UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA (UNISA)
College of Human Sciences: Archaeology
⋄
ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELDWORK PORTFOLIO
Assessment 5, 2026
⋄
Module Code: AGE2601
Module Name: Archaeological Fieldwork Methods and
Laboratory Techniques
Assessment No.: Assessment 5
Due Date: 28 October 2026, 23:00
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for AGE2601
at the University of South Africa.
, UNISA | AGE2601 Assessment 5: Archaeological Fieldwork Portfolio
Activity One: Planning a Survey
1.1 Briefing for the Baboon Point Pedestrian Survey Crew
The survey covers the Baboon Point headland and its surroundings at Elands Bay, laid out as a
grid of 2 × 2 km squares in columns A to F and rows 1 to 6 (Figure 2.2 in Addendum A). This is
far more ground than one crew can walk in a day, so each team will be given a block of squares
and will walk it in evenly spaced lines, which gives systematic coverage and lets every find be
tied to a grid square (UNISA, 2018:32–61). The known sites in Figure 2.5, such as Elands Bay
Cave, Spring Cave, Tortoise Cave, Pancho’s Kitchen Midden and Dunefield Midden, are the
reference points for the day, and you should expect to find further shell middens between
them. The terrain changes quickly. The western edge is beach and rocky shore, the middle
of the area is taken up by the Verlorenvlei lagoon, whose muddy and boggy margins we will
stay out of, and the northern squares combine farmland with circular irrigation fields, fences
and farm tracks, together with a large white dunefield, so landowner permission is needed
before anyone enters the farmland squares. Baboon Point itself rises from sea level to about
150 m, and the profile in Figure 2.3 shows a steep cliff face with a marked gradient of about
26.5 per cent along a profile of nearly 8 km. The dunefield profile in Figure 2.4 climbs more
gently over roughly 5 km, but through loose sand that tires the legs quickly. The photographs
in Addendum A show low, dry, thorny scrub growing on sandy ground with shell scattered on
the surface, so you will be pushing through bushes, watching for holes and rocks, and possibly
meeting snakes. Dress for sun, wind and scratching: sturdy closed boots with ankle support
and thick socks, long trousers, a long-sleeved cotton shirt, a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and
sunscreen that is reapplied during the day, with a windbreaker or fleece in your bag because
the Atlantic wind is cold in the early morning and again in the afternoon. We will be out for
at least seven hours with no shops nearby, so each person must carry at least three litres of
water, lunch and high-energy snacks, a small first aid kit, a whistle and a charged phone. The
team will carry a GPS unit, a compass, printed copies of the grid map, field notebooks and pen-
cils, a camera and scale, flagging tape, and clearly labelled plastic bags for any items collected
(UNISA, 2018:32–61). Weather and the amount of vegetation hiding the surface affect how
visible sites are, so we will start early, rest in shade during the heat of the day, and report our
position to the team leader at agreed times.
Page 1 of 12
College of Human Sciences: Archaeology
⋄
ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELDWORK PORTFOLIO
Assessment 5, 2026
⋄
Module Code: AGE2601
Module Name: Archaeological Fieldwork Methods and
Laboratory Techniques
Assessment No.: Assessment 5
Due Date: 28 October 2026, 23:00
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for AGE2601
at the University of South Africa.
, UNISA | AGE2601 Assessment 5: Archaeological Fieldwork Portfolio
Activity One: Planning a Survey
1.1 Briefing for the Baboon Point Pedestrian Survey Crew
The survey covers the Baboon Point headland and its surroundings at Elands Bay, laid out as a
grid of 2 × 2 km squares in columns A to F and rows 1 to 6 (Figure 2.2 in Addendum A). This is
far more ground than one crew can walk in a day, so each team will be given a block of squares
and will walk it in evenly spaced lines, which gives systematic coverage and lets every find be
tied to a grid square (UNISA, 2018:32–61). The known sites in Figure 2.5, such as Elands Bay
Cave, Spring Cave, Tortoise Cave, Pancho’s Kitchen Midden and Dunefield Midden, are the
reference points for the day, and you should expect to find further shell middens between
them. The terrain changes quickly. The western edge is beach and rocky shore, the middle
of the area is taken up by the Verlorenvlei lagoon, whose muddy and boggy margins we will
stay out of, and the northern squares combine farmland with circular irrigation fields, fences
and farm tracks, together with a large white dunefield, so landowner permission is needed
before anyone enters the farmland squares. Baboon Point itself rises from sea level to about
150 m, and the profile in Figure 2.3 shows a steep cliff face with a marked gradient of about
26.5 per cent along a profile of nearly 8 km. The dunefield profile in Figure 2.4 climbs more
gently over roughly 5 km, but through loose sand that tires the legs quickly. The photographs
in Addendum A show low, dry, thorny scrub growing on sandy ground with shell scattered on
the surface, so you will be pushing through bushes, watching for holes and rocks, and possibly
meeting snakes. Dress for sun, wind and scratching: sturdy closed boots with ankle support
and thick socks, long trousers, a long-sleeved cotton shirt, a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and
sunscreen that is reapplied during the day, with a windbreaker or fleece in your bag because
the Atlantic wind is cold in the early morning and again in the afternoon. We will be out for
at least seven hours with no shops nearby, so each person must carry at least three litres of
water, lunch and high-energy snacks, a small first aid kit, a whistle and a charged phone. The
team will carry a GPS unit, a compass, printed copies of the grid map, field notebooks and pen-
cils, a camera and scale, flagging tape, and clearly labelled plastic bags for any items collected
(UNISA, 2018:32–61). Weather and the amount of vegetation hiding the surface affect how
visible sites are, so we will start early, rest in shade during the heat of the day, and report our
position to the team leader at agreed times.
Page 1 of 12
