AGE3702
Assignment 4 PORTFOLIO 2026
Unique number:
Due date: 5 October 2026
QUESTION 1
1.1
a) Archaeology, history and communities without written records
Archaeology studies past human life mainly through material evidence such as
artefacts, structures, food remains, graves, rock art and changes people made to the
landscape. History usually gives more attention to written documents, recorded
events and written accounts produced by people in the past. The two fields can
support each other, but they do not start from the same kind of evidence.
Archaeological work is especially useful because objects and places can preserve
information that was never written down or that was left out of official records (Fagan
2009). In South Africa, this matters because human occupation goes back far
beyond the beginning of written colonial records, while many communities passed
knowledge through oral traditions and material practices rather than writing
,QUESTION 1
1.1
a) Archaeology, history and communities without written records
Archaeology studies past human life mainly through material evidence such as
artefacts, structures, food remains, graves, rock art and changes people made to the
landscape. History usually gives more attention to written documents, recorded
events and written accounts produced by people in the past. The two fields can
support each other, but they do not start from the same kind of evidence.
Archaeological work is especially useful because objects and places can preserve
information that was never written down or that was left out of official records (Fagan
2009). In South Africa, this matters because human occupation goes back far
beyond the beginning of written colonial records, while many communities passed
knowledge through oral traditions and material practices rather than writing
(AGE3702 LU1 Lesson 1, 2026).
For communities that did not leave written records, archaeology can reveal how
people obtained food, made tools, used space, moved across landscapes, treated
the dead and expressed beliefs. A stone tool, hearth, plant remain or painting can
therefore become evidence about ordinary life instead of only the lives of people who
had the power to write and preserve documents. Material evidence also allows older
interpretations to be checked when written accounts are incomplete or biased
(Renfrew & Bahn 2008). In my view, this is one of the strongest values of
archaeology because it gives a place in the past to people whose voices might
otherwise be missing from formal history.
b) Four categories of archaeological evidence
1. Artefacts
Artefacts are portable objects that were made, used or changed by people, including
stone tools, pottery, ornaments, bone tools and weapons. At Kruger Cave, stone
artefacts and modified bone provide evidence about technology, hunting, hide
working, woodworking and the practical skills of Later Stone Age communities. Their
raw materials, form and wear can also help archaeologists compare occupations
through time and identify links with other sites (Bradfield et al. 2022:4-9).
, 2. Features and structures
Features are remains that cannot easily be moved from their original position, such
as hearths, floors, pits, postholes and built structures. Their position is important
because it helps archaeologists understand how people organised activities inside a
site. The arrangement of deposits, occupation surfaces and excavated profiles at a
cave can show where people lived, worked or disposed of material. Archaeological
interpretation therefore depends on recording both the feature and its relationship
with surrounding evidence (Renfrew & Bahn 2008).
3. Organic and environmental remains
Organic and environmental evidence includes animal bone, charcoal, plant remains,
shell, seeds, fibres, pollen and human waste. Kruger Cave is particularly valuable
because it preserves rare organic material such as plant fibre, human hair, bone
objects and other fragile remains. Such evidence can provide information about diet,
hunting, plant use, health, disease and environmental conditions. The preservation
of these materials also creates possibilities for newer scientific work, including DNA
and other laboratory analysis (Bradfield et al. 2022:4-5, 22).
4. Rock art
Rock paintings are another category of archaeological evidence because they record
visual choices made by past communities. Images can contribute to interpretations
of identity, belief, social relationships and the activities that people considered
important, although their meaning must not be guessed without context. At Kruger
Cave, the surviving paintings are mainly human figures, with some animals and
birds, and they form part of the site together with the deposits below the shelter floor
(Bradfield et al. 2022:5). Linking rock art with dated occupation evidence can
therefore improve interpretation of when and how the shelter was used.
c) Contribution of archaeological research to behaviour, cultural change and
heritage conservation
Archaeological research contributes to the study of human behaviour by examining
patterns in material remains and asking what those patterns show about daily
choices. Evidence from tools, food remains, settlement areas and environmental
data can be combined to reconstruct past lifeways. This makes it possible to
investigate activities such as hunting, food preparation, technology, movement,
Assignment 4 PORTFOLIO 2026
Unique number:
Due date: 5 October 2026
QUESTION 1
1.1
a) Archaeology, history and communities without written records
Archaeology studies past human life mainly through material evidence such as
artefacts, structures, food remains, graves, rock art and changes people made to the
landscape. History usually gives more attention to written documents, recorded
events and written accounts produced by people in the past. The two fields can
support each other, but they do not start from the same kind of evidence.
Archaeological work is especially useful because objects and places can preserve
information that was never written down or that was left out of official records (Fagan
2009). In South Africa, this matters because human occupation goes back far
beyond the beginning of written colonial records, while many communities passed
knowledge through oral traditions and material practices rather than writing
,QUESTION 1
1.1
a) Archaeology, history and communities without written records
Archaeology studies past human life mainly through material evidence such as
artefacts, structures, food remains, graves, rock art and changes people made to the
landscape. History usually gives more attention to written documents, recorded
events and written accounts produced by people in the past. The two fields can
support each other, but they do not start from the same kind of evidence.
Archaeological work is especially useful because objects and places can preserve
information that was never written down or that was left out of official records (Fagan
2009). In South Africa, this matters because human occupation goes back far
beyond the beginning of written colonial records, while many communities passed
knowledge through oral traditions and material practices rather than writing
(AGE3702 LU1 Lesson 1, 2026).
For communities that did not leave written records, archaeology can reveal how
people obtained food, made tools, used space, moved across landscapes, treated
the dead and expressed beliefs. A stone tool, hearth, plant remain or painting can
therefore become evidence about ordinary life instead of only the lives of people who
had the power to write and preserve documents. Material evidence also allows older
interpretations to be checked when written accounts are incomplete or biased
(Renfrew & Bahn 2008). In my view, this is one of the strongest values of
archaeology because it gives a place in the past to people whose voices might
otherwise be missing from formal history.
b) Four categories of archaeological evidence
1. Artefacts
Artefacts are portable objects that were made, used or changed by people, including
stone tools, pottery, ornaments, bone tools and weapons. At Kruger Cave, stone
artefacts and modified bone provide evidence about technology, hunting, hide
working, woodworking and the practical skills of Later Stone Age communities. Their
raw materials, form and wear can also help archaeologists compare occupations
through time and identify links with other sites (Bradfield et al. 2022:4-9).
, 2. Features and structures
Features are remains that cannot easily be moved from their original position, such
as hearths, floors, pits, postholes and built structures. Their position is important
because it helps archaeologists understand how people organised activities inside a
site. The arrangement of deposits, occupation surfaces and excavated profiles at a
cave can show where people lived, worked or disposed of material. Archaeological
interpretation therefore depends on recording both the feature and its relationship
with surrounding evidence (Renfrew & Bahn 2008).
3. Organic and environmental remains
Organic and environmental evidence includes animal bone, charcoal, plant remains,
shell, seeds, fibres, pollen and human waste. Kruger Cave is particularly valuable
because it preserves rare organic material such as plant fibre, human hair, bone
objects and other fragile remains. Such evidence can provide information about diet,
hunting, plant use, health, disease and environmental conditions. The preservation
of these materials also creates possibilities for newer scientific work, including DNA
and other laboratory analysis (Bradfield et al. 2022:4-5, 22).
4. Rock art
Rock paintings are another category of archaeological evidence because they record
visual choices made by past communities. Images can contribute to interpretations
of identity, belief, social relationships and the activities that people considered
important, although their meaning must not be guessed without context. At Kruger
Cave, the surviving paintings are mainly human figures, with some animals and
birds, and they form part of the site together with the deposits below the shelter floor
(Bradfield et al. 2022:5). Linking rock art with dated occupation evidence can
therefore improve interpretation of when and how the shelter was used.
c) Contribution of archaeological research to behaviour, cultural change and
heritage conservation
Archaeological research contributes to the study of human behaviour by examining
patterns in material remains and asking what those patterns show about daily
choices. Evidence from tools, food remains, settlement areas and environmental
data can be combined to reconstruct past lifeways. This makes it possible to
investigate activities such as hunting, food preparation, technology, movement,
