Raw material characterisation and provenance analyses of lithics from Rose Cottage Cave (Harper collection)

The proposed research is part of a broader project called “Time of Essential Changes in Human history (TECH)” funded by the Austrian Science Fund. It aims to investigate lithic technological developments, chrono-cultural changes, and innovativeness within the Middle Stone Age (MSA) of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5 in southern Africa. The pre-Howiesons Poort layers of Rose Cottage Cave (eastern Free State Province) serve as an optimal case study. The investigation involves petrographic analyses of the raw materials to draw conclusions on techno-economy, land use patterns and mobility strategies of hunter-gatherer groups.