Life in Prehistoric Milnerton
Faunal fossils of Miocene and/or Pliocene age (12-3 million years ago), when the sea level was over 40 metres above the present level, have been recovered from Milnerton beach. About 30 metres north of the lagoon mouth, a local occurrence of Last Inter-glacial marine molluscs can be seen at the high-water mark. The seam extends over some 15 metres and is distinguished from the modern beach by the concentration of shells and shell fragments and the fact that some shells and fragments show signs of ferruginization (alterations caused by weathering close to the surface in the presence of iron-bearing aqueous solutions).
Fossils of larger animals which roamed the area during the terminal Miocene/early Pliocene period (circa 5,2 million years ago) have been found at Langebaan, about 150 kilometres north of Cape Town. The West Coast Fossil Park is world-renowned for its well-preserved fossil faunal remains, which date to the time when many animals that are now extinct, such as sabre-toothed cats, short-necked giraffes, hunting hyenas, and African bears roamed the west coast, which then had a more subtropical climate with lush, riverine forests and open grasslands.
These fossils are complemented by those of mammals deposited on Milnerton beach. These consist mainly of whales, but include shark teeth and a few terrestrial animals, including ancestral elephant. Fossils of Pleistocene age (2 million to 10 000 years ago) include bones of extinct elephant, giant buffalo, hippopotamus and antelope. Fossil bones of equid (a mammal of the horse family) and rhinoceros may also date from this period.
During the 20th Century, palaeontologists established beyond doubt that the earliest representations of humankind, the australopithecines, or 'Southern ape men', once inhabited the southern regions of the African continent. About 2,5 million years ago, they started evolving into modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens) when they began making stone tools, marking the beginning of the Earlier Stone Age.
Although no hominid remains from this period have been found within 100 kilometres of Cape Town, there is other evidence that confirms that these ancestors of modern humans roamed the coastline of the south-western Cape.
On 4 February 1995, a stone hand axe was discovered buried in the seabed just off Milnerton beach during an archaeological survey of a shipwreck by Dr Bruno Werz. Other, similar finds were made in the same vicinity some time later. The hand axes were probably discarded there when the sea level was about 10 metres lower than it is today. Research has indicated that these stone tools are between 300 000 and 1,5 million years old. Scientists internationally agree that these are the oldest artefacts produced by man ever found under water. Hand axes were used to butcher animals, to dig for tubers, shellfish and water, to chop wood and remove tree bark, to throw at prey, and as a tool for flaking other tools.
For me, however, the most fascinating archaeological discovery along the south-western coastline is that of a set of fossilised footprints.
About 117 000 years ago, during a heavy downpour, a woman walked up a steep sand dune on the shores of Langebaan lagoon, leaving behind a set of footprints. Dry sand later blew over the wet footprints and filled the prints. The sand and crushed seashells hardened like cement into sedimentary rock, in which the fossilised footprints were left encased. Over time, they were buried to a depth of about 9 metres.
In 1995, these footprints were uncovered by the archaeologist David Roberts, who, with the help of palaeontologist Lee Berger, dated them to approximately 117 000 years ago, making them the earliest known fossil record of Homo sapiens sapiens in the world.
The three footprints, collectively known as 'Eve's Footprint', are thought to belong to a contemporary of the anonymous 'Mitochondrial Eve', traces of whose DNA are found in every human being in the world today.
If you've enjoyed reading this blog, you'll be pleased to know that I'll be writing a new blog on aspects of Milnerton's history every week. These will alternate between personal reminiscences and straight historical articles. Please keep a record of the site: milnertonian.blogspot.com Alternatively, if you haven't yet done so, you may like to join the Facebook group, Milnerton Historical Society.
Fossils of larger animals which roamed the area during the terminal Miocene/early Pliocene period (circa 5,2 million years ago) have been found at Langebaan, about 150 kilometres north of Cape Town. The West Coast Fossil Park is world-renowned for its well-preserved fossil faunal remains, which date to the time when many animals that are now extinct, such as sabre-toothed cats, short-necked giraffes, hunting hyenas, and African bears roamed the west coast, which then had a more subtropical climate with lush, riverine forests and open grasslands.
These fossils are complemented by those of mammals deposited on Milnerton beach. These consist mainly of whales, but include shark teeth and a few terrestrial animals, including ancestral elephant. Fossils of Pleistocene age (2 million to 10 000 years ago) include bones of extinct elephant, giant buffalo, hippopotamus and antelope. Fossil bones of equid (a mammal of the horse family) and rhinoceros may also date from this period.
During the 20th Century, palaeontologists established beyond doubt that the earliest representations of humankind, the australopithecines, or 'Southern ape men', once inhabited the southern regions of the African continent. About 2,5 million years ago, they started evolving into modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens) when they began making stone tools, marking the beginning of the Earlier Stone Age.
Although no hominid remains from this period have been found within 100 kilometres of Cape Town, there is other evidence that confirms that these ancestors of modern humans roamed the coastline of the south-western Cape.
On 4 February 1995, a stone hand axe was discovered buried in the seabed just off Milnerton beach during an archaeological survey of a shipwreck by Dr Bruno Werz. Other, similar finds were made in the same vicinity some time later. The hand axes were probably discarded there when the sea level was about 10 metres lower than it is today. Research has indicated that these stone tools are between 300 000 and 1,5 million years old. Scientists internationally agree that these are the oldest artefacts produced by man ever found under water. Hand axes were used to butcher animals, to dig for tubers, shellfish and water, to chop wood and remove tree bark, to throw at prey, and as a tool for flaking other tools.
For me, however, the most fascinating archaeological discovery along the south-western coastline is that of a set of fossilised footprints.
About 117 000 years ago, during a heavy downpour, a woman walked up a steep sand dune on the shores of Langebaan lagoon, leaving behind a set of footprints. Dry sand later blew over the wet footprints and filled the prints. The sand and crushed seashells hardened like cement into sedimentary rock, in which the fossilised footprints were left encased. Over time, they were buried to a depth of about 9 metres.
In 1995, these footprints were uncovered by the archaeologist David Roberts, who, with the help of palaeontologist Lee Berger, dated them to approximately 117 000 years ago, making them the earliest known fossil record of Homo sapiens sapiens in the world.
The three footprints, collectively known as 'Eve's Footprint', are thought to belong to a contemporary of the anonymous 'Mitochondrial Eve', traces of whose DNA are found in every human being in the world today.
If you've enjoyed reading this blog, you'll be pleased to know that I'll be writing a new blog on aspects of Milnerton's history every week. These will alternate between personal reminiscences and straight historical articles. Please keep a record of the site: milnertonian.blogspot.com Alternatively, if you haven't yet done so, you may like to join the Facebook group, Milnerton Historical Society.
Facinating read..!
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