MOGAPELWA: ARCHAEOLOGY, PALAEOENVIRONMENT AND ORAL TRADITIONS AT LAKE NGAMI, BOTSWANA

The Lake Ngami Basin is important for understanding the LSA record during the Holocene in theKalahari. Weprovidean OSL and radiocarbon dated sequence that relates changing lake levels to the stratigraphy and archaeology of Mogapelwa 1 . At intervals during the last 16 ka the site offered easy access to the resources of a flowing Nchabe River and an expanded Lake Ngami. From 6.4-3.3 ka, except for a brief interval of lake levels at c. 4.3 ka, Lake Ngami was a permanent, extensive water body with an elevation near 936 m, at least seasonally. At Mogapelwa this was the time of the main LSA occupation during what was the longest period of high lake levels of the Holocene. This little-known period at Lake Ngami is of great interest because it pre-dates the arrival of Bambata pottery and livestock. Artefacts are highlighted by microhms such as segments, distally backed points, double backed drills and small scrapers Bone points similar to arrow points or link shafts used by Kalahari San were found as were ostrich eggshell beads including unique clusters of ochre-stained beads. A wild fauna is associated that indude sanimals found in the area at presentorhistor-ically. Fish remains include the first discovery ofotoliths ('earstones') of cichhds from the region where the adaptive radiation of cichlids is thought to have occurred. Mollusc species indicate the long-term presence hosts of bilharzia. The lake level dropped from 3.3-2.5 ka but rose to about 934 m in the period 2.5-1 ka. At c. 0.3-0.2 ka the lake level rose to historical levels of 930-929 m as observed by early Europeans who the region in the 1850s. Oral traditions reveal a recent history multi-ethnic use of the area by San, Bakgalagadi and other groups. The most recent archaeological deposits containing fishbones and rem-nants of a possible hut floor are discussed in relation to oral traditions and documentary evidence.