and bush, forming a

thick talus growth typical of both sides of the Peninsula. The Fish

Hoek valley, cutting through the mountains to Noordhoek, was a

mass of low trees, 6 feet in height, forming a natural warren of

sheltered paths or run-ways, 4 feet high.

In contrast to this picture of wooded valleys and mountain slopes,

the Cape Flats appear to have been more bare than they are to-day.

Peaty deposits show that this area was dotted with undrained fresh-

water vleis or springs, often almost at sea-level. These were bordered.

by water-loving reeds and grass, giving way to the ubiquitous white

sand.

The Peninsula therefore provided a wide ecological range for man,

and must have attracted a variety of cultural groups. Some of these

appear to have clung to the eastern slopes of the mountains and to

have made use of the vleis and springs of the Cape Flats proper.

Others passed over the first range of mountains to the Fish Hoek-

Noordhoek valley, while only a few crossed to Simonstown and the

treeless area about Cape Point.

The Peninsula is here dealt with in two sections: the Cape Flats.

and the Cape Middens. These two would seem to be partly cultural

and partly distributional groups. If the two sections are plotted on a

graph paper as one it is obvious that nothing can be made of local

types. If, however, we group together known midden material and

specimens from the mountain slopes immediately overlooking the

coast, and contrast this with the distribution of Cape Flats types, a.

very clear difference appears, and only slight adjustment of specimens.

from uncertain sites becomes necessary.

The attractions of these two environments with their different.

modes of life are obvious. In the midden cultures we have an environ-

ment with abundant supplies of lime, fish foods, iodine, salt and kelps,

all with a high nutritive content, sufficient in itself to account for the

regularly taller stature of the coastal midden peoples leading a

strandloper mode of life. On the Flats, in contrast to this, we have

an environment with a natural fauna of hippo and ungulate types, and

abundant wild water-uintjes,* which must have supplied a source of

essential vegetable foods at that time, just as 1t does to a section of the

Cape coloured community to-day.

In the Preliminary Survey the Cape Middens material was referred

* Avponogeton distachyon.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 101

to as the Cape Mountains area. I have changed this as the original

term was misleading; there are few examples known from heights

greater than 500 feet above sea-level, while those that occur on lower

mountain slopes are related in almost all instances to midden deposits.

The sites not relatable to midden deposits are added at the end of the

main list.

CF. Care Farts.

The term Cape Flats was fairly generally applied fifty years ago to

the low-lying sanddune country immediately to the east of Claremont,

Wynberg, and Plumstead. To-day the term has a wider meaning, but

we can generally refer all the material so marked to that older and

more confined stretch. One specimen, presented by J. M. Bain, is

marked “Cape Flats’’, but is almost certainly an erratic related to

types from Kloof, etc., in the Middens series. It is therefore listed

under Cape Middens. An exactly analogous case is a specimen

marked SAM 402, also presented to the South African Museum as

being from the Cape Flats.

The normal routes from the mainland of South Africa to the

Peninsula were along the Table Bay or the False Bay beaches of hard,

wet sand rather than across the Flats. This would account for the

present area being isolated from the Cape Middens area, which is

connected with sites on the Table Bay side, and with the Cape

Hinterland.

The natural False Bay coastal road leaves the heavy sand at

Somerset Strand, thus accounting for the Somerset Strand B material

that resembles Cape Flats rather than MHinterland types. The

following types should therefore prove to be typical of both the Cape

Flats and the False Bay coast, and seem to represent migrations

between BH., WL., BOT. on the one hand, and CF. on the other.

ie 1S) 74 67:8 865 CH iv, Vv.

ries ie Ta 5-7 50-0 740 CM. vii.

ii. (11-6 31 26-7 415) WL. Vv.

hye ey 5:5 71-4 325 BH. x.

v. 68 4-4 64:8 205 BDV. vi.

Vise vic 3:2 45-9 175 BOT. v, WL. vii.

There appear to be no specimens thicker than 7:5 cm., while diameter

varies from 6-5 to 12-0 cm.

SOMERSET STRAND B.

UCT 43/22 . 7-9 Dehepey lacm 355

AAI 6°7. 4-6 68-7 207

Diep RIVER.

SAM — - 11:0 74 67:2 895 4:2” 35

2-9

SS)

102 Annals of the South African Museum.

CAPE FLATS.

SAM Bain . 12:0 6:5 54-2 93D Aad aso

692 be dled 70 60-4 925 46 4-0

10-8 75 69-4 875 40 2:8

Bain . 11:8 60 50°8 83D) oo co

at « 11-0 5:6 50-9 680 4:5 3:2 Non-radial cuts at

mouth.

a Said Wf Lots 2-8 23-8 (390) 3:8 3:0

i Ae rfc) 4:6 65:7 225 oO 2.2

ue 8 7:0 2:6 37-1 Ath a2 8 acl)

PHILIPPI.

Drennan Coll. 6-7 4-1 61:0 184 3:8 #41:7

VicToRIA HOSPITAL.

ASJ —. LO (7:5) (68:3)in 90 Den ka:or mers

orl 5-5 71-4 330 =63°9' 2-0

75 3:5 46-7 HOE Billy. iey/

UCT 30/21 7:3 3-5 47-9 187 3:2 2:0 One face ground.

PINELANDS.

Jager Coll. . 10-0 74 74-0 140 392 eT iss

EERSTE RIVIER.

F. Malan Coll. 11:3 5:8 51-3 740 4-7 3-1

CONSTANTIA VALLEY.

TMP 2334 . 11-4 3:3 28-9 (429) 43 2:3

CM. Carre MIDDENS.

It is obvious that the Peninsula as a whole was a pocket, an

ethnological marginal area, into which any passing culture might

throw off groups which would remain isolated in their new home. It

is to be expected therefore that we will find a multiplicity of types.

Some of these have gone farther afield than others, only one type of

stone reached Cape Point, while only three types occur at Simonstown.

South of the Fish Hoek-Noordhoek valley the marginal effect is to

localise and isolate types, while north of that line its effect is to catch

and hold a multiplicity of passing types from a variety of sources.

But that alone would not account for all the types. Some may

prove to be pairs, due to divergent copying. For instance, types 1

and iv seem to be related.

It is to be noted that the first of the Groote Schuur specimens does

not fit comfortably into this distribution, nor into the Cape Flats

distributions. It is, however, added here.

i. (16-0 10-5 65:7 2690) Hout Bay only. CH.i.

li. (12-9 8:7 67-4 1445)

iii, 12-4 7:4 60-0 1140 BDV. ii, CH. iii.

iv. 11-4 8:5 74:5 1105 ZW. iii, BH. iii.

v. (13:7 5-1 37°3 955)

vi. 12-2 5:7 46-7 850 BOT. i, CH. vi.

The Bored Stones of South Africa.

vii. 10:5 7:0 66-7

viii. 9-1 8:4 92-3

ix. 10-4 5:8 55°8

xen Le? 4:8 42-8

xi. 9:0 5-4 60:0

xii. (8:3 6-2 75:0 °

xiii. (7:0 71 101-4

xiv. 9:0 3°5 39-1

Sa. Wes) 3:6 46:2

xvi. (10-2 2-0 19-6

Shows a close relationship to the Cape Hinterland area.

770

695

625

600

435

430)

350)

285

220

208)

BDV. iii, CH. v.

CH. viii.

WL. iv.

CH. ix.

CH. xi.

BOT. iv, SV. vi.

BOT. v, WL. vii, CH. xii.

103

There is

a distinct gap in thicknesses, from 9-0 cm. to 10:5 cm., and only one

specimen occurs in this latter thickness, the Hout Bay example. The

connection of this area, through Darling, Tygerberg, and Blaauwberg,

with the natural route along the hard sands of Table Bay is obvious.

A similar hard route along the beach links the Hinterland and the

Middens area.

DARLING.

MMK 282/a . 10:8 8-7

3-7 © 5:3

115 3655-0

TYGERBERG.

SAM 5001 - 93 3:3

BLAAUWBERG.

SAM ’09 . 2 t2-0.8 18-2

GREEN POINT.

SAM Péringuey 11:6 8-4

10:2 2-0

STRAND Sr.

UCT 43/18 LON 5:5

PARLIAMENT FOUNDATIONS.

SAM 0/11 J Belly = taye7/

KLOorF.

SAM 5002 4 78 3:8

Hout Bay.

UCT 27/18 . 16:0 10:5

119 7-4

SAM 4750 2 el 225 bet

4777 : 92 81

WUA 1182 . 106 7-2

SAM 4777 p 9-1 5:6

UCT 27/18 ; 83 6:3

SAM 4777 83 62

70 71

UCT 27/18 ‘ 9-3 (4:0

80-5

38-0

43-5

35°5

68-3

72-4

19-6

54:5

47-1

1015

995

660

285

1180

1130

(208)

560

835

231

2690

1045

895

685

585

465

435

430

350

345

4-2

4-]

4-9

—

CO tim the CO Tne ag Oo) CANE ee

WEE ORWAHS ©

2-2

2-4

1-0

3-1

2-1

2-3

2-9

3-1

Coarse Ss.

Ss.

Irregular pebble.

3 feet 4 inches below

surface.

Slate.

30 feet deep in

foundations.

Malmesbury

Metal bored.

shale.

104

NooRDHOEK.

UCT 30/13

SAM 1287

UCT 30/13

KOMMETJE.

SAM 3831

Univ. Stell.

CAPE PoINnt.

SAM Martin

SIMONSTOWN.

SAM Martin

Fish Hoek.

SAM 1287

Jager Coll.

SAM —

Drennan Coll. .

J. Gordon Coll..

SAM (Peers)

SAM— .

PEERS’ CAVE.

SAM (Peers)

CLOVELLY.

Drennan Coll. .

St. JAMES.

UCT 30/28

MUIZzENBERG.

UCT 43/23

GROOTE SCHUUR.

SAM 4362

TMP 2354

(M. C. Burkitt .

HOH SWyly

aontowocooeo

—

10-9

13-0

9-0

12-9

10-8

9-3

8-9

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4-4

ko bo 00

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= QO 00

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5:0

Non-M1IppEN SITEs.

o-4

5:3

104-7

65-2

41-9

61-7

47-3

40-8

56-3

40-9

51-7

40-5

48-0

45-5

77-1

54:6

55-6

67-4

90-0

57:0

645

510

485

825

685

365

310

250

214

760

730

645

480

600

1065

805

705

610

545

340

330

205

640

1000

1200

405

1445

640

460

G2 Oo OD Oo G2 TT

eae Kens io) mean an)

4-8

3°8

5:3

4-5

5-2

Ou: Oe |

w. boron tony,

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2:9

1-9

2:3

4-9

2:5)

Annals of the South African Museum.

Malmesbury shale.

Shale.

Two faces ground.

0:96 kg.

0:77 ke.

Broken, rebored at

right angles, then

rebored again with

a larger rimer,

leaving part of the

narrower bore still

visible down the

side of the new.

Irregular. Grinder.

Shale.

TMS.

Slate.

Ss. Midden deposit.

Symmetrical bore.

TMSs.

4 feet below surface.

UCT.

3 feet deep. Lion’s

den. Zoo.

Estimated from

illustration. UCT

building site.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 105

ConsTANTIA NEK.

Jager Coll. 2b) 7-6) «60:8 90) bb) 3-7

WeETTON FLATS.

G. A. L. Green 13-7 48 35:0 900 4:3 £41-7 Ss.

Coll.

5 a 8-7 34 25:6 255 42 .. ##Malmesbury. Ss.

Care Fats.

SAM 402. a IEO. 4-8) 9 43-6 580 4:9 2:8

Bain - 95 3:6 37:3 325 40 3:5 Almost cylindrical

bore.

CoMMENTARY.

Of these types only one (the slate example from Green Point),

type xvi, does not appear to have crossed the mountains. It may or

may not be related to type i from the Cape Flats, but it is certainly

a product of the material used. In contrast types vii, 1x, and xi are

the only ones that reached as far as Simonstown, and only type xiv

managed to traverse the length of the Peninsula to the Cape of Good

Hope. This is the type of distribution that would be expected on a

peninsula. Types i, x, xii, and xiii seem to be confined to the Fish

Hoek-Noordhoek valley and to Hout Bay. This at first seems

surprising, as Chapman’s Peak stands across the present coastal road

between Hout Bay and Noordhoek as an almost sheer cliff, 1500 feet

high. In practice the footway passing behind the peak through the

Silvermine Valley is an easy walk and also provides access to the

Tokai portion of the Constantia valley, from where I have no specimens.

This footpath was in fact the only wagon-road to the Cape of Good

Hope two centuries ago. Type vii is confined to this same area and

to Simonstown, so far as our evidence goes.

This mountainous area shows the possibilities which may be brought

out by careful use of the distributional method. In this last area

alone, five possible cultural waves may be recognized, the least

adventurous reaching only to the Constantia Valley and the northern

slopes of the mountains. The Hout Bay-Fish Hoek group provides a

second wave; a third seems to have been more general in its distribu-

tion; the fourth reached the enclosed bay at Simonstown; while the

most adventurous passed even farther south to Cape Point. We have

not an iota of evidence to give us any clue as to the order in which

these presumed spreads occurred, but the evidence of distribution

does supply us with an important new source of material for future

research workers. With increasing evidence from various areas,

museum and field workers now have a new methodological tool.

We now return to the Cape Region proper.

106 Annals of the South African Museum.

SV. SANDVELD.

This covers the inland stretch from Wellington to Clanwilliam.

Some of the groups are wide and therefore unsatisfactory, but more

material should yield a better approximation. It is a fertile, low-

lying downs country, and seems never to have consisted of anything

except open grassland, with a scrub flora in the valleys. In late

Quaternary times the fauna seems to have included such plains-

loving forms as Bubalus bain and Equus capensis, pointing to an

environment much the same as that encountered to-day.

i. 12-0 9-2 76-7 1325 WL. ii, BDV. i.

ly | Ale 6-6 56-4 905 CF. ii, BDV. iii.

ii. (10-4 8-0 77-0 865) WL. iii, BH. iii.

iv. 11-4 3:9 34-2 510 CF. iii.

We) ey) 57 64-0 450 CH. ix, CM. xi.

Wile. BED 3°8 42-2 310 BOT. iv, CM. xiv, BDV. v.

vil. (8-4 2-3 27-4 160) BH. xii.

vil. 5:8 3-1 51-7 105 BH. xiv.

Shows considerable affinity with Breede River and West Langeberg.

No specimens thicker than 9-5 cm. thick. i

CLANWILLIAM A.

SAM Bain Aees220 NS -40 Go: OuloZ oul k4 hen acG

12°09 -28) 16349 325) 4-4 al

106 95 89-6 1070 42 2-6

11:9 70 58:8 990 4-1 2:1

CLANWILLIAM B.

SAM 1120 - 100 83 £830 8380 45 3:8

12-0 4:5 37-5 650 4-2 21

8:5) 15-4) 6325) S90 19 y3:08 2-2

OLIFANTS RIVER.

SAM 420. . 10: 5 55:0 550 £4:°5 es

9 0 66:7 485 35 2-0

SANDKRAAL.

F. Malan Coll. . 10:7 7:6 71:0 870 4-6 3:8 Reddish sandy shale.

Ochre on one side.

Signs of sharpen-

ing.

ExLanps Kioor, TuLBAGH.

NMP 2578 » Il? 64 (57-1 805 4:0 2:2

2584 5 10:34 13-00 29-1 5 320) 2-8) 21s

MooRREESBURG.

SAM Bain 12:0 64 53:3 920 40 2-2

710. 11-2 38 33:9 475 35 3:0

Uke), eS) kos} ais) | pil Ne

8:2 3:3 40:2 222 2: 1:9

Batn’s Kioor.

SAM — . - 84 (2:2) (26-3) 155 (2:7) 1:9 Fragment.

GoEDHOOP, WELLINGTON.

F. Malan Coll... 93 59 63:4 510 43 £26

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 107

WELLINGTON.

SAM 3425 - ING 65 560 875 58 cs

90 3:8 422 310 30 1-9

64° 3:0 46:8 9123) “32h 2-1

OLYVENBOSCH, WELLINGTON.

F. Malan . . 12:2 67 54:1 1000 5-2 2:5 Malmesbury shale.

NABYGELEGEN, WELLINGTON.

HevalaniColl .. 5:9, 3:5 59:3 122) 2-7, 1-5

50 2:3 46:0 59 30 1-4

GROENVLEI, WELLINGTON.

HeMalamColls . 12:2 43 35:2 640 3:2 2:1 =%‘TMSs.

99 44 444 480 47 3-4 TMSs.

SWL. SwARTLAND.

Apart from a specimen with Wilton associations, a single type

appears to cover the coastward stretch between Saldanha Bay and

Parow. Probably the distribution will be found to approximate to a

coastal midden people. Its importance (like that of the Grootrivier

type) lies in its localisation and in the uniformity of size.

i. 14:3 7-4 51-0 1520 No parallels known.

li. (10-3 6:8 66-0 7120) (CM vu, BOUT i;:CH. v.

Type 1 shows no relationship with any surrounding types, but

type li suggests relationship with the Cape Middens material. The

nearest affinity to type i is in the Southern Transkei, with no inter-

vening links.

GEELBEK, SALDANHA.

L. B. Goldschmidt 13:8 7:2 52:2 1370 3:6 2:4 #=‘TMS.

KLIPVLEI, SALDANHA.

P. Bateman . 10:3 68 66:0 720 3-8 2:5 ‘TMS. Shalecontact.

Wilton site.

MALMESBURY.

F. Malan Coll. . 14:7 7:0 47:6 1515 3-9 2:5 Malmesbury shale.

YZERFONTEIN POINT.

SAM 4997 yA Se e7-O OS: 7) ep looO! retin) 222

KuipKop, PAarow.

SAM 5006 - 143 47:6 53:1 1555 4-2 3-8 Shale. Cylindrical

bore.

While nothing is known of the Wupperthal area, Sir Langham Dale,*

writing in 1870, says: “From Wupperthal I hear that oval perforated

stones were used by the old Hottentot warriors as weapons of war,

a stick of hard wood was thrust into the hole. For digging up roots

the stone was grasped in the hand, the end of the stick being sharpened

for picking up the ground.”’

* A (Delta) “Stone Implements in South Africa,” Cape Monthly Mag., New

Series, i, 1870, pp. 236-239, illustrated.

108 Annals of the South African Museum.

CONCLUSIONS.

These two parts have been designed to bring out the following

premises :—

I. Identity of intention. It was intended to produce a limited

number of types of bored stone.

II. There is no reason to believe that any one cultural group used

more than two or three of these types in any one area and

at one period.

III. Dissimilarity is due to inexact methods of achieving identity.

The approximation is generally sufficient to show a clear

graphical scatter (except in the focal areas), but seldom

sufficient to yield exact replication.

IV. This led to an eventual multiplication of types (most marked

in the focal areas), in some instances approximating to

previous types.

V. Only certain of these new developed types occur in new migra-

tions, when the whole process above is repeated.

VI. The numbers of anomalous specimens are small enough in

most areas to be negligible, and to permit us to presume that

they were rare individualist products.

We can conclude from these six premises that it should be possible

to trace migrational routes from one focal area to another by means of

a study of types. It is not possible, however (by reasons given as

premises iil, iv, and v), to study the distribution of any one type

throughout the entire area considered.

Not one of these premises would seem to apply to the Transvaal

Bantu bored stones.

KEY AND INDEX TO AREAS (CIRCULAR SPECIMENS).

PAGE PAGE

BDV. Breede Valley. 94 NG. Nieuveld-Goup. 70

BH. Belvedere-Heidelberg. 89 NH. Natal Highlands. 31

BMR. Bushmans River. 78 NL. Natal Lowlands. 33

BOT. Bot River. 95 NQL. Namaqualand. 66

BS. Bloemfontein-Sepani. 39 NTK. Northern Transkei. 75

BV. Bokkeveld. 64 PE. Port Elizabeth. 79

CF. Cape Flats. 101 SCV. Schoonspruit- Vaal. 36

CFS. Central Free State. 52 SEFS. South-Eastern Free State. 54

CH. Cape Hinterland. He SR. Sundays River. 82

CM. Cape Middens. 102 ST. Southern Transvaal. 29

CT. Central Transvaal. 26 STK. Southern Transkei. 75

EL. East London. 77 SV. Sandveld. 106

ET. Eastern Transvaal. 25 SWB. Swartberg. 89

GK. Gouritz-Karoo. 92 SWL. Swartland. 107

GR. Grootrivier. 84 TV. Trekveld. 69

KA. KB. Koffiefontein. 48 TZC. Tzitzikamma Caves. 84

KTZ. Knysna-Tzitzikamma. 85 UH. Upington-Hartbees. 62

KV. Kaaienveld. 65 UTY. Upper Thornveld. 73

LTV. Lower Thornveld. 74 VH. Vaal-Harts. 4]

LV. Lower Vaal. 44 VMR. Vet-Marico Rivers. 37

MF. Modder-Fauresmith. 53 WL. West Langeberg. 93

MG. Molopo-Groenwater. 61 WV. Winterveld. 67

MV. Middle Vaal. 42 ZMM. Zuney-Maitland Mines. 81

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South Africa. 113

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The Bored Stones of South Africa. 115

PART III.—MIGRATIONS.

In Part I of this work, and also on page 108, we referred to

the possibility of making certain deductions regarding migrational

routes. This third part will consist of an analysis of a selection of the

material listed above, with a view to reconstructing the routes by

which Later Stone Age man spread inside the Union. It is to be

hoped that further and more detailed work may be done on the

remaining material, as more exact and fuller knowledge is at our

disposal.

It has been shown conclusively that types exist, and areas and

regions have been selected in such a way as to isolate habitually

associated types in relation to geography. This arrangement is not

of such great significance as I had at first thought. My prejudices in

1926 when I laid down my task, and in 1939 when I took it up once

again, led me to presume that I should be analysing tribal or hunting

areas, each of which would be neatly typified by certain forms of

bored stones, and be limited to recognisable boundaries. That may

be the sort of thing these areas do represent, but it is obvious that,

if so, they were neither static nor stable, but that they overlapped and

cut into one another from time to time, probably in relation to the

waxing and waning of tribal strength.

It might be argued by critics that the types result from the group-

ing into areas, and that they do not exist except as an over-careful

geographical patterning on the part of the author. There are several

arguments that should make it abundantly clear that this is not so,

or that such a probability is so remote that it can be ignored with

safety.

1. The arrangement acts in all parts of the Union for the Prehistoric

Series only. In contrast, no manner of adjustment will permit us

to fit the culturally different Bantu Series into any type-area arrange-

ment. If unconscious prejudice had permitted the evidence for the

more widespread series to be so consistently twisted, it should

have been easier to do the same for a smaller and more confined

series.

2. The grouping developed is directly related in every instance to

geography; not as the scientific cartographer sees it, but as an

immigrant pedestrian people would find it on approaching consistently

from the north, progressing by timid trial and fatal error. The

present arrangement into areas in many instances cuts across my own

116 Annals of the South African Museum.

prejudices that expected a neat arrangement of static areas, based

upon my “ecological”? concepts of where those areas should be.

3. It therefore becomes obvious that with a migrating people, the

route and the point of entry are more important than the static

area. In this instance, except in the heavily colonised focal areas,

routes are the more important. The complex of migrational routes

revealed was logical and consistent. Each path was directly related

to, and governed by, geographical factors. Each in turn emanated

from a previous stage, often marked by a period of sojourn in a focal

area. It is the logic of these routes that most decidedly proves the

existence of types per se.

THE SELECTION OF MIGRATIONAL TYPES.

The problem ts not simply to follow migrations, but is complicated

by the multiplicity of types. Two, three, or even more cultural

migrations into a single area have occurred in an unknown order.

At Koffiefontein A and B there is every suggestion that over a long

period there have been at least two cultural waves, and that types

have persisted there long enough to diverge from series A to series B

or in the opposite sense.

It was shown earlier that consecutive, serial, or divergent copying

might either yield divergence or permit errors to cancel out partially

so as to maintain the original grouping. There is thus some risk

involved in selecting closely related types for the purposes of following

migration. It has been shown that within a single area types may

show a scatter of 2-5 cm. (about an inch). The scatter is often less

then 1:3 cm. In working from one area to another, only examples

within that smaller range will be considered. The main deviation

from this rule lies in those exceptional shapes in which the possibility

of assimilation into an adjacent graphical type (that is, the chances

of sliding off one group and on to another) can be eliminated. For

these reasons several members of local groups, as given in Part II

above, will be ignored. Those conforming most closely to the average

will be considered. The general average given with each migration

will usually diverge less than 10 mm. from any specimen within the

group, unless a change of average is given.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS.

In general we can group those environmental factors controlling

man’s sojourn or his migrations under two general heads: barriers

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 117

or limiting factors, either complete or partial in their actions, and

attractors, factors that draw migration to habitable areas or to focal

points. We are dealing in this Prehistoric Series with hunting and

collecting peoples, and in the later Bantu Series with cattle-keepers

and agriculturalists, so that the applicability of these two groups of

factors may not be identical, but variation should not be great as an

area attractive to a hunter is generally suited to a herder.

Barriers.—It is obvious that the major barrier to movement in

South Africa has always been the Basutoland massif. It accounts

to-day for the relatively sharp demarcation between Nguni and

Sotho tribes, and appears to have a general relationship to the dis-

tribution of cave paintings and petroglyphs in the Later Stone Age.

It may have proved a factor dividing the Smithfield and Wilton

people from one another, though the present paper yields little

evidence on this point. This very effective barrier is further extended

northward and south-westward in the series of mountains forming

the main watershed of South Africa. This is markedly seen in the

elongated forms of the bored stone, where upcountry and coastal

forms appear to present two partially separate distributions. The

unexpected importance of the Sneeuwberg as a barrier will be touched

upon later.

In certain areas rivers appear to form barriers; thus the Orange

River at first appears to be an important divide in the distribution

of circular types, and seems to have held back movement southward

for a long time. A river may be a barrier for various reasons, by

reason of its width, depth, volume or strength of flow. But in the

case of the Orange it would seem that the area of further expansion

to the south was too unattractive to draw these early hunters across

the Thirstland to the unknown coast. It needed what Horace calls

the aes triplex, the thrice brazen courage of the navigator, to press

forward across these dry expanses. A final but very important

element is agreement. If two ethnic groups agree to confine them-

selves to their respective sides of a river, then, however small the

stream may be, it will provide a political boundary as effective as

man is willing to make it. The tendency among the early Bushmen

(and indeed among all known hunting peoples) to confine their

activities to delimited hunting and collecting grounds, and to certain

water-rights, is too well known to be ignored.

Rivers have been shown on the maps used, and certain mountains.

The selection of the latter is not related to height above sea-level,

but to “effective height,” which includes the steepness, ruggedness,

118 Annals of the South African Museum.

height above the immediate surroundings, etc., of a range. Ethno-

logically the importance of mountain ranges consists in the drainage,

gaps and neks through which migration may take place, and their

effective height; 7.e. their ability to prevent, inhibit, divert, or permit

man’s migrations in a particular direction.

Attractors.—In general, drainage areas provide the main areas of

attraction in South Africa. In a country where water is often scarce,

animals and men arrange their lives in relation to the distribution of

water. Abundant water will attract, while arid areas will repel or

may provide migrational routes, skirting their edges, or along the

valleys of intermittent rivers, such as the Seekoei River, the Groen-

water, the Hartbees and the Ongers Rivers. Rivers are indeed more

often foci of attraction than barriers to man’s movements. To a

hunter a river that can be quickly and easily crossed by a hunted

animal can hardly be permitted to act as a barrier. Where a gorge

or swift stream intervenes the position may be different.

The Free State has provided so great an attraction to Later Stone

Age man that I have employed the terms “‘focus”’ or “focal area” to

describe it. Here we have a dozen rivers converging on the Vaal and

Orange Rivers, few of them large enough to provide a barrier for most

of their length, and all attractive for the greater part of the year.

The watersheds are never high, consisting mainly of wide downlands,

where cross currents from one river to another have been possible.

We have the Harts and the Vaal, the Vet, Modder, Riet, Caledon and

the Orange. In addition there are northward-flowing streams of

importance, the Valsch, the Wilge, and so on. Of the material from

the area fed by these last I have been unable to obtain much informa-

tion. Most of it is housed in the National Museum, Bloemfontein,

where it is presumably being ably dealt with by Dr H. C. N. van

Hoepen, but has not been made available to me.

The possibility that mountains may, under certain conditions,

prove attractive to hunters and collectors must not be overlooked.

In most areas the deep-cut mountain-sides and the high precipitation

of rain or dew provide the main concentrations of wild fruits, roots,

and edible plants, and overhanging kranses provide shelter from

prevailing winds. The Western Langeberg area gives us an example.

Here the mountain-side on the north of the Breede River valley shows

distinctive types, differing from those in the open valley, west and

south of the river. Basutoland will eventually show a similar

localisation of types.

An analogous state of affairs seems to exist in the kloofs cutting the

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 48)

peneplain towards the southern coast, where deep and often wooded

valleys similarly yield protection, water, vegetable foods, and a

certain degree of isolation. These valleys may link back to the

_ mountain ranges immediately behind, or may run back through the

first range to further valleys running parallel with the coast. The

Gouritz River provides an example of a river cutting across parallel

valleys, and the Sundays River, Bushmans River, etc., are all very

similar.

Remarks on these two opposing functions of geographical forces—

attraction and repulsion—have been touched upon in considering

individual areas above, and will be dealt with further in discussing

specific migrational routes.

MIGRATIONAL ROUTES.

These may be merely points of access between areas of attraction,

fords over rivers or passes through mountains They may, however,

in a dry and barren land, be river-beds only usable in the rainy season

or in years in which there happens to be an episodic rainy season.

The Seekoei River, and probably the Kuruman and Molopo Rivers (of

which we know little in the prehistoric period) were of sucha type. In

many cases it 1s obvious that the headwaters of one river will lead to

within a mile of the headwaters of another, across the low divide of

a watershed. In this way the Limpopo served the upwaters of the

Molopo and Kuruman Rivers, which in turn led across the Orange

River, up the Hartbees River to its headwaters. This route was

chosen by the MaNtatisi movement, and previously provided the

Western Bypass. An analogous action seems to have taken place in

prehistoric times, leading migrations down the Nylstroom from the

Limpopo River basin to the Upper Vaal. The Klip River carried the

early colonisers of Natal from the Vaal to the upwaters of the Buffalo,

at Laing’s Nek. Cases of the same sort will be dealt with as we

proceed.

THE DIRECTIONS OF MOVEMENT.

Except where the general direction of a movement is obvious (e.g.

from the Transvaal to Natal, and from the Transvaal to the Free

State, and those cases in which migration obviously started from the

Free State and spread radially from certain points on the Orange), it

is difficult to discern the direction in which migration occurred. There

is a fundamental presumption in the following pages, that all move-

120 Annals of the South African Museum.

ment tended to proceed from the north southward. It is presumed

that the Transvaal peopled the Free State, which in turn provided the

main source for the peoples of the Cape Province, and the possibility

of any return movement is ignored. Once the southern coast is

reached no real presumption can be made, though there are certain

indications that can be made to supply a clue. When discussing

that stretch of coast I pointed out that lateral movements occurred

between the serried ranks of mountains, in relation either to the

streams running east and west or to the coast-line itself. It is easily

possible in that area for a migration of some magnitude to pass across

the southernmost Cape from east to west, or from west to east,

without affecting a neighbouring movement between adjacent ranges,

or along the coastal belt. This would be even easier along the natural

forest belts near the coast, where a sharply contrasting environment

would possibly deter the movements of an inland people. This area

therefore is to be regarded asa belt along which parallel or even contra-

parallel migrations might take place without mutual interference.

I regard the Cape of Good Hope as generally late—the end of a

series of movements through the Hinterland area along the south

coast. But what of the south coast itself? Was this fed by way of

the Sundays River; was it fed through the Breede River valley;

was it perhaps fed through Oudtshoorn to George and Mossel Bay?

The answer involves all three routes, and we can take it that the

general tendency of coastal spread was from east to west, though

return movements are to be expected. But the almost cross-shaped

catchment areas of the river beds also permit of transverse movements,

either from the coast inland or in the opposite sense. A local and

intensive study of other analysable factors, such as pottery, styles of

painting, implements, etc., may eventually yield a clue to the question.

Migration will be given from east to west as the important sources

of movement seem to lie to the east, but there are subsidiary routes

constantly cutting in on this east to west migration. If the main

southward movement enters the coastal strip to the east, or to the west,

the direction of flow is obvious. If it enters towards the centre

of the coastal distribution, then we may presume a lateral spread in

two directions. Even in the spread of a single type of bored stone all

three possibilities have to be taken into account, as a glance at the

charts provided later will show (pp. 143-145).

Where definite barriers have limited spread, the question is some-

what simplified. Only two such barriers, apart from the sea, exist.

The first is the Basutoland mountain massif. This has provided us

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 121

with a certain key to two areas, Natal and the lower Thornveld, and

a strong basis for presumption regarding the Northern Transkei.

It so happens that the two migrational routes separated by the

Basutoland divide lead from the Transvaal to the heart of the Free

State Smithfield, and to the heart of the Natal Smithfield, obviously

parallel developments from a single northern source. We thus have

a valuable key to the origins of this complex cultural development.

The second important divide, probably the product of chance as

much as anything, is the Sneeuwberg range, which divided the

migrations over the Western crossing of the Orange from those over

the Central crossing of the Orange. The presence of this divide must

in future be regarded as of the utmost ethnological importance in the

Later Stone Age.

In the extreme south it has been suggested that movements to and

from the coast by way of rivers cutting directly across the line of the

valleys running parallel to the coast played an interesting part.

These movements may have been purely migrational, but there is a

possibility that they may have been annual movements from the

coast inland during certain seasons of the year. We must therefore

expect to find seashell ornaments, etc., carried back from the coast

along these rivers to the inland areas. The valleys running parallel

to the coast account for the distribution of a type at Ladismith (Cape)

and in the West Langeberg area, and of a prolate type at Oakhurst

and at Riversdale, with no known intervening examples.

TyPrEs oF ROUTE.

The question of routes dissolves itself into a problem exactly

analogous with that of the modern communications of a country.

There are three main types of route: highways along which migration

normally flows; bypasses that skirt the areas fed by the highways

and so provide a simpler picture; and lateral or feeder routes, that

transgress the more important highways and hypasses constituting

the normal orientation of a country’s flow, and intrude odd elements

from laterally situated sources.

This analogy of the modern highway may be carried further. A

highway starts at a primary distributive centre, from there goods are

carried for distribution in the immediate neighbourhood and yield a

typical strip development, then continue along highways and by-

passes to secondary centres of distribution. This analogy fits the

prehistoric and primitive highway.

_ This secondary distributive centre is an area of focus where migra-

122 Annals of the South African Museum.

tion consolidates, and where the new population may increase to the

limits of local saturation. Then there follows a series of divergent

distributive routes, radial, and often cutting directly across other

highways or joining with them. The cross-road is difficult to dis-

entangle. It depends for its understanding upon the careful analysis

of surrounding areas and the use of the subtractive approach. By this

I mean that once a group is understood in terms of an adjacent area,

it may be subtracted, and the residue dealt with by the same approach.

This method is employed for the crossing of the Namaqualand high-

way and the Western Bypass at Prieska. I would hardly have dared

to untie this Gordian knot had it not been for the considerable help

supplied to me by Mr C. Wilmot of Prieska. The tangle now resolves

itself into a neat pattern of intersecting strands of migration.

In relation to environment various types of route can be dis-

tinguished. Those passing from the headwater of one stream to the

source of another flowing in the opposite direction. Those following

river-beds through dry regions, or along such great streams as the

Vaal and Orange. Routes skirting mountains at a fairly high level—

the southern extension of the Natal Highlands area belongs to this

class. Routes keeping to a low level, and generally related to a wide

coastal belt, such as the Natal Lowlands. Routes confined to narrow

valleys, such as the Groot River, the Breede and the Berg, often cut

off from outside influence.

ORDER OF TREATMENT.

While I have spoken of the Transvaal as the prototype region, a

primary distributive centre, this is only true for South Africa. The

bored stone is too well known in the body of Africa for us to ignore

the fact that itisimmigrant. We will discuss possible points of entry

first. From the Transvaal there are two great routes, the Western

Bypass to the Bokkeveld, and the road to the cul-de-sac of the Natal

Highlands. These will be discussed next, with whatever lateral

byways may have fed them. There is also a central highway down

the Vaal River, from which lateral or feeder roads spread over the

Free State along its southern river system. In this Focal Region

movement seems to have been held back during a considerable period

of populational stability and expansion, if the quantities of bored

stones, implements, rock engravings and paintings provide any criteria.

This may therefore be called the Deuterotype Region, and the new

migrations that passed southward by three or four main crossings

of the Vaal and Orange Rivers may be regarded as having their

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 123

immediate origins here. These crossings of the Thirstland towards

the south, and the mountains towards the east, will be dealt with in

turn as new stages in migration.

South of the Orange the Sneeuwberg seems to provide an important

divide. From here migrations will be followed to the coast and along

it wherever possible. Finally a few movements that do not link

very securely with inland types will be discussed. Treatment will

not be exhaustive, but suggestive examples of major migrations will

be given.

ENTRY INTO THE UNION.

(A) The junction of the Crocodile and Marico Rivers at about

27° H. by 24° S., just north of the Dwarsberg, at once suggests itself

as an important point of entry into the Union, for a variety of reasons:

1. It is nearly related to the Victoria Falls, above which most

major movements have crossed the Zambesi into southern Africa.

2. It is an area in which four groups of bored stone seem to have

diverged from two original types (probably 11:9x8:3 cm. and

10-5 by 8-0 cm.), and spread southwards over the entire Vet-Marico

area, to cut deeply into the whole Transvaal.

3. Lateral movement into the Transvaal in relation to the east-

west valleys and mountain folds of the central Transvaal would be

natural and attractive. In recent years this was the natural line of

movement used by various Sotho tribes.

One cogent argument can be adduced against our selection of this

point as the main doorway to the Union. It is probably important,

and certainly obscure. Of perhaps a dozen specimens from this area

four have a conical bore. If this is a result of the use of metal, as I

suspect, then this might be regarded as an argument in favour of

fairly recent immigration by this route, by a people who were them-

selves users of metals, or were in contact with Hottentot or Bantu

metal users. It is just possible that these stones were bored from one

face only with a stone borer, and that this difficult technique was later

dropped in favour of the easier biconical bore. These examples cut

across other groupings, and can be differentiated into two groups,

12-0 x 8-2 cm. (one example only) and 11-0 x 7-2 cm., close enough to

each other to be regarded as a single group. If these four examples

are removed from the Vet-Marico series as Bantu, the averages are

not very greatly affected.

(B) Even if we regard (A) as a possible point of entry it would not

account for all the Transvaal types. One Central Transvaal type

(14-1 x 10-5 cm.) that certainly developed into the Southern Transvaal

124 Annals of the South African Museum.

type (12-9 x 10-2 cm.) may have entered by way of the Mogalakwena

River or along the Sand River (29° 8. x 30° E.) to the Pietersburg

Highlands.

The 8-0 x 5-5 cm. group, present in the Central Transvaal, and in a

derived form (8-8 x 5-2 cm.) in the Southern Transvaal, is absent from

the Eastern Transvaal and the Vet-Marico River area. I would

therefore suggest a similar origin for this. The same may be said of

the small type (about 6-0 x 4:0 cm.) that occurs at Button’s Kop, and

has spread throughout the Southern Transvaal, presumably as a

knobkerrie head.

Central Transvaal, miss the Southern Transvaal area, but reappear in

the little-known Eastern Transvaal. Possibly these two types are

related, but they do not seem to have been associated with the same

migrations that brought the three types mentioned above under (B).

They may be associable with (A), or they may have entered across the

Limpopo, east of the Magato mountains, perhaps by way of the Pafuri

River (31° EH. long.) accessible to both the Central and the Hastern

Transvaal. This route is highly speculative.

These seven prototypes I regard as sufficient to account for most

of the Transvaal averages, and for those of the Vet-Marico River area.

It is perfectly possible that they may be held to account for all the

South African types, except those of the Natal Lowlands and a few

(very few) of the types on the south coast. I refuse to make any

attempt to enter this somewhat speculative field.

Several important points are worthy of consideration. The

Southern and the Eastern Transvaal are mutually exclusive, while the

types in the Vet-Marico area agree with those of the Eastern Transvaal,

and therefore exclude Southern Transvaal types. Expressed differ-

ently, the Central Transvaal includes all the prototypes; the Southern

Transvaal includes three only; the Vet-Marico area shows three, and

the Eastern Transvaal four of the remainder. This suggests the

crossing of two routes in the Central Transvaal. The one from VMR.

to ET., the other through CT. to ST.

Prototype. VMR. Ciz Si KT. Route.

1. 138-5 x 10-5 141x105 12-9x10-2 B

2.12:0x 82 116x8-4 11:7 x 7:8 12-3 x 8-6 A

3. 10:5x 81 10-7x7-6 10:2 x 8-2 10-5 x 8-0 A

4. 10-0x 5:5 10:0 x 5-4 10-2 x 5-9 C

5. 10:7x 4:4 ( 9:4x3-7) 10:8 x 4:2 10:7x4:6 AorC

6. 80x 5:5 io x 1o6 8:8 x 5:2 B

7. 60x 4:0 5-7 x 3:6 6:5 x 4:2 B

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 125

In the Central Transvaal two specimens averaging 12-2 x 9-2 cm.

are obviously related to divergents from prototype 1 as it occurs in

the Southern Transvaal; this suggests a return movement. Two

other specimens from OT., averaging 11-5 x5-4 cm., are seemingly

divergents from prototype 4. One of the VMR. examples approxi-

mates to this type (Bloemhof, 11-7 x 5-8 cm.) and is probably related

to a nearby specimen from CT. at Potchefstroom. The VMR. stone

listed above as a development from prototype 5 is a single specimen,

and the fairly wide divergence from the average suggests that it may

be a secondary development of atypical dimensions.

THe Natat Rovute.*

In general the migrations from the Transvaal southwards along the

Natal route, the Western Bypass, and down the Vaal are all relatively

easy to follow. Almost all the prototypes can be followed along these

three great routes. The opposite is not true, for we can hardly

speculate on the origins of the Natal Lowlands types, and the affinity

these show to examples from the Schoonspruit-Vaal area cannot be

regarded as more than superficial, as the latter disc types are products

of the local schistose rocks.

Some interesting and important points emerge in our study of the

Natal Highlands, each of which needs careful consideration in any

future work in that area.

1. The Natal Highlands types show no relationship to forms south

of the Tsitsa-Tina and Umzimvubu basin, from where only two

examples are known. Spread southward seems therefore to have

ceased at Mount Currie and Mount Ayliff.

2. The Natal Highlands seldom transgresses the Natal Lowlands

area, and there appears to be a marked divide at about the 2000-foot

level (650 m.). The Lowlands area was certainly fed from a different

source, probably from the Portuguese East African, St. Lucia, and

Zululand Lowlands.

3. The Highlands are situated along the eastern slopes of the

Drakensberg, and are cut off from the Free State by the Basutoland

massifs.

4, The area is further cut off from the Free State focal area by an

important field of distribution, the southern portion of the Vet-

Marico area, that contains no types similar to those from the Natal

Highlands.

* Maps of routes are added at the end of this part, following page 142.

126 Annals of the South African Museum.

5. It is highly probable that this Vet-Marico area was not a high-

way, but an area of spread or colonisation. It1is obviously a marginal

area with few types, lying between more attractive migrational routes,

the Vaal running west and south, and the Klip River running to the

Majuba Hill, where it almost meets the Buffalo-Tugela complex some

8 or 9 miles away.

6. Excluding the Durban anomaly, five of the remaining six Natal

Highlands averages are represented in the Transvaal prototype areas,

and show affinities with prototypes 1, 2, 4, and 7. Two derivatives

of this last are represented, one related to the Southern and one to the

Central Transvaal. Prototypes 1, 4, and 7 are absent in the VMR..,

while the Natal Highlands derivative of type 2 is allied to the Hastern

Transvaal form, not to the VMR. average.

7. Certain Natal Highlands types are associable with Smithfield N

material, a variation showing marked differences from the Smithfield

series of the Free State, and one which I have shown has characteristic

affinities with Southern Rhodesia that are absent in the Free

State.*

8. The closest affinity (apart from the prototype area) with the NH.

area is at Bloemfontein and Sepani, where one type only shows

analogies. The BS. area is cut off from NH. by the Basutoland

massifs and by the VMR. area.

We thus have at our disposal the material for tracing the migrations

of the Later Stone Age people from the Transvaal to the Natal

Highlands. This suggests a possibility of an early pre-Smithfield

culture in the Transvaal, parent to both the Free State and the Natal -

variants.

1.¢ (13-5 x 10-5 cm., Prototype 1.)

Potgietersrust.

| Brits.

Brits-Rustenburg Road. Pretoria.

Rustenburg. Bronkhorstspruit.

- Standerton.

Estcourt.

Maclear.

Prototype 1 may have originated either in the Western or the

Northern Transvaal, but its journey from Pretoria is clearly through

Newcastle or Botha’s Pass, or another nearby gap in the mountains

about Majuba (29° 50’ E., 27° 30’ 8.).

* Goodwin, Proc. Rhod. Sci. Ass., xxxiv, 1934.

{+ Examples of migrational routes are numbered consecutively for ease of

reference. The same initial number is used on the maps for each route.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 127

2. (11-9 x 8:3 cm., Prototype 2.)

Lichtenburg.

Ventersdorp.

Eerstefabrieken.

Kransfontein. Ermelo.

Acton.— ————_ —————

ore

Utrecht.

Stanger.

Durban.

Prototype 2 had a different story; it seems that one movement

went along the valleys of the Transvaal from west to east as far as

Ermelo, then through Pietretief to Utrecht. An alternative route

from EHerstefabrieken passes Harrismith and the van Reenen’s Pass.

The remaining three examples given below all suggest the Majuba

route. It is to be observed that Prototype 4 is the most clearly

associable with the Smithfield N material at Balgowan.

3. (10-0 x 5-5 cm., Prototype 4.)

——WMolsgat.

W onderboom. Belfast.

ee neeneton Bethal. Jakslust.

: Balgowan. Barberton.

Durban.

Matatiele.

Kokstad.

4, (6:0 x 4:0 cm., Prototype 7.)

eS oe. Oa ee

Magaliesburg. Germiston.

Johannesburg. Bergville.

Pietermaritzburg.

Underberg.

Cedarville.

Analysis of a further, final series is unconvincing. The type

(7-5x2-5 cm.) is evident only in the Suikerboschrand valley at

Vereeniging and at Barnard’s Kop, Heidelberg (Transvaal), and

appears to link with the Harding specimen from Southern Natal, a gap

of 300 miles.

Natat LOWLANDS.

Of the origins of the Natal Lowlands types with indices below 40 we

know nothing. Far more will have to be known of the Northern

Transkei, especially the coastal belt, before we can presume a migration

from the south. It is more likely that this Natal series inks through

128 Annals of the South African Museum.

Zululand lowlands with Portuguese Mocambique, areas as little known

as those to the immediate south.

WESTERN ByPaAss.

Five migrations, starting at various points and continuing for

varying distances along this Bypass, can be followed. The Bypass

consists of three areas skirting the eastern edge of the Kalahari and

the western watershed of the Harts and Vaal Rivers. It seems to

run from the sources of the Molopo River southwards to within 150 miles

of Cape Town, and there ceases. The three areas are the Molopo-

Groenwater, the Upington-Hartbees, and the Bokkeveld areas.

5. (13-7 x 11-2 cm., related to Prototype 1.) Obviously originated

in the Central Transvaal, from whence the Vaal-Harts area is reached,

and examples occur at Bloemhof and Newlands. From there the

route follows the Vaal to Rietpan, Barkly West, and to Fauresmith

and the Modder River. A parallel road, continuing farther to the

south, and presumably starting at Bloemhof, runs as follows:—

Vryburg A.

Postmasburg.

Niekerk’s Hope.

Uitdraai.

———Springbokpoortje.

Groetvloer. Omdraaivlei.

Vanwyksvlei. Vosburg.

Blaaukrans (Carnarvon). Victoria West.

This type does not reach the Bokkeveld area.

6. (12:3 x7-2 cm., Prototype 2.) Perhaps an offshoot from the

Central Transvaal type ui, where examples occur at Ventersdorp and

at Lichtenburg, from where the route runs:

Vryburg A.

Kuruman.

—_— Bultfontein. |

Upington. Redlands (Prieska).

Kenhardt.————_ Keikamspoort (Prieska).

Hondeklip Bay. Calvinia. eet

Klaver. Ie

7. (10:9x 7-2 cm., related to VMR. iv.) Sites at Klerksdorp,

Kroonstad, and Brandfort provide a fan-shaped distribution, con-

verging on Bloemhof from where the distribution runs:

Postmasburg.

Groot Nauta.

Upington. Middelwater.

Calvinia.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 129

Kimberley and Douglas show analogies, and it is possible that there

was a lateral movement along the Orange. This route obviously

resembles example 5.

8. (8:0 x 6-0 cm., Prototype 6.) A lateral drift that does not seem

to have followed the Bypass in either direction, it may represent part

of a roadway to the Southern Kalahari.

Koffiefontein.

Kimberley.

Gonggong (Barkly West).

Winter’s Rush.

Douglas.

Kuruman.

Wolhaarkop.

Koegas.

9. (6°38 x 4-8 cm., Prototype 7.) This lateral movement follows

much the same route, but turns southward across the Orange to the

Trekveld and Winterveld areas, presumably from Barkly West.

| ——wWindsorton. |

Kimberley. Botterhoek.

Kanteen Kop.

Kuruman. Barkly West.

Goup.

Wildebeespan.

MOSPUCS coeaaateaa |

Vanwyksvlei. Britstown.

Victoria West.

This may provide the origin of the Trekveld iii type that shows a

local distribution at Hliaslaagte, etc.

NAMAQUALAND RovtTE.

Although this route appears to have some relationship with the

Vaal-Orange confluence, I shall deal with it here, partly to clear up

the western Thirstlands, and also because I suspect the possibility

of a direct route along the Molopo River to Namaqualand. The

evidence is slight, and consists at present of a marked gap in example

12 below. The Orange River route would have been far easier to

follow, once the confluence of this river and the Vaal had been

reached. A long stretch along the Orange is quite unknown to us at

present.

10. (12:0x9-5 cm.) This starts from Newlands, and, for all we

NiOlia XOX Dy PART. I; 9

130 Annals of the South African Museum.

know, may also have passed directly along the Molopo from there.

The southward route is quite clear.

Newlands.

Riverton.

Barkly West.

Pniel.

Schmidt’s Drift.

Prieska.

Witfontein.

Steinkopf.

Concordia.

Kamieskroon.

“Namaqualand.”

11. (10-5 x 8-5 cm.) Almost certainly related in ultimate origins

to 10.

Windsorton.

Witboom, Hay.

Katlani.

Grootdoorn.

_ Prieska.

Marydale.

Steinkopf.

Garies.

12. (90x75 cm.) A shorter form of the above route. Four

examples occur at Prieska. There are three possibilities here. Hither

this is a movement directly across to Namaqualand from Fourteen

Streams, with a return movement along the Orange; or it is a move-

ment down the Vaal similar to 10 and 11; or it links with the Free

State, a complex that can be seen under example 23 below.

Hoopstad.

Sheppard Island.

Fourteen Streams.

(gap)

St. Clair.

Prieska.

Kaaienbult.

Concordia.

Steinkopf.

Finally, the small Steinkopf specimen (4-2 x 3-3 cm.) has analogies

at Smithfield, Bethelpella, Koffiefontein B, Belmont, and in the

Winterveld. The similarity is suggestive, but carries no weight at

present.

SoUTHERN HIGHWAYS.

Enough has been said elsewhere to show that most of the pro-

totypes of the Transvaal have passed southward along the Vaal

River by way of the Vaal Harts, the Middle and the Lower Vaal areas,

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 131

or across a wide front on the Free State section of the Vet-Marico area.

The next series of movements to be discussed were from the Vaal,

generally eastward along the complex pattern of rivers in the Free

State, and transversely across the direction of flow, over low hills or

- denuded plains set with isolated doleritic kopjes. It would be useless

to trace these movements in detail. The references given in the

column of comparisons, after the type averages in Part II, should

speak amply for the cross-currents in the confined focal areas.

This Free State Region is important. It supplied a focal area for

consolidation, internal expansion and finally for movements to less

thickly populated areas. The Orange River and the Basutoland

mountains with their southern extensions provided a barrier to the

south-east, while the increasing aridity encountered by any movement

towards the west from the Vaal basin across the Kaap Plateau, and

the general dryness of the land to the south of the Orange, precluded

easy migration in these directions. We must therefore presume that

there was little incentive for the Free State people to break through

these barriers until pressure forced such a drastic step. Pressure may

have been the product of over-population, but is more likely to have

been due to the pressure of new peoples from the north, be they

Hottentot, Wilton, or Bantu. The very considerable lag due to

consolidation in the Free State may account for the obvious lateness

of the Later Stone Age along the coastal belt, especially towards the

Cape.

The breaking through of the Orange River ethnic barrier (or better,

the initiation of real migrations across the Thirstland, in contrast

to confined hunting movements) provided an effective filter. Only

certain types transgressed towards the south and south-east, and the

routes they took seem to have been limited.

We can recognise three points of origin for the various movements

that left the Free State and Vaal River Regions. This small number

of breaks-through on a front seven hundred miles long is surprising,

until it is realised that the Orange did not in itself provide the major

barrier, but the repellent country farther south and east. The Orange

may have been crossed at any point, but migrations across the Thirst-

land tended to follow the same routes in their new migrational

pattern.

The first point seems to have been near the present main railway line

from the Cape to Kimberley, between Belmont and Hopetown. Next

were points between Bethulie Bridge and Aliwal North, forming the

Central Crossing. Farther east there is a more speculative break-

132 Annals of the South African Museum.

through from the eastern sources of the Orange, high in the Basuto-

land Massifs, through Qacha’s Nek and neighbouring gaps to the

Matatiele district, the Hastern Exit. These three crossings will be

dealt with in order from West to Hast.

THE WESTERN CROSSING.

As we have already seen, the main routes to Namaqualand and the

feeders to the Western Bypass seem to have crossed the Vaal at

Douglas. This crossing may be said to be the gateway to south-

western Africa. In contrast the southward routes appear to have

crossed at a point coinciding with the origins of the Winterveld area,

between Belmont and Hope Town. If Douglas fed Namaqualand, the

Orange River basin and the Trekveld, then the general area of Belmont

was the gateway to the Winterveld and certain points on the south

coast of the continent.

We may follow the more important Winterveld types. They appear

to yield somewhat sketchy routes, but they are sufficiently consistent

to prove that this route across the dry semi-desert country was used

by man. It has good rains in certain years, and was once the haunt

of great herds of springbok and other mobile types of game before

man interfered with essential migrations by erecting fences. Oddly

enough, the Vosburg specimens were found in association with a large

unidentified pachyderm (possibly rhinoceros), suggesting that even

these animals migrated across the dry Winterveld at times. Three

environmental factors determined this route, the Ongers River, the

Seekoei River, and the Sneeuwberg mountains.

13. (14:6 x 13-0 cm.) This distribution does not suggest a true

migration, but rather a local spread. The type occurs at Rietpan,

Botterhoek, Belment, then crosses the Orange to Philipstown,

Omdraaisvlei, and Britstown. The size suggests that it may quite

possibly be Bantu, the product of the final scattering of the MaNtatisi

refugees.

14. (14:7 x 10-0 cm.) This has a scattered distribution. Unlike

example 13, it is present in the Free State proper at Koffiefontein B.

The further distribution includes two sites near Prieska and one near

‘Britstown, south of this it occurs at Victoria West, Three Sisters,

Beaufort West, and Aberdeen.

15. (12:9» 9-0 cm.) The graphical scatter is remarkably compact

when worked out on a graph paper. It is represented by the first

specimen listed at Koffiefontein A, then follows this route southward:

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 133

Koffiefontein A.

Welgevonden. Britstown.

Poortje. Graaff Reinet.

Jansenville.

Swartberg.

Mossel Bay. Knysna.

Breede River.

Cape Middens.

Sandveld.

The southern portion of this distribution seems to run behind the

mountains, parallel to the southern coast, and to avoid the coast for

most of the route.

16. (10:0x7-5cm.) This probably belongs to the same route as 15,

but there are gaps.

Smithfield.

Koffiefontein B.

Britstown.

Hanover.

From here it occurs in the Swartberg area, and from there links

with Knysna (KTZ. ix), SR. i, BMR. v, and WL. 1. The journey

from the Swartberg to the West Langeberg may be associable with a

mountain people. (Compare example 26.)

17. (3-7 x 2-5 cm.) Beadlike or ornamental forms that show a

wide variation in size occur at Smithfield, Koffiefontein B, Belmont,

Hope Town, Middelwater, Britstown, and Hanover. South of this

the smaller examples disappear except for a single example from the

Helderberg, and any deduction would be speculative. It seems likely

that these too may be MaNtatisi in origin, and they have much the

same dispersal as example 13, but compare the note below example 12

(above).

It will have been observed that the Koffiefontein B series on the

northern side of the Orange plays an important part in the study of

those groups that are sufficiently numerous to follow. This does not

mean that Koffiefontein was the original home of these Winterveld

people, but it does provide an important clue to the point at which

the river was crossed by the migrations passing west of the Sneeuwberg

range, and also it is highly suggestive of the type of culture that was

carried along this route. We should expect a new point of dispersal

in the Swartberg area, feeding the coast at Mossel Bay and Knysna,

and feeding westward to the Western Langeberg along hidden valleys,

then across to the Sandveld and Swartland areas by way of the Breede

River.

The importance of Britstown in all these distributions is quite

134 Annals of the South African Museum.

certainly due to its association with the Ongers River and to its close

proximity to the Seekoei River, north of the Sneeuwberg.

CENTRAL CROSSING.

In much the same way that Koffiefontein provides a point of origin

for migrations across the Orange to Britstown, so Smithfield provides

a bridgehead for the Central Crossing that leads to the Upper Thorn-

veld area, From here two alternative routes seem to have been

presented, either directly down the Tsomo and Great Kei Rivers, or

else down the Fish and Sundays Rivers. At times both may have been

taken. Enough examples will be considered to prove the presence

of these routes and to show the general line of their direction, con-

sistently east of the Sneeuwberg mountains.

18. (13-0x 11-0 cm.) This rather complex series probably links

with example 5 above, either in its origins or in its middle phases,

but intervening sites are absent.

Middle Vaal.

Modder River.

Fauresmith.

We os a) Gee

Burghersdorp Rossouw.

2 Cathcart Downs.

(Murraysburg). |

Grahamstown (14-2 x 10-5 cm.).

Port Elizabeth.

This may or may not prove to be linked with a more local move-

ment with some changes in size. The evidence is added here in case

later evidence clarifies the position. The direction taken is speculative,

and while I suggest that Murraysburg provides the link, it may possibly

occur between Port Elizabeth and Knysna.

Murraysburg (12-1 x 11-0 cm.).

Beaufort West. Grootrivier (13-0 x 12-0 cm.).

Ladismith. Knysna.

Montagu. |

Worcester. Kogel Bay.

Gordon’s Bay.

19. (8-5 x6-5 cm.) Apart from one digression to Paardekraal,

there seems to be no evidence of this type in the South-Hastern

Lowlands area. It occurs at several sites in the Central Free

State.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 135

Winter’s Rush.

Barkly West.

Kimberley.

Koffiefontein A.

Smithfield.

pe North.————

Steynsburg. Dordrecht.

Graaff Reinet. Paardekraal.

Aberdeen A.

Knysna.

Great Brak.

Mossel Bay.

Gouritz River.

Still Bay.

20. (9:1 x4:7 cm.) This route first strikes across to Port Elizabeth,

then along the coast as far as the Cape.

Smithfield.

Hofmeyr.

| |

*Aberdeen B. Cradock.

Somerset East.

Humewood.

Hankey.

Tzitzikamma Middens.

De Poort.

Knysna.

Westford.

George Coast.

Mossel Bay.

Gouritz River mouth.

At Gouritz the type changes to 10-0 x 4:3 cm. and continues:

Gouritz R. mouth.

Heidelberg.

Swellendam.

Villiersdorp.

Cape Hangklip.

There is a second change here to 9-7 x 5-1 cm., and this form occurs

at Gordon’s Bay and Stellenbosch, possibly ending its migration at

Muizenberg.

It is likely that the 10-4x4-4 cm. type at Knysna represents a

return movement of the changed type from Heidelberg. It does not

occur farther east.

21. (80x 4:5 cm.) This type shows a variation of less than two-

fifths of an inch in its wanderings along much the same route as that

outlined in 20 (and similar to 24). The type is slightly smaller than

in 20. The central Free State distribution is not discussed.

* Possibly links with Knysna, also Hanover and Victoria West.

136 Annals of the South African Museum.

Central Free State.

Burghersdorp.

Cradock.

Aberdeen. Somerset EK.

Zuney.

Hankey.

Tzitzikamma Mountains.

Woodbourne.

De Poort.

Knysna.

Mossel Bay.

Bloembos.

Montagu.

Worcester.

Stellenbosch.

Ida’s Valley.

Vlottenberg.

Clarke’s Siding.

Notice the consistent movement inland (but still within the coastal

belt), represented here by the step from Blombos to Montagu and

Worcester. An analogous series is represented at Hanover, and

occurs through the Trekveld area—what the relationship may have

been I do not know. Probably both series originated in the Free

State.

SOUTHERN TRANSKEI.

A few additional examples outlining the routes to the Transkei may

prove helpful, though the lines are short and links are sometimes

unsatisfactory.

22. (12:4 x 8-3 cm.)

Koffiefontein A.

Smithfield.

Cathcart Downs.

Kingwilliamstown.

23. (9:2 x7-8 cm.)

Avalon.

Fauresmith.

Cathcart Downs.

Happy Valley.

East London.

Debe Nek.

This is similar to the Kaaienveld type outlined as example 11, and the

types may be linked in their origin in the Free State.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 137

24, (11-4 x 5-3 cm.)

Hofmeyr.

Somerset East.

Humewood. Fort Meroe

South End. East London.

Tzitzikamma Caves.

Belvedere.

_ Mossel Bay.

Heidelberg.

West Langeberg.

Gordon’s Bay.

Cape Flats.

Cape Middens.

These should be sufficient to demonstrate a route through Cathcart

towards Kingwilliamstown, thus helping to fill the gap that the

distributions given above may show. In the final example above,

the sequence of the sites from Hofmeyr and on to Mossel Bay is much

the same as that given in example 20 above, but the eastward route

to East London is new.

EASTERN EXIT.

Our lack of knowledge of the prehistory of Basutoland makes it

impossible to prove the existence of this route, but enough knowledge

exists to permit the suggestion that the two Northern Transkei

examples came by this road, and that the migrations did not proceed

northward to feed Natal from there.

25. (14:0x 7-0 cm.) This is an unusual form, and in such a case

we can expect considerable variation. Examples of analogous shapes

exist at Hoopstad and Douglas, but the Koffiefontein B 1 (12-8 x 7-3

cm.) is the nearest to this Thabankulu stone. The difference in

diameters is less than half an inch.

26. (10-7 x 7-4 cm.)

Central Free State (11-0 x 7-0 cm..).

Smithfield.

Aliwal North.

Xuka Drift.

The variation is 4 mm. or about one-sixth of an inch, and all specimens

are related to the Orange River basin. This example is more valuable

than the first, as distances are nowhere very great.

The suggestion is that the route lay along the upwaters of the

Orange, and then cut across at Qacha’s Nek, Ongeluk Nek, or over

the Pack Ox Pass to the headwaters of the Kenegha and Tina affluents

of the Umzimvubu. Such a hypothesis would explain the fact that

138 Annals of the South African Museum.

the Pondoland Smithfield types are closer to the Free State forms than

are the Smithfield N series. No bored stones are associable, so far

as I know, with the Pondoland material.

THE CoastaL HiGHway.

A few of the lateral movements along the southernmost coast of the

continent may be considered briefly. Additional data may be sought

under the examples given above, but we must here consider those

movements that do not clearly emanate from inland sources. The

example given under 20 above, suggesting the return of the 10-4 x 4-4

cm. type from Heidelberg (Cape) is instructive, as it demonstrates

how an inland type may develop until it becomes a purely “coastal”

form.

The south coast seems to have had a difficult history. There appear

to have been two important focal areas of attraction, Knysna and the

Cape Peninsula. The route between these will prove easier to dis-

entangle than the Free State, as the valleys running parallel with the

coastal belt are more definite than the low watersheds of the inland

plateau.

Movement seems to have been partly lateral along the coast, partly

lateral behind the mountain chains that provided independent path-

ways for migration, and partly transverse, by way of such rivers as

reached the coast through the lattice of mountain ranges, the Sundays,

Gamtoos, Groot, Gouritz, and others. The Breede River is an impor-

tant highway, partly feeding the Cape of Good Hope through the

Hinterland area, but at the same time providing a bypass directly

across to the Sandveld and Swartland areas. In contrast the little

Bot River valley (including the Palmiet and Swart Rivers), hemmed

in by high mountains, is an isolated area with little real relationship

to the outside world.

27. (10:0x 7-5 cm.) This type has been discussed very shortly

under example 16 above, and therefore must be regarded as having a

possible inland origin.

Botha’s Post.

Fort Brown.

Gamtoos River.

Knysna.

Swartberg.

Oudtshoorn.

Worcester.

Pinelands.

The journey between Oudtshoorn and Worcester quite certainly

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 139

passed behind the coastal ranges, and specimens of this type are

absent at coastal sites west of Knysna.

28. (7-8x3-9 cm.) This is apparently a midden form, though

reminiscent of an inland type, Winterveld viii at Hanover.

Cove Rock.

Uniondale.

Zuney.

Maitland Mines.

Tzitzikamma Mountains.

Woodbourne.

Mossel Bay.

Bloembos.

CoNCLUSIONS.

Enough has been said in the previous pages to permit us to make

certain generalisations regarding the peopling of South Africa in the

Later Stone Age. So far as I know, the peopling of no country in the

prehistoric world has ever been so exactly definable; and nothing but

the bored stone could have yielded a series of routes, each capable

of proof again and again, and each showing a remarkably logical

course. Few of these routes could have been predicted from previous

knowledge, yet each is demonstrably the obvious road for people

with a localised knowledge, extending perhaps a hundred miles in any

one direction, and entirely dependent upon hope and travellers’ tales -

for knowledge of water-supply, vegetable foods, etc., in any direction

of new migration. We may therefore epitomise some of our main

discoveries, with a view to laying the foundations of a new branch

of science, the study of migration through the medium of the bored

stone.

1. There would seem to have been seven prototypes present in the

northern parts of our known distribution. These with a few deriva-

tives will adequately account for types in the Transvaal Region, the

Natal Highlands and the Vet-Marico area.

2. The distribution of these seven prototypes in the Transvaal can

be explained by two main migrations, one from the Vet-Marico to the

Eastern Transvaal area, and one from the Central Transvaal to the

Southern Transvaal area. The Central Transvaal reflects all types,

and is therefore the cross-road.

3. It is possible that all types (excluding those from the Natal

Lowlands) may have originated from these seven, though no attempt

is made to demonstrate this in the present paper.

4, The peopling of the Natal Highlands took place almost exclu-

140 Annals of the South African Museum.

sively along the Wilge and Klip Rivers, to the upwaters of the Tugela

and Buffalo Rivers from the Transvaal Region. These types did not

originate in the Free State, and they do not exist south of the great

Umzimvubu basin.

5. Nothing can yet be reed regarding the Natal Lowlands,

which may have been peopled from Mocgambique, by way of the

Zululand Lowlands.

6. While the Western Bypass provided a highway from Vryburg

to Klaver and Calvinia, this route was fed by lateral movements over

crossings of the Vaal between Barkly West and Douglas, and the

neighbourhood of the Vaal-Harts junction, related to the Klein Riet

River, and along the Kaap Plateau escarpment.

7. These last, and similar crossings of the Vaal, provided the types

that reached Namaqualand. Their route follows the Orange River,

though no demonstrable proof can be shown for continuity between

Upington and Steinkopf. Identity of types at each end of this hiatus

permits us to accept this route as a working hypothesis.

8. An alternative route from the Vaal-Harts, along the Kuruman

and Molopo Rivers to Namaqualand, is suggested, but only negative

evidence can here be adduced.

9. There is a great and important highway from the Transvaal,

by way of the Vaal River, which has not been specifically discussed

as the evidence is too obvious to be further laboured.

10. From this Vaal highway movements back and forth along the

rivers of the southern Free State are common, and provide the

material in the focal area of the Free State, which is cut off from

the Transvaal by the Vet-Marico area.

11. Crossings of the Orange River, in the stretch oppesite Hope

Town (related to the Ongers and the Seekoei Rivers), fed only those

routes that pass west of the Sneeuwberg (24° 30’ E. by 31° 45’8.). From

there access was gained to the Sundays River near Aberdeen and

Jansenville, and to the Doorn River near Beaufort West. The types

represented on these routes spread both east and west between the

parallel mountain folds of the south, and seem only to have reached

the coast at isolated points, such as the Sundays River mouth, Knysna,

and Mossel Bay.

12. Crossings in the neighbourhood of Smithfield and Aliwal North

provided routes that ran east of the Sneeuwberg, to feed the South-

Kastern Lowlands by two routes, one related to the Great Kei, the

other to the Great Fish River and the Bushmans River. From these

routes the greater part of the southern coastal belt was fed, and these

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 14]

migrations eventually give rise to most of the so-called “coastal

midden types.”’

13. There is little real reason for divorcing these southern midden

types from inland forms on a basis of either size or index. The differ-

ences appear to lie rather in the numerical proportions of the various

types that are presented in each environment.

14, The Central crossing also provided routes that cut directly

behind the south-eastern mountain ranges and south of the Sneeuwberg

to build paths that often transgressed the routes feeding the south

coast, running towards the Langeberg and the Breede River valley.

15. It is suggested that movements from the Free State, by way of

the sources of the Orange River, passed over Qacha’s Nek to the

Matatiele district, to provide the Northern Transkei specimens,

which do not agree with any Natal types immediately to the north.

These movements missed the Southern Transkei, and did not penetrate

Natal from the south. The Northern Transkei distribution will

therefore probably prove itself to be an intrusive divide between the

Southern Transkei and Natal, and is therefore important.

16. Types from the Prieska area and from the Western Bypass

reached the Cape of Good Hope. The Prieska material does not

transgress the 32° 30’ S. parallel.

17. Routes laterally from east to west (or sometimes conversely)

can be traced along the southern coastal belt in two or three parallel

paths, each confined along part of its course by either the coastal belt

or by valleys between the first, second and third mountain folds.

18. These routes generally fed either the Breede or the Bot River

valleys, both important as sources for types occurring in the Cape

Hinterland, and at the Cape of Good Hope, either as Flats or as

Midden types.

19. The same source supplied the Sandveld area; but it is note-

worthy that the Swartland area shows no affinities with any known

types in the rest of the Union.

20. The Cape of Good Hope seems to have been fed by a variety

of streams from the east, coming either by way of the Heidelberg

district, through the Bot River Valley, or from various similar sources

through the Breede River valley and the Cape Hinterland. No

material seems to have reached the Cape by any direct route from the

north.

21. These migrations covered a long period of time. A first halt

appears to have occurred at the Vaal River, after which spreads took

place by way of the Vaal, and to Natal. A second and more important

142 Annals of the South African Museum.

halt on the main highway occurred at the Orange River, after which

spread continued along the routes outlined in 11 and 12 above.

22. The period involved by the second halt is probably sufficient

to account for the apparent late survival and advancement of Middle

Stone Age types south of the southern mountain belt, such as the

Still Bay, Howieson’s Poort, and perhaps the Mossel Bay culture.

23. The Berg River valley, and the Olifants and Doorn Rivers,

provide a wide and unknown belt between the Bokkeveld and areas

farther south. No deductions can be made regarding this whele

stretch, but it may eventually explain the anomalous Swartland types.

24. Much local work is needed to discover the habitual associations,

not only of cultures, but also of each type of bored stone. I have

suggested that two or even three different types may normally repre-

sent the stones made by a single culture. While the question of the

differing sex of the users of digging-stones and knobkerries clouds the

issue, this should eventually be cleared up in the field.

PART IV.—ELONGATED PREHISTORIC TYPES AND

MIGRATIONS.

We have dealt with the circular and subcircular examples of the

Prehistoric Series of bored stones, and have followed them in their

migrations through southern Africa. We now discuss the elongated

specimens. These are defined as those in which the length is greater

than the width when casually inspected in plan. It has been found

that 8 per cent. represents the difference immediately observable, and

all the examples with a difference greater than this are listed here.

In a few cases it is difficult to be certain whether a stone was intended

to be circular or elongated, as subsequent breakage or use as a grinder

may have reduced the width. In such cases a careful estimate of

the original shape is made, and the missing figure given in brackets.

Certain questions arise in discovering the real relationship between

the circular series and the elongated. How far can these be divorced

from the circular series? Do they represent a variant that may

appear at any period, or in any culture or environment? Do they

represent a distinct cultural group or migration with a more limited

distribution, and particular distributional routes? Were they made

for the same uses as the circular examples? Is the elongated form

the result of a scarcity of round pebbles or is it the result of deliberate

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 143

[ft a

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WESTERN BYPASS. | 7".

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3 : "24710 2 2\2 2\35 2

Mars 7 AnD 8.—Migrational Routes to Natal and to the Western Bypass.

2\l

WESTERN

CROSSING

CENTRAL CROSSING re Be

++ BARRIERS

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pry: es

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721 Co :

poke ASTAL. B Ett

Maps 9, 10 anv 11. Fe Routes to N eS 5 and FF way

of the Western and Central crossings of the Orange River.

145

The Bored Stones of South Africa.

‘suowtoods Ie[NoILO

uMmouy Jo UI] syuesorder uly poyjop AavoyT “possnostp wore pue

siolieq ‘soynor urew Jo ArvwmuUNg—'ZT IVI

PART l,

VOL. XXXVII

146 Annals of the South African Museum.

choice? Are we perhaps dealing with a coastal type, used by people

who have penetrated inland at various points?

I shall attempt to answer some of these points, or to suggest factors

that may determine the eventual answer. For instance, it can be

said at once that these are not variants that appear universally.

The elongated series is the more localised, and in certain areas it is

completely absent. We thus have some 44 examples from Smithfield

and the Albert district presented by Dr. Kannemeyer, all of these

are circular, none are elongated. In the same way, elongated forms

only exist along one-sixth of the Western Bypass.

The suggestion that the elongated forms may be symptomatic of a

separate migration is not excluded by the finding of round and

elongated types in apparent association on the surface of sites or

kitchen middens. The very few cases in which association is suggested

by identity of museum accession number may be variously accounted

for. Quite apart from culture contacts, merging, marriage or

imitation, there are the difficult questions of chance association, and

the habit of presenting examples to a museum in batches whose true

provenance has been forgotten or muddled. This question of associa-

tion must be watched by collectors, and documented by our museums.

The limited distribution does suggest that we are dealing with a

distinct cultural spread.

The elongated series does not present a coastal type. As in the

case of the discs and flattened forms, this is a question of the pro-

portions of types. Inland the elongated types are rare; at the coast

they are somewhat more common. This might suggest that we are

dealing with a coastal people who may have spread inland. Evidence

from other parts of the continent would have to be considered, and

F. Cabu and M. Van den Brande * show that the proportions of

elongated to circular examples in the Congo is high. Material

collected in the Southern Rhodesia Museum, and kindly submitted

by Neville Jones, gives a very similar impression. These facts

suggest that both sorts of bored stone originated inland and to the

north of the Union.

Two facts point to the elongated forms being the result of a deliberate

selection of elongated stones. One is that the circular examples

were themselves selected for size; diameter and thickness were both

important, and seemingly part of a tradition. The same can be shown

for the elongated series, in which length and width were both im-

* “Contribution 4 l’étude de la répartition des Kwés au Katanga,’ Ann. Mus.

Congo Belge, D, Série I, tom I, fasc. 4, 1938.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 147

portant, though thickness was almost completely haphazard. It is

obvious then that this form was a chosen type. In addition the

distribution of the circular series includes the area of spread of the

elongated. The abundance of circular specimens shows that circular

pebbles were everywhere obtainable, if therefore there is any question

of choice then circular types would have been the compromise forms,

METHOD.

We have not yet enough material to make use of the region and

area system developed for the circular types, but specimens are

grouped under a new set of regions that I have left somewhat indefinite,

as future material is likely to increase these very considerably in

almost any direction not limited by an adjacent region. No attempt

has been made to group examples into types. Type averages are

given, and grouping can generally be deduced by eye, or recourse to

millimetre graph paper will supply the exact grouping.

These examples have three variables—length, width, and height

or thickness. They should therefore be plotted three-dimensionally.

This was originally done by grouping the specimens by one variable

(the height), and plotting each group so obtained by the other two

variables (length and width). Two very curious facts emerged from

this study. It was first observed that height, or the thickness of the

original stone, has little significance, and need only be taken into

account when the stone is extremely thin, 1 or 2 cm., and the type

is an elongated disc. The second discovery was that the proportion

of length to width is slightly more important than the exact measure-

ment of either. In plotting graphical distribution this means that

the scatter tends to be leaf-shaped rather than circular, with its axis

parallel to a diagonal representing certain proportions (generally 6 : 5).

Types have therefore been plotted by the first two figures only,

height being ignored. It would possibly be helpful to develop an

index, on the formula

Width x 100

Length

and to plot this against either length or width. The cube is useless

in assessing the type, as it is a product of height, which seems to have

had as little significance to the makers as the height of a plug has to

ourselves.

Regions have been altered to suit the distribution of elongated

148 Annals of the South African Museum.

types. The Thirstland here includes Namaqualand, while part of the

previous Thirstland now becomes the Midlands area. I do not

differentiate between the terms “region” and “‘area”’ as was done in

the previous section, as I do not regard the difference as important

here. The areas are generally wide enough to be regarded as regions,

and any further subdivision can wait until more material accumulates.

THE MATERIAL.

The columns given below represent length, width, height, cube,

maximum diameter of mouth and maximum diameter of the centre

of bore. To these may be added the weight and any comments.

Before proceeding to the bulk of the material at our disposal, we

may list a few examples from isolated areas.

MBABANE, SWAZILAND.

MMK 911 . 9-3 8-1 6-1 460 3-8 2-7 Schistose rock.

8-5 6-9 58 340 30 2-6 Rolled. Igneous

rock.

KURUMAN-GROENWATER RIVERS. KURUMAN.

MMK 961 . 142 12:9 63 1155 4:5 2-5 Fine white Ss.

GRIQUATOWN.

MMK 165. 142 11:3 7:0 +9125) 54-04 1322

The larger Mbabane example agrees well with the second Transvaal

type. The Kuruman and Griquatown specimens form members of a

single group that may be related to Natal and Cape Peninsula types,

but might just as easily belong to the MaNtatisi migration, to be

discussed later.

TRANSVAAL.

Material from the Transvaal proper and from the Upper Vaal has

been grouped together. I have here included seven examples that I

originally listed as Bantu, as they fit more clearly into the present

series. Only one of these was actually found with a Bantu specimen,

from Ohrigstad.

MEssina.*

HAC 1248 . 16:5 13:8 5:0 1140 45 3-6 #£=1:5 kg. Weathered

schist.

W247 el 5-3) 2:0: 3°5 645 34 14 .1]-2kg. Basicschist.

(1249 . 13-0 9-4 4:5 550 3-5 1:8 0O-8kg. Quartzite.)

(1250 . 12:2 9-7 4-0 475 3:8 20 0-57 kg. Yellow

schist.)

* These four specimens formed part of the original Geological Museum Collection.

The first pair are known to be from Messina district, twelve miles from the Limpopo

The Bored Stones of South Africa.

OHRIGSTAD.

PEM 615/J 11-8 10-2

ROOSSENEKAL.

WUA 1155 15:6 12:0

Univ. Stell. 16-2 12-2

LYDENBURG.

WUA 313 10-4 7:9

A/84 . 6:5 5-5

SANNIESHOF, LICHTENBURG.

ASJ 29/42 11:7 10-3

GREENLANDS, VREDEFORT.

ASJ 8/41 riesaie7(6l| 6:3

HEILBRON.

ELM 36c 11:7 10-0

TAUNGS.

AMG 1890 11:3. 10-0

SHEPPARD ISLAND.

ASJ 7/35/48 . 9-7 8-0

Averages: i. 16:5 13-8

Mi. lode 2-1

ie 12-0 9-9

iv. 10-0 8:0

v. 6:8 5:9

4-2

bo >

3:9

6-0

7:0

9-3

5:0

6-4

5-4

4-]

505

1600

1425

500

145

820

175

700

790

720

1140

1225

640

610

160

3:2

oo bo

QW D>

2-4

3°5

35)

3-2

1-9

2-0

2-2

1-2

2-0

3:3

2:9

149

Possibly Bantu, sub-

mitted to P.E.

Mus. with a Bantu

example.

1:15kg. Ironstone.

0-23 kg.

Wonderstone.

1 foot deep. Un-

associated.

1-03 kg.

Under 3 feet of

gravel.

It seems clear that this small series is by no means representative

of a prehistoric population of normal density. Either these people

merely passed swiftly through this area, or a vast work still remains

to be done here.

SOUTHERN ORANGE FREE STATE.

WINDSORTON.

SAM 1829 13-0

RIETPAN.

MMK 684 . = 6:3

DOUGLAS.

SAM 06 5 Ors}

PHILIPPOLIS.

JNSS) = 5 . £89

River.

11-4

5-4

5:0

7-0

9-3

3°6

4-5

4-3

1280

122

142

270

6-4

2°8

3°6

3°8

0:5

2:5

2-4.

Ss.

From the entry Dr. Harger presumes that 1249 and 1250 are from the

same part. The provenance is therefore uncertain, but we may include them here

as products of the same geological excursion to the Northern Transvaal.

150 Annals of the South African Museum.

KOFFIEFONTEIN.

MMK 1412 . 13:8 11-5 305 530 3:2 1:8

TpsHOM ee) Neri) 6-9 6:0 320) ssD) 92-0 Sst

WUA 1100/C 8-5 7-6 4:9 320. 38 1-7 O-ATike:

MMK 1657 6-1 5-1 3°8 118 35 1:8 Ss. Flared bore.

1432 52 (46) 42 100 28 12 £Ss. Damaged.

STRYDPOORT, JAKOBSDAL.

WUA 975 . 80 6:8 6-0 430 39 2:2 0:42 kg.

AVALON.

ASJ 9/38/10 . 9-0 6-1 7:3 400 46 2:8 Two opposed faces

flattened. Eccen-

tric hole. Smith-

field Bassociations.

MAFETENG.

SAM 3183 . 12:9 10:6 4 LOLOD a4 2 ute Started.

BuTHABUTHA.

SAM 1758 7-7 6:8 4-] O15, , 4:05 21 Shale.

Averages: i. 13:2 11-2 6-7 950

i. 369 6:9 5-5 350

Wi. aes 6:8 5:4 290

iv. 6-0 5:0 4:5 isp

There is little agreement between these averages and those above,

but the second Swaziland example fits type ui, though no deduction

can be made, on account of distance. Types 1 and i seem to form

a pair.

THIRSTLAND.

PRIESKA.

Sharples5 . 81 6-6 (1-5) as 14 0:6 Micaceous shale.

Deep radial scor-

ing by rodent.

Anomalous.

GROOTENAUTE, PRIESKA.

SAM 5028 . 12:0 10:5 6:7 850 5:3 2:6

BUSHMANLAND.

SAM Bain . 11:7 9-0 4:7 495 4:0 3:2 Hammer.

STEINKOPF, NAMAQUALAND.

NMP 2342/1. 11:5 10-0 7-6 875 47 29 1-5kg.

2349) 2 9-1 7-6 7-2 500 50 2:3 40:76 kg.

2586 . 10-2 6:5 7:0 465 45 2-6 0-65 kg.

2580 . 8-4 6:7 7-5 420 3:8 2:2 0-69 kg. Oval hole,

3-1 x 2:2 cm.

2342/A. 7:8 6-2 5:7 275 34 18 £0-47 kg.

BRITSTOWN.

Heese Coll. 20 11-3 9-7 6-9 755. 35 2-1 | 1:16) )kes@mnder

Hammer.

16 11:3 #£210-4 6:2 HERO RD) Pep 1:05 kg. Quartzite.

24 10:0 7:3 4] 300 36 2-1 0-45 kg. Pebble.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 151

CARNARVON.

AMG 689 a) hse 9-2 8:3 920 62 42 Two sides flattened

by hammering.

Elliptical hole.

Striated from top

to bottom.

SUTHERLAND.

Drennan Coll. 8-7 7:2 5-0 315 3:3 .. Ss. pebble.

BEAUFORT WEST.

MMK 1103. . 4:7 3°9 2-0 edt es dal Anomalous.

The Beaufort West example is anomalous, and is most probably

a circular type (the bead type so typical of the area) made from an

elongated stone. The anomalous types are not employed in taking

averages.

Averages: i. 11:5 10-2 6-9 810

un. 11-8 9-1 6:3 708

mu, 10-1 6-9 55 390

iv. 8-5 6-9 6-3 380

These averages immediately suggest the route by which Namaqualand

was reached, through the dry country to the west, or along the Orange

to Steinkopf.

NATAL.

Umautotr Bracu, DURBAN.

A. G. Wills 4. 10-2 8-1 4-8 400 3-1 .. Gritty Ss.

WEENEN.

Wore. 2824 «12-3 9:3 8-2 925 5:7 2-4

908 11-9 9-6 5:6 645 5-1 2-1

KRANSKOP-GREYTOWN ROAD.

SET: . 113 9-5 4:3 455 3-1 08

RICHMOND.

SEI2 . ¢ bb, LZ 66 1145 46 2-1

*“NATAL.”’

NMP — . 140 12-4 76 1320 55 1:5

Averages: i. 14:7 11:8 74 1230

ii. 11-8 9-5 6:0 675

The first group is unsatisfactory, but straddles the scatter of the

second group in the south-eastern area almost exactly. This may

be important in discussing migration.

MIDLANDS.

This area is essentially an inland area of migration, and has been

chosen to represent the variation within a single type. The type

152 Annals of the South African Museum.

(Nucleus 4) is reflected in slightly differing averages in surrounding

areas to the east and south, and this Midlands area overlaps the

South-Eastern and the Southern Forests Regions to some extent.

VENTERSTAD.

Univ. Stell. . 11:55 10:0 (43) 500 38 2:8 ##Both faces worn.

Soapstone.

STEYNSBURG.

ASJ 61/386 . 10-9 9-8 5:9 630 4:2 2-7. Shale.

Lapy FRERE.

ELM 42 . SLI-b 9-7 5:0 560 3:5 2-2 1:02kg. Grinder.

Huvux.ty, STUTTERHEIM.

ELM 76 ~ 105 9-0 4:5 435 40 22 £0°68 kg.

GRAAFF REINET A.

AMG 2448 . 10-9 9-5 71 735 3:6 1:8 Hammer. One side

flattened.

ABERDEEN.

ELM 72 « Abb 9-8 4-5 505 3: 2-2

Kirkwoop, SuNDAYS RIVER.

Mossop Coll... 11:9 10:6 6:6 835 45 3-0

ScHOENMAKERS, Port ELIZABETH.

PEM 615/L . 11:3 10:3 7:3 840 4:7 2:7 1:02 kg.

MatmtLtanp Mines Farm.

PEM 615/A . 10:8 9-4 5:3 540 48 21 0-67 kg.

FERNDALE, HUMANSDORP.

ELM 80 - 11:0 #£10-0 5-0 550 35 22 08 kg.

Average: 11:2 10-0 5'8 640

The limits of variation from the average are seen to be: Length,

0:7 cm.; Width, 1:0 cm.; Height, 1-5 cm.

Note the slight change in width, and the wide range in height, 4-3

to 7-3cm. Analogous types can be followed at Alicedale, Cambridge,

etc., with a wider variation in some dimensions. They have been

included under other regions, but prove the presence of a single

widespread culturaltype. This suggests that any attempt to associate

and isolate this type definitively must be undertaken in the Hastern

Province of the Cape of Good Hope. A careful listing of associable

material, including paintings, etc., should be of very great help to us

in the future.

SouTH-EASTERN REGION.

ROSMEAD.

PEM 614/F . 14:2 12-3 6-9 1205) 94-2 1-7 1-65 kg.

STRATTON, QUEENSTOWN.

ELM 91 5. 16:0 9-0 70 1010 45 2:2 2-04 kg. Anomalous.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 153

THORNEYCROFT, QUEENSTOWN.

ELM 92 - 150 13:2 6-5

74 » 13856 115 6-0

Harry VaLuey, CATHCART.

ELM 95 . 162 143 75

BREAKFASTVLEI, KINGWILLIAMSTOWN.

ELM — . 145 12-0 5-5

FERNDALE, KomGHa.

ELM 105 » 160 137 6-5

39 = 7-0 5:5 4-7

BasHEE RIVER.

TMP 7538 . 95 5-1 6-9

CAMBRIDGE, East Lonpon.

ELM 35 A. . 18:0 11-8 4-0

35B. . 11:5 9-5 4-0

East Lonpon.

MMK 2805 . 15:0 11:3 4-0

ASJ — » 120 9-3 5-0

ELM 46 2. &7 6:8 4-5

— . 60 5-0 35

Fort Bravurort.

ELM 48 .. FO 6-0 3-5

BEDFORD.

PEM 614/E . 7:5 6-7 4:3

GRAHAMSTOWN.

AMG 2980... 15: 13-6 6-5

. 13-7 12:0 8-0

UNIONDALE, ALBANY.

AMG — cm fe eee 7:2 4:0

ALICEDALE.

PEM 614/Y . 149 12:3 12-4

mee 8 3) 9-7 6-9

AMG 1643 . 11:5 8:8 6:8

Mimosa.

SAM — o32T — 2-8 7:5

Kierpoort-CorGa Roap A.

PEM 614/c . 12:7 11-4

Averages: i. 16:0 13-9

ms 14-7 12-5

1290

930

5:0

tos

2-22 kg.

0-45 kg.

Anomalous.

1-3 kg. Horseshoe.

Anomalous.

0-93 kg. Quarry.

0-34 kg. Fort Gla-

morgan.

0-23 kg. Buffalo

River, West.

0-23 kg. Ss.

0-29 kg.

Unshapely.

Irregular.

2-2 kg. Very thick.

1-06 kg.

Zuurberg lava.

1-01 kg.

154 Annals of the South African Museum.

Note the extraordinary range of thickness in type ii (5:5 to 12-4 cm.).

The Kleinpoort-Coega Road site has been split, as this is obviously

at about the point of junction of the two areas, South-East and

Southern Forests. The Rosmead example comes from some distance

outside this area, but it fits well with the Queenstown, Breakfastvlei,

Komgha, and East London specimens in this group. It shows no

relationship to the Midlands type. )

SOUTHERN FORESTS.

KLEINPOORT-CoEGA Roap B.

PEM 614/c. . 9-0 78 4-9 505 3:5 2:2 0-8 kg.

TZITZIKAMMA MIDDENS.

PEM 94 183055 9-3 4:5 565 (83 2-3) 0-8kg. Conical bore. $

Anomalous.

Si aac O 5:3 325 46 23 40-43 kg.

PLETTENBERG Bay.

SAM 1660 . 12-4 9-0 1:6 180 3:0 2-0 Shaledisc. Anoma-

lous.

ROBBERG CAVES.

SAM 2849 . 9-4 7-4. 5°5 385 3:9 1:9 Ss. Midden.

Univ. Stell. . 12-4 9-0 2-6 290 2:8 1:5 “Propellor shaped.”

ASJ 11/41. 8-9 7:4 2°5 165 44 2-1 Elliptical hole.

KNYSNA.

Robinson Coll. 15:3 12:3 fl) MIG) aka sai Coarse Ss. Erratic.

SAM Bain . (12-5) 10-2 8-1 1035 4:2 2-4 Coarse Ss. Broken.

One face flattened

before boring.

UCT — ot ee Oat: 6-0 710 4:0 2-6 Coarse Ss.

Robinson Coll. 12-5 9-4 5:8 680 3-7 2:0 Sandy shale.

11-1 9-6 4-2 450 3:9 2-8 Sandy shale.

SAM 4895 11-0 8:3 4-9 AAD 4026 Sse

Robinson Coll. 9:8 7:0 4:3 295 40 2-1] Ss.

9-1] 7-9 3-2 23008 2-9 7-8) ass

Sharples 3/ 9-9 5:8 4-] 230 2:5 1:9 Anomalous.

DRIPPING WELL, KNYSNA.

- Robinson Coll. 11:3 10:0 7-2 815 4:6 Surface quartzite.

WILDERNESS.

UCT —/43 . 12:0 10-1 (6:0) 730 4:7 2-9 Split. Witteberg

Ss. Midden.

OUDTSHOORN.

Pocock Coll. . 11-7 7:7 6:3 570 «63:6 °° 2-1

GRAAFF REINET B.

F. Malan Coll. 12:1 9-0 5:4 600 42 2:0 Grinder. Ss.

MossreL Bay.

HHC (Black). 11:

15 430

SAM — 5) bis,

280

Toon)

2-4 TMS pebble.

Corer

bo =

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 155

Doorn River, BARRYDALE.

SAM 173 . 12-4 9-6 6-5 775 55 2-4 Compare South Coast,

average i.

Averages: i. 15:3 12:3 75 1410

i. Lis 9-9 5-7 670

ii. 12:3 9-2 5-1 585

iv. 11:3 8-0 5:6 510

Wel SHO 7-4 4-4 312

Types 1 and ii are obviously the commencement of ..a division in

the Midlands type (11-2 x 10-0 x 5-8 cm.). We will watch the larger

of the two develop further in the South Coast area. Note the inclusion

of Barrydale in the present area. Type v appears to be a consistently

midden variety.

SoutH Coast AREA.

BRAaNDWacuHT, Mosset Bay.

SAM . 12:4 10-3 5:5 700 = 55

MELKHOUTBOS, ALBERTINIA.

HHC 1056 . 10:5 9-0 7:8 345 4:0 2:2 0-52kg. TMS.

BLOEMBOs.

Heese Coll. 23 9-0 7:8 71 500 3:8 2:5 Quartzite pebble.

RIVERSDALE.

Heese Coll. 22 13:0 11-0 6-8 905 43 2-2 Quartz pebble.

25 85 7-4 3:8 140 3:2 2-5. 0-28kg. Ss. pebble.

13. 7-0 6:3 2-4. 106 2-1 1:3 0-17-kg. Quartzite.

CapPE INFANTA.

F. Malan Coll. 11-1 8-4 5-5 515 84-2

CaprE AGULHAS.

ASJ 29/46/2. 12-7 10:8 4-4 550 46 2:6

12:4 10:8 3:9 520 4:2 2:5

Het BosMANSPAD, SWELLENDAM.

SAM 183 oes OS 79 1020 46 2-6

SWELLENDAM.

SAM 181 . 12-4 10-6 4-6 605 3-8 1-9 Compare Barrydale.

10-2 8:6 5:4 475 42 2-0

9-0 7:7 3:5 245 28. 2-0

6-0 4-1 0-5 (12) 2:0 0:5 Anomalous disc.

Montacu.

SAM 5018 . 12:0 10:5 5:6 705 45 1:6 Ss. Grinder.

9-] 7:6 3°6 PANO) Ad EI Sep

CERES.

SAM 50138. 12:5 #8 10-4 3°6 470 45 25 TMS.

HERMANUS.

SNe en Qe) BONN 9.7 090) a9

156 Annals of the South African Museum.

Gorpon’s Bay A.

Univ. Stell. . 12:2 10-8 8-7 1145 3-6

F. Malan Coll. 12:3 10-7 Ter? 9507 75-9 aus

(6:0) 5-1 1-1 af 2:3. 1:2 Oblong slate disc.

Battered.

Jardine Coll.. 7:3 5-1 2:9 108 25 =—18

Averages: i. 12:4 10-6 5:0 645

li. 10:7 8-5 5:4 495

iis 950 7:6 3°6 245

iv. 6-4 4:8 1-5 50

I have divided Gordon’s Bay into two series. The last two examples

fit in well with the third specimen given from Swellendam. It might

have been as appropriate to divide Swellendam, and bring this single

example into the Steenbras-Palmiet Area.

STEENBRAS-PALMIET RIVERS.

VILLIERSDORP.

UCT —/48 . 11:2 10:0 8:3 930 55 2-5 ‘Tertiary Ss.

115 10:0 6:2 715 44 25 ‘TMS.

A. M. de

Villiers . 11:0 9-5 6-1 635 4:2 2-2 ‘TMS pebble.

UCT —/43 . 10°5 9-3 4:6 495 3-7 19 Ss. pebble. Two

faces ground to

an edge.

A. M. de

Villiers . 81 6-8 4:7 315 3:5 2:0 ‘TMS pebble.

KoGeEt Bay MIDDENS.

WUA 256 . 9-9 7:3 5:0 365 44 1:5 £0-51 kg.

HANGELIP.

Univ. Stell. . 13:5 10-2 3°8 525) 4-0 ed Erratic.

HAwWSTON.

MMK 1253. 17-8 11-2 68 1995 4:8 2:4 Ss. Anomalous.

. 10-4 7:3 6-2 AO 422 el Ss. Hammer at

ends.

CALEDON COAST.

Drennan Coll. 13:6 12:0 5:5 900 46 2:4 Ss. Midden, found

with small conical

based pot.

GorpDon’s Bay B.

MMK 420. 15:4 11:8 79 1815 4:7 2:3 Erratic, cf. Knysna.

F. Malan Coll. 11:3 9-4 6-1 648 4-1 sf

Univ Stell... 12:7, 9-2 5:3 615 4:0 1-1 Anomalous.

F. Malan Coll. 9-2 7:3 6-8 455 4-6 .. Uneven grey Ss.

11-0 8-9 4-5 440 2:8 18 ‘TMS.

Univ. Stell. 9-4 7-2 5:8 395) 73:8 6

9-0 7:3 5:3 350 46 2-0

Jardine Coll. 11-4 9-2 3:2 335 4:1 2-2

Univ. Stell. 10°5 9-7 2:7 215) 3-9 el

7:8 6-5 5:3 275 = 2-7 5 Started.

10-1 8-0 3:3 265) 2 leer Merely started.

F. Malan Coll. 8-8 6-8 4-4 265 3-8 2:0 Grey quartz-veined

shale.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 157

STELLENBOSCH.

PEMIGIZ/K. 13-2 11:6 8:0 labo Sell ad Ske,

Drennan Coll. 13:9 12-4 58 1020 46 2:4 ‘TMS. pebble.

Her 27/15. 10:6 75 6-5 515 3-6 TMS.

Averages: i. 13:5 12-0 6-8 1090

li. 13-1 oT 4-6 570

ite 1-0 9-5 5-2 560

iv. 10-4 7:6 5:3 415

Ve o-2 7:3 6-0 400

Vien Ore 6-7 4-8 285

The anomalous and erratic examples are not included.

SwWARTLAND-SANDVELD.

CLANWILLIAM.

SAM Bain . 11:5 10-0 5:5 635 5°5 , 23

8:0 5:8 4:8 225) 3-4.) 2-8

9-0 8-0 2°8 200 2-2 1-8 Subrectangular.

SALDANHA.

UCT — . 13:6 10:6 5:7 820 3-1 2-6

MMK 1499 71 5-4 5:8 220) 3-459 2:1 Ss. Grinder.

MELKBOSSTRAND.

SAM 5016. 9-4 8-0 3:5 265 4:7 2:5 Malmesbury shale.

WELLINGTON.

SAM — peedd-5 10-0 5-1 585 5:0 2-4 TMS. pebble.

Grinder.

GROENBERG, WELLINGTON.

F. Malan Coll. 13-7 11-0 85 1280 48 1-7 TMS.

NABYGELEGEN, WELLINGTON.

F. Malan Coll. 5-1 4:2 1-0 (21) 1:7 0-8 Disc. Anomalous.

GoOEDEHOOP, WELLINGTON.

F. Malan Coll. 10:5 8-9 6-4 590 48 2:0 Erratic. Steenbras-

Palmiet.

7-0 5:7 3°8 T52e roca leS

Averages: i. 13-7. 10:8 (les {L050

me 14-5 10-0 5:3 610

lii. 9-2 8-0 3:2 230

riya iieel 5:6 4-7 200

There is a general resemblance to the Steenbras-Palmiet area (to

which type ii shows a particular resemblance) and also with the

Thirstland and Midlands. Type iresembles a Cape Peninsula type.

CapE PENINSULA.

LAMBERT’S Bay.

SAM — 14-6 12-5 3°5 640 3:8

BLOEMBOS, DARLING.

SAM 784 ey 12-0 10:0 5-0 600 6:0 2-1 ‘TMS. pebble.

Wilton.

158

MALMESBURY.

NMP 2599 14:5 11:0

Batn’s Kioor.

NMP 2581 13:0 11:0

WOLSELEY.

PEM 615/E . 12-2 9-]

VLOTTENBERG.

UCT 44/4 14-2 11-0

KuipKop, Parow.

SAM 5011 13:7. 10-2

5012 12-8 11-1

5011

11-8 9-3

ORANJEZICHT, CAPE Town.

SAM 4999 . 8-7 6:4

Hout Bay MIDDENS.

SAM 4777 1255 10-2

17-2 8612-5

4750 13:9 10:5

4777 13:0 11:3

UCT 27/18 16:0 10°5

SAM 4777... 9-0 75

NooRDHOEK MIDDENS.

Mossop Coll.. 10-4 (8-6)

KoMMETJE MIDDENS.

SAM 3831 10:6 9:0

Cape PoInt.

SAM Martin. 14:0 12-4

SIMONSTOWN.

SAM Martin. 146 12:0

Fiso Hogrk.

J.B.Gordon. 10:5 8-8

SAM Peers 10-2 7:3

8:3 7:0

Smit’s Farm, Fish Honk.

Mossop Coll. . 10-0 7:5

Sr. JAMES.

UCT 44/5 . 8&4 7:6

5:6

9-2

4-4

6-7

4-7

4-5

3°6

Se be iS ©

mo OwWId-E

7:8

6-4

4-8

5:3

950

1315

490

1045

655

640

495

200

1025

975

880

655

300

196

700

610

835

1155

425

255

198

330

340

3°6

7:8

3°8

4-2

4:3

4-4

4-5

3:2

bt He OU OU Or

bo CO HW OL

4-0

4-3

3'8

3°8

les)

1-9

1-6

2-3

2-2

2-4

2-3

Annals of the South African Museum.

1-7 kg.

2°13 kg. :

0-69 kg.

Ss.

TMS. pebble.

Burial.

TMS. pebble.

Burial.

TMS. pebble.

Burial.

Ss. pebble. Grinder.

TMS. pebble.

Shale pebble.

TMS. pebble.

Slate disc. Anoma-

lous.

TMS pebble.

Purple Ss.

TMS. pebble.

Greenish shale.

TMS.

Shale.

Grinder.

Waterworn.

5 feet deep. Grinder.

Ss. Used as hammer,

Station House

Garden.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 159

CaPE FLATS.

SAM 605 -. 165 145 10:0 2395 3-5 2:5 Outsized. Anoma-

lous.

Lister 15:8 12:0 3°8 720 48 1-9

12438 . 12:0 10:0 6:0 720 36 1:5

AMG 2419 . 12:7 9-0 5:7 650 48 2:0 Pointedstone. Oval

hole.

SAM Bain. 146 (11-4) 3:5 585 3:5 3-1 Laterally flattened.

402 ae O-o 9-2 5:7 a0) aie). Dopo

Bain . 10:5 9-1 5-1 490 35 2-1

9-5 7-5 3:7 265 4:0 2-0

10-0 8:8 2-0 IEray 9 PAIL le 7/

PHILIPPI.

Arends Coll. . 13:0 11-2 6-8 990 4:2 2-5 12 feet deep in sand.

Oval hole.

PRINCESS VLEI.

Mossop Coll.. 14:5 10:3 4-6 685 4:0 2-2 Skew bored.

Victoria HospitaL, PINELANDS.

ASJ — . 10-0 8:8 2-2 195% 3:5 2-5

NEWLANDS.

SAM Camp . 13:3 10-4 4-0 550 4:0 1:6 Shale pebble.

CONSTANTIA.

Jager Coll. . 12-0 95 (7:6) 865 50 3-0

ToKal.

SAM — . 140 10-0 3:0 420 45 2-8 Irregular.

Averages: i. 16:5 12-2 4-2 850

iis. Lieto) TTY) 4-8 535

aie ZO) 2, 6-1 675

Ves Ou eLO:3 4-4 638

Mf, dap 9-6 5-9 565

wig 1iOr3} 8-9 4:8 450

wills ) Oey 74 3°6 260

Vili. 8-5 7-0 4-] 245

Only type 1 seems to have a peculiar distribution, z.e. Lambert’s

Bay, Malmesbury, Cape Point, Simonstown, and a single example

from the Cape Flats. Type vill may be a divergent from type vil.

The St. James example, presented by A. R. H. Walker, is nearly

circular, and may be a slightly elongated variant of the circular type,

CH. xi.

Comparative Distribution of Elongated and Circular Forms.

Material is listed opposite the areas used above for the elongated

forms. These are not directly comparable with the regions and areas

used for circular forms, but the areas given here for the circular types

are those that most nearly coincide. The first column of figures gives

the total of elongated specimens; the central column shows the

160 Annals of the South African Museum.

distribution of circular forms in component and comparable areas,

while the final figure gives the total. A few additional circular forms

have been submitted too late for inclusion in the list. No new

elongated forms are known.

Area. Elongated. Circular by Areas. Circular.

Kuruman-Groenwater 2 Uzi 17

Transvaal-Swaziland 15 9+29+18+17+26+11+420 130

Southern Free State . 13 59+18+23+33+17+5+4+18 1B

South-East Free State . 0 45 45

Upington-Hartbees 0 14 14

Bokkeveld ? 0) 6 6

Thirstland 14 24+154+25+8 12

Natal . 6 23+9 a2

Midlands 10 7+9+22 38

North Transkei 0 2 2

South-East region 25 19+13+14+4+13+421 80

Southern Forests . 23 5+114+3+4+19+82+10 130

South Coast . 22 44+418 62

Gouritz-Karoo ) 13 13

Steenbras-Palmiet 25 24+10+41 75

Swartland-Sandveld ll 27+5 32

Cape Peninsula 39 17 +53 70

TOTALS . 205 991

MIGRATIONS.

It will be remembered that, in discussing the Transvaal circular

types, 1t was shown that there are seven prototypes to be discerned

in the Transvaal and the Vet-Marico area. These persist and can

still be recognised in Natal and the Vaal River areas, but in the Free

State the picture becomes blurred. There seems to have been a

stoppage, a period of lateral movements that gave rise to new forms,

with little or no attempt to cross the Thirstland to the south of the

Orange. It was therefore found convenient for us to regard those

types that eventually crossed the Orange southward as deuterotypes,

though these were not clearly isolated.

In our study of the elongated series the picture is very different,

and to account for those differences we shall have to assume that the

cultural migrations that first brought the elongated types into the

Union were different in origin from those that brought the circular

types, whatever may have been the eventual results of mixture.

In the elongated series there are (oddly enough) seven prototypes.

These are arrived at by a method somewhat different from that

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 161

employed to develop the Transvaal prototypes for the circular series,

and I have therefore called them “nuclei.” These may not all have

entered the Union at the same point or within the same area, but our

knowledge is limited by present lack of evidence.

The first point of interest is that these nuclei persist over a far

wider area than the seven prototypes. As will be seen when we

discuss the ““Age and Area” hypothesis, there can only be one

explanation for this persistence; that spread was faster and was not

hampered by any period of delay in the Free State, nor by deferment

of the crossing of the Thirstland southward. This itself needs ex-

planation. The earlier spread was hampered by the dangers of the

Thirstland and the unknown peril of pressing farther and farther into

what might prove to be an increasingly arid area. In addition, it

would be faced by hostile remnants of the Middle Stone Age peoples

to the south. Some period of consolidation and of reconnaissance

was essential. In contrast, any later spread by a friendly incoming

culture could have followed freely without these inhibitions, probably

by what had become a well-marked and well-known route. This

gives us reason to presume that the circular types are the earlier,

and the elongated are later. Slhght contributory evidence les in

the fact that a greater proportion of circular specimens he buried

at depth in different parts of the Union. To the north, in the Congo,

both types of bored stones seem to be found persistently at depth,

and to precede the later Neolithic period, according to Dr. F. Cabu,

and no differentiation has yet been attempted. M. Janmart finds

the bored stones of N.E. Angola under the youngest gravels on

bedrock.

To take the matter a highly speculative step farther, it may eventu-

ally be possible to suggest that the circular types were the tools of

the vague physico-cultural-linguistic ““Bushman” group, while the

elongated types may similarly be attributable to the equally vague

cultural-physical-linguistic “‘Hottentots.” Whether or not they

will ever prove to be associable with Smithfield-bearing and with

Wilton-bearing cultural groups remains to be seen. This is here put

forward for what it may eventually prove to be worth. Much still

remains to be said for the logical steps that have led me towards

making the more legitimate suggestions set out above.

THE SEVEN NUCLEI.

We exclude the South Coast, Steenbras-Palmiet, Swartland, and

Cape Peninsula areas for the present, as these are the farthest from

VOL. XXXVII, PART I. 11

169 Annals of the South African Museum.

any point of entry into the Union, and are therefore to be regarded

as later and derived forms. Our discussion will for the moment be

confined to the remaining areas, east of Mossel Bay, and north of

about 33° S.

If we take all the averages that we have already developed, exclud-

ing anomalous types, for this part of the Union we find that there are

seven nuclei of averages on our graph. These nuclei are made up

as follows :—

q, 16:5 13-8 5-0 1140 #£xTransvaal.

16:0 13-9 70 1560 South-East.

Nucleus]. 16-2 13-8 6-0 1350

2: 14-2 12:1 6-6 1140 Molopo-Groenwater.

15:7 Le 6-4 1225 ‘Transvaal.

14:7 11-8 7:4 1230 8=6Natal.

15-3 12:5 75 1395 South-East.

15-3 12:3 7-5 1410 Southern Forests.

3. 13222) le? 6-7 950 Orange Free State.

1S le 6-4 910 South-East.

Nucleus 3. 3-6, LS 6:5 930

4. 12:0 9-9 5-4 640 Transvaal.

11:8 9:5 6:0 675 Natal.

Lay 1022 6-9 810 Thirstland.

11:5 9-] 6:3 710 #£Thirstland.

11-2 10:0 5:8 640 Midlands.

11-6 9-3 5:7 615 South-East.

11-8 9-9 5:7 670 Southern Forests.

12°3 9-2 5-1 585 Southern Forests.

Nucleus 4) ai” toe Vs'8 670

5 10:0 8:0 7:7 610 Transvaal.

11:3 8-0 6-4 510 Southern Forests.

Nucleus 5 . 10:5 7:6 6:3 505

6. 8-5 6:9 58 340 Swaziland.

8-9 6-9 5:5 350 Orange Free State.

7:8 6-8 5-4 290 Orange Free State.

8-5 6:9 6:3 380 Thirstland.

8:2 6-9 4:3 240 South-East.

9-0 7-4 4-4. 310 Southern Forests.

Nucleus 6 . 8:5 7:0 5:2 315

7. 6:8 5:9 4-] 160 Transvaal.

6-0 5:0 4-5 135 Orange Free State.

6-7 5:5 3°9 145 South-East.

Nucleus 7 . 6:5 5:5 4-2 150

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 163

These nuclei are not true averages, as I have not loaded the figures

correctly, but the error is not more than a few millimetres in each

case. This table gives the distribution by areas, the nucleus figures,

and the variation from the averages.

Unhappily it is impossible for us to say how many different objects

it was intended to make. We might suggest that the makers were

aiming at digging-stick stones, knobkerrie heads, and dagga-pipes;

but they might just as easily have intended a variety of objects outside

our ken, such as traps for small birds, stands for the centre-poles of

huts, etc. Plotting the distribution of all individual types from the

areas cited above, it will be found that there are three marked aggrega-

tions, coinciding with nuclei 2, 4, and 6. This suggests that three

objects were intended, and leaves us with two possibilities: either

nuclei 3, 5, and 7 are divergents, or we are considering two separate

cultural spreads, each with three elements. Nuclei 1 and 2 are

certainly related to each other in the Transvaal.

This coincidence of types over the greater part of the Union supplies

us with proof that our groups are a valid and reasonable source for

deductions as to migration and spread. Further proof can be obtained

by the application of these types to geographical distribution with

the intention of discovering localised types and migrational routes,

reasonably related to terrain and environment. I have therefore

plotted the distribution of those examples most closely approximating

to the average in each area, with curious and unexpected results.

For the geographical plotting I employ a grid of one inch to the

degree, using graph paper. This simplifies plotting, as one-tenth of

an inch represents 6’ of degree, simplifying the making of distribution

maps. The distortion resulting from the use of a square grid is

negligible in the Union, and occurs at points where it 1s most needed,

at the southern end of the Union where routes are congested.

In making deductions from distribution maps various points have

to be constantly remembered, and we may list those that affect the

present material.

1. Our knowledge depends to some extent on the original distribu-

tion of the prehistoric makers, and to some extent on the actual

distribution of people sufficiently intelligent to recognise, collect,

and submit specimens. Happily the two distributions roughly

coincide, except in the sparsely populated Northern Transvaal and

in the native territories.

2. Too little is known of the elongated series from the Transvaal,

Natal, Bechuanaland, the Transkei and Basutoland to yield evidence

164 Annals of the South African Museum.

of value. Our deductions will be of the greatest value in the southern

Free State, Griqualand West, and the Cape Province.

3. We can make three fairly safe deductions concerning the direc-

tion of migrations. South of 28°S8. migration seems to have been

radial, west, south-west or south-east from a point west of the Basuto-

land massifs, directed towards the coast-line. It is just possible

that the elongated types (in contrast to the circular) may in some

instances have passed through Natal to the South-Eastern area.

Finally, once the coast was reached at any point migration might

have been in either or in both possible directions.

4. Owing to the factor of “serial copying” we must expect to find

a change in type average, or a doubling of types, as we go farther from

the sourch of each type. This effect becomes marked when the

Southern Forests are passed.

5. Areas immediately west of the Southern Forests seem to have

been fed through that region, and the type averages at the Cape and

the areas round about are somewhat different from those elsewhere.

6. The Southern Forests area thus seems to have been a point of

sojourn and consolidation, a focus where types had time to multiply

before passing farther west.

7. In studying migrational routes it may be possible from our

knowledge of terrain to suggest the route followed along a particular

stream, or through a gap in the hills.

8. Anomalous types (so marked on the list) have been tried out,

but their distribution is of no value whatsoever. We must regard

these as the products of individuality.

THE RovutesEs.*

Nucleus 1. 16-2 x 13-8 x 6:0 cm.

Confined to Messina in the northern Transvaal; then recurring at

Happy Valley, Cathcart, and at Queenstown and Grahamstown. Two

or three examples from the Cape show a similar type. The gaps of a

thousand and six hundred miles respectively preclude any deductions.

Nucleus 2. 15:0 x 12:1 x 7-1 cm.

Examples from Messina, Roossenekal, Richmond, and ‘“*Natal’’

show a distribution towards Natal. A clearer route can be plotted as

follows: Kuruman, Griquatown, Koffiefontein, Rosmead, Queens-

town, Komgha, Kingwilliamstown, Hast London, Grahamstown,

Alicedale.

* Maps of routes are given on pages 171 and 172.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 165

Between Alicedale and Knysna there is a gap, and a slightly smaller

type (13-9 x 11-2 x 6-5) runs to Cape Hangklip, Gordon’s Bay, Simons-

town, Cape Point, and to Malmesbury and Clanwilliam. It is highly

probable that this southern variant is a derivative of nucleus 3.

Nucleus 3. 13°3x11-5x6-5 cm.

No examples are known north of 28° 20’ S. or east of 27° 30’ E.

The distribution runs as follows: Windsorton, Koffiefontein,

Mafeteng, Queenstown, Fort Beaufort, Grahamstown, Mimosa,

Coega, Assegaibos, Tzitzikamma, Mossel Bay, Riversdale, Barrydale,

Swellendam, Agulhas, Hermanus, Hawston, Caledon Coast, Hangklip,

Gordon’s Bay, Vlottenberg, Stellenbosch, and the Cape Peninsula.

From about Stellenbosch there is a branch that continues to

Wellington, Bain’s Kloof, Goudini, Saldanha Bay. Towards the Cape

the type changes to a slightly smaller average (12-6 x 10-9 x 5-8 cm.).

Nucleus 4. 11-7x9:6x5-8 em.

‘ This seems to be the most widespread and persistent type. We

can really learn something from this distribution. There are some

marked variants, but only those obviously related to local averages

are employed here. Isolated examples from Natal suggest a dis-

tribution there, but the main spread is complicated and interesting.

| Ohrigstad. |

Lichtenburg. Heilbron.

Taungs. Weenen.

Britstown. Venterstad. LSS

Carnarvon. | Steynsburg. |

me fe ee Graaff Reinet. Lady Frere.

ees Alicedale. Stutterheim.

bee P. Elizabeth. East London.

Mossel Bay. ae eS

Albertinia. rae y Apes

Bloembos. a

Swellendam.

C. Infanta.

Hermanus.

Gordon’s Bay.

Wellington.

Clanwilliam.

In addition there is a local distribution in the Steenbras-Palmiet

area and the Cape Peninsula, where the average changes to 11-4

x 9-5 x 5-0 cm., related to Hermanus and Gordon’s Bay.

Nucleus 5.

10-5 x 7-6 x 6:3 em.

This is not of great value, but shows an additional route to

Namaqualand. It runs from Lydenburg, Sheppard Island, Britstown

166 Annals of the South African Museum.

to Steinkopf. A separate route (possibly linking with Britstown by

way of Graaff-Reinet and Aberdeen) runs from Knysna to Kogel Bay,

Gordon’s Bay to Fish Hoek. Compare the Umhloti Beach example

from Natal.

Nucleus 6. 8-5x7-0x5-2 cm.

The type occurs at Mbabane, then at Jakobsdal, Koffefontein,

Philippolis, Prieska, and Steinkopf, suggesting another route to

Namaqualand.

The coastal route is so far separate from this, and runs from Hast

London, through Coega, Jeffrey’s Bay, Tzitzikamma, Robberg,

Mossel Bay, Riversdale, Bloembos, Swellendam, Cape Infanta, Kogel

Bay, Gordon’s Bay, Hout Bay, Oranjezicht (Cape Town), and Fish

Hoek, with a branch to Clanwilliam. The presence of an example at

Sutherland suggests that in this instance there may have been a route

crossing from Prieska to the Cape through the Thirstland, thus

reversing all or part of the coastal route given here. For a time the

average approximates to 9-2 x 7-1 x 5-0 cm., with little variation.

Nucleus 7. 6:°5x5:5 x 4-2 cm.

Excluding the discs from Gordon’s Bay, Swellendam, and

Wellington, we can deal with these as two slightly different groups.

The larger series, conforming to the figures given above, occurs at

Lydenburg, Rietpan, Koffiefontein, Douglas, then at Komgha and

Kast London, and finally at Wellington and Saldanha Bay. Slightly

smaller examples (6:1 x5-0x3-0 cm.) occur at Koffiefontein and

Victoria West, once again suggesting the possibility of a Thirstland

route. Further knowledge of the western province of the Cape would

help our knowledge very considerably.

DEDUCTIONS.

In making deductions from our figures I intend to use the “Age

and Area” hypothesis. This approach was first developed as a

botanical tool, but has been applied to ethnology by Wissler in

America, and by others. The fundamental premises, which I have

augmented, may be expressed thus:

i. The area showing the greatest number of basic varieties of

comparable objects was most probably the original centre

of dispersal.

il. The wider the spread of a recognisable type, the older the move-

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 167

ment is likely to have been. Conversely, the more confined

the distribution, the younger the spread.

i. The farther we go from the original centre of dispersal, the

greater the divergence will be.

iv. The slower a spread, the greater will be the divergence and

creation of new types; the smaller the variation in types over

a given distance, the swifter will the spread have been.

v. A limited number of types will pass through a filter or barrier,

to continue as derived variants on the far side. New and

later varieties past the barrier will be unrelated to variants on

the proximal side.

The first and third would appear contradictory, but the third is

generally governed by the fifth hypothesis.

Though our knowledge of the bulk of Africa is scanty, we may

accept the assumption that the original source of both circular and

elongated types lay to the north of the Limpopo River, outside our

field. There the incidence of these two general forms is much the

same, circular and elongated forms appearing in approximately equal

numbers. This area falls outside the scope of the present paper, and

little need be hazarded on the relative age there of the two types

discussed.

Once the Union was reached, seven “‘circular” prototypes survived

the Limpopo barrier or filter, while only five “elongated” nuclei

appear in the Transvaal, eventually increasing to seven. The number

of circular examples in the Transvaal is vastly greater than the

number of elongated. We therefore deduce that the makers of circular

types persisted longer in the Transvaal than did the users of elongated

forms.

The same must be said in the southern Free State and the Vaal

basin. This is the area of greatest divergence of circular types. We

also have the accumulated evidence of Prof. C. van Riet Lowe to prove

that it is extraordinarily rich in material, especially Smithfield B

sites associable with the circular series. We must therefore accept

this as an area where a period of long sojourn provided variations

and new types, a secondary centre of distribution for the circular

forms. The same cannot be said of elongated types, which passed

through the Free State relatively swiftly, leaving behind few examples

and only four types.

Excluding the Western Bypass and Natal, both dependent upon

the Transvaal or the Vaal for their origins, only a few circular types

passed the Thirstland filter or barrier by routes we have already dis-

168 Annals of the South African Museum.

cussed. The Orange River provided a route to the west, the Ongers

and Seekoei Rivers gave a roadway towards the fertile south, while

other routes led through the Thornveld to the south-east coast.

Movement due east was always debarred by the Basutoland massifs,

though elements seem to have filtered through to the northern

Transkei. South of the Orange River the circular types multiplied —

once again, but it is of great importance to note that there was no

such increase in elongated forms until the Southern Forests were

reached.

All this leads us to presume that the elongated types were later

than the circular, and that they spread more swiftly until the Knysna

area was reached. Low density of distribution and limited variation,

up to this latter point, all lead to these deductions.

We may attempt to apply these principles to the spread of individual

elongated nuclei, though we have little reason to suppose that there

were more than two cultural groups involved. However, for what

such deductions may eventually prove to be worth in the light of

future research, here are the probabilities.

Nucleus 4. Most widespread, probably the oldest.

6. Slightly less widespread.

2. Merely spread to the coast. The Cape Region variant

may be an independent and convergent development.

5 and 7. Hach is possibly the product of two or even three

independent developments, each relatively late.

3. Less widespread. |

1. Spread slight, probably a restricted variant of type 2.

Such evidence is deductive and circumstantial, and before we may

hope to presume on such a suggested order of movement very con-

siderable work will have to be done on the stratigraphy of the bored

stone, and its association with other cultural material, such as paint-

ings, petroglyphs, pottery and the like. It is, however, interesting to

note that the probabilities outlined above once again group the

second, fourth, and sixth nuclei together, and the third, fifth, and

seventh.

It will have been observed that there is a general similarity between

the routes taken by the elongated types and some of the routes taken

by the circular. There are two possible explanations; that these two

main forms are coupled in certain instances, and therefore took the

same paths; but the alternative seems preferable, that the elongated

series was the later, and followed tracks already beaten by the earlier

folk. This alone would explain the lack of concentration of elongated

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 169

forms in the Transvaal and Free State. But the possibility of linkage

cannot be overlooked.

So far I have been unable to find any instance in which elongated

and circular types occur together in undisturbed strata, showing either

absolute association or dissociation. At Oakhurst where two types

occurred in different early Wilton graves, both were circular.* At

Keurfontein, Vosburg (where association only occurred in a spring),

two vastly different circular examples occur together with Smithfield

B implements, and so on.

Along the southern coast it has been my general conclusion from

observation that elongated types occur on midden sites with pottery—

that is, with late midden material; while circular examples belong to

older non-pottery-bearing middens. This needs directed research,

our main difficulty being that round forms tend to roll down middens

and sandhills, while shifting dunes re-associate materials in incongruous

patterns.

Careful excavation in untouched cave-midden sites is our only

real hope. Hzact distribution (in depth) of pottery and other elements,

and the exact relationship of whole or broken examples of both general

types of bored stone, should be watched far more carefully than

heretofore.t J. F. Schofield’s attribution of coastal pottery to the

““Hottentots” may eventually yield proof that the elongated types

belong to that complex, whatever we may call it. At Oakhurst the

pottery belonged to a final stage of developed Wilton, long post-

dating the circular bored stones there. No elongated bored stones

occurred.

SuMMARY OF MaIn CONCLUSIONS.

1. As a whole the elongated forms show signs of being later than

the circular types.

2. There is reason to assume that the elongated forms entered the

Union somewhere in the region of Messina, across the Limpopo

River at 30° Hast. long., either together or as two groups (2, 4 and 6,

and 3, 5 and 7—type 1 being a probable derivative of 2).

3. The bearers of the circular types had a Smithfield culture, while

they were held back in the southern Free State. The users of the

elongated forms passed directly to the coast, and reached it at fewer

points than the earlier people.

* Goodwin, Drennan and Schofield, ‘“‘Oakhurst Shelter,’ Trans. Roy. Soc. S. Afr.,

vol. xxv, pp. 251 and 254 (Plates Vc and Vla show graves Vila and IX and IXa

respectively, with bored stones in sitw), 1937.

t Idem, p. 300.

170 Annals of the South African Museum.

4. Little variety occurs in elongated forms until the Southern

Forests area is reached. Movement from the point of entry into

the Union must therefore have been swift as far as Knysna, where

the first period of consolidation took place.

5. Present deductions concerning the order of spread of elongated

types are highly speculative.

6. Future work must differentiate clearly between circular and

elongated types, and the association between each of these and other

cultural elements will accumulate to provide the clue to the true

position of each. Associations with petroglyphs and with paintings

based upon large numbers of accumulated instances are no less

important.

7. The possibility of certain elongated types being linked with

certain circular forms must not be overlooked.

8. There is as yet no reason to suppose that the elongated series

were carried by routes different from those used by the bearers of

circular forms. The main differences lie in the paucity of routes

used by those former, their more restricted spread, and the greater

speed of distribution with the concomitant poverty of variants.

9. There has so far been no case of absolute association of an

elongated type with specific implement types or with pottery, but

both pottery and elongated forms are consistently found together on

the surface of recent deposits along the south coast. This suggests a

‘“ Hottentot” culture.

PART V.—THE BANTU SERIES.

Having discussed the prehistoric material, we may now turn our

attention to the group of bored stones, confined to the Transvaal

and immediately surrounding areas, that can with certainty be

attributed to the Bantu of the early historical period. These may

be dated as belonging to the first years of the last century and earlier.

In the main these people seem to have belonged to the Sotho

group of tribes, to-day covering Bechuanaland, Basutoland, and

parts of the Transvaal and Orange Free State. Their use of these

stones seems originally to have been confined to the eastern Transvaal,

and to have spread from there to the sources of the Molopo and

Kuruman Rivers, and down the Wilge towards the Natal border.

These Bantu were simple farmers, the women practising horti-

culture, the men tending cattle or devoting themselves to the arts of

The Bored Stones of South Africa.

Maps 13 anp 14.—Migrational Routes of elongated types.

172 Annals of the South African Museum.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 173

war. They seem to show no real alliance with the prehistoric users

of bored stones, but one puzzling fact associates the Bantu and

“Hottentots” of the Transvaal. This is the attribution at Mapun-

gubwe * of a series of skulls to ““a Bush-Boskop people, showing

sporadically a few Negro features,” associated with a cultural complex

that is essentially Bantu and includes the use of terracing. Un-

happily there is as yet no link between that offshoot of Zimbabwe

culture and the bored stone.

The Sotho and allied tribes are sedentary, and live in villages near

their fields for the agricultural part of the year. In the Transvaal

these villages do not appear to have been large, and it is only when the

eastern side of the Kalahari is reached that a true town economy,

related to the immediate abundance of water, is practised. During

the remainder of the year these tribes are generally transhumant,

spreading far afield to pasture lands where they live in smaller units.

So far as other customs are concerned, they form exogamous groups

practising polygamy with patrilocal marriage. Their way of life is

easily adapted to accommodate simple domestic slavery with con-

cubinage, and indeed such habits are only now disappearing in the

farther parts of Bechuanaland. The condition of these people 150

years ago was not very different, save that at that time they con-

sistently practised terraced agriculture in the eastern Transvaal,

and in that mountainous area the bored stone is associable with this

peculiarly Mediterranean form of cultivation. Whether the associa-

tion between bored stones and terraced fields is to be found in Southern

Rhodesia at all consistently I do not know.

Filtering slowly down the subcontinent from the general region of

the Great Lakes and the Rift Valley, the southern advance guard of

the eastern branch of the Bantu-speaking peoples crossed the great

divide of the Zambesi valley. Their cattle differed from those used

by the earlier Hottentot migrations, but were quite as vulnerable to

nagana. Hemmed in by the dangerous tsetse-fly country, to-day

Portuguese East Africa, they were forced inland along the northern

bank of the Zambesi, and must have crossed at a point free of fly,

and west of the Victoria Falls.

Judging from cultural evidence, two great groups entered the

Union by the same general highway, the Nguni and the Sotho. They

show marked differences in pottery, hut-form, social and territorial

organisation, and in language, but the fundamental similarities

* Fouché, Mapungubwe (Cambridge, 1937).

174 Annals of the South African Museum.

between the two groups are great.* Both had the same mode of life,

similar concepts of chieftainship, grew the same crops ¢ and herded

the same stock.

The Nguni spread eastward, turning south when they reached

the escarpment leading down to the tsetse stricken lowlands of

the subequatorial east coast. They passed southward, east of the

Basutoland massifs, to the healthy south-east coast, colonising

Zululand, Natal, and the Transkei, and coming into marked contact

with the Hottentot tribes along the Kei River and farther south.

The Sotho people spread down the central plateau to populate the

bulk of the country west of the Basutoland mountains, and continued

as far south as the Orange River. Their main contact with the

Hottentots seems to have occurred here, in the Douglas-Kuruman

area, and not before.

The Bantu seem in all cases to have been the newcomers, the north-

ward element, pressing down upon the earlier inhabitants. In the

course of their movements southward they encountered the indigenous

“Bushman” and “ Hottentot”’ peoples, and these contacts showed

themselves in various ways. The Bushmen were then a thriving

people, simple hunters and collectors, living in rude shelters or under

the overhang of rocky outcrops, and painting on their cave walls.

They were by no means confined to the arid parts of the country.

They depicted the Sotho tribes and their cattle, characterising them

by their darker skins, their national shields and skin-cloaks, often

wearing skin head-dresses with the tail still attached. The Ambo

and Herero tribes of South West Africa (unrelated to either Nguni

or Sotho, but representing a separate Bantu stock) learnt the art of

making ostrich eggshell beads, and the trick of weaving or netting

these into bracelets, necklets and headbands. The Neguni similarly

took over the technique, but seem only to have applied it to the small

trade beads of the east coast. They took over three basic clicks, with

their nasalised, aspirated, voiced and unvoiced forms from their

contacts with the Hottentots, presumably along the Great Kei River,

where the two distinct ethnic groups lived beside each other for some

time.

* See I. Schapera and A. J. H. Goodwin, “‘Work and Wealth,” both in Schapera’s

Bantu-speaking Tribes of South Africa. Routledge, 1937. Also I. Schapera in

his Western Civilization and the Natives of South Africa, ‘“‘The Old Bantu

Culture.” Routledge, 1934.

+ A. J. H. Goodwin, “The origins of certain African food plants,” S.A.J.S.,

xxxvii, 1939.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 175

In contrast the Sotho tribes seem to have been in closer touch

with the Bushmen. They took over only one click, but adapted the

Bushman mural parietal arts, and translated their own customary

pottery and basketry designs into wall-paintings on their cylindrical

hut walls, using the traditional Bushman earth colours. They appear

to have been less antagonistic to the Bushman than other South

African peoples, for it is important to note that the Bushmen survived

longer in the Sotho territories than they did elsewhere. At Lake

Chrissie, in the Tati area, in the Kalahari and in Basutoland the

Bushmen were permitted to live and survive into the historic period,

though generally as serfs.

These borrowed elements are not found among the Bantu north

of the Limpopo until the Ndebele, Ngoni and Kololo movements,

which shows that they originated in the Union before the end of the

eighteenth century. There is therefore little reason for surprise that

the bored stone and the techniques accompanying it were similarly

adopted in certain areas of the country. The Sotho tribes have

habitually incorporated Bushman or Hottentot girls into their economy,

and these girls would readily have reverted to their own types of

digging-stick, at periods when iron was scarce or unobtainable owing

to the need for the munitions of war.

Where the introduction of the bored stone first took place, and how

widespread the casual use of the stone-boring technique among the

Bantu may have been we shall never know, but the region in which

the Bantu definitely adopted the bored stone as an agricultural

implement is definable. Broadly, the area seems to have been

confined to the highlands north of the wide upper Limpopo Valley,

to the highlands between the upper Limpopo and the upper Vaal

valleys and to the Wilge tributary. The distribution commences at

31° 30’ H., and specimens are most numerous near the eastern limit,

where they are consistently associable with terraced agriculture.

The distribution thins out considerably towards the west, until only

a few scattered examples appear in the central Transvaal, and fewer

still in the western part of Bechuanaland. Applying the “Age and

Area”’ hypothesis, we can deduce that the eastern Transvaal (judging

from the variety of original forms) was the home of this instance of

Bantu borrowing, and that subsequent spread within the Union was

west or south from there.

The Transvaal and surrounding areas are thus the common field

of two distinct cultural distributions. The general prehistoric types

include the Transvaal, which also provides the distributional centre

176 Annals of the South African Museum.

for the Bantu types. Our first difficulty is therefore to differentiate

between Bantu and prehistoric types. Complete differentiation is

impossible, but we can allocate forms with a low percentage error.

I use the word “forms” advisedly; as has already been shown (p. 10),

certain examples in the Vet-Marico Rivers area were almost certainly

conically bored with a metal borer. It will be shown later that there

is reason to believe that many of the Transvaal prehistoric types were

so bored, and that Hottentots, Bantu, and Bushmen were all using

the digging-stick contemporaneously.

This could only mean that the users of the prehistoric types carried

on their traditions of size and form, in some sort of association with

the Bantu metal-users. The users of our prehistoric types were

“Bushman” women, and we can only suppose that these girls were

incorporated into the agricultural system of the Sotho peoples, and

had access to metals for boring their stones. This point will be brought

out more clearly when we discuss the histograms of the bore.

DIFFERENTIATION OF TYPES.

We have various criteria at our disposal for differentiating between

Bantu and prehistoric types. Perhaps the most striking is the

development of histograms and graphs, representing the various

dimensions of specimens found within the Union. The second is the

attribution of stones and groups of specimens to Bantu users, either

by the Bantu themselves, or from their association with known

Bantu settlements and terraced fields. In this latter group are

sometimes found specimens that might fall within the Prehistoric

Series. This is less important in the light of what has been said

above about Sotho-Bushman concubinage. In most cases therefore,

where specimens fit clearly into the prehistoric types they have been

included there, even if found in apparent association with Bantu

sites.

A further check is provided by geographical distribution. By

comparing the Transvaal series with material from the remainder of

the Union it becomes clear that a new cultural element is involved

and can be isolated by statistical methods. In addition, as would

be expected where two populations have inhabited the same area

consecutively with a period of overlap, the implements of the earlier

people show in several instances that they belong to older deposits,

while Bantu types are more exclusively (though by no means com-

pletely) confined to surface or near-surface deposits, and are associated

The Bored Stones of South Africa. Lay

with still recognisable terraced fields and settlements. This latter

source. of evidence is only worthy of consideration in dealing with

fair numbers, as the dry soiland heavy summer rainfall of the Transvaal

area lead to erosion, that in turn produces peculiar reversals of stratifica-

tion, especially where cylindrical or subspherical objects are concerned.

A graphical plotting of the two circular groups, Bantu and pre-

historic, reveals statistical differences. It will be found that the

prehistoric types of most of the Transvaal conform to the seven proto-

types given in Part III above (p. 162), while the Bantu series shows

an almost completely haphazard distribution. This shows that once

the bored stone had been completely assimilated into Bantu culture,

the concept of “‘types’”’ was dropped. There will therefore be no

attempt to divide those examples into groups by form or size, but

similarities between specimens will be noted, for what they may be

worth.

I attribute this breakdown of the original types, so carefully main-

tained by the prehistoric folk, to the distributive effects of two

Transvaal Bantu customs, exogamy and transhumance, both of which

meant movement on the part of the women, users of the bored stones,

away from their homes where they had learnt their agricultural

methods. These two customs may even have acted together, so

that women who married from cattle-posts might have moved even

farther afield than would normally be expected. The refugee move-

ments engendered by the Zulu explosion in the early years of last

century played their part, and this will be further dealt with in dis-

cussing the MaNtatisi (Tlokwa) movement.

SOURCES.

Initial numbers refer to sites on the key map. As circular specimens

are listed first, gaps will be found. These are left to include elongated

examples, given later. Too much attention must not be paid to

identical measurements in this Transvaal series. Hxamples from the

Transvaal Museum, Pretoria, appear to have been measured to the

nearest eighth of an inch (3 mm.), and the figures transcribed to milli-

metres. The apparent identity thus represents an error of 1-5 mm.

in that series.

2. “Zimbabwe specimen” (South African Museum collection).

This unusual specimen was certainly made for ornament and not

for use. It has been illustrated both by Bent and by Hall.* The

* Bent, Ruined Cities of Mashonaland (p. 170 in first edition, p. 202 in 1893

edition); and Hall, Prehistoric Rhodesia (1909, p. 350).

VOL. XXXVII, PART I, 12

178 Annals of the South African Museum.

perimeter and one face are decorated with regularly disposed raised

circular bosses, superficially resembling beaten metal work. Each

boss is about 1-5 cm. in diameter and 3 to 4 mm. high, each carefully

shaped. In contrast the underface is crude and irregular. The

central bore has been chiselled to shape and shows no signs of usage.

The hole in the upper face is well made (diam. 5-3 cm.), but the

opposing mouth is larger and cruder (diam. 6-9 cm.). —

Including bosses, the diameter is 21-6 cm., excluding bosses 21-0

cm. Including bosses, the height is 9-8 cm., excluding bosses 9-4 cm.

The last measurement was taken on the central rim surrounding the

hole.

The original gives the odd impression that it might have been a

template or forme for the making of beaten gold objects. Had it

been so used, it would have been impossible to remove it from the

finished object without first breaking it. Two radial cuts, one deep

and wide, the other shallower and narrower, set roughly at right

angles to each other, mar the decorated face. They were made after

completion and were present in Bent’s illustration. No reason for

their presence has been deduced. The material is a soft soapstone,

easily carved or scratched, but too soft for hard use.

It is important to realise that this specimen was found by A. and W.

Posselt, in 1889, in the “Zimbabwe Region,” and was not found in the

Zimbabwe “‘Temple” ruin. Hall stated that it was “found in close

association with the great conical tower and platform, and with carved

birds and scores of phalli.” It was not. At the same time it must

not be forgotten that the carving of the soapstone fits in well enough

with the soapstone birds, etc., to be regarded as a part of the same

general complex, as does the material. Additional remarks may be

found in Miss Caton-Thompson.*

NORTHERN TRANSVAAL.

7. MaRa.

ASJ 43/49 a VL Os 12:0 609 4655 56 2-4

8. SanD RivER, ZOUTPANSBERG.

TMP 7392 20 18:4). 213:0. 370-6)" 4400 753) peo

9. SCHOEMANSDAL, LOUISTRICHARDT.

ASJ 51/38 2) USD 1IE2 6574 4260". ST 20

* Zimbabwe Culture (pp. 159 et seq., footnote). Mr. J. Schofield of Durban tells

me that the specimen was found on the surface of the Acropolis ruin, in plain

association with the stone birds, by W. Posselt.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 179

10. SPELONKEN.

SAM 3189 17:0 10:0 588 2890 50 2-4

11. DUIWELSKLOOF, TZANEEN.

TMP. 9122 - 19:0 11:0 57:99 3970 44 2:5

NortH CENTRAL TRANSVAAL.

13. PIETPOTGIETERSRUST.

TMP 7436 . 17-8 10:3 57:9 3265 3:3 2-2 Groenfontein 195.

7561 « 15:2 9-4 es Re 4-6 3-8 Bored, split, re-

bored at right

angles.

15. KALKFONTEIN 146.

SAM 3819 . 194 108 556 4065 68 1:7 6 feet deep in

alluvial soil.

3817 . 195 106 54:3 4030 70 2:3

3818 » 18-057 11-0 “GIL 3565 4:0. 2:3

3817 . 20-4 TA G-d) pT OUSO a 42aNm ore

17-8 95 534 3010 42 26

15:8 (8) 249-35) 1945) 9 5:2) 2:3

16. NEw SMITSDORP.

TMP 1890 Peel -G 1O-2h 47-20 4760) 3-6 9 1-3

1887 a4: (-Onet2i-Or) 4515) 3-9) 2-7

1885 se li:77 8-2 416 3180 42 3-0 Badly fashioned.

1888 . 165 108 65:4 2940 35 1-7

1889 . 159 8:9 55:9 2250 2:9 1:3

1886 5 day 73 47:3 2055 3-8 2-5

1884. . 16:8 6-4 381 1805 1:9 1-4 Uneven, badly

fashioned.

5895 lb? 73 47-9 1690 3:6 1-7 Irregular.

PBB 2) 5-2 70 460 1615 35 1:9

1883 . 19:0 43 226 1550 3:4 2-5

5894 5 ASR 4-3 32:6 760 3:8 2-7

17. EERSTELING.

TMP 9176 5 | ee 75 49-2 1735 3:3 2-4 Surface find.

EASTERN TRANSVAAL.

18. OHRIGSTAD.

MMK 1255 2 19-1. 10:3: 53°99 3755 44 # 2:0

PEM 615 J . 172 10-7 62:0 3165 43 41:8 49 kg.

19. RUSTPLAATS.

TMP 7880 . 16:5 G25 36a 16908" 8:75 °7-7, |, Duge from “deep

underground.”

20. KRUGERSPOST.

TMP 9123 - 19:0 14:7 774 53805 5:9 2:5 Huge. Surface

find.

8039 - 16:2 12-4 76:4 3255 6:0 2:9

21. WATERFALL VALLEY.

TMP 2339 . 19:0 114 600 4115 50 3:0 “Makatese.” Fine

workmanship.

180 Annals of the South African Museum.

22. BaARKLY VALE. ALKMAAR.

HAC 1041 - 15:8 85 53-2 2120 50 2-8 #£xDiabase. Surface

of old river ter-

race. Weathered.

3:6 kg.

23. ScHaGEN, NELSPRUIT.

WUA 1086 . 19:9 146 73:4 5780 3:6 As 9:7 kg. 2?Gabbro.

1085 F . 18:0 12:3 683 3985 4:5 3:8 6-2kg. Taleschist.

1085 E . 18:2 11:7 64:3 3875 63 2:9 63 ke: Amphi-

bolite.

1085 B . 16:8 13:1 784 3695 55 2:4 55 kg. ?Gabbro.

1085 A. 17-7 95 53:7 2975 3:8 1:8 4:1 ke. ?Gabbro.

1085C . 13:9 84 604 1625 43 2:8 2:2 kg. Tale ser-

pentine.

1085 H . 14:8 3:4 23-0 145 4] 2:4 Brokensiawe

schist.

24, BARBERTON.

ASJ 49/36/8 . 186 140 75:2 4845 40 2-6

TMP 1914 5 PANES} 98 48:2 4040 3:3 1:7 Lot 133. Surface.

1911 . 165 106 64:2 2885 49 2-7 Lot 133. Native

smelting work.

1912 . 16-5 5:9 57:6 2585 52 2-4 Kaap River wash,

near Honeybird

Creek, with a

prehistoric

specimen.

SAM 3017 . 150 11:0 73:3 2475 70 2:9 Surface. Hole has

distinct shoulder

near mouth.

Fine workman-

ship.

26. WELGEVONDEN, Komati VALLEY.

TMP 8031 5 élelL 85 35:3 4935 81 3-4

8027 . 19:0 10:6 55:8 3825 56 3:0

8024 . 20-0 95 47:5 3800 53 2:5

8026 - 18-7 108 57-9) 3775 5-6 2:0 “Trreculam

8022 » 17-8 14) 964-0) 3610) 16:0) 53-5

8021 2 183% 10:3) Poo S600 a1 ase

8032 . 20:3 81 40:0 3340 64 3-0

8030 parc 79 38:9 3255 44 2-9

8019 . 17-4 $102 586 3090 49 28

These last three

8020 Niel G7. (S22) 6:3 2k specimens seem

8025 ~ 20:0 (7-5) 5:3 3:4 to have been

8023 9 Oh (on) 5:2 2-4 cut (?) horizon-

tally.

STEENKAMPSBERG.

27. ROOSSENEKAL.

MMK 1155 = G5 97 59-1 2460 42 2-9

28. BADFONTEIN.

TMP 2344 ZO ler 1 pG2d) ) ho250 1 1i3:Oli2ss

2338 . 184 11:7 63:5 3960 48 3:0 #£‘*Makatese.” Fine

workmanship.

O34, ae Sa a10:60.59-9) | oc6O) yao d

2345 : 278 100 662 S170 5:6 7

2346 a es 94 52:8 2980 3:5 2:5

The Bored Stones

29. SCHOEMANSKLOOF.

TMP 2341 17:8

2340 16:5

30. MACHADADORP.

ASJ 15/35 /2 18-4

31. SEVENFONTEIN 39.

ASJ 12/36 20:3

32. WATERVAL 97.

ASJ 12/41 19:1

19:5

19-5

17-7

17-2

16-6

19-2

33. BLOEMFONTEIN 101.

ASJ 12/36/B 18:7

13-0

12-4

=" —

POomsosy

Crim bo Oo OS Aw

12-0

73-0

75:7

64-2

of South Africa.

4120 49 2.2

3375 49 2-9

4065 63 24

4410 5:0 23

4485 4:7 1:6

4070 75 35

3650 5:0 2-7

3420 5:3 2:2

3315 44 15

2510 5:0 2-7

2395 52 3-5

4195 59 23

181

*“Makatese.” Sur-

face. Possibly

unfinished.

‘*Makatese.”’ Sur-

face find.

Amphibolite.

Ss.

Diabase.

Serpentine.

Hole bored skew.

(Both Waterval 97 and Bloemfontein 101 material is associated

with Bantu terraced agriculture and ruins in the Komati valley.

They are adjacent farms.)

34. CAROLINA.

SAM 3020 170 10:8 63:5

(7-2 6:3 87-5

SOURCES OF

35. BREYTEN.

SI 20 20-2 11:2 55-4

36. ERMELO.

WUA 1036 18-6 9-1 48-9

NMP. 2066 17:8 9-8 55:0

37. WITKRAANS 58.

TMP 2348 1:7 10°3 55-1

WUA 1036 18-6 9-1 48-9

38. Mount Prospect, AMAJUBA.

JE Briscoe E7-Se ls25.0 15:8

39. HEILBRON.

ELM 36 . 205 115 £561

36/B 18°55 11:0 59-5

3120 40 2:8

325 3-2 2-7)

325 2-8 1-5)

THE VAAL.

4570 4-2 2-6

3150 5:0 3-5

3105 5:2 2:7

3600 5-1 2-4.

3150 50 3:5

4275 4-4 2-3

4835 5:0 2:5

31G5 0:0) 3-0

Unfinished dagga-

pipe ?

Unfinished dagga-

pipe? Sides

flattened.

Glen Avon Farm.

5-2 ke.

3-9 kg.

?Gabbro.

Vaal River, south

of Ermelo.

5-2 kg.

Surface deposit.

Rhenoster River

affluent.

Cf. first Witkraans

spec.

182 Annals of the South African Museum.

East CENTRAL TRANSVAAL.

40. MAPOCHSGRONDEN.

TMP 2342 - 19-7 11:6 589 4500 59 2:7

19:0 89 416 3215 48 2-7 #£2Broken.

41. WITPOORT.

TMP 7543 « 1957 eT 59-4 4540) 57 2-7

42. LAGERSDRIFT.

TMP 2775 § lve! 9-5 955:6> 2775 5:8) 28

43. KLIPBANKSPRUIT.

TMP 5893 . 178 98 55:0 3105 S51 3:6

CENTRAL TRANSVAAL.

44, NYLSTROOM.

SAM 3843 15-0 9-5) 163-3 21409) sale eZ

45 TURFFONTEIN.

TMP 1892 - 140 13:3 95:0 2605 29 I:-1 Found in Bantu

kraal.

46. WARMBATHS.

MMK 1153 . 153 #118 §$.76 2760 48 1:5 Ss.

47. WONDERBOOM.

TMP 1894 - 190 10:2 53:7 3680 4:3 19 Badly trimmed.

SOUTHERN TRANSVAAL.

48. SELONS VALLEY.

TMP. 5908 2 20:3 AO) waren oLSO) Ou) eo

49. MIDDELBURG.

ADJ 49/36/9 . 18-7 93 496 3250 60 2:5

50. DEvon.

TMP 1417 - 162 11:7 =72:9 3070 5:3 2:0 Suikerbosrand

affluent.

1418 . 19-7 (4:5) ace aie 4:5 3:0 ?Cut horizontally.

51. GREENLANDS.

ASJ 8/41 ~ 152 111 72:2 2565 45 2:6 18 inches deep.

No associations.

Cf. first Devon

specimen.

ELONGATED SPECIMENS.

1. GwAAI RESERVE, S. RHODESIA.

SR/WI 3/653 17-5 15-4 8:9 2400 45 2:3

3. MELSETTER.

SR/WI 3/654

4, MESSINA.

HA Coll. 1248 .

OAS.

5. MALABoc#.

ASJ 15/35/1

6. BLAAUWBERG.

ASJ

23. ScHacEen, NELSPRUIT.

WUA 1085 D

1087

25. STEYNSDORP.

TMP 1449

26. WELGEVONDEN.

TMP 8029

39. HEILBRON.

ELM 36 A

49. MIDDELBURG.

ASJ

52. RIcKETSDAM, MaRIco.

WOUA 397

14, PIETERSBURG.

SAM 3821

The Bored Stones of South Africa.

18-4

16:5

15-3

20-9

20-7

18-3

18-5

27-9

24-0

20-0

7-5

13-7

15-4

16:5

16-3

6-7

12-0

(14-0)

(6-0) 1700

5-0 905

3°5 645

9-8 3050

9-2 2895

9:0 2370

(8:7) 2140

3-5 1740

8:7 3090

5:3 ©1025

11-5 4555

7-0 2280

VARIOUS.

5:7 285

3-4

4-8

3°5

4:5

3:5

6-1

5-4

gro

ke o>

4-8

3-2

3:7

5-0

2-4

3:6

1-4

roy

> 00

3:0

2°3

2°5

1-9

ol.

183

Soft red Ss.

Riverhill farm.

One face worn

recently.

1-5 kg. Weathered

schist.

12 kg. Basic

schist.

Amphibolite.

Eccentric bore.

4-6 kg. ?Gabbro-

?Gabbro.

Irregular shape.

6-2 kg.

0-62 kg. Iron-

stone. Found

with ash-heaps,

metal industry

and pottery.

(Elongated.)

Soapstone. Elon-

gated.

Soapstone. Sub-

circular.

Mr. T. J. Trevor, when submitting these last to Dr. Péringuey in

1917, wrote: “In other parts of the country where such stones are

plentiful, I have been informed by the natives that they used to carry

these on a stick, in order to have them handy to throw at a buck—

184 Annals of the South African Museum.

the idea being to throw them on edge like a skipping-stone and

attempt to break the buck’s leg.” Both example8 are formless slabs

of soapstone, quite untooled. Their only right to inclusion lies in the

central bore. Butcomparethe example described by P. J. Kloppers *

from Natal, referred to in a previous part of this present work (p. 33).

Two examples away from the Transvaal are almost certainly

Bantu in origin, and probably quite modern. Both appear to have

been bored with a fine metal drill, probably fencing wire, possibly

Bantu-made wire, or the tang of a light spear. Only the actual

dimensions are given. They are probably beads of some sort.

61. NewLanps, BarkLy WEST.

MMK 1536 Ben!) Sl a tes 0:6 0-4 #£Broken.

62. RAMALITSE, THABANCHU.

SAM 4873 «1 205 1-7 =a Se 0-7 0-5

We now come to a series of figures that appears to be related to the

path taken by the BaTlokwa and other Bantu peoples, under the

leadership of their queen, MaNtatisi. This extraordinary movement

has got the name of ‘“‘ Makatisi,”’ etc., in the Transvaal, where these

people lived before the hopeless refugee movement that ended in their

destruction and scattering in the neighbourhood of Litaku and Kuru-

man. I have started with the Ventersdorp and Wolmaransstad sites,

as this material accords better here than with the remainder of the

Transvaal.

54. VENTERSDORP.

TMP 3721 . 14-9 56 376 1245 3:9 25 Schoonspruit

affluent.

ASJ 17/48 5) hs) 8:3 53°55 1955 6:3 (1:8) Wonderstone.

Conical bore.

Stompjie’s Dig-

gings.

55. WoOLMARANSSTAD.

TMP 8047 BL bo7| 2-4 20-0 405 3:0 1:9 Makwassiespruit

affluent.

56. MAFEKING.

ASJ 38/38 2 2 3:9) 124-1 1745) 4-9) 2 Probably metal

bored.

57. VRYBURG.

SAM 763 . . 140 142 101-55 2788 3:7 24 $3feet deep. Hass-

forth, Metal

bored.

Mossop Coll. . 14-4 8-0. 556 1659 5:2 2 Pecked. Farm

England.

* §. Afr. J. Sci., xxxi, 1935, pp. 474-475, illust.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 185

58. RIVERVIEW EstTaTE, VAAL RIVER.

ASJ 5/35/55 . 17:0 10:5 61-8 3035 6-0 .. Site VI. Sohnge,

Visser and Lowe,

op. cit.

59. PosTMASBURG.

MMK 252 lar ZO 83-9 (24550 Oo oe) Ss

Sa - 14:8 G:omw aol 42 ona oD Oe SS:

14:3 4:8 33-6 980 2-4 1-8 Ss. Metal bored.

583 5 118383 4:9 28-2 935 2-5 1-7 Ss. Metal bored.

7, 191 » 14:3 be i ae S65 2:0 Very worn soap-

stone.

60. KAMEELFONTEIN.

MMK 1283 . 148 15:4 104:1 3375 (4:2) 2-5 Metal bored.

It will be noted that, in general, the average diameter (14:5 cm.) is

a little below the minimum for the Transvaal Bantu types, and only

one example, from Riverview, exceeds that minimum. Height is

erratic, showing extremely thick examples (in three instances with an

index in excess of 100-8 per cent.) and very flat types. None of these

fit comfortably into the Prehistoric Series. The Wolmaransstad

specimen recalls the Natal Lowlands.

The first Vryburg specimen, from Hassforth, is somewhat amusing,

as it has obviously been made to resemble an ostrich egg in shape,

texture, and size. The material is marble.

The Tlokwa migration and eventual dispersal will be discussed more

specifically later (p. 202).

GENERAL DIMENSIONS.

If the diameters of all Transvaal specimens are considered, we find

that an absolute differentiation is possible (Histograms I and II).

All those specimens from the neighbourhood of the Transvaal with a

diameter greater than 15-1 cm. are Bantu. All those examples from

the same neighbourhood with a diameter less than 13-4 cm. are pre-

historic. From perhaps 14:0 cm. to 15-0 cm. there are overlapping

types, some Bantu, some prehistoric. These last are most consis-

tently represented in the Vryburg-Postmasburg area, where we find

several examples that fail to fit the prehistoric types, while some show

distinct use of a metal borer. These I attribute to the Tlokwa

migration.

For purposes of direct comparison I have used the figures of all the

Bantu specimens, and prehistoric material from the same area. It

will be seen that the Bantu Series yields a simple but asymmetrical

curve, with a peak between 17-5 and 19-5 cm. (mode 17:8 cm.). The

range is from 12-3 to 21-5 cm., though there are three examples with a

diameter greater than 20-5 cm. In contrast to this the Prehistoric

186 Annals of the South African Museum.

I. Bantu circular examples by diameter.

5 v 1 z By 7G cms

RCRD ERED ERS SHOR ERABAP

eee Py

Ret ee fae Tha

III. Bantu circular and elongated examples by height.

IV. Prehistoric Transvaal circular examples by height.

Fia. 7.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 187

Series produces a trimodal curve, with modal points at 8-0 em.,

10-4 cm., and 12-8 cm. respectively. These probably represent three

uses of the bored stone, but mathematically they are made up of

the seven prototypes and their variants already analysed. These

examples cover an effective range of 4:5 to 14-5 cm.

The study of height alone (Histograms III and IV) provides little

new evidence, but corroborates the study of diameters. The pre-

historic Transvaal material yields an irregular curve, again showing a

trimodal distribution, with modes at 4:3 cm., 7-7 cm., and 9:5 cm.

This is obviously a product of the same causes outlined above. In

contrast the Bantu Series shows a simple asymmetrical curve, with

the mode at 10-7 cm. This asymmetry can be attributed to the

desire to make an implement as close to the limits of thickness as

could be efficiently bored. The effective ranges in the two histograms

are about 2-0 to 12-0 cm. for the prehistoric, and 3-5 to 13-5 cm. for

the Bantu, merely showing that, while the Bantu and prehistoric

people were capable of boring through similar thickness of stone,

the Bantu could extend their range slightly towards thicker

stones.

I have not given histograms of index or cube, but these can be

very easily worked out on graph paper from the data. The study

of index shows that Bantu types have an effective range of 20 to

78 per cent., with a mode at 56 per cent. They seldom exceed 66 per

cent., and only one or two examples reach 100 per cent. In contrast,

the Prehistoric Series from the whole Union quite frequently exceeds

100 per cent. and even 110 per cent., to form prolate anomalies, with

no distinctive distribution.

The study of cube is comparable to that given above for the

diameters. The prehistoric range from 50 cu. cm. to 2000 cu. cm.,

and the Bantu from 2400 cu. cm. to 5300 cu. cm. The inter-

vening depression covers a few isolated examples of ambiguous

origin, but not too much faith should be placed in the “‘cube” as

evidence.

This gives us sufficient data to define the great proportion of our

Bantuexamples. They consist of those from the neighbourhood of the

Transvaal with a diameter greater than 15-1 cm., a cube greater than

2400 cu. cm., a weight greater than 3-7 kg. (8 lb. 3 oz.), and a height

that does not usually exceed 78 per cent. of the diameter. While this

does not cover all known Bantu examples, it excludes prehistoric

types. To complete the Bantu Series we should include smaller

forms from this general locality that do not conform to the known

188 Annals of the South African Museum.

prehistoric types. Their allocation becomes more certain when

they fit comfortably as extensions of graphs or histograms based

upon known Bantu material. This last applies especially to the

Tlokwa migration.

STUDY OF THE Bork.

I have attempted to discover whether there is any means by which

we can recognise examples that have been bored by metal tools.

Almost cylindrical bores are rare, and are certainly products of usage,

and not of technique. The Zimbabwe area specimen is an exception

to this rule, just as it is to many others. Here tool marks visible in

the hole through the soft soapstone show that this was partly chiselled

to shape, and there are no signs of usage.

In such a study the centre of the hole can yield no result, as the

bore may be unfinished or may have been smoothed and enlarged by

use. In the biconical holes there should be some relationship between

the base of the cone (represented by the mouth of the hole) and the

thickness of the stone ; or, more accurately, half the thickness of the

stone. I have therefore developed histograms of the Index of Bore:

mouth of hole x 100

% height

At best the results obtained from such an index can only be very

general, as we are dealing with a variety of irregular cones cut into

materials of varying hardness. In some cases the lip of the conical

bore is difficult to recognise, in others the mouth of the bore varies

on the two faces of the specimens. Measurements are taken from the

wider mouth of the bore, so that this is to some extent accounted for.

I have refrained from giving the IB of specimens in the lists of sources

of data, as individual cases are merely misleading. However, pro-

vided that we do not argue from the general to the particular, we can

draw some conclusions from the accumulated figures.

We must exclude examples with a conical bore. Discs or specimens

less than 3-5 cm. thick have to be ignored as well. It was found that

18 such specimens from the Cape show an average IB of 116-5 per

cent., while 22 from the Knysna area yield an average IB of 114-1

per cent. This suggests that boring in the case of smaller stones was

done by pecking two wide cup-shaped depressions in the opposing

faces of the stone, then merely using the rimer to smooth and enlarge

the hole. This is a very slight technical variation, and may or may

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 189

not be cultural. Perhaps a more accurate gauge might be developed

by plotting IB against height or thickness, on squared paper, but from

the few samples I have so far tested there seems to be little new to be

learnt from this.

Histograms of all Bantu and all Transvaal prehistoric examples

are given (Histograms V and VI), and as a check I have de-

veloped the histogram (No. VII) of 106 examples from the Free

State, chosen mainly from the Koffiefontein sites, but otherwise at

random. )

The 88 Transvaal Bantu specimens show an effective range of

20 to 85 per cent., an almost symmetrical curve with the mode

at 45 per cent. The 86 prehistoric examples from the same general

area yleld an asymmetrical curve over a range from 25 to 100

per cent., with the mode at 43 per cent.—even lower than the

mode of the Bantu Series. It becomes obvious that the two curves

are directly comparable, and that specimens were bored by the same

techniques. I had hoped to find a bimodal curve, representing those

bored with metal (low index) and those bored with stone (high index),

but instead we find that the bulk of specimens in each case show an

IB greater than the mode (7.e. the average is higher than the mode,

yielding an asymmetrical curve), suggesting that many specimens

in both series were bored with stone, but that a high proportion of

those below the mode were bored with metal. This fits perfectly with

the deductions made earlier concerning the conical-bored specimens

from the VMR. area in the western Transvaal.

This deduction must be viewed in the light of comparative material

from elsewhere, and, knowing that the IB in the Free State shows a

different state of affairs, I give the histogram of 106 examples from

there. The range is from 30 to 105 per cent. The main mode

is at 60 per cent., and there is a subsidiary mode at 77 per cent.,

due to the absence of figures from 73 to 75 per cent., possibly a chance

gap, but possibly due to differences of material. The stones used in

the Free State range from hard igneous rock or indurated shale to

somewhat softer sandstones or shales.

In an attempt to control these figures by means of a third series, a

sample was taken from the Tzitzikamma-Knysna-Mossel Bay area,

where coarse-grained tertiary sandstones and fine-grained quartzitic

sandstones are used. The sample (Histogram VIII) shows a range

from 33 to 129 per cent., a fairly symmetrical curve with a mode at

63 per cent. A final sample from the Cape of Good Hope shows an

exactly comparable symmetrical curve, from 41 to 120 per cent., with

190 Annals of the South African Museum.

p-4

8 o|6 | ool! fe)

Kn 3

zt aed eS BEES (FET Sea

Ss = Oo!

| GI

| JIU |ad¥ TSI oy

x i St

@ W OlS g 6 ool/ oli

Fia. 8.—Index of Bore.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 191

the mode at 66 per cent. The materials used here are quartzitic

Table Mountain Sandstones, Malmesbury shales, etc.*

From the comparative evidence yielded by these histograms we

can state with certainty that some distorting factor is present below

the 50 per cent. line in both the Transvaal histograms that is absent

elsewhere. It is reasonable to assume, in the light of the conical-

bored specimens in the Prehistoric Series, that this factor was the use

of metal. Developing this assumption, we may further assume that

all examples with an IB below 30 per cent. (the lower limit of almost

all IB from outside the Transvaal) have certainly been bored with iron.

At the same time it is essential to remember that many of the

materials used in the Transvaal were of a softness and a coherent

texture that would permit of a narrower bore than harder substances.

The prevalence here of soapstones, schists, marble, wonderstone, soft

shale, etc., cannot reasonably be ignored. Unluckily the exact

knowledge we need is not available, and we can draw no conclusions

with certainty. What is wanted is not an exact analysis of the

stone, but rather some gauge, akin to the rule of thumb used by

geologists to denote hardness and softness, to provide us with know-

ledge of reaction to mechanical corrasion. A gauge of this sort has

recently been developed by M. J. Janmart in Angola in an attempt to

assess relative wear in mixed gravels. It is to be hoped that some of

his methods and results will be published.

In general we can take it that, in those areas and periods that show

symmetrical curves in the histograms of IB, these represent the desire

to bore a hole through the stone, without any interest in the size of

the mouth of the hole. In cases where there is a marked asymmetry

towards the lower indices, we must suppose that some real effort has

been made to obtain as narrow a mouth as possible. The distortion

in the curve represents the degree of effectiveness of this additional

effort, by whatever means the narrower bore was accomplished.

AFFINITIES.

In plotting these Bantu figures graphically I have found that the

most illuminating presentation is obtained by using height as the

* Not included in this last sample are two striking and perhaps important

specimens. One is from Hout Bay, with an IB of 18 per cent., the other from

Stellenbosch with an IB of 30 per cent. Both are in the University of Cape Town

Collection. The Hout Bay example is certainly metal-bored, and the Stellenbosch

specimen lies on the 30 per cent. line, which we can safely regard as the line of

absolute demarcation between the two methods of boring.

192 Annals of the South African Museum.

horizontal component, and index as the vertical. There is little that

can be said with any certainty, and there seems little relationship

between type and geographical distribution. Larger numbers of

specimens and a greater and more exact knowledge of association,

use, and provenance are essential before this question can be finally

dissolved.

1. Specimens from Greenlands and Devon, both on the Suikerbos-

rand stream, show distinct affinities. Both belong to a small group

with indices above 70 per cent. and heights between 11-0 and 12-0 cm.,

thus standing somewhat separate from the usual types.

2. Heilbron shows affinities with Breyten, Ermelo, and Witkraans,

and perhaps with some of the Welgevonden and Waterval Series.

3. In the northern Transvaal the following sites show strong

affinity, Mara, Louis Trichardt, Sand River, Spelonken, and Tzaneen

(sites 7 to 11). All have diameters between 17-0 and 19-7 cm. and

indices ranging from 57-9 to 70-6 per cent.

4. The farm England in the Vryburg district shows affinity with

four specimens from New Smitsdorp (16), one from Kalkfontein (15),

and the Eersteling specimen (17), suggesting that the Vryburg

example is an offshoot from the northern Transvaal.

5. The Mount Prospect specimen (38) is very similar to the first

example from Schoemanskloof (29). Mount Prospect lies in the

original area of the BaTlokwa and BaNSia tribes.

6. In the elongated series the two Rhodesian sites show marked

affinities, and Malaboch (5) and Blaauwberg (6) show much the same

type.

In general we can gather that no type of implement is localised

to any one area, the makers seem at times to have aimed at divergent

shapesand sizes. Thiscan be seen by comparing the eastern Transvaal

figures and those from the sources of the Vaal with material farther

west.

DISTRIBUTION.

The distribution of known specimens is of extreme interest. Mr.

T. J. Trevor, writing to Péringuey on 28th August 1917, notes that

the Bantu specimens “‘are plentiful in all the districts of the Transvaal,

with the exception of the Low Country below the Drakensberg on the

east, where I only found one.” Apart from that short reference,

nobody seems to have realised the relationship existing between

distribution and altitude. The distribution of all specimens known

corresponds in a most remarkable manner with the highlands of

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 193

Southern Rhodesia and the Transvaal, and careful collation with the

physiographic map shows that the makers of these stones seldom

transgressed below the 2500- to 3000-foot contours (800 to 900 m.).

The Letaba, Pilgrim’s Rest, Nelspruit, Barberton, and Swaziland

lowlands are without specimens, while the relatively low-lying Gwanda

and Chibi districts in Southern Rhodesia are similarly barren of Bantu

bored stones.

In contrast to this, specimens are scattered all along the adjacent

highlands. In Rhodesia the three Bantu examples are from the Gwaai

reserve, the Zimbabwe area, and Melsetter district. In the northern

Transvaal one questionable group alone comes from Messina in the

Limpopo valley. The remainder are concentrated along the Blaauw-

berg-Zoutpansberg ridges. South of this there is a gap coinciding

with the Great Letaba valley. South and south-west of that river

the distribution increases to its maximum concentration, along the

Strydpoortberg and down the Drakensberg. Distribution continues

down either side of the Steenkamsberg, and south to Witkraans,

Heilbron, and Amajuba, a solitary outpost on the Natal border.

Another extension runs westward through Nylstroom, Warmbaths,

Middelburg, and Wonderboom, and a southward drive passes along

the Suikerbosrand to Devon and Greenlands. The further extension

west and south, related to the Vaal River, consists of sites at Venters-

dorp, Wolmaransstad, Vryburg, Mafeking, and others marking the

MaNtatisi spread.

This curious relationship between altitude and the Bantu bored

stones can imply only one thing, namely, that we are dealing with a

mixed pastoral and agricultural people, limited strictly by the original

distribution of the tsetse-fly and cattle nagana. All the extreme

eastern Transvaal and the lower and middle reaches of the great

eastward-flowing rivers were fly-infested before the “Great Rinder-

pest” of 1892-1894 so reduced the cattle and big game that the fly

was thinned out through lack of the essential hosts. The tsetse-

borne nagana, while consistently fatal to cattle, appears to infect big

game less fatally. Both fly and nagana appear to be maintained by

game, so that these areas provide an almost complete cattle-barrier.

This does not necessarily mean that this barrier was absolute so far

as Bantu agriculturalists were concerned: a native can exist as a pre-

carious tiller of the soil without cattle, and indeed the impoverishment

of the native tribes of Portuguese Hast Africa is fundamentally

due to this one-sided mode of life in a cruel environment. To enter

the tsetse belt means poverty and struggle, so that the distribution,

Viol, XO, PART I: 13

194 Annals of the South African Museum.

DuRBAN © 5D}

Map 16.—Distribution of Bantu Bored Stones. Areas with general Tsetse history shaded.

3000 ft. contour marked. Sites referred to by number.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 195

with the 150-mile gap separating Southern Rhodesia from the specimens

of the northern Transvaal, is extremely suggestive. It is curious

to note that the Mapungubwe culture in the Limpopo valley lay at

altitudes from 1700-2000 feet.

We have here a clue, not only to those areas at one time infested

by fly, but also to those areas that might once again become infested

should vigilance be relaxed. The former extent of the tsetse country

has been described by E. E. Austin * and by R. Newstead,t while

the more detailed distribution in Southern Rhodesia is given by

R. W. Jack.t

UsrEs AND USERS.

While the Bantu have imitated the Hottentot or Bushman bored

stone, and seem to have continued the use of this implement after

losing contact with the Bushmen, yet our knowledge of the uses to

which the tool was put by the Bantu is less well authenticated than

for the Bushmen. This I attribute almost entirely to the fact that

this was a woman’s digging tool, and that no attempt whatsoever

has been made to obtain information from old native women in the

Transvaal. All the information seems to be from the men.

Apart from a newspaper article by a Miss E. Bezuidenhout,§ Mrs.

Hoernlé is the only person who seems to have placed on record any

detailed evidence on the subject. Unhappily neither account can

be made to conform with the evidence of the stones themselves.

Miss Bezuidenhout describes an account from an old MuVenda,

who told her that these vast stones were threaded on to the horns of a

selected beast at the time of the full moon. A fanciful illustration

accompanying the article shows no less than fourteen such stones so

threaded on the horns of a proud beast. Any additional weight on a

cow’s horns will depress the head and is irksome. The addition of

a weight of at least seventy pounds would be an impossible burden.

More important is the evidence of the bore. No hole centre is greater

than 4-0 cm., while the maximum distributional frequency is less than

an inch (2:4 cm.) and would not permit the passage of even an inch

of horn. The tale must be dismissed as a complete fabrication on the

part of the genial and possibly mercenary Venda.

* HK. E. Austin, A Handbook of the Tsetse-flies, Brit. Mus., 1911.

+ R. Newstead, Guide to the study of the Tsetse flies, Liverpool Univ., 1924.

t R. W. Jack, Tsetse-fly in Southern Rhodesia, Dept. Agric. Salisbury, S.R.,

1918.

§ E. Bezuidenhout, article in Natal Daily News, 26th April 1941.

VOL. XXXVil, PART 1¢ isis

196 Annals of the South African Museum.

Mrs. Hoernlé’s account * has a closer relationship to fact, but we are

again dealing with hearsay evidence. The informant in this case was

Mr. W. G. Barnard, and his source of information is an account given

by members of the BaRoko and BaKoni tribes, men well over seventy

years old. In spite of the fact that the BaRoko were themselves iron-

workers and became smiths to their Pedi masters, they say that iron

was a rare metal in the Transvaal and only the Pedi overlords could

afford to use the metal for such effeminate uses as tilling the soil.

“The ordinary tribes-people used very large wooden hoes weighted

with bored stones which were fixed to the haft. Both BaKoni and

BaRoko men well over seventy years of age have stated that they

saw these hoes in use up to sixty years ago. It was only after the

opening of the diamond mines. . . (after 1870) . . . that iron hoes

became universally used throughout Sekukuniland.”’ A wooden hoe

was made to the order of Mr. Barnard, and the illustration shows a

posed native using the hoe, upon the tang (not the haft) of which is

a bored stone. The specimen is at present in the collection of the

Archaeological Survey, Johannesburg, and has also been sketched by

Professor van Riet Lowe,t but it is nowhere stated that the specimen

was made to order, and exactly copies a modern native iron hoe.

Directly the specimen is handled it becomes obvious that it could

not possibly be used in a Transvaal field. The tang on such an

implement is limited to 2-4 cm. by the average size of the aperture in

the stone. The tang passes through a node of wood in the haft, which

is about 7°5 cm. thick at this point. This fragile wooden structure

has to bear, not the static weight of from ten to nineteen pounds, but

the effects of a violent blow on hard soil, backed by that weight. The

stone itself lies above the centre of gravity of the hoe, and the whole

would be almost impossible to manipulate, as the handle tends to

twist in the grip.

If it is presumed that the weight was on the haft, not on the tang,

the structure becomes even more flimsy, as the haft itself is reduced

to less than an inch in diameter in order to pass through the stone,

and would be further weakened by the hole necessary to take the hoe-

head.

If we go three hundred miles south, we have three descriptions of

digging-stick used by the Bantu Mpondo women of a century ago.

* A.W. Hoernlé, ‘A Note on Bored Stones among the Bantu,” Bantu Studies,

vol. v (1931), pp. 253-255, illus.

+ C. van Riet Lowe, ‘“‘Bored Stones in Nyasaland,” S.A.J.S., vol. xli (1941),

pp. 320-326.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 197

Here the shortage of iron was much the same. The AmaMpondo

depended upon itinerant smiths for their iron, and iron was not worked

until the Insimbini mine was started for native use by a European

trader. Our first account comes from the pen of Rev. Stephen Kay.*

“The latter (digging tools) consist of a kind of wooden spades, which

are usually made by the men, and so formed as to render both ends

useful.’ The other two descriptions were collected by myself in 1924.

The first was taken from the wife of Pangela, a seventy-year-old

member of the AmaMolo clan, living at Hluleka. She described the

digging-stick used when she was a child as being made of sneezewood

(Ptaeroxylon utile) and shaped like a double-ended paddle about 3 feet

in length. The blades were oval in plan and flat in section, the haft

round. It was used kneeling, a position also described by Kay.

My second account came from Chief Victor Poto Bokleni of Western

Pondoland, who gave a similar description, adding that a specimen

had been sent to the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley. An

actual Mpondo digging-stick of exactly this type is in the South

African Museum Collection, Cape Town.

It is thus highly probable that these digging-stick weights were

employed on the only wooden implement which could reasonably be

expected to bear the jar of their weight, namely, a straight digging-

stick, or single-ended spade, used as a crowbar for piercing and break-

ing the soil for a depth of a few inches.

The narrow bore found in many of these specimens suggests one of

two things: either that these are unfinished specimens, or that they

were at times employed in the manner depicted in Mrs. Hoernlé’s

article, but on a metal-tanged hoe, and not on a wooden tang. For

example, a stone weighing some sixteen pounds (TMP. 4760, New

Smitsdorp) would have been of little practical use mounted on a

digging-stick 1-3 cm. (half an inch) in diameter. On the other hand,

it might well have been designed for use on an iron-tanged hoe. Such

use would quickly show conical wear in the hole, but as there are no

signs of such wear we are thrown back on the suggestion that these

are unfinished specimens.

About half a dozen suggestive specimens (p. 11), all of the smaller

Bushman size and therefore not included above, are scattered through-

out southern Africa. These show conical holes with one wide and

one narrow mouth, instead of the typical hour-glass hole. It is

possible that the wider-mouthed specimens may have been bored

with stone from one face only, but one or two specimens strongly

Sole Kay, Travels and Researches in Caffraria. London, 1833.

198 Annals of the South African Museum.

suggest that an iron borer was used either to make the hole or to

ream it out afterwards, or perhaps may have helped to shape the bore

in later usage. The tang of a metal hoe would provide an excellent

instrument for the purpose. Unhappily, as the dimensions conform

with those of the VMR. series we have dealt with them as of Bushman

rather than of Bantu origin. It is perfectly possible that we are

dealing with a local type which will eventually be associable with

tribalised Bushman serfs working under the Bantu. The constant

and seemingly happy association of Sotho and Bushman at the

beginning of last century must not be overlooked.

Mr. Barnard has stated that the BaKoni smiths used the bored

stone for a variety of other purposes, such as bellows’ nozzles or

tuyeres. Kew specimens show evidence of fire, and those that do

might more probably have been subjected to the annual Transvaal

veld-burnings. <A pottery tuyére of the normal Bantu and African

type, such as occurs from the Ubanghi to the Orange, would seem to

be a far more efficient implement.

The BaLemba, according to his article, ““used a disc-shaped stone

with a small hole in it for burnishing copper and other wires... .

Further, this wire was flattened on one side for bangle-making and on

both sides for bead-making, by being pulled backwards and forwards

through a bored stone firmly fixed to a pole or tree.”

Here again the evidence of the stones themselves is against the

suggestion. In a few instances (e.g. the “Zimbabwe” specimen)

there are radial cuts or grooves from one mouth of the stone, but in

no instance could these have been made by a wire passing through

the central hole, as there is always a sharp lip at the junction of hole

and groove, showing that the groove was made by a sawing motion

across the mouth. Mr. Neville Jones describes one such Bushman

specimen (S.R.W.I., 3/356) from Tyger Kloof, and suggests that the

grooves are “the result of sharpening tools, probably of metal.” The

specimens I have seen suggest ownership marks. No disc-shaped

stones with a small hole are known from the Transvaal except for

the two Pietersburg examples.

Native wire does not show signs of having been flattened by this

means. In all the specimens I have examined the longitudinal

striations are raised, and must therefore have been a product of the

drawplate. The semicircular sectioned specimens are also a product

of the drawplate, and the flattened wire is palpably hammered flat.

While we have no evidence either from the stones themselves or from

the wire used in native ornaments, there is reason to believe that

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 199

stones of this sort were sporadically used for a great variety of

purposes.

Mr. Barnard’s evidence, while given in good faith, appears to show

that the male native informants were not clear as to the differences

between the hoe and the digging-stick, which is not surprising when

we realise that these were both essentially associated with woman’s

work, and as such would be scorned by the men. Similarly, these

natives appear to have gone out of their way to describe possible

uses for the bored stones rather than to trust to their memories. I

would suggest that the carefully collected testimony of a few old

women would yield some interesting facts concerning the use of the

Bantu bored stone.

From Abyssinia J. Desmond Clarke sent me a manuscript and

photograph,* describing the actual use of the bored stone there. In

addition the Abbé H. Breuil has described to me how three workers

will dig their straight digging-sticks (not hoes), weighted with bored

stones, into the hard earth, each at the angle of a rough equilateral

triangle. The whole mass of earth so enclosed is then levered out

with one effort, and the solid ground broken up by hammering with

the mounted stone. This produces characteristic wear in the stone

itself, though whether this eventually produces the peculiar smoothing

so typical of many Transvaal Bantu specimens, or whether it leaves a

finely pecked surface, I do not know.

M. J. Janmart recently described specimens to me that he has found

in north-eastern Angola and the south-west Congo. In some cases

these suggest usage about the lips of the bore, while the bore itself

is smoothly polished as though by use. In certain cases they suggest

that they were used as weights or pulleys, and in one instance a marked

groove has been worn into one side of the bore. As the stone hangs

naturally from this groove when suspended freely, he regards the

groove as a result of long usage on a rope.

Confirmation of the use of bored stones by metal-working peoples

near Bethal comes from an independent source. Professor Dart f

says: “The fact that both stone cones and perforated stones occur

together, as at Heilbron, is suggestive.” The stone cones referred to

here are highly symmetrical conical objects, about 6 cm. in diameter

at the base and tapering from there to a point, forming an elongated

ogive from 15 to 25 cm. in length. The most acceptable explanations

* Since published: Man, 1944, Article 25.

7 RB. A. Dart, “‘Phallic objects in South Africa,” 8. Afr. J. Sci., vol. xxvi (1929),

pp. 553-562, illus.

200 Annals of the South African Museum.

for their use are either that they are marline spikes for the making of

twisted wire bracelets, or Dart’s far more plausible suggestion that

they were forms or matrices about which clay was wrapped in order

to make the typical tuyéres or bellows-nozzles used by the Bantu smith.

Specimens of twyéres | have examined show in all cases that the clay

was moulded about some such base, dried, and removed for firing.

A wooden matrix would swell and split the wet clay. Dart shows

that the stone cone and the bored stone are associated together at

Bethal and at Heilbron, and that both are there related to a metal-

using people.

There seems to be no authenticated record of the Bantu employing

stone-headed clubs. Their use of metals probably allowed them to

make the technically simpler wooden knobkiri. It is worthy of note,

too, that the root “kiri” appears to be absent in the Bantu languages,

- and both Afrikaans and English appear to have taken the root over

directly from Bushman or Hottentot sources.

As a result of the Preliminary Survey, Mnr. J. B. de Vaal got into

touch with Mr. B. D. Malan of the Archaelogical Survey, and the

latter has very kindly permitted me the use of his note, from which

I translate.

‘““At the request of Mr. B. D. Malan of the Archaeological Bureau

I have tried to discover from various old Venda for what the bored

stones, so commonly found on different farms in the Soutpansberg,

were used. I showed them three stones, from my collection, that I

had found on the farms Mooiplaas, Maanskyn, and Perth. Three

Venda told me individually that they used them to tame cattle. One

old fellow, Johannes Masindi, about 60 years old, born and bred on the

farm Happy Rest, told me the following: Bored stones are used to tie

up obstreperous cows when they are milked. A twisted or plaited

rope is passed through a hole pierced in the cow’s nose, and tied back

on the head behind the horns. When the cow has to be milked the

rope is fixed with a peg. Where she is to stand a thong is tied to the

rope, the bored stone is kept near by, the end of the thong is threaded

through the hole, and the cow tied up as tightly as possible. If the

cow pulls, she hurts her nose, and has to keep still.

“In addition my informants told me that whenever a young ox

has to be broken to the yoke, one of the bored stones is hung about

his neck. He is allowed to run the whole day like this, and thus learns

to carry a weight, for which a yoke is substituted later... .Up

to the present I have not been able, following Mr. Malan’s request, to

discover anything from any old Venda woman on the subject.”

This is obviously a secondary use, more recent than the Bantu

use of the yoke and the use of the ox as a beast of traction, both

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 201

of which came in as European or Indian innovations within the last

century.*

THE USERS.

We have noted above that Mr. Barnard attributes at least some of

the bored stones of the Transvaal to the BaRoko and BaKoni tribes,

and perhaps to the MaTlala and BaTau, all of whom “were in the

country long prior to the arrival of the BaPedi,”’ and some of whom

were subject to this later folk. Mr. Barnard at the same time states

that the Pedi agriculturalists used iron hoes made for them by the

BaRoko. We may presume therefore that the digging-stick stone

is not Pedi.

The very definite ancestral and sexual symbolism which the Ba Venda

attach to old native iron hoes or to rings made from ancient hoe-

heads + proves that the Venda regard the iron hoe as sacred to the

ancestors. In addition, while certain stones are similarly sacred to

the ancestors, these are not bored, nor are they in any way linked with

the hoe. We may thus exclude the Venda peoples as users of the

bored stone.

Professor van Riet Lowe has found these implements (sites 32 and

33) in definite association with Bantu terrace agriculture. We may

presume that the Welgevonden (26) material, from a nearby farm,

south of the Komati valley, can be similarly associated. In Rhodesia

the association between bored stones and terrace agriculture is less

exact, and Hall has suggested that the bored stone from the Zimbabwe

region belonged to that cult, and that we are dealing with a single but

significant element of the Zimbabwe culture. No specimens appear

to have been reported in true association with any sites of this culture-

complex, either in Rhodesia or the Transvaal, though carved soap-

stone dagga-pipes have been reported.{

While specimens are sometimes attributed to the “Secocoeni,’

this term is generally applied to include the natives of the vague

area about Lydenburg, once known as Sekukuniland, and agrees quite

well with Mr. Barnard’s attribution and with the known distribution

of specimens. In the same way, many specimens have been called

““Makatees” (MaNtatisi); here again we are dealing with a mixed

group of broken-down tribes, with a nucleus of BaTlokwa, who

followed the chieftainess MaNtatisi in her amazing sweep half across

* Goodwin, Communication has been Established, Methuen, 1937, p. 76.

+ H. A. Stayt, The Bavenda, Oxford, 1931, pp. 242-248.

{ #.g. Randall-Maclver, Medieval Rhodesia, London, 1906, p. 58.

202 Annals of the South African Museum.

the southern continent. In the turmoil of refugees, conquerors, and

renegades so typical of the beginning of last century, remnants of any

Transvaal tribe might be found among her followers.

THe MaNtTatist on TLokwa MIGRATION.

The story of this extraordinary tragedy may be followed in works

by Ellenberger and MacGregor,* by Broadbent,+ Robert Moffat,

and Thompson.§ A final footnote to the story is to be found in the

letters of Lady Duff Gordon.

The BaTlokwa were a tribe originally allied to the BaPedi, in the

Magaliesberg area of the central Transvaal. The tribe split into

three groups, eventually known as the BaMoKhalong, BaMoKotleng,

and the BaMaLakeng, and migrated to the Wakkerstroom district

in the south-eastern Transvaal. During the Sekoboto year (the Year

of Famine, 1803) these groups were constantly at war, and ended by

having no grain or foodstuffs. In the course of these troubles Mokotjo

had made himself chief of the Kotleng branch, and took as his queen

the daughter of the chief of the BaSia, immediately to the south.

She was his first cousin, MoNyalue. When her first child was born

it was a daughter, Ntatisi, so according to custom the mother took

the name MaNtatisi. That name was eventually to terrorise the

central plateau of the northern Free State. To her followers she was

known as “‘Mosayane,” the little woman. She bore her husband a

son, and in 1813 Mokotjo died, leaving the son an infant; MaNtatisi

assumed the regency though still a young woman. She ended by

becoming the absolute ruler in the face of strong opposition from her

people. The Tlokwa were then living on the immediate west of the

Drakensberg, in the Harrismith district near the Elands River, an

affluent of the Wilge River, and the population has been roughly

estimated as about thirty thousand.

In 1822 began the Lifaqane wars, during which the central plateau

of the Free State was invaded in turn by the AmaHlubi, AmaNegwane,

BaTlokwa, AmaNdebele, and AmaZulu. At the same time the

Hottentot Griquas and Koranas grew restive, and they too invaded

part of the same plateau.

South of the Tlokwa lived the BaSia, south-west lived the BaFokeng

* History of the Basuto. London, 1912.

+ Rev. S. Broadbent, Narrative of introduction of Christianity among the

Barolong. London, 1865.

t Rev. R. Moffat, Missionary labours and scenes. London, 1842.

§ G. Thompson, Travels and adventures in Southern Africa. London, 1827.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 203

and other tribes of Sotho extraction, who covered what is now the

Free State and Basutoland. Most of these tribes are known to have

been in contact and alliance with local Bushman tribes. When the

AmaHlubi chief Pakalita crossed the Drakensberg from the turbulent

east, the surprised Tlokwa fell back on the BaSia, and in a fit of

quixotism refused to form an alliance as there was not enough food

for both tribes. They fell back farther west, and overwhelmed the

Fokeng, intending to settle there; but Pakalita was fast on their

track, and in his turn he was being followed by the victorious Ma-

tuwane. The Tlokwa turned and fought, and managed to divert the

Hlubi southward across the Caledon River. The Tlokwa followed

them and attacked Buthabutha, the stronghold of the young chief

Moshweshwe, who was eventually to draw the Basuto people together

into a solid nation. Moshweshwe fought a good rearguard action,

and retreated into the Basutoland mountains, where he lived with a

friendly Bushman tribe.

The Tlokwa now moved down the one bank of the upper Caledon

River, while Pakalita and his Hlubi took the opposite bank, each

waiting an opportunity to attack the other. After inflicting a defeat

on the Hlubi and incorporating members of that tribe, the Tlokwa

turned northward once again, defeated a few more tribes, and returned

once again to the upper Caledon. Backwards and forwards this extra-

ordinary migration of human termites moved: eating everything that

came their way, increasing their numbers with conscripts and prisoners,

and depleting their numbers again as the old and the weak fell by the

wayside.

The Tlokwa eventually crossed the middle Vaal in January 1823,

and engaged the BaRolong on the banks of the Bamboesspruit on the

eighteenth of that month. The Tlokwa were checked and weakened

at the battle of Tsabalira, and turned south and west as a hopeless

rabble looking for some weaker tribe from whom they could recuperate

their supplies and warriors. On 26th June they met their Moscow

at Takun, between Kuruman and Litaku, where they were routed by

60 mounted and armed Griqua under their chief Waterboer, and

pillaged by 2000 cowardly BaTlaping. At that battle the Tlokwa

numbered between 40,000 and 50,000 men, women, and children.

The whole story of this last march can be readily constructed from

the Journals of Broadbent, Thompson, Moffat, Andrew Smith, and

finally Lady Duff Gordon’s letters from the Cape. Lady Gordon,

writing in 1862, says that “the Mantatees . . . are scattered all over

the Colony,” and she specifically mentions their presence at Caledon

204 Annals of the South African Museum.

and at Genadendal, both less than a hundred miles from the Cape of

Good Hope. Scattered descendants of these people are still to be

found in the south-western districts of the Cape, though many of them

have forgotten their immediate ancestry, and have been merged into

the heterogeneous “‘Cape Coloured.’”’ I have even heard it said that

some call themselves ‘“‘Griquas,”’ having taken the name of their last

conquerors. In the neighbourhood of Malmesbury, Stellenbosch,

and the Cape Hinterland generally, the name “Makatees” was

regarded as a guarantee of a good and willing farm-labourer up to a

few years ago.

The route from the Bamboesspruit near Wolmaransstad to Postmas-

burg, south. of Kuruman, is adequately covered by the list of sites

given earlier (p. 194). Whether the bored stones belong to the

Tlokwa nucleus or to tribal refugees incorporated along the road does

not really matter. The stones do not fit any prehistoric series, but

fit excellently as extensions of Bantu graphs and histograms, and they

agree with the final route of the defeated army. The average diameter

is 14-4 cm., but the height is very variable. Several examples have

been bored withiron. The proofs of the association of these examples

with the Tlokwa would be threefold: the discovery of numbers of

bored stones of these types on the Bamboesspruit, a task that might

well be undertaken from Potchefstroom; the discovery of similar

stones in the Takun area, research best left to the McGregor Museum,

Kimberley; and finally a study of the south-eastern Transvaal with a

view to discovering what types of bored stone can be associated with

the Tlokwa of Wakkerstrom district, a task best left to Pretoria or

Johannesburg.

I have purposely refrained from raising the question of the possible

affinities of the largest elements in the Western Bypass (Prehistoric

Series) with this movement, although the IB along that route is

generally high; the possibilities should not be completely overlooked.

The routes are partially the same, and it is highly possible that my

analysis here is neither final nor correct in all its details. It depends

upon the evidence available to me. Association must help us here.

The consequent logical question, as to whether our Prototype 1

in the Prehistoric Transvaal Series is truly Bushman or is in fact

Bantu (or even both), would follow; and finally the possibility that all

large specimens, wherever they may be found, are suspect. These

questions areignored. To presume to attempt any answer here would

indeed be pyramiding hypotheses, and these questions can only be

solved in the light of association and clear thought.

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 205

The northern Free State, where the pendulum-swing up and down

the Caledon River took place, may well be adequately represented in

the National Museum, Bloemfontein, but as Dr. van Hoepen himself

proposes to work on his Free State material, I have been unable to

gain access to those sources.

We now come to more contentious ground: the further spread of the

scattered MaNtatisi movement from Takun. Along the route south-

ward several large bored stones occur, and were included in the Winter-

veld Prehistoric Series. To cite a few, the two largest Britstown

specimens have a low IB (34-1 and 41-3 per cent. respectively) while

two beads in the immediate neighbourhood, from Middelwater, have

certainly been bored with metal. At Victoria West the largest

example has an IB of 36-7 per cent., while at Three Sisters the large

specimen has an IB below 40 per cent., and so it goes on. When the

Cape is reached we find two outstanding examples, one from Stellen-

bosch (IB 18 per cent.), the other from Hout Bay (IB 30 per cent.).

Both have quite certainly been bored with metal. The Hout Bay

specimen (16-0 x 11-0 cm.) agrees with the Transvaal series, but the

Stellenbosch example only measures 12:0 cm.x11-0 cm. In addition

the only stone comparable with the Hout Bay example is also

from Stellenbosch, though it was almost certainly bored with stone

(IB 53-5 per cent.).

There is thus some reason to believe that a trail was laid by the

defeated armies of MaNtatisi from the south-western Transvaal to

the Cape and perhaps elsewhere. Much remains to be done, but I

sincerely hope that this will prove a fertile field for future ethnological

research, though clear association between Bantu and bored stone

outside the Transvaal is needed. Careful and detailed research must

eventually lay bare a story at which I can only hint.

SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS.

1. We may accept as Bantu all circular bored stones, from the

general neighbourhood of the Transvaal, with a diameter greater than

15-1 cm. In addition we must include certain stones associable with

these; stones known to have been used by the Bantu, or those

associated with Bantu sites and ruins; and finally, speculative

examples that fall well outside the normal graphical scatter and type-

groups of the local Prehistoric Series.

2. The large bored stones are too heavy to have been used on a

wooden hoe, though their use on an iron-headed hoe is not precluded.

206 Annals of the South African Museum.

Mpondo evidence shows that a spatulate digging-stick, used kneeling,

was their substitute for the hoe. It is suggested that the Transvaal

substitute was similar. Similar evidence is known from Abyssinia.

3. There is evidence that these peoples were essentially cattle-

keepers, as their distribution corresponds inversely with that of the

tsetse-fly.

4, These stones can be attributed to various Bantu-speaking peoples,

among them we can include such tribes as the BaRoko, the BaKoni,

MaTlala, BaTau, and BaTlokwa, and possibly the BaSia. We can

exclude the BaPedi and BaVenda. Dart further associates examples

at Heilbron and Bethel with metal-using peoples, while Lowe associates

them at sites 32 and 33 with terrace agriculture.

5. In Southern Rhodesia we may assume that they have been used

by an analogous Bantu-speaking people, possibly with terrace agri-

culture. There is no reason to associate normal bored stones with the

Zimbabwe complex. Even if the famous “‘ Zimbabwe area” stone

were so associable it is abnormal and had some very different function.

6. While isolated bored stones may well have been used variously

as tuyeres, wire-stroppers, etc. and for controlling restive cows, the

stones themselves show no such usage, and there is reason to believe

that these uses were incidental, not reflecting the original function.

7. The use of bored stones to decorate cattle horns is precluded by

weight and bore. Their use for training young oxen to the yoke must

post-date the introduction of the yoke itself from Europe or India.

8. There is as yet no reason to believe that the Bantu made stone-

headed knobkiries. Stone beads are attributable to a metal-using

people.

9. The use of bored stones as dagga-pipes is mentioned in Appendix

I, and the possibility that unfinished pipes may sometimes be included

as bored stones is noted.

10. The number of elongated Bantu examples so far available is

too small to permit of any deductions as to their relationship to one

another, or to the circular specimens.

11. An Index of Bore is developed, and reasons given to assume that

stones (over 3-5 cm. in diameter) in which the mouth of the hole is

less than 30 per cent. of the total thickness pierced have been bored

with metal, probably the tang of an axe or hoe-head.

12. The thickness of the stones pierced and the methods of boring

are much the same for the Transvaal prehistoric and Bantu specimens.

Cylindrical bores are attributed to usage.

13. The known association of Sotho with Bushmen at the beginning

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 207

of the last century cannot be ignored. This appears to show itself

in parts of the Transvaal through the conical boring of prehistoric

types with metal tools, and the similarity between Bantu and pre-

historic Transvaal histograms of IB. The partial contemporaneity

and contact of Bushmen and Bantu necessarily follows.

14. The history of the MaNtatisi movement in the first quarter of

the last century is outlined; and the incidence of stones, often bored

with metal and analogous to Bantu types, is noted along the final

stages of their migration.

15. Speculations are raised on the possible relationship between the

final scattering of the MaNtatisi and certain metal-bored examples in

the Province of the Cape of Good Hope. The relationship of these

movements with that outlined in the prehistoric “Western Bypass”’

is not raised, nor the deductions that might logically follow.

208 Annals of the South African Museum.

STORMS RIVER

Eo ONE DAGGA PIPES

SMITHFIELD

DISTRIBUTION OF

EDGED DISCS

BELOW 3-0 CMS. BORE.®

OVER 4°4CMS. BORE SO

Fia. 9.—Three stone pipe bowls for smoking hemp (above). Distribution of edged discs (below).

The Bored Stones of South Africa. 209

APPENDIX I.

Tut BorepD STONE AS A DaAGGa-PIPE.

Mr. Barnard’s statement in the paper quoted earlier, that the bored

stone was used by the BaRoko “as a bowl for their dagga-pipes,”’

is a misleadingly bare presentation of the facts. Bored stones of a sort

were certainly used as dagga (hemp, chanvre, Cannabis sp.) pipes by

both Bantu and Hottentot peoples, and are still so used, but the pipe

bowl is somewhat differently made. While authenticated examples

occur as far afield as Barotseland and the Cape, and are in use in

Pondoland, Basutoland, Zululand, and elsewhere, nothing has so far

been done on their typology or distribution. Material might well

be based upon examples confiscated in magistrates’ courts. Their

manufacture in Southern Rhodesia may go back a few centuries, and

Randall-Maclver mentions an example found in a midden of Zimbabwe

culture. But even if the hemp was originally introduced by the

Arabs, there is no evidence that this occurred early, or that the method

of making pipes was ever anything but an adaptation of the usual

technique used in making the bored stone.

A study of both complete and incomplete specimens is needed. I

here illustrate three, all markedly different. These show that the

section of the bore does not resemble that of the normal bored’ stone.

There are here two portions: the deeper hole provides the bowl of the

pipe, and the shallower is only wide enough to permit the insertion

of a reed stem. These two are joined by a narrow aperture, about

0-5 cm. in diameter. The holes are more tubular, and the examples

given all suggest that the hole was enlarged and shaped, after the two

pecked depressions met in the heart of the stone, by tooling. There

is thus a marked step in the sections, towards the aperture.

The two larger specimens have had a pebble origin, and were

originally far larger than they are now, but have been rubbed and

ground to shape. The Smithfield example is an almost perfect barrel

shape, thinning slightly to one end. The Mpondo specimen is less

regularly ground, and was probably rubbed down on a flat stone,

so that the remnants of faceting are visible down the outer face of the

cylinder.

The pebble was therefore bored, then ground laboriously to shape,

and finally the interior of the bowl was dug out with some metal

tool until it had a reasonable capacity. To have shaped the stone

before boring would have been fatal.* The Smithfield specimen (sent

* Since writing this note, a dagga-pipe, in process of manufacture, has come

to my notice. It is from Weenen, Natal, and was shaped to a “‘Christmas cracker”

shape (a cylinder with two waists) and had broken directly boring had been

commenced.

210 Annals of the South African Museum.

by Dr. Kannemeyer to the South African Museum) is the most

perfect, though the example from Hluleka on the western Pondoland

coast is good. Both these are heavily impregnated with black hemp-

juice from use. Known dagga-pipes are ignored in the body of this

paper. A few thistle-shaped examples are known to exist among the

Zululand tribes, probably more closely related to the Barotseland

forms. These occur (I believe in both areas) in stone or in pottery.

These various forms are not exclusively Bantu, and are known to

have been in use among the Hottentots, though there is not the

shghtest evidence that their use was earlier than the historic period

in South Africa. There are two other forms of pipe in use among the

Bushmen and Hottentot peoples, the “trap-drain”’ form, used exclu-

sively for dagga, and the “cigar-holder”’ type which seems to have

come in with tobacco, and is not suited to hemp at all.

APPENDIX II.

EpcEep Discs anp ARM-RINGS.

The figures and available data on these examples of the bored stone

have been published elsewhere,* and the reader is invited to turn to

that reference for a complete survey of the question, as I have no

intention of repeating the body of that paper here.

The edged disc is a discus-like stone, bored in the centre, and either

planoconvex or biconvex, so that a polished edge forms the outer

boundary of this circular stone. This has in certain instances been

reamed out in such a way as to increase the central hole to dimensions

that suggest its use as an arm-ring. In only one instance could the

stone have been used as an arm-ring for an adult. It was found that

two types could be differentiated; those with an aperture under 3 cm.,

and those with an aperture greater than 4-4 cm., and the list of sites

was given in that paper. Figures for two further specimens have

come to hand; one from Boetsap falls into the small-bored series, and

another from a midden site at the Bashee River mouth falls into the

large-bored series. The accompanying map, not hitherto published,

includes these two. The small-bored examples are marked as dots,

the large-bored as circles.

* A. J. H. Goodwin, South African Journal of Science, vol. xl, pp. 296-302,

1943.

CORRIGENDA.

Map 2, p. 110. For Colesburg read Colesberg.

Map 4, p. 112. for Fullerton read Fullarton.

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Bo, 68

ANNALS

OF THE

SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM

VOLUME XXXVII.

PART II, containing :-—

2. Cramometric Survey of the South African Museum Collection

of Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls.—

By J. A. Keen, Department of Anatomy, University of

Cape Town. (With Plates I-IV.)

ISSUED AUGUST 1952. PRICE 10s.

PRINTED FOR THE

TRUSTEES OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM, CAPE TOWN

. BY NEILL AND CO. LTD.,

212 CAUSEWAYSIDE, EDINBURGH.

Genie)

2. Craniometric Survey of the South African Museum Collection of

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls.

By J. A. Keen,

Department of Anatomy, University of Cape Town.

(With Plates I-IV.)

THE collection of crania in the South African Museum representing

the aboriginal peoples of the Union was started at a time when Mr.

W. L. Slater was the Director (1896-1906), and was continued by

Dr. L. Peringuey (1906-24), under whose directorship the collection

grew to considerable dimensions. In 1923 Dr. Peringuey decided to

submit the collection, about a hundred complete crania and other

skeletal material, to Professor H. Pittard, the eminent anthropologist,

of the University of Geneva. Professor Pittard undertook to make

a detailed study, and for many years this valuable Bushman and

Hottentot material remained in Switzerland.

During the directorship of Dr. E. L. Gill (1925-42) the Bushman

and Hottentot anthropological collection continued to increase

through gifts of accidental finds and also through the exhumation

of graves, as occasion arose. In 1939 a portion of the skeletal material,

originally sent away by Dr. Peringuey, returned to Cape Town, the

remainder not until 1948, owing to the outbreak of the Second World

War. The whole collection is now again housed in the South African

Museum and consists of 205 adult crania, 121 of these with mandibles.

I am indebted to Dr. K. H. Barnard, the Director of the South African

Museum, for permission to study these crania and to present a general

survey. Hach skull was measured, following a standardised method

which had previously been applied to groups of European, Bantu

and Cape Coloured crania, and also to a very similar collection of

Bush-Hottentot material in the Nasionale Museum, Bloemfontein

(Keen, 1947).

Previous Studies—A subgroup of the collection, viz., 53 crania

exhumed from graves near Colesberg in the Cape Province, was studied

by Slome (1929) and the results published under the title of the

VOL. XXXVII, PART 2. 14

212 Annals of the South African Museum.

““Osteology of a Bushman tribe”. During the time that the Peringuey

collection of skulls was in Switzerland, Professor Pittard and his

co-workers published many articles bearing on special points in

craniology which interested them. However, a general craniometric

survey of the collection, as a whole, had not been made previously.

METHODS.

The skull measurements.—The list of skull measurements which was

selected is seen in Table I. It includes all the usual cranium and face

dimensions and indices which are employed in physical anthropology.

The first seven measurements and four indices concern the vault of the

skull. The remainder concern the facial part of the skull, and are

designed to study the configuration of the orbit, nose and mandible.

Most of the measurements were made according to the instructions

given in R. Martin’s text-book (1928), but a few require special

mention.

The length of mastoid process is obtained by drawing a line across

the root of the mastoid process parallel to the Frankfort plane, at the

level of the upper margin of the suprameatal triangle. On that line

take a point which is vertically above the tip of the mastoid process,

and then measure the distance between that point and the tip

of the mastoid process. If the suprameatal triangle is ill-defined,

the level of the upper margin of the external auditory meatus is

used.

The wnterorbital interval (“Zwischenaugenbreite”) is defined by

Martin (1928) as the straight distance between the two dacrya, the

dacryon being the point on the inner margin of the orbit where the

frontal bone, the frontal process of the maxilla and the lacrimal bone

meet. The sutures tend to disappear with advancing age, especially

that between the maxilla and the lacrimal bone, and in many skulls

it is impossible to find the dacryon. On account of this difficulty

I have consistently interpreted the interorbital distance as being the

maximum distance obtainable across the bridge of the nose when the

caliper points are placed on the upper part of the lacrimal bone, or on

the fronto-lacrimal suture, if this is visible.

The minimum ramus breadth is the smallest distance obtainable

between the front edge and the posterior border of the ramus of

the mandible. The monimum ramus height is the distance between the

lowest point of the mandibular notch and the lower border of the

mandible, the measurement being made along a line at a right angle

to the line of the minimum ramus breadth measurement. These

two mandible dimensions and an index obtained from them have

been shown to have a special significance in the differentiation

between Bushman, Hottentot and Bantu crania. The angle at the

nasion is the forward angle formed at the nasion between straight

lines joining nasion to glabella and nasion to rhinion; a simple method

of measuring this profile angle has been described (Keen, 1949).

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 218

Methods of calculation.—The frequency distribution of each measure-

ment was tabulated, after choosing a suitable class interval, and the

means (M) and standard deviations (a) were determined in the usual

manner. In order to compare the data obtained in a related popula-

tion group, calculations were made to determine the critical ratios

between the means of each dimension or index. This calculation

involves first of all the determination of the standard error of the mean

(c), according to the formula e=o/\/n (xn =number of observations).

The standard error of the mean for one group may be written as e¢,,

and for another group as «,. The next step was to find the standard

error of the difference (caig), using the formula ogig=Ve2 +€,2. The

critical ratio is given by the formula:

actual difference between the two means pe M,-M,

Odift VJ ey? + €52

According to the laws of probability, the significance of the numerical

values obtained for the critical ratio is as follows. If the critical

ratio is 2-5, a difference between the two means equal to or greater

than the observed difference is not likely to be found in more than

6 out of 1000 comparisons of groups drawn from similar population

sroups. Hence we are justified in concluding that the observed

difference is almost certainly due to systematic and not to chance

factors; in other words, that the observed difference is significant.

Such a conclusion is all the more justified if the critical ratio exceeds

2-5, the significance becoming more and more important as the

critical ratio increases.

Some observers are prepared to accept critical ratios of 2 or even

slightly less as indicating differences which are statistically significant.

However, in Table III the differences between the means have been

noted as significant only when the critical ratio was 2-5 or more.

critical ratio =

RESULTS.

The results of the analysis of the dimensions and indices of the

205 crania in the collection are presented in Table I. Included in

the series are 12 crania which are labelled Griqua in the Museum

records. A study of the osteology of the Griquas was made by Brink

(1923), who described this population group as a Hottentot clan in

which some European admixture had occurred. On examination,

these Griqua skulls in the collection showed no evidence of such

admixture. Nine out of the 12 ‘ Griqua’ skulls could be classified

unhesitatingly as Bush-Hottentot hybrid skulls. Of the remaining

three, two were very large skulls showing the characteristics of the

pure Hottentot. The third one, although resembling the Hottentot

type in most of its dimensions, had a gnathic index of 104, which

raised the question of a possible Negro admixture.

214 Annals of the South African Museum.

TaBLE ].—SHOWING THE RANGES, MEANS AND STANDARD DEvia-

TIONS OF THE CRANIAL AND FactaAL MEASUREMENTS AND INDICES

OF THE SouTtH AFRICAN MuskumM CoLLECTION OF BUSHMAN,

Hottentot AND BusH-HotTtrentot Hysrip CRANIA.

(205 skulls; measurements in millimetres unless stated otherwise.)

Range Mean +€ o

1. Maximum length 157-200 179-3+ -d (PL:

2. Maximum breadth 119-149 132-34 -4 5-6

3. Minimum frontal

breadth 82-111 94-5+ -3 4-6

4. Basion-bregma height . 112-146 126-64 -4 6:3

Breadth/length

index (2/1) 64-4-86-6 73°94 -3 3:8

Height/length

index (4/1) 60-7-78:-7 (pt se 2 35

Height/breadth

index (4/2) 81-7-113-7 95-94 4 6-0

Transverse fronto-

parietal index (3/2) 62-6-83-4 M154 °3 4-0

5. Horizontal circum-

ference 456-560 502-5 + 1-2 16:7

6. Cranial capacity (c.c.°) . 989-1615 1238-8+47-7 | 109-7

7. Length of mastoid

process 13-36 24-44 +3 4-1

8. Length of base 85-110 96-84 -3 4-9

9. Length of face. 82-115 95-6+ -4 6-0

Gnathic index (9/8) 89-6-108-0 Sleeiee 33) oT

10. Maximum bizygomatic

diameter . 108-142 123-5+ -5 6:8

11. Total face height 82-123 1045+ -7 75

12. Upper face height 50-77 62°32 5-2

Total facial index

(AO) 70-1-99-2 80-4 == 35 5:5

Upper facial index

(12/10) 41-5-60:5 51-04 +3 3°6

18. Breadth of orbit . 30-47 40-9+ -1 2-2

14. Height of orbit 25-37 SIIPIESE ol 2-2

Orbital index (14/13) 63:0-89-7 T6-34 -4 5-1

15. Interorbital interval 18-34 26-2+ :2 3:0

16. Nasal width 20-32 20°00 ee 2°3

17. Nasal height : 36-52 45-44. +2 od

Nasal index (16/17) 46-7-69-4 579+ °3 4-6

18. Minimum ramus breadth 27-45 349+ +3 34

19. Minimum ramus height 32-53 41-24 -4 4-8

Index of ramus (18/19) 62:5-114:3 Oma oY 9-7

20. Angle of nasion 123-169° 151-1+ -6° 9-0

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 215

Further, one must admit that an occasional skull of a Cape Coloured

may have been added to the collection, the cranium being labelled

Hottentot or Bush-Hottentot hybrid. With these reservations in

mind, we may affirm that the ranges, means and standard deviations

of the 20 skull dimensions and 10 indices, seen in Table I, are repre-

sentative of the Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot hybrid

peoples, when they are placed together as one entity.

Provenance and Classification of the Crania.

Nearly every skull in the collection had an entry in the Museum

records to indicate when it reached the Museum, who presented it,

and from which locality it came. The skulls originated from an

extensive area which included the whole of the Cape Province, as well

as the territory along the west coast of South Africa which formerly

was the German colony of South West Africa—that is, Ovamboland,

Namaqualand north of the Orange River, and the adjoining Kalahari

Desert. An obvious method of subdividing the crania was on a

geographical basis, as follows :—

(a) Crania which came from the interior of the Cape Province: 71.

(6) Crania which came from Ovamboland, Namaqualand, and the

Kalahari Desert: 63.

Cape Town: 25.

(d) Crania from localities situated in the southern coastal strip of

the Cape Province: 19.

With the remaining 27 crania there was no information as to the

place of origin. When Dr. Peringuey submitted the material to

Professor Pittard in 1923, the collection of crania was about half the

size of the present one. Dr. Peringuey divided the skeletal material

partly on a cultural and partly on a geographic basis, and suggested

the following subdivisions: (1) Crania obtained from coastal rock

shelters. (2) Crania obtained from sand-dunes and coastal middens.

Both these groups, according to Peringuey, would represent the

Strandloper race. (3) Crania from the interior of the Cape Province,

representing mainly the inland Bushman. (4) Crania from Ovam-

boland, Namaqualand, and the Kalahari Desert, which were also

said to be mainly Bushman material.

From the letters exchanged with Professor Pittard, which are

preserved in the files of the South African Museum, it is clear that

216 Annals of the South African Museum.

Dr. Peringuey considered that the Hottentots were a subdivision of

the Bantu, the latter being defined as central African Negros who had

undergone a “‘semitic infiltration”. The Hottentots are said to have

invaded South Africa, where they encountered an aboriginal race,

the Bushmen, whom they conquered. The Hottentots mixed with

the Bushmen and as a result their physique became considerably

changed. This was the original view put forward by Stow (1905).

The resultant mixed group settled along the sea-coast, while the

original Bushmen were displaced inland. For the mixed Bush-

Hottentot group, which after a time became relatively homogeneous,

Dr. Peringuey preferred the name Strandloper, no doubt having been

influenced by Shrubsall (1907). This author insisted on the very

distinct racial characteristics of the Strandlopers, who were said to

be a purer group than the Bushmen, and to be distinct from the

Hottentots.

In the numerous anthropological studies by Professor Pittard

and his co-workers, the grouping suggested by Dr. Peringuey was

rigidly adhered to, on the assumption that there was some inherent

fundamental difference. After discarding damaged crania and

juvenile ones, and further subdividing them rather arbitrarily into

male and female, the resultant subgroups became very small (often

less than 12), so that the means of the various dimensions and indices

given in Professor Pittard’s writings were not particularly helpful

A collection of crania of the Bushman and Hottentot population

groups has also been made by the Nasionale Museum, Bloemfontein.

Here the skulls are subdivided into “typical” Bushman, “typical”

Hottentot, and the intermediate Bush-Hottentot hybrid. The

Hottentot material had been obtained in the course of several expedi-

tions to collect old Hottentot skulls from graves along the Orange River

between Kakamas and the Falls, the Hottentot graves being marked

by conical mounds of stones (Dreyer and Meiring, 1937). This Orange

River region was occupied by relatively pure Hottentot tribes within

historical times (Maingard, 1932).

The “typical”? Hottentot cranium is large (mean maximum length:

192 mm.), narrow in the forehead region and markedly dolichocephalic

(mean breadth/length index: 70-5); while the “typical” Bushman

cranium is small (mean maximum length: 174 mm.), relatively wide

in the forehead region and with a tendency to brachycephaly (mean

breadth/length index: 75-8).

An analysis of the skull dimensions and indices of the Bloemfontein

crania (Keen, 1947), and a comparison with the data obtained from

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 217

the present collection, reveals differences in certain directions. But

these differences are easily explained by a preponderance of large

Hottentot crania in the Nasionale Museum collection. In the Bloem-

fontein series the large “typical”? Hottentot crania formed 35 per

cent. of the total number (35 out of 99 skulls), while in the present

collection the “typical”? Hottentot crania are only 19 per cent. of the

total (38 out of 205).

The experience gained with the material in the Nasionale Museum,

Bloemtontein, enabled me to subdivide the present series of crania

into the three groups of Bushman, Hottentot, and Bush-Hottentot

hybrids, and the results were as follows. Among the 205 crania,

46 were small mesocephalic skulls which were called “typical”

Bushman, 7.e. 22 per cent. On the other side were 38 large doli-

chocephalic crania which were called “typical”? Hottentot, 7.e. 19

per cent. The remaining 121 crania (59 per cent.) were classified as

Bush-Hottentot hybrid. The skulls were also divided into male and

female; but little importance is attached to this, because the sexing

of crania, in the absence of other skeletal data, is recognised to be

very uncertain. :

Where the dividing lines are drawn between the characteristic

Hottentot, Bush-Hottentot hybrid, and Bushman is a matter of

choice which rests with the observer. But the recognition of the

tendency in one or other direction, and the definition of the extreme

types at either extremity, are tasks which present no particular

difficulty. 7

If an analysis is made of the two extreme groups, based solely on

the two factors of maximum length and breadth/length index, we

obtain the following results. The 46 Bushman crania in this series

gave a mean for maximum length 172 mm. (range 157-177 mm.),

with a mean breadth/length index of 7S—that is, in the mesocephalic

class (76-0-80-9). The 38 Hottentot crania gave a mean for maximum

length of 189 mm. (range 183-200 mm.), with a mean breadth/length

index of 70—that is, well into the dolichocephalic class (x — 75-9). In

between lay the large group of Bush-Hottentot hybrids. These data

show a close approximation to the criteria established when defining

“typical” Hottentot, “typical” Bushman, and Bush-Hottentot

hybrid crania in the previous study of the Bloemfontein series.

If we accept the method of classifying the present series into the

three types, it becomes of special interest to study their relative

distribution in the various subdivisions based on the geographical

origin of the crania (see Table II). Among the crania originating

218 Annals of the South African Museum.

from the interior of the Cape Province the small mesocephalic Bushman

skull was found more often than the large dolichocephalic Hottentot

cranium. In the material from South West Africa and the Kalahari

Desert the proportions are reversed (Table II). Among the crania

from the southern coastal strip of the Cape Province and near Cape

Town the characteristic Bushman type is often seen, the Hottentot

type much less often. In all three geographical groups the Bush-

Hottentot hybrid skulls are the most numerous, as applies to the

collection as a whole.

TABLE IL.—SHowING THE PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION OF THE THREE

TYPES WHEN THE CRANIA ARE ARRANGED ACCORDING TO THEIR

GEOGRAPHICAL ORIGIN.

Bush-Hottentot

Bushman. Hottentot. Heads

From the interior of Lf 13 4]

the Cape Province: 24% 13%, 58%

71 skulls.

From Ovamboland, 9 14 40

Namaqualand, and 14 R 22% 64%,

Kalahari Desert:

63 skulls.

From southern coastal 17 4 2

area and near Cape 39% I 52%

Town: 44 skulls.

Dr. Peringuey had informed Professor Pittard that the crania from

the interior of the Cape Province and those from South West Africa

and the Kalahari Desert were representative of the Bushmen, placing

the hybrid crania, which he preferred to call Strandlopers, along the

coastal strip. Actually the South West Africa and Kalahari Desert

group contains the highest proportion of “pure” Hottentot crania.

Thus we can explain such disturbing statements as that made by

Professor Pittard (1927) to the effect that the Bushmen of the Kalahari

are dolichocephalic. The analysis was based on the examination of

27 crania. The material, as becomes obvious, was largely Hottentot

and Bush-Hottentot hybrid, and not Bushman. The characteristic

Bushman type of cranium appears to be best represented among

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 219

those obtained from middens and rock shelters along the coast and

near Cape Town.

Australoid Type of Hottentot.—A smooth forehead region, with

absent or only slightly marked eyebrow ridges, is characteristic of

Bushman and Hottentot crania. Occasionally the glabella is

prominent and continuous at the sides, with definite supra-orbital

ridges. Among the 205 crania there were 7 (3 per cent.) where this

feature was noted. Of the 7 skulls with marked supra-orbital ridges,

3 were large crania which had been called Hottentot, and the other

4 had been grouped as Bush-Hottentot hybrid.

Well-marked supra-orbital ridges were described by Broom (1941)

as occurring among the Korana. In order to explain the existence of

such australoid crania among them, it was postulated that an unknown

australoid type, now quite extinct, mixed with the Korana race. The

Korana are considered by Broom to be a purer type than the Hottentot.

The latter, according to this author, were a hybrid race resulting from

the crossing of Bushmen and Koranas. It has been argued elsewhere

(Keen, 1943) that the Koranas should be considered to be a tribe of

the Hottentots, on historical grounds and also because their cranial

dimensions conform closely to the criteria established for the Hottentot

group.

Comparison between Bushman and Hottentot Crania.

Differences—Many of the differences between the “typical”

Bushman and the “typical” Hottentot are accounted for by the fact

that the Hottentot skull is considerably larger than the Bushman

skull, and this is mainly shown in the dimension of maximum length.

As regards maximum breadth, the Bushman cranium is relatively

wider than the Hottentot one. In consequence, the breadth/length

index is a larger figure in the Bushman, bringing these skulls into the

mesocephalic class (76-:0-80:9), while the Hottentot skulls are decidedly

dolichocephalic (Plate ITT).

The facial part of the skull, even more than the vault, reflects the

difference in general size. Of the two facial dimensions, total face

height and upper face height, the latter is relatively more affected.

Accompanying the smaller upper face is a reduced nasal height in the

Bushman. The Bushman face, as compared with the Hottentot, is

compressed from above downwards, and this reduction in height

affects more particularly the part of the face between the nasion

and the prosthion. Both facial indices are smaller in the Bushman,

giving the face a shape which tends to be somewhat oblong from

220 Annals of the South African Museum.

side to side, while the Hottentot face is more square-shaped. The

nasal index, on the average, shows a higher figure in the Bushman, this

being due to a relatively greater reduction in nasal height than in

nasal width, as compared with the Hottentot. The Bushman is more

platyrhine than the Hottentot (Plate I).

Resemblances.—Both Bushman and Hottentot crania have a low

vault of the skull, the mean for basion-bregma height being 126 mm.,

as compared with a mean of 133 mm. in a group of Bantu crania.

Bush-Hottentot crania, as a rule, have a short mastoid process, and

this is very evident if they are contrasted with HKuropean or Negro

crania. Bushman and Hottentot crania are orthognathous with a

mean for the gnathic index of 98-7, as compared with a mean of 101-4

for the Bantu (Plate II).

The orbital index is small, on an average, in Bush-Hottentot skulls,

indicating that the orbital aperture tends to be narrower from above

downwards. The zygomatic bones are prominent and push the

inferior orbital margin upwards to some extent. The prominent

cheek-bones in the faces of the South African aboriginal peoples was a

feature which was noted by the early Dutch settlers. The narrower

orbital aperture in a vertical direction contrasts with the more rounded

orbital aperture in European and Negro crania.

An important characteristic of the Bushman and Hottentot crania

is seen in the shape of the ramus of the mandible, which tends towards

asquareshape (PlateIV). Thisgives a high index of ramus, in contrast

with the more elongated ramus of the Negro and Huropean mandible

with a much lower index. But perhaps the most striking and im-

portant character seen in the facial part of the skull is the “flatness”

of the nasion region, so very obvious in all Bushman and Hottentot

crania (Plate I). A flat bridge of the nose goes pari passu with a large

profile angle at the nasion; the mean for the whole group of crania

was 151° (Table I). The mean for the angle at nasion in 220 Bantu

crania was 138°, and in 186 European crania it was 127°. The flatness

of the nasion region is seen typically in Mongolian skulls, and the

Bushmen and Hottentots further share skin colour, the Mongolian

fold at the inner margin of the eye, and the prominent cheek-bones

with certain Asiatic population groups.

The factor of “flatness” of the nose appears to be linked with a

wide wnterorbital interval, which was stated by Shrubsall (1907) to be

a characteristic of the Bushman cranium. A priori, one expected that

the factor of “flatness” of the nose, as expressed numerically by the

size of the profile angle at the nasion, would be positively correlated

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 221

with a wide interorbital interval. But when the coefficient of correla-

tion was calculated on the data provided by these 205 crania, no

correlation was found to exist between the two factors.

The difficulties of measuring the interorbital interval have been

referred to previously. When the interorbital interval was measured

as described earlier, the various racial groups showed very slight

differences in the means: 26 mm. in the present series of Bush-

Hottentot skulls, 27 mm. in the Bantu crania, and 25 mm. in the

Kuropean series, in spite of the very large differences between them

in the means for the angle at nasion. The nasal bones and the frontal

processes of the maxillae are flattened out, and the bridge of the nose

itself is wider in the Bush-Hottentot crania. But there is no corre-

sponding increase in the distance between the front parts of the inner

walls of the right and left orbits.

The various points of difference between Bushman and Hottentot

crania, and the characteristics common to both groups, can be seen

to a greater or less extent in the photographs of three representative

crania (Plates I-III). Only one of these had a mandible available,

and therefore they are shown without the lower jaw.

Comparison with the Cape Coloured Crania.

Of the present-day population groups in the Union of South Africa

the Cape Coloured people are the most closely allied to the aboriginal

Bushmen and Hottentots; the two latter population groups are

becoming extinct. It seemed of interest to make a comparison

between the crania of the aboriginal peoples and those of the present-

day Cape Coloureds. The data for the Cape Coloureds came from a

recent craniometric study (Keen, 1951) in which male and female

crania were analysed separately. For purposes of this comparison

the midway mean between the male and female means was used, on

the assumption that in the Bush-Hottentot crania of the S.A. Museum

collection we were also dealing with male and female in equal

proportions.

The means for the various dimensions and indices of the two series

of crania are shown in Table III, together with the results of calcula-

tions of the critical ratios of the differences in the means. A glance

at the column of the critical ratios shows at once that the significant

differences affect the dimensions and indices of the facial part of the

skull much more than those of the vault part. The importance of the

facial part of the skull in racial differentiation has been stressed by

222 Annals of the South African Museum.

TABLE IIJ.—SHOWING THE MEANS OF THE VARIOUS DIMENSIONS AND

INDICES IN THE BusH-HoTTENTOT CRANIA OF THE S.A. MusEuM

COLLECTION SIDE BY SIDE WITH THE SAME MEASUREMENTS IN

CaPpE COLOURED CRANIA, TOGETHER WITH THE CRITICAL RATIOS

OF THE DIFFERENCES, PROVIDED THESE WERE 2:5 OR MORE.

(Measurements in millimetres unless stated otherwise.)

S.A. Museum | Cape Coloured Critical

Collection Group Ratio of

(205 skulls). (201 skulls). Difference.

Maximum length : 179-3: -5 S023 =e 2°5

Maximum breadth 1382-34 -4 134-14 -;

Minimum frontal

breadth . ; 94-54 33 94-6+ °5

Basion-bregma height . 126-64 -4 129-24 -5 4-0

Breadth/length index . (gepse 3) T4-24 -4

Height/length index. Wise 2 (laa -&

Height/breadth index . pire) de AE 96-0 == <5

Transverse fronto-

parietal index . T15+4 -3 10:32 | 4

Horizontal circumfer-

ence : : 502-5 + 1-2 504:9+ 1-6

Cranial capacity (c.c.3). | 1238:847-7 | 1264-6413-8

Length of mastoid |

process. : : 24-44 33 Mf i 6-6

Length of base . 96-84 °3 97-64 -D

Length of face. 99:64: -4 96-44 -7

Gnathic index . : 98-:7+ -3 98:9+ -5

Maximum bizygomatic

diameter 123°5+ -5 123-7+ -6

Total face height 104-54 -7 112-24 1-0 5-2

Upper face height 62-34 -4 665+ -6 D1

Total facial index 85-4+ +5 906+ -7 6:5

Upper facial index 510+ 3 53:64 -4 5-2

Breadth of orbit : 40:94 -1 422+ 2 5:9

Height of orbit . Sl-1l+ +1 32-384 +3 2°8

Orbital index : : 76-34 -4 77:84 -4 2°6

Nasal width , : 25:8+ -2 25:-T7T+ °3

Nasal height 45-44 -2 AT-94+ -4 5:5

Nasal index ; : SO) a ok 54-44 +6 5:2

Minimum ramus

breadth . ; : 34°94 -3 3154 -4 6:8

Minimum ramus

height. : ; Al-24 -4 450+ -6 53

Index of ramus . 85:24 -9 70-6+ I: 9-7

Angle at nasion . 1D51-1+ -6°} 141-14 1-2° Con

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 223

many anthropologists, and we may quote Sir Arthur Keith (1929) who

said ““ When we have to distinguish one race of mankind from another,

we obtain more assistance from the facial than from the cranial parts

of the skull”’.

Where the average dimensions of the Cape Coloured crania differed

from the Bushman and Hottentot dimensions, these Cape Coloured

means had moved towards the Kuropean and Negro means. When

the genetic influence of the two last groups tended in opposite direc-

tions, as e.g. in nasal width, the Cape Coloured means remained

practically identical with those of the Bushman and Hottentot

crania (Table III).

Although it is seen that many skull dimensions and indices show

significant differences when a comparison is made between the Cape

Coloured on the one hand, and Bushman and Hottentot crania on

the other hand, these differences, as a rule, are less than those which

appear in comparisons between Cape Coloured and Bantu, or Cape

Coloured and European crania. Thus we see that the Bush-Hottentot

inheritance exerts a powerful genetic influence on the Cape Coloureds,

- é.g., the flat nasion region with a wide bridge of the nose, the prominent

zygomatic bones, the absence of prognathism and the square-shaped

ramus of the mandible (Plate IV).

DISCUSSION.

In the seventeenth-century records of the Dutch settlers different

names were used when the aboriginal tribes are mentioned. Apart

from the name Hottentots, they were sometimes called the Watermans,

sometimes the Strandlopers (beachrangers). The predatory habits of

the inland Bushmen were well known, but it was supposed that they

were merely another Hottentot clan (Theal, 1888). From this original

error much confusion has arisen, and even to-day anthropologists are

not agreed. One school believes that the Hottentots and the Bush-

men are so much alike in physical characters, and so distinct in

appearance from the other inhabitants of southern Africa, that one

cannot separate them into two races. They should be considered as

subgroups of one race, viz., the Khoisan race (Shapera, 1930; Galloway,

1933); the term Bush race is often used with the same meaning, 7.e.

to include both Hottentots and Bushmen. The other school of

anthropologists (Broom, 1923; Dreyer, 1937; Drennan, 1938) con-

siders that the Hottentots and the Bushmen are sharply differentiated

racial groups, although extensive hybridisation of the two peoples

224 Annals of the South African Museum.

had produced the intermediate Bush-Hottentot type, and clear-cut

separation is absent.

In a previous study of Bushman and Hottentot crania, I followed

the view that the Bushmen and Hottentots were distinct population

groups. The characteristic or “typical” Bushman crania are easily

separated from characteristic Hottentot skulls, as they show very

opposing tendencies. Crania which in the past have been called

Strandloper, on account of their being found in association with coastal

middens and rock shelters, are proving to be Hottentots or Bush-

Hottentot hybrid types (Drennan, 1938; Keen, 1941). For this

reason the term Strandloper should no longer be used in a racial sense,

as denoting a distinct population group. The Strandlopers are a

subdivision of the Hottentot group with a propensity for living along

the seashore. The same criticism applies to the term Korana; they

should be considered as a clan of the Hottentots. ‘Two Korana skulls

obtained from graves in the Orange River area near Upington proved

on analysis to conform very closely to the criteria established for the

Hottentot race. Further, it was from graves along the Orange River

between Kakamas and the Falls that the Bloemfontein Nasionale

Museum obtained its collection of “typical”? Hottentot crania.

The difficulties which face anthropologists in their study of the

aboriginal peoples of the Union of South Africa will be lessened

considerably if a clear differentiation is made between the two racial

groups, the Bushmen and the Hottentots, recognising at the same

time that there was extensive hybridisation between the two groups,

and that many crania represent the intermediate type, viz., the

Bush-Hottentot hybrid.

SUMMARY.

The author made a craniometric study of a collection of 205 skulls

in the South African Museum, Cape Town, which appertain to the

aboriginal peoples of the Union of South Africa, the Bushmen and the

Hottentots. The crania were submitted to a standard set of 20

measurements from which 10 indices were calculated. The means

of the dimensions and indices are given in tabular form, together with

the ranges and standard deviations.

The crania were divided into three types, Bushman, Hottentot and

Bush-Hottentot hybrid, and an analysis was made of the distribution

of the three types among the crania originating from different areas.

It was found that the Hottentot type occurred more frequently among

the crania originating from South West Africa and the Kalahari

Desert, the Bushman type more often among the crania originating

Bushman, Hottentot and Bush-Hottentot Hybrid Skulls. 225

from the interior of the Cape Province and along the southern coastal

area.

The differences and resemblances between characteristic Bushman

and Hottentot crania are described. A comparison was made between

the Bush-Hottentot crania and the allied Cape Coloured type. The

significant differences in the means could be explained by the genetic

influence of the other racial groups on the Cape Coloured. The

resemblances demonstrated the strong influence of the Bush-Hottentot

inheritance.

The author supports the view that the Bushmen and the Hottentots

are distinct racial groups, in spite of extensive hybridisation which has

taken place and which complicates the problem. Lastly, it is argued

that the terms Strandloper and Korana should no longer be used in a

racial sense.

I gratefully acknowledge the help received from a Research Grant

of the University of Cape Town, and wish to thank Mr G. McManus, of

the Department of Surgery, for the photographs of the skulls.

REFERENCES.

Brink, V. H. (1923). Trans. Roy. Soc. 8S. Afr., xi, 145.

Broom, R. (1923). Journ. Roy. Anthrop. Inst., li, 132.

Broom, R. (1941). Annals Transvaal Museum, xx, 217.

Drennan, M. R. (1938). Trans. Roy. Soc. 8. Afr., xxv, 259.

DreveER, T. F., and Metrine, A. J. D. (1937). Sodl. Nav. Nasionale Museum,

Bloemfontein, I, 81. :

GatLoway, A. (1933). S. Afr. Journ. Sci., xxx, 585.

Keen, E. N. (1949). S. Afr. Journ. Med. Sci., xiv, 7.

Keen, J. A. (1942). S. Afr. Journ. Sci., xxxviii, 301.

Keen, J. A. (1943). S. Afr. Journ. Sci., xxxix, 247.

Keen, J. A. (1947). Sodl. Nav. Nasionale Museum, Bloemfontein, I, 16, 191.

Keen, J. A. (1951). Trans. Roy. Soc. 8. Afr., xxxiii, 29.

Kern, Sir A. (1929). The Antiquity of Man,i,11. London: Williams & Norgate

Ltd.

Matncarp, L. F., and Maincarp, J. F. (1932). Bantu Studies, vi, 103, 163.

Martin, R. (1928). Lehrbuch der Anthropologie. Ed. Gustav Fischer (Jena),

p- 658.

PitTaRD, E. (1927). Le Globe, Ixvi, Mém. p. 2.

Scuaprera, I. (1930). The Khoisan Peoples of South Africa. London: G.

Routledge & Sons.

SHRUBSALL, F. C. (1907). Ann 8.A. Museum, v, 227.

StomeE, D. (1929). Ann. S.A. Museum, xxiv, 33.

Stow, G. W. (1905). The Native Races of South Africa. London: Swan,

Sonnenschein & Co.

TuHEAL, G. McC. (1888). History of South Africa (1487 to 1691). London:

Swan, Sonnenschein & Co.

226 Annals of the South African Museum.

EXPLANATION OF PLATES.

Plate I.—Photographs of three representative crania, seen from the front.

H, typical Hottentot. B-H, Bush-Hottentot hybrid. B, typical Bushman.

Plate II.—Photographs of three representative crania, seen from the side.

H, typical Hottentot. B-H, Bush-Hottentot hybrid. B, typical Bushman.

Plate I1I.—Photographs of three representative crania, seen from above.

H, typical Hottentot. B-H, Bush-Hottentot hybrid. B, typical Bushman.

Plate IV.—Side view of three mandibles belonging to different population

groups, to illustrate the shape of the ramus of the mandible.

A, typical Hottentot: index of ramus, 91-7.

B, Cape Coloured: index of ramus, 82:2.

C, European: index of ramus, 58-2.

Ann. S. Afr. Mus., Vol. XX XVII. Plate I.

J, A. Keen Neill & Co. Ltd

Plate II.

Ann. S. Afr. Mus., Vol. XX XVII.

Co. Ltd

oS}

J. A. Keen.

Ann. S. Afr. Mus., Vol. XX XVII.

If, Alo UGa0«

Plate III.

Neill & Co.

Ltd,

Ann. S. Afr. Mus., Vol. XX XVII. Plate IV.

J, A. Keen Neill & Co. Ltd.

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