Stone circles in the Bloubos landscape, Northern Cape

Abstract

Circular stone structures associated with the Later Stone Age (LSA) have often been reported in the interior and beyond the borders of South Africa. These structures are variously interpreted as either stock enclosures, the bases of windbreaks, or living units of hunters and herders. Artefacts retrieved during the excavation of one such structure on the farm Bloubos in Northern Cape, indicated that the circle, which forms part of a cluster of stone circles, functioned as a living area in the past. Reference is made to previous archaeological research on circular LSA stone structures, and to illustrative ethnographic information. The Bloubos cluster is tentatively considered as a created space asserting identity within the changing social landscape of the Orange River frontier zone during the proto-colonial period.

To cite this article: Parsons, I. 2004. Stone circles in the Bloubos landscape, Northern Cape. Southern African Humanities 16: 59-69.