RessourcesCarte
ÉvénementConfiance moyenne

Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C.

Border Cave Fossil Record

Southern Africa

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The Border Cave record in southern Africa preserves a long stratigraphic and cultural sequence with human remains associated with Middle Stone Age industries. The base of the sequence may date to approximately 195,000 BP, while a jaw, cranial bones, and a child’s skeleton associated with the Howieson’s Poort or Pietersburg layers were considered at least about 95,000 years old. The remains were interpreted as robust but early, unspecialized modern human forms.

Territoire · Événement

Poursuivre l’exploration

Demander à Uriti

  • Que s’est-il joué lors de Border Cave Fossil Record ?
  • Quel rôle joue Border Cave Fossil Record dans la région Southern Africa ?
  • Quel lien entre Border Cave Fossil Record et Ingwavuma ?
  • À propos de Border Cave Fossil Record : peux-tu préciser « Sequence may begin around 195,000 BP » ?

Le récit

A long southern African sequence

Border Cave, identified in the excerpt with Ingwavuma, contains one of the oldest stratigraphic and cultural sequences discussed for southern Africa. Its basal deposits may date to approximately 195,000 BP, placing the cave within the late Middle or earlier Upper Pleistocene. The sequence provides a framework for relating human remains to changing archaeological industries and environmental conditions.

Human fossils attributed to the base of the Howieson’s Poort or the top of the Pietersburg layers include an adult jaw, cranial bones, and a child’s skeleton. Because the underlying sequence was considered very old, these remains were judged to be at least approximately 95,000 years old. They displayed robust features but were interpreted within a broader discussion of early modern human variation.

The Border Cave fossils were compared with remains from Tuinplaats and other southern African sites. Their latest interpretation in the account was that they represented an early, unspecialized form of Homo sapiens sapiens, potentially ancestral to later Khoisan and other African lineages. The evolutionary claim remained hypothetical and depended on future discoveries and better chronological control.

Border Cave also preserves evidence for subsistence and environmental change. Its faunal sequence reflects later Pleistocene ecological shifts, while the absence of young wildebeest or hartebeest may indicate that neither the animals nor the human occupants were present during the animals’ birthing season. The site therefore contributes to both palaeoanthropology and the reconstruction of Middle Stone Age mobility and hunting.

Repères

  • Sequence may begin around 195,000 BP
  • Human remains at least 95,000 years old
  • Robust early modern human forms
  • Associated Howieson’s Poort and Pietersburg layers
  • Evidence for seasonal hunting patterns

Confiance

moyenne

Ce niveau qualifie la précision des dates, localisations et limites disponibles dans le corpus actuel.

Source

The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 1: From the Earliest Times to c.500 BC

Point de départ pour aller plus loin — pas une bibliographie exhaustive.

RessourcesCarte
ÉvénementConfiance moyenne

Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C.

Border Cave Fossil Record

Southern Africa

Écouter
Comparer
Voir dans la constellation

Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible

Se connecter

The Border Cave record in southern Africa preserves a long stratigraphic and cultural sequence with human remains associated with Middle Stone Age industries. The base of the sequence may date to approximately 195,000 BP, while a jaw, cranial bones, and a child’s skeleton associated with the Howieson’s Poort or Pietersburg layers were considered at least about 95,000 years old. The remains were interpreted as robust but early, unspecialized modern human forms.

Territoire · Événement

Poursuivre l’exploration

Demander à Uriti

  • Que s’est-il joué lors de Border Cave Fossil Record ?
  • Quel rôle joue Border Cave Fossil Record dans la région Southern Africa ?
  • Quel lien entre Border Cave Fossil Record et Ingwavuma ?
  • À propos de Border Cave Fossil Record : peux-tu préciser « Sequence may begin around 195,000 BP » ?

Le récit

A long southern African sequence

Border Cave, identified in the excerpt with Ingwavuma, contains one of the oldest stratigraphic and cultural sequences discussed for southern Africa. Its basal deposits may date to approximately 195,000 BP, placing the cave within the late Middle or earlier Upper Pleistocene. The sequence provides a framework for relating human remains to changing archaeological industries and environmental conditions.

Human fossils attributed to the base of the Howieson’s Poort or the top of the Pietersburg layers include an adult jaw, cranial bones, and a child’s skeleton. Because the underlying sequence was considered very old, these remains were judged to be at least approximately 95,000 years old. They displayed robust features but were interpreted within a broader discussion of early modern human variation.

The Border Cave fossils were compared with remains from Tuinplaats and other southern African sites. Their latest interpretation in the account was that they represented an early, unspecialized form of Homo sapiens sapiens, potentially ancestral to later Khoisan and other African lineages. The evolutionary claim remained hypothetical and depended on future discoveries and better chronological control.

Border Cave also preserves evidence for subsistence and environmental change. Its faunal sequence reflects later Pleistocene ecological shifts, while the absence of young wildebeest or hartebeest may indicate that neither the animals nor the human occupants were present during the animals’ birthing season. The site therefore contributes to both palaeoanthropology and the reconstruction of Middle Stone Age mobility and hunting.

Repères

  • Sequence may begin around 195,000 BP
  • Human remains at least 95,000 years old
  • Robust early modern human forms
  • Associated Howieson’s Poort and Pietersburg layers
  • Evidence for seasonal hunting patterns

Confiance

moyenne

Ce niveau qualifie la précision des dates, localisations et limites disponibles dans le corpus actuel.

Source

The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 1: From the Earliest Times to c.500 BC

Point de départ pour aller plus loin — pas une bibliographie exhaustive.

Continuer le voyage

Chemins liés

D’autres chemins liés à cette histoire.

  • African Homo sapiens FossilsÉvénement·Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C. — Iᵉʳ siècle av. J.-C.
  • Middle Palaeolithic / Middle Stone Age in AfricaCivilisation·Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C. — Cᵉ siècle av. J.-C.