Diepkloof Rock Shelter (LSA)
Basic information
Sample name: Diepkloof Rock Shelter (LSA)
Reference: T. E. Steele and R. G. Klein. 2013. The Middle and Later Stone Age faunal remains from Diepkloof Rock Shelter, Western Cape, South Africa. Journal of Archaeological Science 40(9):3453-3462 [ER 3775]
Geography
Country: South Africa
State: Western Cape
Coordinate: 32° 23' 12" S, 18° 27' 10" E
Coordinate basis: stated in text
Time interval: Holocene
Section: 3775
Unit number: 1
Unit order: above to below
Max Ma: 0.00159
Min Ma: 0.00039
Age basis: radiocarbon (uncalibrated)
Geography comments: "Diepkloof Rock Shelter is located about 180 km north of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. It faces northeastwards atop an isolated outcrop of quartzitic sandstone, 120 m above the southern bank of the Verlorevlei River, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean about 14 km to the northwest".
"Radiocarbon placed the LSA occupation between 1478 ± 50 years cal. BP (1590 ± 45 14C-age BP) and 426 ± 69 years cal. BP (390 ± 30 14C-age BP)".
"Radiocarbon placed the LSA occupation between 1478 ± 50 years cal. BP (1590 ± 45 14C-age BP) and 426 ± 69 years cal. BP (390 ± 30 14C-age BP)".
Environment
Lithology: not described
Taphonomic context: human accumulation,rock shelter
Archaeology: stone tools,other artifacts
Habitat comments: "The shelter floor measures 25 m across the mouth and 17–22 m from dripline to rear wall. It is largely surrounded by fallen boulders that provide about 200 sq m of protected space".
"The LSA deposits were first excavated in 1973, having been exposed at the surface in the form of a central ash spread and overlapping wads of grass bedding along the rear wall. The excavation produced reed and wooden artifacts and abundant faunal remains including numerous bones of domestic sheep. The principal stone artifacts were pieces that the LSA people had scuffed or pitted from the underlying MSA deposit".
"The LSA deposits were first excavated in 1973, having been exposed at the surface in the form of a central ash spread and overlapping wads of grass bedding along the rear wall. The excavation produced reed and wooden artifacts and abundant faunal remains including numerous bones of domestic sheep. The principal stone artifacts were pieces that the LSA people had scuffed or pitted from the underlying MSA deposit".
Methods
Life forms: carnivores,rodents,ungulates,other large mammals,other small mammals
Sampling methods: quarry,screenwash
Sample size: 118 specimens
Years: 1973 -
Sampling comments: "The excavators divided the shelter surface into 1 × 1 m squares, most of which were further divided into quadrants. They excavated with small trowels and brushes and removed the deposit according to the natural stratigraphy. From 1998, finds with a dimension of >20 mm were assigned individual numbers and plotted in three dimensions. Smaller finds were recovered by square or quadrant from 5-mm mesh screens".
Metadata
Sample number: 4062
Contributor: Benjamin Carter
Enterer: Benjamin Carter
Created: 2023-02-17 12:24:28
Modified: 2023-05-30 04:08:15
Abundance distribution
8 species
2 singletons
total count 118
geometric series index: 12.6
Fisher's α: 1.940
geometric series k: 0.5508
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.6444
Shannon's H: 1.3874
Good's u: 0.9832
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts.
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Register
| Leporidae indet. | 14 | |
| Bathyergus suillus | 2 | |
| Felis lybica | 5 | 4.5 kg carnivore |
| "Felis silvestris lybica" | ||
| Procavia capensis | 17 | 2.8 kg browser |
| Pelea capreolus | 1 | 16 kg grazer |
| Oreotragus oreotragus | 1 | browser-grazer |
| Raphicerus sp. | 13 | |
| Ovis aries | 65 | 41 kg |
| also 323 Bovidae indet. | ||