A 100,000-Year-Old Ochre-Processing Workshop at Blombos Cave, South Africa
2011/10/13 by Christopher S. Henshilwood, Francesco d’Errico, Karen L. van Niekerk +5 · 1 voice · 54 citations
Social Sciences · Earth and Planetary Sciences · Arts and Humanities · #Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology #Archaeology and ancient environmental studies #Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies
paper · doi:10.1126/science.1211535
Abstract
The conceptual ability to source, combine, and store substances that enhance technology or social practices represents a benchmark in the evolution of complex human cognition. Excavations in 2008 at Blombos Cave, South Africa, revealed a processing workshop where a liquefied ochre-rich mixture was produced and stored in two Haliotis midae (abalone) shells 100,000 years ago. Ochre, bone, charcoal, grindstones, and hammerstones form a composite part of this production toolkit. The application of the mixture is unknown, but possibilities include decoration and skin protection.
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