Much of Southern Africa has deep soils and as a hunter gatherer you need something to dig with, to get to all those tasty tubers, roots and animals hiding in burrows.
Sticks by themselves worked for a while, but then someone figured out that a weighted stick would work better.
That idea evolved into a large rounded stone with a hole bored into it.
Below is such a stone with a broomstick inserted through it for scale.
The above stone is actually for a stick larger in diameter than a broom stick but they are found in all shapes and sizes.
The hole is bored by using hard grit or sand and a stick as shown in the video below.
The inside of this one has been worn perfectly smooth from many years of much use.
The larger one is made of a fine grey green siltstone and the smaller one from a grittier yellow sandstone.
Both of these stones can easily be identified as having come from certain distinctive Karroo rocks that are found in the foothills of the Drakenberg Mountains.
There stones can be found hundreds of kilometers from their original point of manufacture and may be passed down from generation to generation or exchanged as highly prized gifts.
I'll have to retain this in my brains memory banks, and when the massive solar flare wipes out the internet and our digital civilization, i can still get me some tubers.
Interesting Gavvet, all info about stone-use helps give more insides, i found more worked stones these last weeks and some interesting bones,
stones with holes are usually done of as fishing net balances here, but getting new ideas.
Example found on the riverbed.
a very interesting way of digging - putting a stone weight higher up the handle rather than using a sharpened stone to pierce the ground. Did they use both methods?
The resilience of humans, knowing the earth untouched by the sun might be damp or contain buried tubers.
The use of sand as grit has long been used by ancient peoples and may have been used in Egypt with copper saws to make longitudinal cuts. Amazing how abrasive sand can be even when ground with a stick handle
sharpened stones are brittle and break
I live a very primitive off-grid lifestyle by American standards, no electricity, phone or plumbing. I try to not use any fuel powers implements when possible. I feel more confident and secure knowing that I can use hand tools to get results. Reading about and watching these videos has been very inspiring. I would have never thought to hollow out a rock in that fashion. Fantastic ingenuity! Of course upvoted and resteemed
Am always learning something new on steemit everyday. All these wonderful information will certainly increase my general knowledge about instruments that came from the humble digging stick.
Such information helps us to appreciate what we enjoy today.
That is quite a bit of work to make that hole in the rock by hand, but it actually went faster than I thought it would. Interesting to imagine a rock storing value, brings a new meaning to Block Chain.
that's for sure
I always wondered when it came to tools and hand axes and the like how they managed to work with stone and create holes in it. That is pretty dashed effective.
for sure
It makes me wonder...
Yes, yes and yes.
I might have to learn this before my wife kicks me out to scavenge lol
They really take their time when making these old tools. The weighted stick is pretty interesting. Thanks for sharing @gavvet
Drilling through a rock with a wooden stick. Incredible!
Who would have thought?
No not really, its amazing how the humankind adpoted...
And go foward, no matter what!
Dont u think so?
Greeting!
Can you imagine having to collect your water like that? It almost seems like a scene out of Dune. Makes me incredibly grateful for running water.
not to forget modern sanitation...
I didn't even think of that--ugh!
Who still can say that primitive actions only bring primative results . I see brilliance here .
Yup, we would crash and burn under the same circumstances.
Thank you @Gavvet for your post.
This post has given me a new science about the way people live in the ancient world.
I am really interested in the world of archaeologists.
I want to learn more about archeology.
I hope you will help me by posting about more archaeologists.
So I can learn more about archeology.
I will wait for your next post.
thank you...
I can't express to you how much I enjoyed your post. Cant the tool be used to grind down hard fiber plant materials as well?
Excellent pics!
Interesting post
I have never seen a natural way to pierce a hard rock, I just see today a stone in the split with a machine.
But, you did not mention the usefulness of the stone. You just mention the stone with a high price.
thanks for sharing.
I learn everyday, great post @gavvet as always
@gavvet
These videos are super-interesting and shows how difficult a survival can become. But, mankind, blessed with brain has always found a way to overcome these challenges.
Excellent post, you're writing is wonderful! Writing is a purge that can indeed free you
ohh drilling using a stone.. hhmm Interesting!
thank you for sharing <3
Awesome, so crazy and amazing what people can come up with when it is NEEDED to survive or eat. But then we have Americans and other countries complain they have to wait in their car at the drive thru, crazy.
Great post!
Dude...in the summer time when the heat is bearing down, I don't want to be trapped in my car waiting for my order, but it's just how things are. It's a hard life in the concrete jungle.
/sar
I believe people were smarter long time ago...
They were much more creative and had to do things alone!
Astonishing article rich in science, thanks for adding insight to our readers
They were the original inventors of many tools now modified and used in the modern days. South Africa is so rich in history, minerals and culture, a true dream destination for historians and enthusiasts. There is so much to blog about in your country @gavvet, I am sure you have much more informative history queued up for us. As always, I look forward to the great content you share with us, I'm not sure if you're a historian by profession or just very passionate about your country but I like the idea of learning more about these things from someone who actually live there, who I can ask questions and interact with, rather than reading history books or searching uncle google. Keep up the great work.
good job.. keep it up...
Thank you very much @gavvet
This is great news, I just found out there is a civilization like that in other parts of the continent. I will remember this, this is information that enriches the knowledge of archeology. thanks.
This tool shows only how human solve complex problem using what is available. And this is how our ancestor survive.
good post
this is best post @gavvet
goodjob
Very informative article @gavvet
Thanks for sharing this article for steemians.
Wow I do not know what 2 say. This is...
Good information, thanks
Your posts are as always very interesting)) Thank you for sharing with us)))
hmm
great post buddy...
it is awosome..
you got 128$in 4 mint..i cant earn much in my whole life...
upvoted
please give me one more chance to increase my reputation. At least help me reach till 10 reputation points , so I can start again
I never would have imagined that you could bore a hole through a rock with just sand and a strong stick... That's incredible. This is the kinda stuff we ALL should know, but we're too busy with technology to get around to nature.
If I ever end up lost in the wilderness, I'll give this one a try :-)
Nature of technology 👍 awesome
great info,awesome work.....
thanks for sharing
No one could say better...
thats very informative... i think early civilizations are really fast learner and very innovative... they can easily adapt to the changing world....
now that's an interesting video i just watched.
Thanks for sharing.
these are real experiments... how could they know the science?
Seeing these pictures i just remembered Ross from the paleontology department (FRIENDS). LOL
Wonderful friend. People are surviving with different means as the time demands. Humans are the best of all animals.Thanks for sharing such a valuable information. If you don't mind please give a visit on my post too.
s always I learned something interesting, thanks !
very good, ese trabajo también lo realizamos acá en Venezuela, claro, con otras técnicas.
woo!!! very-very nice article.....
i followed to you and upvote also.
i will daily upvote you.
same like you too upvote me each others daily. ok
https://steemit.com/@samsad
A very useful insight to all of us, ever since I joined steemit community in the vast amount of knowledge I got from steemit. Thanks for my senior @gavvet
I'm @rizal from aceh
Upvote, Follow and Resteemed
Steem on
upvoted and follow ..........if you like check my travel photos here https://steemit.com/photography/@bllackwidow/war-in-greece