Klasies River Caves
| Klasies River Caves | |
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| Location | Tsitsikamma coast, Humansdorp district of Eastern Cape Province, South Africa |
| Coordinates | 34°6′29.17″S 24°23′24.50″E / 34.1081028°S 24.3901389°ECoordinates: 34°6′29.17″S 24°23′24.50″E / 34.1081028°S 24.3901389°E |
The Klasies River Caves are a series of caves located to the east of the Klasies River mouth on the Tsitsikamma coast in the Humansdorp district of Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The three main caves and two shelters at the base of a high cliff have revealed evidence of middle stone age-associated human habitation from approximately 125,000 years ago. The 20 metres (66 ft) thick deposits were accumulated from 125,000 years ago. Around 75,000 years ago, during cave remodelling, the stratigraphic sediments were moved out into external middens.
In 2015, the South African government submitted a proposal to add the caves to the list of World Heritage Sites.
From 1960, Ronald Singer, Ray Inskeep, John Wymer, Hilary Deacon, Richard Klein and others suggested the excavation yielded the earliest known remains of anatomically modern humans and behaviourally modern humans in the world. Further analysis suggested that those specimens fall "outside the range of modern variation".
There is a 20 metres (66 ft) thick accumulation of deposits, both inside the caves and outside against the cliff face, proving that Klasies River Mouth people knew how to hunt small game, fish (later), gather plants and roots, cook by roasting on hearths, and manage their land (later). There is extensive evidence of shellfish collecting; MSA stone artefact technology; gathering plants, roots and flowers for food; cooking plants, corms, seal, penguins, and antelope meat on hearths with fire; general organisation of the settlement; and land/veld management by fire. The evidence also appears to indicate that their presence was seasonal or migratory. There is also evidence of cannibalism, charred and carved 'modern human' bones discarded with other food remnants.
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