Abstract
The faunal sample from Kadzi, an Early Iron Age site in the Zambezi Valley, is the first substantial sample for that period and region in Zimbabwe. The site appears to have been a permanent or semipermanent settlement. The sample consists mainly of bovid remains, dominated by buffalo as a single species, suggesting special hunting skills. The presence of some domestic animals proves that these animals were available to the inhabitants of the site. Their status in the community is, however, uncertain. Possible explanations for the small number of cattle fragments could be the result of paucity of livestock for environmental or other reasons, or may reflect differential disposal of cattle bones as part of ritual expression. Environmental conditions, particularly the possible presence of the tsetse fly, could also have been a factor in determining the distribution of livestock and herd sizes in the region. The faunal remains provide valuable insight into the subsistence strategies of the period. They also provide evidence about animals present in the region during the first millennium AD.
Résumé
Des restes animaux provenant du Kadzi, un site de l’âge du fer supérieur dans la vallée du Zambeze, fournissent pour la première fois des données pour cette période et cette région du Zimbabwe. Le site a été probablement occupée d’une manière permanente ou semipermanente. Les restes se composent principalement d’ossements bovins, dominés par le Buffle comme seule espèce, ce qui temoigne de techniques de chasse avancées. La présence (parmi les ossements) d’un certain nombre d’animaux domestiques indique qu’ils étaient disponibles pour les habitants du site, mais leur statut dans la communauté reste ambigu. Le nombre peu élève de fragments d’ossements de boeuf est peutêtre lié à la taille réduite du troupeau pour des raisons environnementales ou autres ou bien résulte de l’utilisation rituelle de certains ossements. Les conditions environnementales et plus particulièrement la présence probable de la mouche Tse Tse ont pu également être des facteurs determinant pour la repartition du boeuf dans la région et la taille du troupeau. Ces restes faunistiques fournissent ainsi des informations importantes aussi bien sur les stratégies de subsistance pour la période considérée que sur les animaux présents dans la région au cours du 1er millénaire AD.
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Plug, I. Early iron age buffalo hunters on the Kadzi river, Zimbabwe. African Archaeological Review 14, 85–105 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02968368
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02968368