For five weeks, I was lucky enough to be selected to be part of an archaeological research team in Boomplaas cave, in the Western Cape. This project was directed by Dr Justin Pargeter who is a researcher at New York University. This project is part of the Human Origins, Migration and Evolution Research (HOMER) group. The fieldwork team comprised a group of students and researchers from a diverse background across Africa and the world. The project is a significant part of African palaeoscience research, and the archaeological framework of Southern Africa.

It was greatly beneficial learning experience to work with professionals from different institutions, and academic disciplines relating to palaeoarchaeology. During the season at site, my role as a recorder, was to manage all the paperwork, databases and forms related to the excavation. This included capturing photographs of different areas of the dig site, conducting interviews with the excavating team, and transferring all dig activities and excavated finds into the recorded database. It was an exciting experience to be involved hands-on in the discovery and investigation of past human occupation in the area. Boomplaas cave is an area of interest for palaeoecology, and human origins research, and lends significance to my own research of the Southern Cape palaeoecology.

Figure 1: The dig site, where we can be seen excavating sediment that dates back to the later Pleistocene, and the gunners scanning plotted finds

Figure 2: The Boomplaas 2023 team

Figure 3: Outside view of the Boomplaas cave series

Figure 4: Boomplaas cave