science

Makapansgat pebble

Makapansgat pebble is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Makapansgat pebble rather than just read about it. In short: The Makapansgat pebble or Makapansgat cobble (ca. 3,000,000 BP) is a jasper pebble with markings resembling a human face, in fact at least two possible faces. Some scholars argue that it is the oldest known manuport.

Key takeaways

Makapansgat pebble belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Makapansgat pebble to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Makapansgat pebble from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Makapansgat pebble or Makapansgat cobble (ca. 3,000,000 BP) is a jasper pebble with markings resembling a human face, in fact at least two possible faces. Some scholars argue that it is the oldest known manuport. The stone belongs to the Evolutionary Studies Institute at Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg, where it is kept in storage.

Description The Makapansgat pebble is a 260 g (9.2 oz), 8.3 cm (3.3 in) long, 7 cm (2.8 in) wide, and 3.8 cm (1.5 in) thick, reddish-brown jasperite cobble. The pebble was found in 1925 in a dolomite cave in the Makapan Valley north of Mokopane, South Africa by local school teacher Wilfred Eitzman. Importantly, it was found at 4.8 km/3 miles from the nearest possible natural source (or 32 km/20 miles according to Dart). The site also contained bones of Australopithecus (later this attribution was widened to australopithecines or other early hominins). The pebble and all its markings are formed naturally by geological processes; no traces of artificial modification have been detected.

Interpretation It has been suggested that some Australopithecus might have recognized it as a symbolic face, in possibly the earliest example of symbolic thinking or aesthetic sense in the human heritage, and brought the pebble back to the cave. This would make it a candidate for the oldest known manuport. The pebble had been described in literature and featured in the television program The Roots of Art in November 1967, before it gained new attention in 1974 when Raymond Dart (who had first seen it shortly after it was found) published a new interpretation. While Eitzman had already suggested the pebble was brought to the cave because of the resemblance to a face, Dart recognized other faces when the stone is viewed from different angles. The Makapansgat pebble cannot be seen as art if a usual definition of the term is used, as the object was found and not made. Nevertheless, that an australopithecine may have recognized a face would reveal that early hominids had capacity for symbolic thinking, necessary for the development of art and language.

Controversy Whether early hominids really saw this object as a face or just enjoyed the pebble remains unclear. Factors adding to the uncertainty surrounding the piece are that we do not know exactly where in the cave it was found, nor the hominid species the bones are from, nor whether these bones had been brought into the cave by animal scavengers.

See also Erfoud manuport Venus of Tan-Tan Venus of Berekhat Ram

References

External links Robert G. Bednarik (International Federation of Rock Art Research): "Manuports and very early palaeoart" Don Hitchcock (Don's Maps): "The Makapansgat pebble" James B. Harrod (OriginsNet): "Makapansgat" Archived 2023-02-17 at the Wayback Machine

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Makapansgat pebble

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Makapansgat pebble claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Makapansgat pebble before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Makapansgat pebble ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Makapansgat pebble

In research: Makapansgat pebble appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Makapansgat pebble in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Makapansgat pebble is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1925 archaeological discoveries, Archaeological artifacts, Archaeological discoveries in South Africa, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Makapansgat pebble outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Makapansgat pebble in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Makapansgat pebble means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Makapansgat pebble out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Makapansgat pebble in simple terms?

Why does Makapansgat pebble matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Makapansgat pebble?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Makapansgat pebble.