458 STRANDLOOPER INSTRUMENTS AND ORNAMENTS. 



authorities have even suggested that the practice of colouring the 

 dead was performed after decay of the flesh, a view which is not 

 •generally accepted. I mention this by way of recording the fact 

 that such reddened skulls are also known to me from another cave 

 .near Alicedale, on the farm Spitzkop, the associated objects being 

 apparently almost modern. The meaning of this ancient custom 

 is well explained in some lines by Schiller in Nadowessier's 

 "Todtenlied," as quoted by Sir Arthur Evans: — 

 "Colours, too, to paint his body, 

 Place within his hand, 

 That he glisten, bright and ruddy 

 In the Spirit-land !" 



No direct evidence connecting the rock-paintings with skele- 

 tons and associated objects was obtained at this site. Yet the 

 occurrence of minute scrapers and pygmy implements near to rock- 

 paintings is not likely to be a mere coincidence, for similar asso- 

 ciations have been recorded by Johnson from various up-country 

 •sites. This authority definitely associates painting with minute 

 scrapers of the kind he obtained at Taaibosch. According to the 

 published illustrations, the latter implements present very con- 

 siderable resemblance in size and technique to some of the Wilton 

 specimens, but the prevalence of rounded scrapers and of short 

 broad specimens bevelled at both ends, as found in the Wilton 

 series, aoes not seem to occur at the sites mentioned by Johnson, 

 although he records the same small circular scrapers made from 

 the half of a pebble in great quantity at Riverton. Actually, most 

 of the tiny scrapers were end-scrapers which, he thought, had 

 been either bound or cemented to a handle. On the other hand, 

 Johnson found no specimens of his larger Modder River type of 

 scraper at the rock-painting sites. 



In attempting to determine the unity or otherwise of the 

 association found on such a site considerable importance would 

 generally be attached to the presence or absence of cultural strata. 

 Now, the floor of the rock-shelter at Wilton is covered very 

 largely by ashes, which in places have a vertical depth of four 

 feet, but no layers are traceable therein. This is the unanimous 

 ■conclusion of three investigators (Revs. P. Stapleton and Kilroe, 

 and the writer) who devoted five days to its exploration. 1 More- 

 over, with few exceptions, the Wilton implements seem to con- 

 stitute a homogeneous assembly, despite considerable range in size 

 amongst the scrapers. Yet, on the morphological characters, I 

 think it probable that two or more cultures are intermingled : the 

 predominating culture is that of the pygmy implements and small 

 rounded scrapers mostly made from fine-grained surface quartzite 

 and generally trimmed with great delicacy : there is a small 

 minority of larger implements much more coarsely flaked, and with 

 these, perhaps, may be associated several typical end-scrapers 

 comparable to those frequently found in the Eastern Karroo. The 

 thin flakes previously mentioned may belong to either group or 



1 Mr. W. W. Wilmot, the owner of Wilton, rendered us much 

 assistance during these operations, and all material collected on the 

 two sites was generously presented by him to the Albany Museum. 



