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Characterizing Hunter-Gatherer Rock Art: An Analysis of Spatial Variation of Motifs in the Prehistoric Rock Art of Zimbabwe
No full textThis study investigated spatial variations of motif representation in Zimbabwean rock art. The major aim of the study was to examine the significance of this variation in the understanding of the lifestyles of its painters. It is the premise of this research that rock art motif variation over space, just like other cultural variables, reflects on the differences in the social, environmental, economic, political, and religious organisation of a society. Therefore, attending to the differences in motif representation contributes towards a holistic understanding of the meaning of the art and the social context of its production.
Previous researchers have alluded to broad regional differences in southern African rock art, dividing it into three, four, or five regions depending on particular approaches used to read this variation. Others have pointed out further variation even within these broad regions. However, this variation has not received further attention beyond mere mention. Instead, more emphasis was given to the unity of the character of the rock art of southern Africa. Today broad similarities are generally agreed upon. What remains critical is the exploration of motif variation which influences the interpretation of the art and the conceptualisation of its makers, the Later Stone Age hunter-gatherers in Zimbabwe and other parts of southern Africa.
Rock art variation comes in various forms. This research concentrated mainly on subject matter, colour and technique of execution. These were expected to reflect the main argument of the research which is that variation of the motifs across space is a result of differences in beliefs and social circumstances surrounding the production of the art in the different geographic areas studied. The research examined the character and frequency of each of these in three different geographic locations in Zimbabwe that are Northern Nyanga, Harare and Chivi. The nature of the rock art from these case studies was compared to what is already known from other parts of Zimbabwe. The research found that motifs do vary across space. The nature of variation points to differences in beliefs, social relations and to some extent the environment. Consequently, the research argues that variation found in the rock art of Zimbabwe can be used together with other archaeological evidence to reconstruct the nature of these aspects of the Later Stone Age societies
Characterizing hunter-gatherer rock art: An analysis of spatial variation of motifs in the prehistoric rock art of Zimbabwe
No full textThe research and completion of this thesis was done under the “Archaeology and Traditions” research project (2007-2012) funded by the Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU). This was a cooperation project between the University of Zimbabwe Archaeology Unit and the University of Bergen, UNIGLOBAL (Norway)This study investigated spatial variations of motif representation in Zimbabwean rock art. The major aim of the study was to examine the significance of this variation in the understanding of the lifestyles of its painters. It is the premise of this research that rock art motif variation over space, just like other cultural variables, reflects on the differences in the social, environmental, economic, political, and religious organisation of a society. Therefore, attending to the differences in motif representation contributes towards a holistic understanding of the meaning of the art and the social context of its production.
Previous researchers have alluded to broad regional differences in southern African rock art, dividing it into three, four, or five regions depending on particular approaches used to read this variation. Others have pointed out further variation even within these broad regions. However, this variation has not received further attention beyond mere mention. Instead, more emphasis was given to the unity of the character of the rock art of southern Africa. Today broad similarities are generally agreed upon. What remains critical is the exploration of motif variation which influences the interpretation of the art and the conceptualisation of its makers, the Later Stone Age hunter-gatherers in Zimbabwe and other parts of southern Africa.
Rock art variation comes in various forms. This research concentrated mainly on subject matter, colour and technique of execution. These were expected to reflect the main argument of the research which is that variation of the motifs across space is a result of differences in beliefs and social circumstances surrounding the production of the art in the different geographic areas studied. The research examined the character and frequency of each of these in three different geographic locations in Zimbabwe that are Northern Nyanga, Harare and Chivi. The nature of the rock art from these case studies was compared to what is already known from other parts of Zimbabwe. The research found that motifs do vary across space. The nature of variation points to differences in beliefs, social relations and to some extent the environment. Consequently, the research argues that variation found in the rock art of Zimbabwe can be used together with other archaeological evidence to reconstruct the nature of these aspects of the Later Stone Age societies.Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU
Characterizing hunter-gatherer rock art: An analysis of spatial variation of motifs in the prehistoric rock art of Zimbabwe
No full textThe research and completion of this thesis was done under the “Archaeology and Traditions†research project (2007-2012) funded by the Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU). This was a cooperation project between the University of Zimbabwe Archaeology Unit and the University of Bergen, UNIGLOBAL (Norway),This study investigated spatial variations of motif representation in Zimbabwean rock art. The major aim of the study was to examine the significance of this variation in the understanding of the lifestyles of its painters. It is the premise of this research that rock art motif variation over space, just like other cultural variables, reflects on the differences in the social, environmental, economic, political, and religious organisation of a society. Therefore, attending to the differences in motif representation contributes towards a holistic understanding of the meaning of the art and the social context of its production.
Previous researchers have alluded to broad regional differences in southern African rock art, dividing it into three, four, or five regions depending on particular approaches used to read this variation. Others have pointed out further variation even within these broad regions. However, this variation has not received further attention beyond mere mention. Instead, more emphasis was given to the unity of the character of the rock art of southern Africa. Today broad similarities are generally agreed upon. What remains critical is the exploration of motif variation which influences the interpretation of the art and the conceptualisation of its makers, the Later Stone Age hunter-gatherers in Zimbabwe and other parts of southern Africa.
Rock art variation comes in various forms. This research concentrated mainly on subject matter, colour and technique of execution. These were expected to reflect the main argument of the research which is that variation of the motifs across space is a result of differences in beliefs and social circumstances surrounding the production of the art in the different geographic areas studied. The research examined the character and frequency of each of these in three different geographic locations in Zimbabwe that are Northern Nyanga, Harare and Chivi. The nature of the rock art from these case studies was compared to what is already known from other parts of Zimbabwe. The research found that motifs do vary across space. The nature of variation points to differences in beliefs, social relations and to some extent the environment. Consequently, the research argues that variation found in the rock art of Zimbabwe can be used together with other archaeological evidence to reconstruct the nature of these aspects of the Later Stone Age societies.,Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU
Granite spalling as a proxy of climate change during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene at Pomongwe Cave, Matobo World Heritage Landscape
No full textThere is limited palaeoenvironmental data on Zimbabwe, primarily because the usual proxies used for climatic reconstructions are rarely preserved in the Zimbabwean archaeological record. Against this background, this research seeks to assess the practicality of using granite spalls that occur in the archaeological record as signatures of past climatic changes. We hypothesise that the size of spalls and the rate of exfoliation are dependent upon climatic conditions such as temperature and precipitation. We apply this principle by analysing the size and concentration of granite spalls within the stratigraphy of Pomongwe Cave, to reconstruct the palaeoclimatic conditions that prevailed during its occupation. Our results indicate that the environmental conditions changed through time, and this is reflected by the occurrence of granite spalls of varying sizes and concentrations. However, the results in this paper present a proof of concept that requires further investigation
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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