A 120,000-year record of modern humans
The Klasies River Caves are a series of rock shelters on the Tsitsikamma coast of South Africa. They contain one of the longest and most detailed records of human life from the Middle Stone Age. The layers of sediment, ash, and shells reach a depth of 21 meters, documenting human occupation from approximately 125,000 to 60,000 years ago. Excavations, which began in 1967, have uncovered fossilized remains from some of the earliest known anatomically modern Homo sapiens.
The human fossils, though fragmentary, show features identical to people living today. Recovered jawbones lack a retromolar space (the gap behind the wisdom teeth common in archaic humans) and possess a prominent chin, a characteristic of modern human anatomy. These remains, dated to as old as 120,000 years, are some of the most definitive evidence that our species originated in Africa. The fossils include skull fragments, mandibles, and parts of arm and foot bones from at least five individuals.
A Stone Age surf and turf diet
The inhabitants of the Klasies River Caves were proficient hunter-gatherers who exploited both marine and terrestrial resources. Vast deposits of shells show that they regularly consumed limpets and other shellfish. Their diet also included marine animals like seals and penguins, and they likely scavenged small whales that washed ashore. They also hunted terrestrial animals such as eland and other large bovids.
Evidence from numerous small, ashy hearths scattered throughout the cave deposits reveals the consistent and controlled use of fire for cooking. Charred food remains provide the earliest direct archaeological evidence of humans roasting and eating plant starches, such as tubers and rhizomes, as early as 120,000 years ago. This varied "surf and turf" diet, combining starchy plants with proteins and fats from land and sea animals, shows they understood their coastal environment.
The caves also contain evidence of cannibalism. Some of the fragmented human skull and limb bones show cut marks and charring identical to those found on the bones of hunted animals. This pattern suggests that the inhabitants practiced episodic cannibalism for many thousands of years.