Misplaced Pages

#838161

59-613: The history of the Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape dates back 210 million years ago when one of the earliest plant-eating dinosaurs, Plateosauravus (Euskelosaurus), was known to have lived in the area. The Mapungubwe area became a focus of agricultural research in the 1920s through the efforts of the botanist Illtyd Buller Pole-Evans . Pole-Evans was instrumental in the creation of the Botanical Survey Advisory Committee, which

118-418: A divination tool. Bark from this tree and four other herbs including Silene capensis (African dream root) and Synaptolepis kirkii are boiled into a brew. This is taken to induce lucid dreams, which they call "white paths". Before going to sleep a question is asked that will be answered in their dreams. Medicinally, the roots and a powder made from bark stripped from the trunk are used as an emetic and as

177-566: A breakdown in common purpose, provoking people to "vote with their feet". The basin was abandoned as people scattered northwest and south. They didn't regroup. To the north near the Zambezi, Great Zimbabwe , on the fringe of the Mapungubwe state and with a distinct population, rose to become its successor, adopting the same elitist spatial arrangement and sacred leadership. Over the course of settlement at K2, their society transitioned from

236-422: A ceremony that took place on 20 November 2007. Skeletal Analysis has been done on the people of Mapungubwe to learn about their health and lifestyle. Findings include that the populations at Mapungubwe experienced mortality rates expected for a pre-industrial group (comparable to pre-industrial Europeans), with high mortality at youth but an expected 35-40 year life-span after adulthood is reached. Another finding

295-599: A dark and backward continent in need of "saving", as well as the belief that Afrikaners were "champions of civilisation". As happened similarly with Great Zimbabwe , the government attempted to hide, discredit, and "protect" the site. The site was declared a national monument in the 1980s. The area is now part of the Mapungubwe National Park , which in turn is contained in the UNESCO Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape and

354-617: A landscape tree in other warm climates, outside of its natural range. The trees grow to a height of 15–25 m (49–82 ft). The characteristic bark is smooth, powdery and greenish yellow, although new twigs are purple, flaking later to reveal the characteristic yellow. It is one of the few trees where photosynthesis takes place in the bark . Straight, white spines grow from the branch nodes in pairs. The leaves are twice compound, with small leaflets (8 mm × 2 mm or 0.3 in × 0.1 in). The flowers are produced in scented pale cream spherical inflorescences, clustered at

413-403: A live fence or hedge and in ornamental planting for shade and shelter in amenity areas. Vachellia xanthophloea is often planted as a source of firewood, but its gummy sap leaves a thick, black, tarlike residue when burnt. The valuable timber of Vachellia xanthophloea is pale reddish brown with a hard, heavy texture, and, because it is liable to crack, it should be seasoned before use. The timber

472-439: A praise singer would tell everyone. Wives were viewed as a route to success and status, and as such the king had many, with the senior wife in charge. Some wives lived outside of the capital, to help maintain the network of alliances. Life in Mapungubwe was centred on family and farming. Special sites were created for initiation ceremonies, household activities, and other social functions. Cattle lived in kraals located close to

531-553: A rhino . The second, likely a woman, was buried facing west with over 100 gold bangles, 12,000 gold beads, and 26,000 glass beads. The third, likely a tall middle-aged man, was also buried facing west, and with a necklace of gold beads and cowrie shells , and various objects covered in gold foil, including a crocodile. In 2007, the South African Government gave the green light for the skeletal remains that were excavated in 1933 to be reburied on Mapungubwe Hill in

590-522: A rich archaeology which should be protected. Those opposed to the establishment of the reserve argued that it was unacceptable to alienate agricultural land for wildlife conservation, to expropriate private land or to evict people from land they had occupied for generations. The debate, which has become known as the "Battle of Dongola", resulted in the declaration of a much reduced area as the Dongola Wildlife Sanctuary, after members of

649-417: A society based on social ranking to one based on social classes , and was one of the first class-based social systems and examples of sacral kingship in southern Africa. The leader and elites inhabited the hilltop, with the population below. There were four paths up the hill, with the main one guarded by soldiers, who were called the "eye" of the king. Settlements were divided into residential areas under

SECTION 10

#1732775721839

708-401: A tendency to occur as single-aged stands, and are subject to stand-level diebacks that have been variously attributed to elephants, water tables, and synchronous senescence. The name xanthophloea is derived from Greek and means "yellow bark" (ξανθός "yellow, golden"; φλοιός "bark"). The common name, fever tree , comes from its tendency to grow in swampy areas: early European settlers in

767-560: A trance and go into the spirit world themselves to capture the animals associated with rain. The community at K2 chose the San rather than the Zhizo, their political rivals, because the San did not believe in ancestors, and by not acknowledging the Zhizo's ancestors they would not be held to ransom by them. Hilltops with streams at their base were used as rainmaking sites. As the society became more complex, houses and shrines were built on hills, with

826-718: Is "phukubje". The region was inhabited by the San for some 100,000 years. The origins of the Kingdom of Mapungubwe lie in Leopard's Kopje . Motivated by the ivory trade , some Zhizo people moved south around 900 to settle Schroda , near the Limpopo River . The San were largely driven off their ancestral lands. Early San society left a rich legacy of cave paintings across Southern Africa. The Zhizo herded cattle and engaged in farming. They traded and possibly hunted with

885-420: Is a high groundwater table. In seasonally flooded areas it often forms dense single species stands. The leaves and pods are used to provide food for livestock while the young branches and foliage are eaten by African elephants while giraffe and vervet monkeys eat the pods and leaves. The flowers are used for foraging by bees and provides favoured nesting sites for birds. Like other acacias and Fabaceae it

944-848: Is a nitrogen fixer, so improves soil fertility. The gum is part of the diet of the Senegal bushbaby ( Galago senegalensis ) especially in the dry season. Butterflies recorded as feeding on Vachellia xanthophloea in Kenya included the Kikuyu ciliate blue ( Anthene kikuyu ), Pitman's hairtail ( Anthene pitmani ), common ciliate blue ( Anthene definita ), African babul blue ( Azanus jesous ), Victoria's bar ( Cigaritis victoriae ) and common zebra blue ( Leptotes pirithous ). In addition 30 species of larger moths have been recorded as feeding on this tree. Vachellia xanthophloea are planted next to dams and streams on farms to control soil erosion, as

1003-692: Is considered a Lion Conservation Unit together with South Luangwa National Park . Other species include African bush elephant , hippopotamus , southern white rhinoceros , African leopard , South African cheetah , African wild dog , spotted hyena , brown hyena , common eland , blue wildebeest , kudu , Burchell's zebra , bushbuck , waterbuck , impala , klipspringer , duiker , steenbok , red hartebeest , oryx , South African giraffe , common warthog , bush pig , aardvark and baboon , African civet , crested porcupine , caracal and vervet monkey . At least 17 bat species have been recorded, including tree roosting Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat and

1062-610: Is located in the Mapungubwe National Park in South Africa , on the border with Zimbabwe and Botswana . Its original name is not known. The site and capital was called Mapungubwe following archaeological naming conventions, and extended to the kingdom. Mapungubwe means "a place of (many) jackals ". In various Bantu languages , "-pungubwe" refers to jackals. Jackal is "phunguwe" in Venda , while in Northern Sotho it

1121-661: Is obliged to take all reasonable and practical steps to minimise the risk of Vachellia xanthophlea spreading until they have received advice from an authorised officer. Thus far it has only been found in a few gardens and not in the "wild". It is also a "declared pest" in Western Australia . These trees are immortalized by Rudyard Kipling in one of his Just So Stories , " The Elephant's Child ", wherein he repeatedly refers to "the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River , all set about with fever-trees". This tree has been used for thousands of years by African tribes as

1180-650: Is of prime importance from the point of view of conservation. It is a dense vegetation community with a closed canopy which occurs in the rich alluvial deposits along the river. The most striking trees in this community fever trees , ana trees , leadwoods , fig trees and acacias. Extensive patches of this vegetation have been cleared for cultivation elsewhere along the length of the Limpopo River. The Limpopo floodplain has allowed some trees to grow to massive sizes. Nyala berry trees and ana trees can get particularly big. There are also some very large baobabs in

1239-418: Is possible the old village was burnt down to make way for a new one. Mapungubwe Hill became the sole rainmaking hill, and its habitation by the leader emphasised a link between himself and rainmaking, which was substantial in the development of sacral kingship . The hill had been inhabited by the San long ago and a rock shelter on the east side featured some of their art. The first king had their palace on

SECTION 20

#1732775721839

1298-649: Is that the people of Mapungubwe grew well, without a notable frequency of chronic infections, though children sometimes were found with anaemia . The site is claimed by both the Vhavenda and the Tshivhula/Sembola , possibly incentivised by the land claims process initiated by the South African government, which has seen various groups dishonestly claim land. Neither of their estimated migration histories, or those of their clans, line up neatly with

1357-558: Is used to make poles and posts. In Australia, Vachellia xanthophlea is a prohibited invasive plant in the state of Queensland under the Biosecurity Act 2014, under which it must not be given away, sold, or released into the environment without a permit. The act further requires that all sightings of Vachellia xanthophlea are to be reported to the appropriate authorities within 24 hours and that within Queensland everyone

1416-722: The Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conservation Area . The Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site on 3 July 2003. Fever tree Acacia xanthophloea Benth. Vachellia xanthophloea (previously Acacia xanthophloea ) is a tree in the family Fabaceae , commonly known in English as the fever tree . This species of Vachellia is native to eastern and southern Africa (Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe). It has also become

1475-489: The Indian Ocean trade created unprecedented inequalities, evolving over time from a society based on social ranking to one based on social classes . K2's spatial arrangement became unsuited to this development. Amid a harsh drought which likely troubled the society, royal elites moved the capital to Mapungubwe and settled its flat-topped summit around 1220, while most people settled at the foot of Mapungubwe Hill. It

1534-456: The Indian Ocean trade via Sofala . It is unknown what caused Mapungubwe's collapse. Trading routes shifted north towards the Zambezi as traders travelled it to reach the gold-producing interior, which would have dramatically hurt Mapungubwe's economy. It is plausible confidence was lost in the leadership amid the deepening material and spiritual divide between commoners and the king, and

1593-540: The Mopane District , heard a legend of "a white man gone wild, who had lived a hermit's life in a cave on the banks of the Limpopo" in the late 19th century who "climbed the sacred hill and found things there". After several years of searching for the treasure, they set out again accompanied by a team including an unnamed African guide. They uncovered pottery fragments and artefacts of copper, glass, and gold, and

1652-453: The Zhizo moved west to settle Toutswe in modern day Botswana. Some scholars believe their relations to have been hostile, however others insist they were more complex, both socially and politically. Leopard's Kopje people spoke an early form of Shona , likely Kalanga (western Shona). K2 was the capital, and was likely divided into residential areas under the authority of a family head, with

1711-399: The 1930s a major cemetery was uncovered nearby the palace, which housed 23 graves. Most were buried with few or no accessories, with most adults buried with glass beads, however three were different. The first, known as the original gold burial, was buried with a wooden headrest and three objects all made from wood covered in gold foil; a divining bowl, a sceptre (likely a knobkerrie ), and

1770-686: The Dongola Botanical Reserve. By the early 1940s, the reserve had grown to include 27 farms, including Greefswald, the property on which the Mapungubwe Hill is situated. Pole-Evans lobbied to have the reserve proclaimed as a national park, with the support of Prime Minister Smuts. In 1944, Minister of Lands Andrew Conroy proposed the formation of the Dongola Wild Life Sanctuary, which would include 124 farms, 86 of which were privately owned. This proposal

1829-413: The Limpopo River. The status of the park as part of the Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conservation Area is severely threatened by the planned exploitation of coal reserves in the immediate vicinity of the reserve. An open-cast coal mine and power plant are planned in the buffer zone of the national park, which threaten its natural and cultural value.. In addition, the large amount of water required for

Mapungubwe National Park - Misplaced Pages Continue

1888-695: The San, who lived in different settlements. Schroda was likely the Zhizo's capital due to being the most populated (around 500). The chief was the wealthiest, and accumulated cattle through court fines, forfeits, tributes, raids, and the high price of marrying one of his daughters. The Zhizo made elaborate pottery with diverse styles, for which they were named after. Figurines were used as props in school lessons. They traded ivory, gold, rhino skins, leopard skins, and iron to coastal cities such as Chibuene in exchange for glass beads, cotton and silk cloths, and glazed ceramics. Around 1000, some Leopard's Kopje people moved south to settle Bambandyanalo (known as K2), as

1947-455: The Year . The numerous habitat types have resulted in high species diversity. There are at least 24 Acacia species and 8 Commiphora species, amongst others. Other vegetation of the area is a typically short fairly dense growth of shrubby Mopane trees, generally associated with a number of other trees and shrubs and a somewhat sparse and tufted grassveld. The riparian fringe of the Limpopo

2006-538: The authority of family heads , and surrounded the hill, forming a protective circle. The kingdom was likely divided into a five-tiered hierarchy due to the wide spread of the population; family heads, headmen , petty chiefs, senior chiefs, and the king. The king slept in a small wooden hut, in a supposedly secret location. Visitors were secluded from the king. His entourage included soldiers and praise singers , along with musicians who played mbiras and xylophones . His actions were ritualised, such that if he sneezed,

2065-563: The burial of a highly decorated person. The younger Van Graan, a former student of the University of Pretoria , reported the discovery to an archaeologist. The University of Pretoria, at the time an exclusively Afrikaner institution, gained the rights to the treasure, and the Hertzog government monopolised the site. The discovery contradicted the White supremacist myth that Africa was

2124-614: The cave dwelling Egyptian fruit bat . Monitor lizard , Nile monitor , giant plated lizard , Trachylepis margaritifera , ground agama and speckled thick toed gecko have all been seen in Mapungubwe National Park. There are estimated to be at least 32 snake species, although only 15 have thus far been confirmed. Some of these species include the southern African python , snouted cobra , black mamba , both horned and puff adders , and at least three species of whip or sand snakes. Nile crocodile occur in and along

2183-607: The chief having the largest area. Women worked copper , while men worked iron . They cultivated sorghum , pearl millet , finger millet , ground beans, and cowpeas . The population expanded, and K2 had a population of 1500 by 1200. Rainmaking was widespread, and the chief sometimes hired strangers who were believed to have special relationships with the spirits of the land, such as the San , due to their longer habitation. Likewise some Zhizo who remained at Leokwe , likely subordinate to K2, specialised in rituals also due to their longer habitation. The large wealth generated by

2242-446: The kingdom were buried in hills. Royal wives lived in their own area away from the king. Important men maintained prestigious homes on the outskirts of the capital. This type of spatial division occurred first at Mapungubwe but would be replicated in later Butua and Rozwi states. The growth in population at Mapungubwe may have led to full-time specialists in ceramics, specifically pottery. Gold objects were uncovered in elite burials on

2301-523: The mining activities will impact the ecology of a large part of the region. Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape The Kingdom of Mapungubwe (pronounced / m ɑː ˈ p uː n ɡ uː b w eɪ / mah- POON -goob-weh ) was an ancient state located at the confluence of the Shashe and Limpopo rivers in South Africa, south of Great Zimbabwe . The capital's population was 5000 by 1250, and

2360-465: The nodes and towards the ends of the branches. The pale brown pods contain 5–10 elliptical, flattened green seeds and are 5–19 cm (2.0–7.5 in) long, straight, flat and rather papery, the segments are mostly longer than they are wide, often breaking up to form small clusters of segments each containing an individual seed. As the pods mature they change colour from green to pale greyish brown. Fever trees are fast growing and short lived. They have

2419-620: The palace would have likely been a gift for allowing foreigners to trade. By the end of the 13th century, traders regularly bypassed Sofala and Mapungubwe by travelling the Zambezi River (north of the Limpopo ) into the gold producing interior, as Quelimane and Angoche became the main trading hubs. This precipitated the rise of Great Zimbabwe . Spatial organisation in the kingdom of Mapungubwe, termed dzimbahwe in Shona , involved

Mapungubwe National Park - Misplaced Pages Continue

2478-1345: The park, with one specimen having a circumference of 31 metres (102 ft). 387 bird species have been recorded in Mapungubwe National Park, including Verreaux's eagle , southern pied babbler , crimson-breasted shrike and black-faced waxbill , Meyer's parrot , White-crested helmetshrike , Meves's starling and some flycatcher species, yellow-bellied greenbul , black-backed puffback , range-breasted bushshrike and grey-headed bushshrike , grey-backed camaroptera and Natal spurfowl , western barn owl , African scops owl , Southern white-faced owl , Verreaux's eagle-owl , Pel's fishing owl , pearl-spotted owlet , Kori bustard , chestnut-backed sparrow-larks and wattled starling , Temminck's courser , collared palm thrush and ground hornbill , great white pelican , white-backed night heron , bat hawk , augur buzzard , African hobby , Dickinson's kestrel , green sandpiper , three-banded courser , blue-spotted wood dove , Brown-necked parrot , Senegal coucal , pennant-winged nightjar , blue-cheeked bee-eater , broad-billed roller , racket-tailed roller , African golden oriole and olive-tree warbler . The Limpopo floodplain harbours grey crowned crane , up to seven stork species and several wader , heron , crake and duck species. Since 2005, Mapungubwe National Park

2537-409: The practice becoming institutionalised. At Mapungubwe, the elite tried to change the place of practice from a group of hills to one; Mapungubwe Hill, with the royal family the ritual specialists, signifying a step away from the role of ancestors. Mapungubwe traded locally with Toutswe and Eiland among others, however a major source of their wealth came from the Indian Ocean trade . An early link

2596-527: The present day they are often associated with the Shona , Tshivhula , and Venda peoples. Despite locals having knowledge of the site, Mapungubwe was popularly rediscovered when, on New Year's Eve 1933, a farmer set out to follow up on a legend he had heard about. The Mapungubwe Collection of artefacts found at the archaeological site is housed in the Mapungubwe Museum in Pretoria . The site

2655-488: The region noted that malarial fever was contracted in areas with these trees. It is now understood that malarial fever is spread by mosquitos living in the swampy areas that often support this tree species, and not by the tree species itself. This is because mosquitos often lay eggs in moist swampy areas, which they need blood to do. Vachellia xanthophloea is found growing near swamps, riverine forests or on lake shores, in semi-evergreen bush land and woodland where there

2714-558: The residents' houses, signifying their value. Courts belonged to the leader, however he would not have been there, but rather in ritual seclusion on the hilltop. A brother would have likely been in charge, and would have been the second most powerful person in the kingdom. Only men of high status were allowed to smelt and work copper and gold. These metals were associated with power, wealth, and fertility, and only elites would have possessed gold. While most had access to iron tools, poorer farmers made use of stone and bone tools. Elites within

2773-400: The royal hill. Rainmaking , or rain control, intended to induce rain and prevent both droughts and floods. It was based on the belief that humans could influence nature, spirits, or the ancestors who withheld or brought rain. The San , who were believed to have closer connections to the old spirits of the land, were often turned to by other societies for rainmaking. San shamans would enter

2832-504: The ruling United Party voted in favour of the proposal. The National Party won the elections in 1948, and the sanctuary was abolished in 1949. Expropriated farms were returned to their original farmers, farms owned by the state were allocated for resettlement and funds returned to donors. In 1967, another proposal to protect the area was initiated and the Vhembe Nature Reserve, comprising three farms, including Greefswald,

2891-677: The state likely covered 30,000 km² (11,500 square miles). The kingdom exhibited sacral kingship closely associated with rainmaking , and exported gold and ivory to Swahili city-states on the East African coast into the Indian Ocean trade . Although traditionally assumed to have been the first kingdom in Southern Africa, excavations in the same region at Mapela Hill show evidence for sacral kingship nearly 200 years earlier. Following unknown events and shifting trade routes north around 1300, Mapungubwe's population scattered. In

2950-500: The timeline of the site. Mapungubwe's population are regarded as the "cultural ancestors" of the Shona and Venda. Locals had knowledge of the site through their oral histories , and considered the site imbued with the power and presence of ancestral kings, warned by their oral traditions against visiting or even pointing at the hill for fear of something terrible happening. The site was visited by European researchers led by Leo Frobenius in 1929. The Van Graans, who were farmers in

3009-400: The use of stone walls to demarcate important areas, embedding class distinction and providing ritual seclusion for the king. There was a stone-walled residence likely occupied by the principal councillor. Stone and wood were used together. There would have also been a wooden palisade surrounding Mapungubwe Hill. Most of the capital's population would have lived inside the western wall. In

SECTION 50

#1732775721839

3068-435: The western part of the hill, and it included a room where the king could receive visitors, and another where the visitors could be vetted, as well as a hut for the king's special diviner . By 1250, Mapungubwe had a population of 5000, with settlements all around the hill, forming a protective circle. The second king had their palace in the middle of the hill, with the same arrangements as his predecessor, however his visitor room

3127-608: Was divided so as to separate visitors from the king, who would have spoken through an intermediary. The king had many wives, with some living outside of the capital to help maintain the network of alliances. The economy was based on agriculture, and to make more productive use of the land, cattle (previously held as the primary identifier of wealth) were herded away from the capital and permitted to graze on other communities' land, forming social and political ties and increasing Mapungubwe's influence. They traded locally with Toutswe and Eiland among others, and gold and ivory were exported to

3186-618: Was established as a Transvaal provincial reserve. In 1993, De Beers Consolidated Mines , which had established the Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve on land that adjoins Greefswald, called for the area to be declared a national park. In 1995 the South African National Parks Board and the Limpopo provincial government signed an agreement committing themselves to the establishment of the new national park. The Vhembe-Dongola National Park

3245-610: Was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2003. With the park's UNESCO World Heritage status, a building has been constructed that houses a museum section with many of the artefacts uncovered in the park on display. Information on the park's history and biology is also available at the Museum and Interpretive Centre. In 2009, the building won the World Architecture Festival 's World Building of

3304-431: Was proclaimed on 9 April 1998. The Vhembe-Dongola National Park was renamed Mapungubwe National Park and opened officially on Heritage Day , 24 September 2004. In the 21st century, Mapungubwe has been embraced as a site of significance by South Africans and the international community. The Mapungubwe National Park was declared in 1998. The Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape was declared as a National Heritage Site in 2001 and it

3363-545: Was strongly opposed by the National Party , then the official opposition in parliament and the National Parks Board of Trustees. In one of the longest running debates in the history of the South African parliament, supporters argued that it was necessary to conserve the country's natural assets, that the land set aside for the proposed reserve was unsuitable for agricultural purposes and that the area had

3422-580: Was tasked with coordinating botanical research throughout the Union of South Africa . One of the network of botanical and research stations set up by the Botanical Survey was situated in the Mapungubwe area. At the request of Jan Smuts , the government set aside a block of nine farms in this area as a preserve for wildlife and natural vegetation in 1918. A few years later this became known as the Dongola Botanical Reserve. Pole-Evans set about expanding

3481-407: Was with Chibuene . After Chibuene burnt down, Sofala became the main trading port, which was frequented by Arab merchants, due to higher demand for gold from the 10th century following various Muslim, European, and Indian states issuing gold coinage. Mapungubwe exported gold and ivory, while a large number of glass beads were imported from India and Southeast Asia . The Chinese celadon found at

#838161