10.02.2022
"On the trail of the early modern man in South-Africa“
Geoarchaeologist and PhD student Peter Morrissey from the Witwatersrand University in South Africa is one of the first research fellows who is invited to the University of Tübingen for a three months-stay in March 2022, funded by the federal state of Baden-Württemberg's government.
The University of Tübingen is strengthening its collaborations with Africa: Seven researchers from Algeria, Gabon, Senegal, South Africa and Togo from different scientific disciplines will be invited to stay in Tübingen for a few months, funded by the federal state of Baden-Württemberg's government.
Geoarchaeologist and PhD student Peter Morrissey from the Witswatersrand University in South Africa is one of the first research fellows coming to the University of Tübingen for a three months-stay in March 2022. Together with his doctoral supervisor Dr. Susan Mentzer from the Department of Geoarchaeology, his major research objective is to analyze significant archaeological samples from South Africa's Klasies River Main site which he will bring to Tübingen. They help to give proof of the existence and behavior of Archaic Homo sapiens who lived in the cave region 120,000 years ago. Christin Wannagat interviewed him about his research plans at the University of Tübingen.
1. What is your main research field and its importance in a broader context?
I am a geoarchaeologist. Our focus is on understanding the geological context of the archaeological record, which allows us to identify ancient features made by human behaviour, determine if geological processes have altered the archaeological record, and help identify the climatic and environmental conditions associated with human occupations. All this information helps archaeologists to interpret the evidence recovered from archaeological sites so that we can better understand past human behaviour.
2. On which main research questions and challenges are you currently working?
My PhD research is focused on Klasies River Main site, an extremely important Middle Stone Age archaeological site in South Africa. The site is made up of several different caves which were occupied by humans at various times in the past 120 000 years. Discoveries at the site include large assemblages of stone tools and animal bones, as well as some significant human fossils. Due to the configuration of the site and the number of processes which could be involved in forming the deposits, it has proven difficult to understand how artefacts and fossils from different areas of the site relate to one another temporally and how site formation processes have impacted these finds. My work will use multiscale geoarchaeological analysis to help clarify these factors for some of the oldest deposits and most important human fossils at Klasies.
3. Why did you get interested and involved in a research stay in Tübingen?
My PhD requires the use of archaeological micromorphology, a vital technique for geoarchaeological research. Unfortunately, none of the universities in South Africa are equipped to train students in this technique. Tübingen is the most logical place for me to receive training in this technique and analyse my samples for several reasons. Dr. Susan Mentzer, my PhD advisor, who leads the geoarchaeological research programme at Klasies River Main site is based at the Geoarchaeology Working Group in Tübingen. The Working Group includes a number of other geoarchaeologists who have experience working on sites like Klasies in South Africa and Europe, and they have an excellent reference collection, which is vital for teaching and research.
4. Which tangible outcomes of your stay are the most important? What is planned for the future?
There are two major objectives for my stay in Tübingen. The first is to receive training in archaeological micromorphology. The second objective is to use my new skills to analyse samples taken from deposits at Klasies River Main site aged between 120 000 and 100 000 years. The results of this analysis will allow me to determine what processes, both natural and anthropogenic, were involved in the initial formation of the deposits, and which processes may have altered the deposits after their formation. This will allow me to contribute to our understanding of the important evidence for early modern human behaviour from Klasies, but more importantly, I will be able to use the training I receive to help develop the capacity to conduct this research, and train students in this technique, in South Africa.
I am very grateful to the Baden-Württemberg Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Forschung und Kunst for providing the funding for this research stay and would like to thank the Geoarchaeology Working Group and Dr. Mentzer for hosting me.