Ochre's Role in Early Human Societies
SapienCE scientist Elizabeth Velliky and her team have uncovered that the world's oldest ochre mine, Ngwenya in eSwatini, wasn't the only source of ochre pigment as we once thought. Instead, people used a variety of local ochres, showcasing unique cultural traditions and social interactions in Stone Age communities in Eswatini.
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This discovery, published in Nature Communications challenges old assumptions and shines light on the complex networks that shaped early human societies. Despite the high-quality pigment from the Ngwenya ochre mine, local communities preferred using diverse ochres, reflecting their unique cultural traditions. The groundbreaking study also underscores the intricate networks of exchange and symbolic expression that shaped early human societies.
Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA)
Using Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA), a highly sensitive technique housed at the University of Missouri Research Reactor (MURR), specialists such as Dr. Brandi MacDonald, the lead author of the paper, can unlock detailed information about the composition of ochres, offering a deeper understanding of ancient practices.
“This particular method makes it possible to unlock information on the major, minor, and trace elements of materials, which many other non-bulk sampling techniques do not offer. I have also been using this technique when analyzing ochres that I have collected around Blombos and in the Klein Karoo, so essentially our data will be comparable to the Eswatini data,” Elizabeth Velliky explains.
Challenging Previous Assumptions
However, the groundbreaking aspect of the study from eSwatini is not the only new observation coming from these data. The results also tell the story of how should always challenge “givens” in science, and work to reshape and go forward from previous assumptions, Velliky says.
“For a long time, many archaeologists believed that the Ngwenya ochre mine was likely a major source of ochre pigment for prehistoric groups, with some suggesting that ochre from this mine could have been transported up to 300 km away. We now know that there is a lot more to the story than we once assumed.”
The reason why many archaeologists believed that this particular ochre would be sought after is due to its physical qualities being – the colour is very saturated, and the ochre is fine-grained making it soft and easy to turn into powder, and it is sometimes specular, meaning that it has a glittery appearance.
“We found that even in a fairly close and constrained area, people had unique cultural traditions that they maintained, despite the ‘quality’ of the Ngwenya ochre. Instead, diverse local ochres were being used, highlighting unique cultural traditions and complex social interactions in the Stone Age,” Velliky says.
Surprising Findings
They were surprised to find that two contemporaneous archaeological sites located relatively close together had very different pigment artefacts.
“It was very interesting to see that even when there is this gigantic ochre mine close by, it doesn’t mean that it was the only ochre mine being accessed in the past. It was also interesting to see how many types of ochre could form in one location, and how people were also using a variety of pigments within such a small area,” Vielliky says.
Regardless, the Ngwenya ochre was collected and transported up to 100 km. Even though not regularly, it still shows that there was a shared recognition of the importance of this material throughout the Middle Stone Age and Later Stone Age in Eswatini. The findings also show that cultural practices did not develop in isolation but were part of a wider system of relations influenced and facilitated by social interactions, such as technological learning, seasonal traveling, material culture exchange, and symbolic expression.
Social Practices and Cultural Identity
“Different social practices and norms are what drove people to seek out ochre, and use it in different group activities. These could include people moving through the landscape to locate and collect different materials, including ochre, and then teaching others how to locate these types of formations and which physical characteristics are present in each place. The knowledge and know-how needed to be transferred and shared over and over again for people to sustain these types of behaviours and social practices” Velliky says.
The diversity and complexity of these behaviors illustrate precisely how an overarching, shared cultural identity surrounding ochres can unify various localized and contextually contingent communities of practice. In addition, Velliky says, this study brings back international relevance to Eswatini in the larger conversation of MSA and LSA behavioral practices in southern Africa – as much of the focus has previously been on South Africa, but that is only part of the picture.
Humans are complex creatures
“The emerging picture is one of a unifying culture of significance around ochre and its longstanding importance within social activities across Stone Age Eswatini, nuanced with unique and contextually contingent variations in the ochre communities of practice. Our study was done in close partnership with the Swazi Archaeological Research Association (SARA) and the eSwatini National Museum; indeed, the study could not have been done without their involvement and support,” Velliky says.
She emphasizes that this is a good reminder that we always need to be open to challenging our assumptions, as the obvious, simplest explanation is not always the right one. “Humans are complex creatures with nuanced behaviors, cultures, and social structures. We do things that don’t always make sense; we go out of our way for certain things for personal or communal reasons. It was fascinating to see a part of that picture in Eswatini, and right now we are working to understand the same things in Blombos and Klipdrift,” Velliky says.
Bridging the Past and the Future
Velliky aims to compare these findings with her ongoing research in other regions and SapienCE sites. She has collected samples from over 50 ochre sources in the region, which she hopes will give new answers about the behaviors and practices surrounding ochre use during the Middle Stone Age.
“Perhaps it paints a similar story, perhaps it is completely different. Perhaps the coolest thing was seeing how the people of eSwatini were still using ochre today; you could easily buy it at the market, and everyone knows what it is. So, it’s not really this ‘distant ancient past’ material that we are talking about; it is still very alive even today. This will tell us more about how and perhaps why people do the things they do in regard to ochre and pigment use.”
