Student Number : 8534741 - PhD thesis - School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies - Faculty of Science / During the 19th century the present Makapan Valley World Heritage site was a place of repeated refuge from the conflicts arising from shifting authority, acquisition and loss of power, and competition over the control of resources in the northern regions of Republic of South Africa. During 1854 growing resistance amongst the northern AmaNdebele against the frontier of colonial expansion erupted in the murder of a number of trekboers who were encroaching on their territory. Historic Cave, one of the caves in the Valley, became written into the Afrikaner Nationalist narratives of the 20th century as the place where the Boers avenged the treacherous murder of their fellow trekkers, by suppressing the savage forces of chief Mugombane and his Kekana chiefdom. The events surrounding the siege and the scale of the massacre became blurred in the playing out of these political agendas, while the Kekana oral histories remained silent on the matter. The excavation of Historic Cave, prompted by the contradictions in the historical narrative and the silence in the oral record, provided a means to detect the boundary between what happened and what was said to have happened. This thesis presents the results of a survey of the Valley, the excavation of Historic Cave and the analysis of the remains of the siege of 1854. The archaeological survey and excavation indicates that a number of scurmishes took place in the valley, but that Historic Cave was occupied only on one occasion for any length of time, during the siege of 1854. The lime enriched deposits and dry conditions within the cave have allowed for the exceptional preservation of plant, animal and human remains. This enduring evidence chronicled the activities and steps taken by the Kekana to survive. The spatial layout of the cave together with cultural remains echo the structure and hierarchy of the society trapped within it, which like many African societies of this time comprised a heterogeneous ‘royal’ core and other ‘foreign’ subordinate groups. Evidence for divination reflects the final attempts to divine the cause of misfortune and protect the group against maleficent forces. However, it is argued that the social and religious forces that operated to keep the chiefdom together may have begun to loosen under the pressure of the siege, especially as the polluting forces of death became stronger and the group began to succumb. The remains of young and old people, and the desiccated bodies of a child and a young woman speak of untold suffering and provide a glimpse of the horror within the cave. From this it is reasoned that following the devastation of the siege the core of the chiefdom was challenged; the chief was ‘dealt with’ and the political power base shifted. The real reason for the ‘silence’ then lies at the point of rupture, at the stage when the surviving statesmen contrived a suitable account of ensuing events to give the new chief legitimacy and the lineage continuity.

How did the early colonial regime impact the potter’s craft in the Andes? How can documentary and material evidence of pottery production allow us to better understand that period? This article proposes a methodology to answer both questions. It suggests that it is necessary to use explicit analytic models about potters when dealing with ceramic evidence. In this context, several models about potters are proposed for the early colonial period, and three specific cases showing the diversity of strategies employed by artisans of that period are discussed. / ¿Cómo el régimen colonial temprano afectó el oficio de alfarero en los Andes? Cómo la evidencia documental y material sobre alfarería nos permite comprender mejor ese periodo? Este artículo propone una metodología para responder ambas interrogantes. Con tal objetivo, se sugiere la necesidad de emplear modelos analíticos explícitos sobre alfareros cuando se estudia evidencia cerámica. En este contexto, se proponen algunos modelos alfareros para el periodo colonial temprano y se discuten tres casos específicos que muestran la diversidad de estrategias empleadas por los alfareros en ese periodo.

Ce mémoire en archéologie coloniale canadienne présente une analyse de la céramique mise au jour dans la fosse à glace du site Gervaise (BjFj-119) dans le Vieux-Montréal. Le dépôt dans la fosse, où l’on peut distinguer trois niveaux stratigraphiques, a été mis en place entre 1750 et 1770, chevauchant la Conquête britannique de la Nouvelle-France en 1760. La propriété du site Gervaise, acquise par le maître boulanger Charles Gervaise en 1693 et habitée par lui et sa famille jusqu'en 1753, fut par la suite occupée par une succession de familles de la petite et moyenne bourgeoisie. L'assemblage de céramiques des trois niveaux de la fosse reflète l’évolution du paysage socioéconomique et politique de l'époque, ainsi que celle de la consommation de ces individus pendant ce temps mouvementé de l'histoire de Montréal et dans le contexte plus général de l’extension du capitalisme en Occident. L'étude est soutenue par les méthodes de description et de mise en contexte préconisées par l'archéologie du consumérisme, qui explore les diverses relations entre la culture matérielle et les individus. La collection de la glacière Gervaise offre un portrait original des maisonnées aisées de la fin du Régime français et du début du Régime anglais, et approfondit la place socioéconomique de certaines céramiques comme la terre cuite locale, le creamware, la faïence blanche et le grès fin blanc. / This thesis in Canadian colonial archaeology analyses the ceramics found in the ice cellar of the Gervaise site (BjFj-119) in Old Montreal. The deposit within the cellar, which is divided into three levels, was put in place between 1750 and 1770, thus overlapping the British Conquest of New France in 1760. The property, bought by the master baker Charles Gervaise in 1693 and occupied by him and his family until 1753, was subsequently inhabited by different families of the middling sort. The ceramics assemblage opens a window on the rapidly evolving socioeconomic and political landscape of the time and on the consumption practices of these individuals during this eventful period in Montreal history and more generally in the context of the extension of capitalism in Occident. The study is informed by the methods of description and contextualisation suggested by the archaeology of consumerism, which explores the various relationships between material culture and individuals. The collection from the Gervaise ice cellar offers an original view of well-to-do households at the end of French Regime and the beginning of the British Regime, and challenges the role of some ceramic markers such as local earthenware, creamware, white faience and white stoneware.