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If this scenario is correct, this would require the presence of a major unconformity within Stratum 9. The current project has, as yet, not undertaken extensive dating of the other excavation areas within the cave. One exception is Excavation 6 at the back of the cave for which both the paleomagnetic and cosmogenic burial dating sequences have been published Matmon et al.
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Work is currently underway to date the sequence in Excavation 2 e. Pleistocene archaeological deposits are found in three areas of the cave Fig. Excavation 6 has produced a remarkable assemblage attributed to the Fauresmith associated with quartz crystals, modified ochre, and specularite Chazan and Horwitz ; Chazan a ; Watts et al. The detailed analysis of these collections is still in process, but the attribution of stratum 2 in Excavation 2 to the MSA, as proposed by Beaumont, is secure. In Excavation 1, the ESA sequence strata 12 through 6 is truncated by stratum 5 and is immediately overlain by four LSA strata strata 4 through 1 , subdivided in places into sub-units a-d.
The LSA lithic sequence has previously been described by A. Thackeray Humphreys and Thackeray A marked shift in artefact types and raw material is evident at the top of level 4b. The nature of stratum 5, which is characterized by subrounded dolomite clasts and both ESA and LSA lithic material, is the subject of ongoing investigation e.
The rock art includes a wide diversity, both thematically and stylistically, of animals and geometric forms. In a forthcoming article, Morris presents the first extensive discussion of this important corpus. One of the great challenges for site management at Wonderwerk is providing for the long-term preservation of the paintings while allowing for visitor access. A graffiti-removal project undertaken in by S. Bassett and J. Deacon was intended to provide a remedy for the extensive historical graffiti that largely obscured the cave paintings.
Unfortunately, this intervention, which included infilling and overpainting, has not weathered well, leading to additional conservation challenges. Wonderwerk is also well known for the decorated stone slabs recovered during excavation in the LSA strata, which were the earliest securely dated art in Africa long before the dramatic discoveries at Blombos Cave Thackeray et al. Thackeray and colleagues Thackeray ; Bradfield et al. The ESA of Excavation 1 provides a unique opportunity to track the development of Acheulean lithic technology over time.
The paper by Chazan in this issue provides the first extensive technological analysis of this assemblage. The timing and nature of technological changes in the Acheulean at Wonderwerk fit well with what is known in East Africa, despite limitations in chronological resolution for the early stages at Wonderwerk Cave. An important discovery resulting from the renewed investigations at the site has been the presence of an Oldowan industry in stratum 12, at the base of Excavation 1, that is characterized by small tools including flakes and cores.
The absence of large choppers, cleavers, and spheroids in the Wonderwerk Oldowan might be a result of the small sample size. The presence of a small flake component fits well with what is known of the Oldowan from the South African sites of Sterkfontein and Swartkrans Granger et al. The cultural attribution of this industry at Wonderwerk is supported both by the chronometric ages for this layer and the biochronology of the macrofauna, which contains archaic elements including two extinct species of hyrax Procavia , and an extinct large caprine Brink et al.
The in situ nature of the Oldowan deposit has been demonstrated by the micromorphological analysis of the sediments, further supported by the distance of the excavated material from the current cave mouth and absence of alternative entrances. These findings make the stratum 12 deposit at Wonderwerk the earliest evidence for intentional cave occupation worldwide Chazan et al. Consequently, there are limits to the precision of the spatial data from his excavations, and the absence of detailed field notes and photographs makes correlation between archaeological strata and depositional events even more problematic.
However, the spatial data available do allow exploration of association between classes of material recovered and the spatial organization of activity within strata. To overcome this drawback, Birkenfeld et al. The virtual excavation grid they created acts like a cupboard, in whose drawers excavated squares the different finds are placed in virtual space based on their square number, stratum attribution, and depth data.
Based on macroscopic observations, Beaumont identified potential evidence for the use of fire at Wonderwerk as far back as stratum In a publication from the following year, Berna et al. This initial observation is supported by FTIR analysis of bones from this layer that show evidence of burning and potlid fractures on lithic material. Potlid fractures have now been observed on artifacts recovered in situ in the renewed excavations of stratum 10, providing corroboration for this finding.
Several papers in this issue bring new perspectives to our understanding of the use of fire at Wonderwerk.
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Goldberg et al. Chazan et al. Fernandez-Jalvo and Avery , this issue report a high proportion of micromammalian remains with evidence of burning, including calcined bones.
Moreover, the burnt bones appeared to be in concentrations. The authors note that both traits do not fit with natural fires. According to Brink et al. Bamford b , this issue reported one piece of charcoal from stratum 12, while no large charcoal fragments were recovered from stratum 10 Berna et al. Calcified roots and plant litter from stratum 10 were tentatively interpreted as kindling Berna et al.
The caliber of the observations for intentional use of fire in stratum 12, then, differs from that available from stratum 10 where burnt material could be identified in context on preserved surfaces through the use of micromorphology. It is unlikely that such a level of resolution will be found for stratum 12, as the sediments that compose these strata were deposited by low energy, sheet-water flow and as such do not preserve intact surfaces. Thus, the nature and significance of the evidence for fire in the Oldowan of Wonderwerk Cave require further investigation, though it seems beyond question that fire intentionally or accidentally was present in the cave as early as the Oldowan occupation, at least 1.
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One of the major contributions that renewed research at Wonderwerk Cave can make to the archaeological record of southern Africa lies in the study of past environments and climatic conditions. This stems from the dearth of suitable datasets from the interior of southern Africa that can serve as climatic proxies.
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The excellent preservation of organic remains at the cave, the presence of a robust chronometric framework, and the association with a long cultural record makes this a rare archive. Five papers in this special issue have provided invaluable information on the Late Pleistocene and Holocene aspect of Wonderwerk Cave. They extend several published research papers on the palaeoecology and palaeoclimatology of the cave and provide relevant new insights. Using a combination of radiocarbon dating, isotope ratios, histology, and palynology, in this issue, Brook et al.
Scott and Thackeray re-examined the palynological sequence from strata 1 to 5 in Excavation 1, building on the work of van Zinderen Bakker and Scott et al. Thackeray presents results of his analysis of the Holocene fauna that expand previous studies on macromammals Thackeray , , ; Thackeray and Brink and micromammals Avery , Lee-Thorp and Ecker analyzed ostrich eggshell OES fragments for carbon and oxygen isotope ratios for the entire Holocene sequence that extend stable isotope results, such as the ratios of equid teeth Thackeray and Lee-Thorp and the large stalagmite adjacent to Excavation 1 Brook et al.
Finding concordance in these data sets has facilitated the identification of a succession of changes in environmental conditions and vegetation composition Fig. Given the brevity of this introduction, only the most general trends are presented.
The ostrich eggshell, macrofauna, and macrobotanical samples derive from the Beaumont excavations and were dated using their overall attribution to archaeological strata, while the pollen samples reported here were collected more recently from freshly cleaned sections, and attributed to strata based on observed stratigraphy visible in the section that were dated previously by radiocarbon from charcoal or ostrich eggshell.
Finally, the tufa and stalagmite cores were sampled with great refinement in a laboratory see papers in this issue for details. Schematic synthesis of the main palaeoclimatic trends and the archaeological sequence at Wonderwerk Cave, Excavation 1. The contribution here by Brook et al. All are younger than ca. Examination of a core extracted from the stalagmite adjacent to Excavation 1 provided information on moisture penetration into the cave and hence palaeoclimatic conditions in the region Brook et al.
Evidence for growth of the speleothem implies that conditions were moist enough for water to penetrate the epikarst, while a hiatus represents periods when this did not happen, presumably because there was not enough moisture penetration. Based on this core, moist and cool conditions were reported for the Late Pleistocene at ca.
Pollen recovered from inside this stalagmite core also provides palaeoclimatic indications. Overall temperatures were cool as suggested by a fynbos component with a brief interlude ca. This coincides with a growth hiatus in the large stalagmite between ca. Parts of this hiatus are represented by pollen in dung deposits, and excavated floor deposits, indicative of cool conditions up to ca. The phase between ca. Based on pollen, isotopes, and microfauna, conditions were generally dry, but there are some indications that moisture availability fluctuated to reach subhumid conditions, e.
Data on macromammals Thackeray , , , this issue and previously published data on micromammals Avery , from the Holocene layers at the cave have been interpreted as indicating generally moister conditions in the Early Holocene from ca. This partly overlaps with the time range of moist conditions prevailing in the mid-Holocene from ca. Thereafter, there was a shift to more arid conditions. Likewise, the pollen data suggest a change in the mid-Holocene from moist grassy conditions ca. This change has tentatively been attributed to reduced winter rainfall and a concomitant increase in summer precipitation Lee-Thorp and Ecker , this issue.
An increase in grazers as reflected in higher numbers of springbok, Antidorcas marsupialis , in parallel, reflects the expansion of grassland environments Thackeray , this issue.
Pollen data derived from the stalagmite indicate similar shifts though with less chronological resolution: dry and cool conditions from ca. They also relate that at least two concentrations of bones indicative of roosts could be identified, a finding which is independently corroborated by the GIS analysis undertaken by Birkenfeld et al.
Fernandez-Jalvo and Avery , this issue also suggest that the high frequencies of Gerbillinae and Chrysochloridae in stratum 12 may reflect a relatively drier and more open environment compared to the overlying stratum 11 with higher frequencies of Soricidae, characteristic of moister and cooler conditions. However, their very presence implies that with an excavation protocol aimed at retrieving such delicate remains slow and very careful excavation, extensive flotation of sediments, etc.
In contrast, the papers by Rossouw forthcoming and Brink et al. Brink et al. Bovids characteristic of semiarid conditions make up the bulk of the mammalian faunal assemblage. Despite the small sample sizes, a shift between stratum 12 with more alcelaphines and fewer equids to the opposite proportions in stratum 11 may reflect a change from drier to moister cooler conditions, supporting that observed in the micro-mammal assemblages. Phytolith composition at the bottom of stratum 12 dated to ca.
This develops into a drier and cooler environment by the top of stratum 12 dated to ca. Based on modern morphotype ecology, this drier and cooler environment would be analogous to a Succulent Karoo community and characterized by C 3 subfamilies. Its shift eastwards to the environs of Wonderwerk Cave would have been facilitated by moister and cooler conditions, possibly resulting from the encroachment of the winter rainfall regime. Further evidence for moist climatic conditions in the region at this time may be the presence of a shallow body of water dating to ca. According to the phytolith record, in mid-stratum 10 dated to ca.
The papers in the issue represent a step forward in making the results of scientific research at Wonderwerk Cave broadly available. They highlight new finds and insights regarding chronology, material culture, cave occupation history, and palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic conditions at the site and in its surrounds that have far-reaching implications for our understanding of the prehistory of the arid interior of southern Africa as a whole.
Research continues on the wealth of evidence recovered from previous excavations at the site, and a new phase of excavation has now begun aimed at improving recovery of finds and their in situ documentation. The scientific research is integrated with ongoing efforts led by the McGregor Museum and aided by the South African Heritage Resources Agency to protect this spectacular site and make it accessible to the general public. The studies presented here make the importance of Wonderwerk Cave apparent and also leave us well aware that in this context we have truly only scraped the surface.
Avery, D. Holocene micromammalian faunas from the Northern Cape, South Africa. South African Journal of Science, 77 , — Google Scholar. Southern savannas and Pleistocene hominid adaptations: The micromammalian perspective. Vrba, G. Denton, T. Burckle Eds. New Haven: Yale University Press. Journal of Archaeological Science, 34 , — Backhouse, J. A narrative of a visit to the Mauritius and South Africa.