Sibhudu Cave near Tongaat declared a World Heritage Site
Excavations at the cave have revealed insights into early human behaviour, including the use of bedding, medicinal plants, and evidence of abstract thinking and multi-tasking skills dating back 77 000 years.
The Stone Age Sibhudu Cave in Ndwedwe has been declared a World Heritage Site.
Discovered in 1929, the site located in a steep cliff overlooking the Tongaat River, was first excavated in 1983 by archaeologist Aron Mazel of the Natal Museum.
According to scientists, few places on Earth have such a complete record from the Middle Stone Age as this site.
The decision to confer World Heritage Site status on Sibhudu was taken at the 46th UNESCO World Heritage Committee session in New Delhi last Friday.
It is now the third such site in KZN – the other two being the iSimangaliso Wetland Park and the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park.
According to iLembe Chamber president Cobus Oelofse, this status will add to the North Coast’s “must visit” attractions and will complement other historical sites such as the Luthuli Museum in Groutville and the KwaDukuza Museum..
“World Heritage status will bring international recognition and prestige to a much broader audience, including conservationists and domestic and international tourists,” said Oelofse .
He added the site will also be of great benefit to scholars, students and researchers.
Located on a cliff overlooking the Tongaat River, significant excavation resumed in the late 1990s and is still continuing today.
Archaeological evidence from the cave, dating back between 100 000 to 38 000 years, provides a glimpse into how people lived in those times.
Archaeologists uncovered the earliest bow and arrow technology dating back 77 000 years, some of the earliest evidence of the ability of our ancestors at Sibhudu Cave to multi-task and think abstractly.
Further evidence of the use of bedding and medicinal plants makes the site one of the most significant in South Africa and the world in terms of understanding the development of modern human behaviour.
While the site is not yet open to the public, plans are to provide access to the site whether digitally or physically in the future which is likely to stimulate the local economy and job creation.
Two middle stone age locations in the Western Cape have also been declared World Heritage Sites – the Diepkloof Rock Shelter and Pinnacle Point.
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