Makapansgat [pronunciation] or Makapan Valley World Heritage Site is an archaeological location within the Makapansgat and Zwartkrans Valleys, northeast of Mokopane in Limpopo province, South Africa. It is an important palaeontological site,[1] with the local limeworks containing Australopithecus-bearing deposits dating to between 3.0 and 2.6 million years BP. The whole Makapan Valley has been dec
lared a South African Heritage Site.[2]
Makapansgat Valley Sites:
Makapansgat Limeworks
This is the oldest of the cave sites in the Makapansgat valley, spanning an age of greater than 4.0 million years until perhaps 1.6 million years ago. This site has yielded many thousands of fossil bones, amongst which were found remains of the gracile australopithecine Australopithecus africanus. africanus fossils are suggested to date to between 2.85 and 2.58 million years ago based on palaeomagnetism by Andy Herries (La Trobe University, Australia).[3] The site was recently excavated by a joint project between the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa and Arizona State University in the US. Cave of Hearths and Hyaena Mandible Cave
The Cave of Hearths is part of the Historic Cave complex and preserves a remarkably complete record of human occupation from Early Stone Age “Acheulian” times in the oldest sediments through the Middle Stone Age, the Later Stone Age and up to the Iron Age.[4] Nineteenth century European relics such as brass ware and musket balls were found at the surface when excavations started. The site was re-excavated and re-analysed as part of the 'Makapan Middle Pleistocene Research Project' run by the University of Liverpool (UK) between 1996 and 2001.[5] This work has shown that coloured sediment horizons in the Early Stone Age levels are not from fire use. A Homo mandible also recovered from these layers may also represent one of the earliest representatives of Homo sapiens.[6]
Buffalo Cave
A small number of fossils were thought to have been collected by Dr Robert Broom from this site in 1937, including the remains of an extinct 'pygmy buffalo', Bos makapania, for which the cave is named.[7] More recent excavations have revealed an extensive 'Cornelian Land Mammal Age' fauna including antelope, horses, pigs, monkeys and carnivores. The fauna, along with palaeomagnetic age estimates by Andy Herries (La Trobe University, Australia) suggest an age of between 990,000 and 780,000 years for the main fossil bearing layers.[7] Basal flowstone deposits are estimated to go back to around 2 million years and show evidence for the beginning of the 'Walker circulation' at around 1.7 million years ago.[8]
Ficus Cave and Iron Age Site
The cave gets its name from the fig tree Ficus ingens roots which curtain its entrance. An Iron Age site close by yields occupational debris from approximately Early Iron Age (550 AD), 870 AD and the Late Iron Age (1560 AD). The slopes adjacent to the cave are artificially terraced and archaeological finds from these include potsherds, grindstones, hammer stones and relics of iron smelting operations, including ore, slag and fragments of tuyeres. Peppercorn's Cave
This cave contains Iron Age and ancient relics and an underground lake. It is also home to a large colony of migratory long-fingered bats, Miniopterus schreibersii. Rainbow Cave
This cave is situated immediately below the Historic Cave and contains the remains of several putative hearths, suggesting both human occupation and the controlled use of fire. The exposed sediments have yielded Middle Stone Age artefacts of the Piertersburg Culture of between 100,000 and 50,000 years ago. Recent studies have shown that the coloured horizons are not hearths but are more likely ancient pool deposits.[9]
Historic Cave or Makapansgat
This site lies immediately adjacent to the Cave of Hearths, and preserves Iron Age and Mfecane relics. It is most famous as the clash between a Boer Commando and local Langa and Kekana people after the murders of Voortrekkers at Moorddrift, Mapela and Pruizen. Chief Makapan (Mokopane), together with a large number of his tribespeople and their cattle were besieged in the cave for nearly a month between 25 October and 21 November 1854, during which time many hundreds died of hunger and thirst.[10] Piet Potgieter was shot during the siege and the name of the nearby town was changed from Vredenburg to Pieter Potgietersrust, which later changed to Potgietersrus. As of early 21st century (ca. early 2000s), after the transition from apartheid government into a democratic one, most national and provincial government institutions (including educational institutions), roads, public infrastructures, towns, cities, etc., were renamed. As a result the town was re-renamed to Mokopane, in honour of Chief Mokopane. The cave was proclaimed a National Monument in 1936. Cold Air Cave
Stable isotope analyses of a uranium-series-dated stalagmite from Cold Air Cave provided a record of climate changes for the periods 4400–4000 years and approximately 800 years ago until the present day. Gutentight Cave
This cave was located and explored in 2000 by A. Latham and W. After breaking through a number of tight squeezes the cave opened out into a large chamber. The floor of the chamber was covered in hearths. An inscription on the wall of the cave was from the 19th Century and indicated that a previous entrance to the cave had collapsed and sealed the cavity after this date. Murzel's Cave
This cave was located and explored in 1998 by A. Herries and A. Latham. Digging out of the entrance led to a climb and traverse down into a series of lower decorated chambers.[11]
Katzenjammer Cave or Herries' Hole
Katzenjammer Cave is located adjacent to Peppercorn's Cave. An entrance shaft leads down to a narrow climb and entrance to a network of passages at the same level as the far reaches of Peppercorn's Cave. The entrance shaft has formed by the collapse of fossil bearing deposits (including the Giant Dasie) into the lower modern cave system, Katzenjammer Cave. The entrance shaft area and fossil deposits were collectively termed Herries' Hole by the Makapan Middle Pleistocene Research Project
