Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 38 (2021) 103020 Available online 19 May 2021 2352-409X/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. The construction and habitation of one of the earliest homesteads at Komati Gorge Village 1, Bokoni, South Africa Ruby-Anne Birin, Maria H. Schoeman, Mary Evans * School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa A R T I C L E INFO Keywords: Bokoni Luminescence dating Terraces Stonewalls African farming community ABSTRACT Bokoni is a unique archaeological region in South Africa, with settlements ranging from scattered homesteads to large towns. Research into the development of this region has been constrained by the limited number of directly dated sites. Radiocarbon dating has not yet been successful in the region because no charcoal-hosting middens were found, and organic preservation is generally poor due to soil type and related moisture retention. As an interim measure, oral histories were used in combination with architectural and spatial changes to defne four occupation phases in Bokoni. However, this approach is not applicable to Phase I sites because these predate oral traditions, which narrates Bokoni history from the 17th century onwards. Consequently, until this research, the age of the start of terrace construction was unknown. Here, we present optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages of pottery and sediment samples from two homesteads (KG80 and KG81) in the site Komati Gorge Village 1, which based on settlement confguration, is believed to form part of Phase I. The dates constrain the timing of the initial construction and use of homestead KG80 from 1489CE ± 54 to 1577CE ± 30, and reuse of KG80 by the builders of KG81 from 1682CE ± 20 to 1765CE ± 20. KG81 itself was occupied and reused from 1738CE ± 19 to 1912CE ± 7. 1. Introduction Stonewalled construction has been used widely in southern Africa since the 1400s (Boeyens, 2000, 2003; Chirikure and Pikirayi, 2008; Hall et al., 2006; Pikirayi, 2002; Sadr, 2019). Complexes with extensive stonewalled agricultural terracing have been studied in regions like Nyanga in north-eastern Zimbabwe (Manyanga and Shenjere, 2012; Soper, 1996, 2006), and Engaruka in Tanzania (Robertshaw, 1986; Stump, 2006; Sutton, 1984, 1978; Westerberg et al., 2010). Bokoni, however, is the only region in South Africa where agricultural terraces are associated with stonewalled sites (Fig. 1). Bokoni was a polity located in north-eastern South Africa. It remains archaeologically visible through stonewalls, roads and agricultural ter- races (Delius et al., 2012; Delius and Schoeman, 2008; Maggs, 2008; Widgren et al., 2016). Historical records recounting aspects of the occupation by seKoni speakers come from two sources. The frst is the Koni oral traditions recorded by Prinsloo (1936). These narrate the history of Bokoni starting with the occupation at Moxomatsi in the Elands River Valley. GIS and Google Earth mapping of this site and surrounding areas show that Moxomatsi forms the centre of a very dense settlement region (Coetzee, 2016; Masolo, 2020). The second is Pedi traditions recorded by missionaries in the 1860 s (Delius et al., 2012; Delius and Schirmer, 2014), which narrate the frst encounter of the Marateng (Pedi) royals with seKoni speaking groups, in approximately 1650CE, at the Crocodile River (Delius et al., 2012). Delius et al. (2012) combined these thin historical records with archaeological data in order to construct an occupation sequence model, comprising four phases. The southernmost occupation along the Komati River Valley is believed to date to the earliest phase, Phase I, since the oral traditions do not discuss these extensive sites. During Phase II (17th and 18th centuries), Bokoni was at the height of its success as a surplus food-producing region. This food production included intensive farming on terraces, which probably were fertilised with domestic refuse, that in addition to ash from domestic fres fuelled by wood and dung would have contained pottery (Maggs, 2008; Delius et al., 2012). The most expansive terraced site at this time was the town of Mox- omatsi, where the chief lived. Oral tradition recounts that the centre of political power shifted north to Mohlo-Pela and Khutwaneng as a result of the attacks by the Mapono (Prinsloo, 1936; Delius et al., 2012). The two new capitals were Moxhlo-Pela, located to the northwest of Mohlo- * Corresponding author. E-mail address: mary.evans@wits.ac.za (M. Evans). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jasrep https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.103020 Received 22 June 2020; Received in revised form 16 April 2021; Accepted 26 April 2021