The role of seals in coastal hunter-gatherer lifeways at Robberg, South Africa. By Leesha Richardson Supervised by Prof Judith Sealy and Dr Deano Stynder Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Archaeology In the Department of Archaeology Faculty of Science University of Cape Town February 2020 The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non- commercial research purposes only. Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. Plagiarism Declaration I have used the Harvard convention for citation and referencing. Each contribution from, and quotation in, this thesis from the work(s) of other people has been attributed, and has been cited and referenced. This thesis is my own work: Leesha Richardson RCHLEE003 Date: 8 February 2020 i Abstract Seals were a major dietary item for coastal hunter-gatherers and herders in South Africa. At Nelson Bay Cave (NBC), more than half of the Holocene mammal bones are from Cape Fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus). Previous analyses of the seal assemblage from this site have studied only selected skeletal elements. This study is the first comprehensive analysis of seal remains from selected archaeological levels at Nelson Bay Cave and from the 2007/2008 excavations at nearby Hoffmans/Robberg Cave (HRC). Body part representation and frequency, age distribution and bone modification have been documented to determine the role of seals in the lifeways of hunter-gatherers and pastoralists at Robberg throughout the Holocene. The age profiles indicate that seals were obtained directly from a breeding colony throughout the Holocene. A breeding colony at Robberg would have been a rich and reliable resource for coastal foragers throughout the year. There were differences in skeletal element representation in the Early and Middle Holocene, compared with the Late Holocene. Axial skeletal elements are under-represented in earlier time periods, probably due to field butchery and the return of only parts of the seals to the living sites. In the Late Holocene, entire animals were taken back to site. Within each time period, the skeletal profiles of juveniles and adults indicate that both were processed similarly suggesting that aspects such as carcass size, weight and foraging distance were less important factors in transport decisions than the terrain of the Robberg Peninsula and the size of the hunting party. A large proportion of the bones were complete, or almost complete. There was little evidence of canid gnawing. The skeletal element representation, frequency and cut mark patterns suggest that the heads and flippers were highly sought after throughout the Holocene, as recorded in Arctic ethnography. Seals were also of spiritual significance, possibly in aiding transitions from the material into the spirit world. ii Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisors Prof Judith Sealy and Dr Deano Stynder for their guidance and support. I would also like to thank Prof John Parkington, Dr Benjamin Schoville, Dr Jamie Hodgkins, Prof Curtis Marean, Dr Erich Fisher, Dr Naomi Cleghorn, Louisa Hutten and Patricia Groenewald for their advice and comments. I would like to give a special thanks to Dolores Jacobs for helping me with the sorting and coding of the NBC and HRC seal assemblage. I would also like to thank Dr Wendy Black and Me Wilhelmina Seconna from IZIKO Museums for their help in accessing the NBC seal collection. Lastly, I would like to thank the South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa (grant no 84407) for providing funding for this project. iii Table of Contents Plagiarism Declaration ........................................................................................ i Abstract ................................................................................................................ii Acknowledgements............................................................................................ iii List of figures ...................................................................................................... ix List of tables ...................................................................................................... xiv Chapter 1 : Introduction .................................................................................... 1 Chapter 2 : Background ..................................................................................... 3 2.1 Marine resources: brainfood for modern humans ..................................................... 3 2.1.1 Early human origins on the South African coast ...................................................... 3 2.1.2 The nutritional value of seals .................................................................................... 5 2.2 Seal taxonomy and ecology ........................................................................................... 6 2.2.1 Appearance ............................................................................................................... 6 2.2.2 Seasonal blubber and hide variation ......................................................................... 7 2.2.3 Diet ............................................................................................................................ 7 2.2.4 Breeding .................................................................................................................... 8 2.2.5 Cape fur seal demography at haul-out and breeding colonies .................................. 8 2.2.6 Distribution ............................................................................................................... 9 2.3 The history of sealing in Southern Africa. ................................................................. 10 2.3.1 Seal harvesting at the Cape of Good Hope (16th-19th century) ............................... 10 2.3.2 Seal harvesting in Namibia (20th – 21st century)..................................................... 11 2.4 Ethnographic studies of pinniped exploitation by coastal hunter-gatherers ......... 11 2.4.1 The different methods of seal hunting .................................................................... 12 2.4.2 Field butchery, storage and transport of seal remains to the consumption site ...... 13 2.4.3 Seal butchery and carcass disarticulation at the consumption site ......................... 14 2.4.4 Seal meat and blubber use....................................................................................... 14 iv 2.4.5 Seal viscera use ....................................................................................................... 16 2.4.6 Sealskin use ............................................................................................................. 16 2.4.7 Seal bone use........................................................................................................... 17 2.5 The spiritual significance of seals ............................................................................... 18 2.5.1 Archaeological depictions of marine animals on the southern coast of South Africa .......................................................................................................................................... 18 2.5.2 The Knysna seal scapula ......................................................................................... 20 2.5.3 The spiritual significance of the Knysna seal scapula ............................................ 23 2.6 Analyses of archaeological faunal assemblages ......................................................... 24 2.6.1 The history of faunal analysis in South Africa. ...................................................... 24 2.6.2 Skeletal frequency and representation: human utilisation and transport of animal remains ............................................................................................................................. 25 2.6.3 Bone fragmentation and surface modification ........................................................ 27 2.6.3.1 Butchering marks ............................................................................................. 27 2.6.3.2 Evidence of burning ......................................................................................... 28 2.6.3.3 Bone nutrient extraction .................................................................................. 29 2.6.3.4 Carnivore ecology ............................................................................................ 30 2.6.3.5 Other taphonomic processes. ........................................................................... 31 2.6.3.6 Bone preservation (Hardness index) ............................................................... 32 2.6.4 The completeness of the archaeological record. ..................................................... 32 2.7 Quantifying animal and seal remains ........................................................................ 34 2.7.1 Calculating taxonomic abundance: NISP and MNI ........................................... 34 2.7.2 Bone completeness and taxa representation: MNE and MAU ........................... 35 2.8 Determining the season of death: Determining the