Papers by Viola C. Schmid
essentials, 2020
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Southern African Humanities, 2016
Elands Bay Cave (EBC) is one of the key sites for the analysis of the Late Pleistocene/Holocene r... more Elands Bay Cave (EBC) is one of the key sites for the analysis of the Late Pleistocene/Holocene record in southern Africa. It typifies an area of study, the West Coast of South Africa, which benefits from a long history of research, from the 1960s until today. The 2011 project of EBC was initiated within the framework of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) research at Diepkloof Rock Shelter (DRS). The objective was to build a local synthesis and a complementary picture on the basis of these two sites located 14 km apart from one another, on the left bank of the Verlorenvlei. The excavation at EBC took place during May 2011 with the aim of clarifying the site formation processes, the chronology of the Late Pleistocene occupations as well as the nature of the technological sequence. Our excavation focused on a 1.2 m deep profile that records two main occupational phases separated by a significant hiatus: (1) the initial phase represents an early MSA technology (previously called ‘MSA 1’ by T. ...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
South African Archaeological Bulletin, 2015
In this paper, we introduce a recently initiated research project conducted at Bushman Rock Shelt... more In this paper, we introduce a recently initiated research project conducted at Bushman Rock Shelter, on the northeastern edge of the Highveld plateau in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Previous excavations carried out at the site during the 1960s and 1970s exposed a deep and well-stratified sequence of c. 7 metres of archaeological deposits associated with Later and Middle Stone Age occupations (LSA and MSA). Owing to the lack of contextual information, Bushman Rock Shelter remains poorly studied despite recording cultural and palaeoenvironmental data that are key for the understanding of the South African Stone Age. Here, we propose a synthesis of the 1967–1976 excavations led by Hannes Eloff and provide general background information that will serve as a reference for future research. Our synthesis is based on previous publications by Ina Plug, as well as on Eloff ’s field diaries, which were thought to be lost. We complement these observations with data from our own 2014 field se...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Archaeologia Austriaca, 2021
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Archaeologia Austriaca, 2021
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
African Archaeological Review, 2021
Over the past decade, the increasing wealth of new archaeological data on the Middle Stone Age (M... more Over the past decade, the increasing wealth of new archaeological data on the Middle Stone Age (MSA) in Senegal and Mali has broadened our understanding of West Africa’s contributions to cultural developments. Within the West African sequence, the phase of Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3, ca. 59-24 ka) yielded so far the best known and extensive archaeological information. The site of Toumboura III encompasses an occupation dated by optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) to between 40 ± 3 ka and 30 ± 3 ka. It provides the largest, well-dated, and stratified lithic assemblage in West Africa for the MSA and sheds light on an unprecedented cultural expression for this period, adding to the notable diversity of the late MSA in this region. We conducted a technological analysis of the lithic components following the chaîne opératoire approach. The lithic assemblage features a prevalence of bifacial technology and the exploitation of flakes as blanks for tool production. The craftspeople m...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
In southern Africa, key technologies and symbolic behaviors develop as early as the later Middle ... more In southern Africa, key technologies and symbolic behaviors develop as early as the later Middle Stone Age in MIS5. These innovations arise independently in various places, contexts and forms, until their full expression during the Still Bay and the Howiesons Poort. The Middle Stone Age sequence from Diepkloof Rock Shelter, on the West Coast of the region, preserves archaeological proxies that help unravelling the cultural processes at work. This unit yields one of the oldest abstract engraving so far discovered in Africa, in the form of a rhomboid marking on the cortical surface of an ungulate long bone shaft. The comprehensive analysis of the lithic artefacts and ochre pieces found in association with the engraved bone documents the transport of rocks over long distance (>20km), the heat treatment of silcrete, the coexistence of seven lithic reduction strategies (including the production of bladelets and the manufacture of unifacial and bifacial points), the use of adhesives an...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Ethnoarchaeology, 2020
ABSTRACT This article presents a pilot experiment conducted to better understand how Middle Pleis... more ABSTRACT This article presents a pilot experiment conducted to better understand how Middle Pleistocene hominins might have processed and exploited elephants using simple stone and bone tools. The experiment was conducted in three phases: (1) production of small, flake-based stone tools, (2) butchery of the lower hind-leg of an Indian elephant, and (3) manufacture of bone tools from the tibia. The experiment shows it is possible to cut through elephant skin in under four minutes using small chipped-stone flakes; disarticulating the astragalus from the tibia is relatively easy, whereas disarticulating the astragalus from the other tarsals is difficult; breaking open an elephant tibia is possible in two minutes; the tibia of the elephant used in the experiment lacked a hollow marrow cavity; extraction of the large fatty cushion encased in the metatarsals and phalanges required several hours; and elephant bone tools are useful for retouching lithic materials of differing quality.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Archaeologia Austriaca, 2019
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Lithic Technology, 2019
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
PloS one, 2018
In the past few decades, a diverse array of research has emphasized the precocity of technically ... more In the past few decades, a diverse array of research has emphasized the precocity of technically advanced and symbolic practices occurring during the southern African Middle Stone Age. However, uncertainties regarding the regional chrono-cultural framework constrain models and identification of the cultural and ecological mechanisms triggering the development of such early innovative behaviours. Here, we present new results and a refined chronology for the Pietersburg, a techno-complex initially defined in the late 1920's, which has disappeared from the literature since the 1980's. We base our revision of this techno-complex on ongoing excavations at Bushman Rock Shelter (BRS) in Limpopo Province, South Africa, where two Pietersburg phases (an upper phase called '21' and a lower phase called '28') are recognized. Our analysis focuses on the '28' phase, characterized by a knapping strategy based on Levallois and semi-prismatic laminar reduction systems...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
PloS one, 2017
Projectile technology is considered to appear early in the southern African Middle Stone Age (MSA... more Projectile technology is considered to appear early in the southern African Middle Stone Age (MSA) and the rich and high resolution MSA sequence of Sibudu Cave in KwaZulu-Natal has provided many new insights about the use and hafting of various projectile forms. We present the results of a functional and technological analysis on a series of unpublished serrated bifacial points recently recovered from the basal deposits of Sibudu Cave. These serrated tools, which only find equivalents in the neighbouring site of Umhlatuzana, precede the Still Bay techno-complex and are older than 77 ka BP. Independent residue and use-wear analyses were performed in a phased procedure involving two separate analysts, which allowed the engagement between two separate lines of functional evidence. Thanks to the excellent preservation at Sibudu Cave, a wide range of animal, plant and mineral residues were observed in direct relation with diagnostic wear patterns. The combination of technological, wear a...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Prior to the 1990s, archaeologist often viewed the Middle Stone Age (MSA) as a period less import... more Prior to the 1990s, archaeologist often viewed the Middle Stone Age (MSA) as a period less important for research than the Earlier Stone Age in which early Homo evolved and the Later Stone Age in which scholars envisioned a high degree of archaeological continuity with recent hunters and gatherers. With the realization that modern humans evolved in Africa during the MSA around 200 ka BP, this period became a central topic of international research. Subsequently, new excavations and research projects made southern Africa the leading region for research on the MSA. Based on the results of an international workshop held in Tübingen in September 2014, we summarize the state of this research and demonstrate that current models advocating a clear cultural sequence across the entire subcontinent with well-defined and largely homogeneous cultural-chronological units are too simplistic. Here we stress that the archaeological record of the MSA is more complex and regionally variable than has ...
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
ArchA 105, 2021, 11-50
In this paper, we present evidence for the prehistoric use of lithic
raw materials from the opali... more In this paper, we present evidence for the prehistoric use of lithic
raw materials from the opalite/limnosilicite source Csaterberge in the
province Burgenland, Austria. These materials were used for stone
tool production from the Middle- and Upper Palaeolithic through -
out the Neolithic and up to the Chalcolithic. Lithic artefacts made of
materials from this locality were previously documented, however
both the chronological and chorological extent of their use was dra-
matically underestimated. Diagnostic tool types (mainly sidescrap -
ers, bifacial tools) and the Levallois concept from the Csaterberge
hills point to exploitation of the opalite/limnosilicite already in the
Late Middle Palaeolithic. Moreover, this is the first record of a Mid-
dle Palaeolithic occupation in the Austrian province of Burgenland,
and at the same time the first secure evidence for the presence of the
Palaeolithic in this region in general.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Archaeologia Austriaca, 2021
The Middle Palaeolithic (MP) in Austria is overshadowed by the renowned Upper Palaeolithic sites ... more The Middle Palaeolithic (MP) in Austria is overshadowed by the renowned Upper Palaeolithic sites due to the lack of diagnostic assemblages from secured stratigraphic contexts. So far, not a single occupation in the time of Neanderthals has been reported from the province Burgenland. However, during surveys of the raw material source Csaterberg, which documents Neolithic exploitation, lithic artefacts were found which indicated a MP presence. We carried out a techno-typological study based on an attribute analysis approach to determine whether a MP occupation can be assumed. Additionally, the aim was to highlight the technological characteristics and to make statements about mobility strategies. Finally, the results should lead to an incorporation into the chrono-cultural MP framework.
Techno-typological and techno-economic criteria allowed us to identify a MP occupation of Csaterberg, which is the first evidence from Burgenland. The MP is characterised by the manufacture of bifacial tools, the dominance of scrapers, and the predominant blank production using the Levallois concept. Despite the small number of artefacts, we were able to demonstrate similarities with other Austrian MP sites. The Central European comparison suggests an assignment to the phase of Late Neanderthals. The site of Csaterberg thus contributes to a better understanding of the MP and strengthens MP research in Austria.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Over the past decade, the increasing wealth of new archaeological data on the Middle Stone Age (M... more Over the past decade, the increasing wealth of new archaeological data on the Middle Stone Age (MSA) in Senegal and Mali has broadened our understanding of West Africa’s contributions to cultural developments. Within the West African sequence, the phase of Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3, ca. 59-24 ka) yielded so far the best known and extensive archaeological information. The site of Toumboura III encompasses an occupation dated by optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) to between 40 ± 3 ka and 30 ± 3 ka. It provides the largest, welldated, and stratified lithic assemblage in West Africa for the MSA and sheds light on an unprecedented cultural expression for this period, adding to the notable diversity of the late MSA in this region. We conducted a technological analysis of the lithic components following the chaîne opératoire approach. The lithic assemblage features a prevalence of bifacial technology and the exploitation of flakes as blanks for tool production. The craftspeople manufactured distinct types of bifacial tools, including small bifacial points shaped by pressure technique. The new data from Toumboura III demonstrate behavioral patterns that are entirely new in the region. By revealing behavioral innovations and technological particularities, these results on the techno-cultural dynamics during the MIS 3 phase of the MSA enhance our understanding of the complex Pleistocene population history in this part of Africa.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Uploads
Papers by Viola C. Schmid
raw materials from the opalite/limnosilicite source Csaterberge in the
province Burgenland, Austria. These materials were used for stone
tool production from the Middle- and Upper Palaeolithic through -
out the Neolithic and up to the Chalcolithic. Lithic artefacts made of
materials from this locality were previously documented, however
both the chronological and chorological extent of their use was dra-
matically underestimated. Diagnostic tool types (mainly sidescrap -
ers, bifacial tools) and the Levallois concept from the Csaterberge
hills point to exploitation of the opalite/limnosilicite already in the
Late Middle Palaeolithic. Moreover, this is the first record of a Mid-
dle Palaeolithic occupation in the Austrian province of Burgenland,
and at the same time the first secure evidence for the presence of the
Palaeolithic in this region in general.
Techno-typological and techno-economic criteria allowed us to identify a MP occupation of Csaterberg, which is the first evidence from Burgenland. The MP is characterised by the manufacture of bifacial tools, the dominance of scrapers, and the predominant blank production using the Levallois concept. Despite the small number of artefacts, we were able to demonstrate similarities with other Austrian MP sites. The Central European comparison suggests an assignment to the phase of Late Neanderthals. The site of Csaterberg thus contributes to a better understanding of the MP and strengthens MP research in Austria.
raw materials from the opalite/limnosilicite source Csaterberge in the
province Burgenland, Austria. These materials were used for stone
tool production from the Middle- and Upper Palaeolithic through -
out the Neolithic and up to the Chalcolithic. Lithic artefacts made of
materials from this locality were previously documented, however
both the chronological and chorological extent of their use was dra-
matically underestimated. Diagnostic tool types (mainly sidescrap -
ers, bifacial tools) and the Levallois concept from the Csaterberge
hills point to exploitation of the opalite/limnosilicite already in the
Late Middle Palaeolithic. Moreover, this is the first record of a Mid-
dle Palaeolithic occupation in the Austrian province of Burgenland,
and at the same time the first secure evidence for the presence of the
Palaeolithic in this region in general.
Techno-typological and techno-economic criteria allowed us to identify a MP occupation of Csaterberg, which is the first evidence from Burgenland. The MP is characterised by the manufacture of bifacial tools, the dominance of scrapers, and the predominant blank production using the Levallois concept. Despite the small number of artefacts, we were able to demonstrate similarities with other Austrian MP sites. The Central European comparison suggests an assignment to the phase of Late Neanderthals. The site of Csaterberg thus contributes to a better understanding of the MP and strengthens MP research in Austria.