The Passive Voice1

Mozambican Archaeology: Past and Present
Author(s): João Morais

Source: The African Archaeological Review, Vol. 2 (1984), pp. 113-128
Published by: Springer
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The African Archaeological Review, 2 (1984), pp. 113-128
Mozambican archaeology:
past and present
JO?O MOR?IS
Abstract
After a brief survey of the development of archaeology in Mozambique, the results of the
archaeological survey programme of 1976-1983 are summarized by region. Work currently
in progress is evaluated in the light of archaeological and national priorities and the paper
concludes with a discussion of the theoretical approach best suited to Mozambican
conditions.
Resume
Suivant une br?ve ?tude de l'avancement de l'arch?ologie dans le Mozambique, les r?sultats
du programme de reconnaissances arch?ologiques de 1976-1983 sont r?sum?s par r?gion.
Les travaux actuellement en cours sont ?valu?s ? la lumi?re des priorit?s nationales et
arch?ologiques et l'article se conclut avec une discussion sur la meilleure approche th?orique
convenant aux conditions actuelles.
Archaeology's 'prehistory'
Independence brought about a radical transformation of the concept of the past. In order to
understand the theoretical break, we shall briefly consider the attitudes to the precolonial
history that shaped previous practices. Together with political dominance, colonialism was
ideologically characterized by ethnocentricity. It is thus no surprise to discover that when in
1943 a Commiss?o dos Monumentos e Reliquias Hist?ricas de Mo?ambique (CMRHM)
was first set up, its terms of reference regarding conservation and cultural heritage promotion
were expressed as follows: '[to] act as testimony for the veneration of past generations to
colonists, as a means of [providing] archaeological and historical culture, and to promote
tourist interest' (Boletim Oficial 1943:60). Over two centuries had passed since the Bishop of
Mozambique's 1721 announcement to the Academia Real das Ciencias de Lisboa of the
discovery of rock paintings in the territory. Not until the 1930s were there further reports on
local prehistory. This hiatus is most probably to be attributed to the various phases of
consolidation of the Portuguese colonial empire and its slower response to political trans
formation as compared to other European colonies in which an interest in the prehistoric past
114 Jo?o Mor?is
is generally evident from the late nineteenth century. Thus the field researches carried out in
border areas, in 1907 by Carl Wiese at Chifumbaze cave, Zambeze (Phillipson 1976:17) and
by Wieschoff (1941) in 1930, are properly regarded as extensions of archaeological activities
in neighbouring Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and Nyasaland (Malawi).
When Salazar took over as Prime Minister in 1932, he initiated a series of nationalistic
reforms. It is surely no coincidence that a Miss?o Antropol?gica de Mo?ambique was
established in 1936. There was a growing awareness at this time of the colonials' ignorance of
indigenous cultural values?and this in spite of Portuguese documents going back to the
early 16th century. 'Modernization' demanded some knowledge of ethnography. The first
references to 'local prehistory' date from this period (Correia 1934; Santos Junior 1941) and
initiate a phase of research during which physical anthropology was the predominant
interest, being mainly concerned with the study of racial characteristics and blood types, as
well as with general cultural traits of several ethnic groups. This approach differed markedly
from the academically progressive social anthropology (e.g. Junod 1927; Earthy 1937) being
undertaken in contemporary South Africa. Social anthropology was not being practised by
Portuguese social scientists, probably on account of their slow academic response to colonial
rule. More progressive methodologically was the tradition that followed in time the physical
anthropologists, mainly formed by professional quaternary geologists like Bettencourt Dias
and the agronomist Barradas. The school survived for approximately 30 years and produced
a number of papers mainly dealing with the Stone Age (Mor?is 1976). Its contribution,
although theoretically limited, provided a great deal of new information. (For example, of 93
Stone Age sites known before 1975, 68 were first visited by these authors (Table 1). Visiting
scholars also contributed; brief surveys were done by Breuil (1944), van Riet Lowe (1943)
and Wells (1943), as well as, at a later date, by Dickenson (1969) and by Liesegang, G.
Smolla and M. Korfmann in 1968-71 as part of the 'Afrika-Kartenwerk' geographical survey
of the Institut f?r Vor-und Fr?hgeschichte, Frankfurt University (Liesegang 1972 and pers.
comm.) and Derricourt (1975). Their participation is evidence of a growing interest in
Mozambican archaeology, and should have suggested to Portugal the need for broader, more
consistent, institutionally sponsored programmes which, for lack of a policy, never devel
oped. Most of the published papers can be found scattered in 'Memorias' of the Instituto de
Investiga??o Cient?fica (HC), the 'Boletim' of the Sociedade de Estudos da Colonia de
Mo?ambique, 'Mo?ambique', a colonial government journal, and 'Monumenta' a periodical
of the Monuments Commission. These comprise approximately 200 titles (listed in Mor?is
1976); however they reached only a minute part of the population.
Table 1_
Stone Iron Stone LSA
Age Age Total Age EIA EIA LIA Total
South 67 16 83 South 6 1 10 26 43
Central 19 6 25 South-central 8 0 8 23 39
North 7 0 7 North 5 3 7 29 44
(Nampula)
Total 93 22 115 Total 19 4 25 78 126
Archaeological
Pre-1975 archaeological survey program
sites traced from
surveyed sites either sampled
bibliographical sources
Mozambkan archaeology: past and present 115
From the 1960s onwards, articles reporting Iron Age (IA) sites and rock paintings in
Mozambique appeared in magazines and newspapers, leading to ever increasing public
awareness. Rosa de Oliveira and Rita Ferreira, among others, deserve praise for their efforts
in this. But despite their and others' work, the prehistory of Mozambique never percolated
from the colonial media down to the school curriculum.
To summarize the attitudes to archaeology in Mozambique before independence, we put
forward three propositions:
1. The reasons for the conservative approach to the past are to be found in ideas prevalent
at the time. Archaeology in Mozambique, as with any other institution, discipline or cultural
value, * cannot be considered apart from the dominant colonial ethos. To evaluate its
development is to assess one aspect of the impact of political and economic factors on
ideology. Especially in the early phases of the growth of a discipline, its predominant mode of
expression is frequently dependent on prevailing ideologies.
2. Under these conditions, to investigate the past in Mozambique during the period of
colonial rule could only mean the study of precolonial societies. For the colonized, to become
aware of one's sovereign past is potentially to become aware of oppression.
3. It is evident, from an evaluation of the research framework discussed above, that
archaeology in colonial Mozambique was largely subsumed under the physical anthropo
logical and ethnographic study of Modern primitive cultures'. This is true of most of the work
done by the Miss?o Antropol?gica. Subsequent developments, shaped by Barradas, B. Dias
and others of the quaternary geology school, did not alter its nature as 'comparative
archaeology' in an evolutionist sense (Moberg 1976:30), although they led to technical
improvements and greater precision.
The Archaeological Survey Programme of 1976-1983

A section under the Departamento de Ciencias de Terra of the IIC was set up in 1974 to
continue research in archaeology. This was the first archaeological research body established
in Mozambique to be fully sponsored by an institution. It owed most of its initial support to
Professor G. Soares de Carvalho, under whose directorship a rescue archaeology programme
was initiated at Massingir Dam, providing valuable experience for further work (Fig. 1 ). The
cooperation and encouragement at this time of Prof. Re vil Mason at the Witwatersrand
Archaeological Research Unit was also important, since major Stone Age collections were
otherwise unavailable for comparative purposes. The report produced from this work
(Soares de Carvalho et al. 1974), now almost 10 years old, would today require considerable
modification and updating. Nevertheless, it represents a systematic treatment of archaeo
logical evidence in a chronological framework, and demonstrated the need for larger,
regional surveys. The perspective gained also made it possible to extend the frame of interest
to cover the Iron Age sites of the region (Duarte 1976).
Independence brought about a major shift in problem orientation. The work at Massingir,
as well as the need for public education, made it clear that some sort of theoretical framework
was necessary in order to explain the transformations of precolonial societies in Mozam
bique. Practical changes were also needed. The lack of human and material resources had to
be faced and the working perspective of the now defunct colonial Monuments Commission
(CMRHM) had to be reformulated. Decisions had to be made concerning the education of
Dt i. MDdckno Telle
Figure 1 Mozambican archaeological sites mentioned in the text. Note that Early Iron
Age pottery is also present at Mamoli, Inhaca and the University Campus site in the
Maputo region.
Mozambican archaeology: past and present 117
antiquity service personnel and a policy established for the preservation and dissemination of
information about known sites. In 1977 a Servi?o Nacional de Museus e Antiguidades was
organized by M. L. and R. T. Duarte, both of whom had previously worked in the
Archaeology Section. The new service immediately began a campaign of cultural resource
management, incorporating a threefold objective: education of personnel, creation of a
resource inventory, and public education on a national scale. The Archaeology Section
assisted this programme by providing teaching facilities and by taking care of archaeological
aspects of the work.
Earlier work had been heavily biased both geographically and in terms of period; of 115
sites reported prior to 1975, 72% were concentrated in the south and only 19% were of the
Iron Age (Table 1 ). Furthermore, most of the later sites were known due to their monumental
nature as rock paintings and late Iron Age (LIA) stone enclosures. Although the non
representative nature of the sample was recognized, no resources were available to initiate a
major national survey programme. Instead it was decided to concentrate on Iron Age sites
near Maputo so that new methodologies could be easily tested. The results of the resulting
regional survey project have been published in a joint volume (Mor?is et al 1976) which
provides valuable reference material for future research.
The south-central region
From 1976 to 1978 the Archaeology Section, as well as providing the first courses in African
Prehistory at the University, was attached to the new Centro de Estudos Africanos. During
this period, most resources were invested in excavations at Manyikeni (2234 Bb2),1 a major
Zimbabwe site (Garlake 1976; Mor?is and Sinclair 1980; Sinclair in press a). During 1975
76 the stone enclosure was tested to provide information on chronology and cultural
affinities. In order to test the hypothesis that social differentiation was expressed at the site,
the campaigns of 1977 and 1978 concentrated on sampling the area outside the nuclear zone
represented by the walls. The results allowed us to develop an appropriate methodology for
the investigation of similar sites when the occurrence of differentiated activity areas can be
assumed (Mor?is and Sinclair 1980; Sinclair in press a). Over the same period further
extensive surveys were also carried out, mainly by Sinclair, Cruz e Silva and A. Loforte.
These resulted in the discovery of a number of sites, illustrating the basic Iron Age sequence
for the area. Among the most important of these are Hoia-hola (2134 Adl), an early Iron
Age (EIA) site overlooking the Sabi River, Chibuene (2235 Abl ), an early mercantile coastal
site, and the Bazaruto Island IA complex (2135 Cd 1/2,2135 Cb2,2135 Cd3/4/7/8/9). Hola
hola is a well-preserved site with remains of several houses. The pottery suggests an affinity
with the Gokomere/Ziwa tradition, and a burnt bone fragment from one of the trenches
provided a 9th century date, R-1326, ad 890 ? 50 (Sinclair in press a). The Bazaruto Island
complex is largely made up of surface scatters, which were sampled. Most of the pottery
collected seems to be derived from an early phase of the LIA occupation of the island. Both
local and imported 9?10th century pottery is preserved. These sites are of interest for their
evidence of offshore activities as well as later seafaring, the latter more adequately
represented at Chibuene, 5 km south of Vilanculos. This last site is of considerable
importance as it provides evidence for early long-distance trade with the Persian Gulf, thus
confirming reports in early Arabic documents (Trimingham 1975). The site, which had
118 Jo?o Mor?is
probably been occupied earlier, is likely to have been one of the southernmost points in the
East African Coastal mercantile network. The nature of the excavated evidence is described
in detail by Sinclair ( 1982).
By 1978 the archaeological survey programme was already well established, rendering it
eligible for a three year research grant from the Swedish Agency for Research Cooperation
(SAREC). This financial assistance made it possible to expand the research programme,
which was further extended in 1982 in order to incorporate a direct cooperation agreement
with the Swedish Board of Antiquities (Riksantikvarie?mbetet) involving personnel and
technical support.
The southern region
Paralleling the survey work centred in south-central Mozambique, some minor and irregular
surveys and excavations were carried out in the south between 1976 and 1982. Of these,
particular mention should be made of Mat?la (2532 Cdl), a single component El A site on
which preliminary reports were presented by Cruz e Silva (1976, 1980). In order to enlarge
the ceramic sample, and to reassess the dates obtained during the 1976 excavation (R-l 327,
ad 70?50 and R-l328, ad 830?50), the site was re-excavated in 1982 by Mor?is, Lindquist
and Jonsson. Three further dates were retained for the base of the horizon (St-8546, ad
230? 110; St-8547, ad 480?80 and St 8458, 75?80 be, all **C corrected), the first two run on
charcoal samples, the third on shell in the same location and stratigraphie position as St
8547, some distance from the main horizon. We conclude that Mat?la was occupied between
the 3rd and 9th centuries. It is thus one of the earliest EIA sites in southern Africa and is now
taken as the type site for the earliest ceramic phase in the region (Evers 1981:66). Similar, but
scattered and fragmentary, ceramics have been collected on the University Campus, Maputo
(2532 Del ), and other sites of the same phase were reported by S. Martinez (1976:7,17) from
the 1968/69 and 1974/75 surveys in the Limpopo river mouth regions of Xai-Xai IV?VII
(2533 Bal) and Bilene Praia Oce?nica VI (2533 Ac2) (Bilene Ocean Beach, on the outer side
of the marine lagoon). Comparable sherds have been collected on the beach north of
Vilanculos and there are indications that they also occur in northern Mozambique at
Namiaiu ( 1439 Dd2) and Namolepiwa (1539 Bbl), where they were found on surveys carried
out by L. Adamowicz. Another southern extension of the Mat?la pottery tradition was found
during the 1983 survey programme near the Maputo-Natal coastal border at Mamoli (2632
Dbl 1). This evidence, while still to be fully assessed, suggests a distribution of the Mat?la
pottery tradition extending along most of the Mozambican coast and into Natal, Transvaal,
Swaziland and Zimbabwe (Evers 1981:68).
Another large EIA site, presently under excavation, is Zitundo (2632 Db9); it overlooks
the western part of the coastal Lake Satine, on the southern border. Its remarkable feature is
the occurrence, in the majority of the trenches dug so far, of large quantities of slag and tuyere
fragments. These make it the best site so far for the investigation of EIA metallurgy. Two
dates of ad 175?105 (St-8909) and ad 190?105 (St-8911) were obtained from charcoal
samples associated with thick concentrations of slag in separate parts of the site. Another
important element at Zitundo is the occurrence of Matola-related pottery with traits similar
to some of those described by Mason (1981:408-09) from Broederstroom and by Evers
(1981:91) from Lydenburg. We were already aware that some Broederstroom and Natal
Mozambkan archaeology: past and present 119
Coast 3 traits were present in coastal Mozambique since they were identified in the pottery
samples from Tembe (2632 Ab5) and Inhaca P.O. (2632 BbO) (Martinez 1976:13 and
Mason pers. comm.), however Zitundo is the first stratified site in Mozambique where
characteristic features of both Phillipson's so-called 'eastern' and 'western' streams can be
shown to co-occur, an hypothesis first suggested by Mason ( 1981:414) in 1973. The site is still
under study and it is our belief that it will contribute significantly to the current debate over
the nature of the El A in Southern Africa (Evers 1981:92; Mason 1981:414; Phillipson
1977:102-52).
At Caimane (2632 Ac4), a rock shelter in the Lebombos range near the Swaziland border
dug by Jonsson and Mor?is (in press) in 1982, the excavated materials are particularly
representative of the Middle and Later Stone Age, with a minor EIA component in the top
strata that may have been disturbed. Again, both Mat?la and NC3-Broederstroom typologi
cal affinities, the latter predominating, are recognizable. The ceramic sample is,
unfortunately, too limited for further conclusions to be drawn.
Based on the evidence outlined above some general propositions have been formulated:
1. There is an EIA tradition?Mat?la?which precedes an event that introduces new
variables into the pottery. For some authors, like Maggs, the latter are part of the same
Mat?la continuum; for others, like Huffman and Evers, the new traits have a different
derivation (Evers 1981:92). At Zitundo it is hoped that one of these hypotheses will be either
reinforced or invalidated.
2. Two or more EIA pottery traditions may have coexisted. It may be possible to attribute
the ceramic differences identified to regional variation within similar social formations
(Mason 1981:409).
3. It is at this stage, before a solidly based regional picture has been built up, counter
productive to direct research towards the detailed identification of EIA migration routes.
Furthermore, we require an adequate conceptualization of the archaeological meaning of
'migration' and of how it can be identified and interpreted.
As part of the general survey programme in the south, Caimane was the first stratified
Stone Age site to be excavated in the country. Known since 1947 (Dias 1947), the rock shelter
will soon provide the first dated MSA and LSA assemblages. The deposits are well
differentiated and the industries seem to be quite distinct. In the earlier layers the industry is
characterized predominantly by rhyolite flakes and irregular cores. This is clearly different
from the LSA assemblages with their thumbnail scrapers made on volcanic rock. A complete
LSA grave was also excavated at this site, the first to be found in Mozambique. It is expected
that analysis of the faunal materials, presently being processed by L. Jonsson, will produce
new data on the economic bases of the hunter-gatherer communities represented. We are also
developing an appropriate methodology for th? study of cave sediments as palaeo
environmental indicators (Jonsson and Mor?is in press).
A research program presently being initiated in the southern region of Maputo Province
will include survey of the three major physiographic zones: the coast, the alluvial plains and
the Lebombos range. This work is already under way in the coastal zone near the southern
border, where a considerable number of new IA sites have been discovered. On completion of
this project, the first of its kind in the region, it should be possible to fit the new data into the
areal framework developed for Natal, Transvaal and Swaziland, and to establish a forum for
methodological and theoretical debates.
120 Jo?o Mor?is
The northern region
The archaeological survey programme was extended to the north in 1978. Small amounts of
fieldwork, including both survey and excavation, were carried out in Nampula Province by
T. Cruz e Silva and P. Sinclair during 1978 and 1979 in Murrupula, Nampula, Mossuril and
Ilha Districts, and at Ibo in Cabo Delgado Province (Sinclair in press b). Survey work had
been carried out previously by R. Duarte (formerly of the Nampula Museum) in 1976-77.
This research has been succeeded since 1981 by an extensive survey programme, carried out
by L. Adamowicz (in press).
Of a total of 44 surveyed or excavated sites in the region, 15 contain LIA occupations, 11
both El A and LIA, 10 cover the full LSA-IA sequence and 8 parts of the same range. The
most impressive sites are the Nakwaho (1439 Ddl ), Riane (1340 Cal) and Muse (1537 Bbl)
rock shelters where red and white rock paintings occur in either naturalistic or geometric
outline forms.
The industries at Nakwaho was first dated to ca 3000 be (St-8198, 3195?170 be, and St
8199, 3010?205 be, and both 13C corrected). Rock paintings also occur at single component
sites such as the El A Namolepiwa ( 1539 Bb 1 ) and the LIA Chakota ( 1438 Dd 1 ). This makes
it difficult to establish a firm association between the rock art as a whole and the people who
produced it, and leaves the question open for further investigation.
Analysis of the lithic assemblages from the excavated sites of Nakwaho, Riane, Muse and
Ocorrine (1437 Bbl) shows that the artefacts are mainly backed blades, scrapers and flakes.
Most of the collections are assigned to the same LSA complex, which is one that shows no
obvious similarities to the well-known Smithfield, Wilton, or Albany industries (Adamowicz
in press). Further comparisons with industries known from Tanzania and Malawi will be
carried out in order to establish the first LSA sequence for northern Mozambique.
The El A and LIA are also represented at both single- and multi-component open sites and
shelters. The earlier ceramics are characterized mainly by jars with horizontal bands of
diagonal comb stamping or incision. They seem to represent facies of the El A Kamnama
tradition of Zambia, where it is dated to between the 3rd and 5th centuries ad, and of the
third century ad Mwabulambo tradition of Malawi (Phillipson 1977:111?13). So far, the
only dated EIA site in this region is Nakwaho, ad 690? 105 (St-8194,13C corrected). Further
work will soon be carried out at the well stratified EIA sites of Muaconi (1540 Ba9-10),
Namialu (1439 Dd2) andTototo (1438 Dd2) in order to enlarge the sample of EIA materials,
and to define adequately the EIA occupation of northern Mozambique. Sinclair's (in press b)
excavations of Murekani (1539 Abl) have already shown affinities to the Kwale and Nkope
traditions.
The LIA is widespread and includes a considerable range of pottery decoration: bands of
triangles and loops made either by comb stamping or incision, often associated with a band of
horizontal or diagonal incised lines. The nearest typological parallels are to be found in the
Luangwa tradition of Zambia, dated from the 11th century ad (Phillipson 1977:172), and in
Mawudzu and Chimboii in Malawi, dated to around the 12th century and mid-18th century
ad respectively (Robinson 1982:104?05). In Nampula Province the best LIA assemblage yet
excavated comes from the site of Chakota, dated to ad 1625 ?145 (St-8692, 13C corrected).
Also in northern Mozambique, three coastal sites, Lumbo ( 1540 Ba2-4), Sancul ( 1540 Ba5-8)
and Ibo (1240 Be 1-4), all previously excavated by Sinclair and Cruz e Silva, gave pottery
similar to the African pottery recovered from a 17th century Portuguese ship, wrecked off
Mombasa after arriving from Mozambique Island (Sinclair in press b; Sassoon 1981:129).
As part of the Nampula archaeological survey, L. Adamowicz has carried out a prelimi
nary analysis of the rock art occurring in shelters. Previous work in this line had been carried
out by Santos J?nior (1947:138-40) and Rosa de Oliveira (1971:5) who had briefly reported
on 24 rock art sites in Mozambique, concentrating on Manica, Tete, Nampula and Niassa
Provinces. Since the beginning of the regional survey, four new rock art sites have been
discovered in Nampula, namely Murekane (1539 Abl), Muse II and III (1537 Bb2 and 3)
and Namiruto (1439 Dd3), and six previously reported ones revisited: Nakwaho, Riane,
Muse, Occurine, Namolepiwa and Chakota. As mentioned above, the first two of these
contain the best LSA-IA sequences. However, no firm correlation between the archaeologi
cal assemblages and the paintings has yet been established. It is expected that the faunal and
palynological analyses of the excavated samples will lead to the development of an
environmental sequence that will help to determine the time of appearance and disap
pearance of species, and thus assist in dating the paintings. Until now, the only dating tool
available has been stylistic analysis. This has suggested a division into two main classes
(Fig. 2):
1. Red paintings. These are produced in a number of hues of red, made from ferruginous
minerals occuring in the vicinity of the sites. Both human and animal groups are shown in
action and represented either naturalistically or schematically. Hunting rituals depict a
variety of big game animals, such as elephants, rhinoceros and giraffe, as well as antelopes.
The subject matter suggests that they were produced by hunter-gatherer communities.
Riane and Muse are representative of this class of painting.
2. White paintings. These are in monochrome white pigments, made from mineral and
organic compounds, and are geometric and symbolic. The subject matter is distinct from the
other class, including natural forces such as the sun, wind and rain, as well as fertility
symbols in the form of male and female genitalia. It is suggested that the artists and
communities responsible were directly involved as food producers in the exploitation of the
land for their livelihood. Nakwaho and Namolepiwa are especially typical of the geometric
variant of this class, whereas at Chakota symbolism is predominant. The latter site is
considered to be relatively recent, especially inasmuch as the site is still used today for
ceremonial purposes.
During the 1979-1982 national campaign for cultural heritage preservation some other
rock art sites occurring in Manica, Tete and Niassa Provinces were briefly visited by us, while
others were reported by representatives of the Museum and Antiquities Services. From the
information available on the distribution of rock art, such sites appear relatively common
from central Mozambique northwards along the major river basins that cut across early
metamorphic rock formations. A planned in-depth study of the two traditions, together with
the associated archaeological evidence, should provide the data base required for under
standing of the behavioural and economic patterns of the groups responsible. A programme
of detailed reproduction of the Nampula paintings is to be carried out by L. Adamowicz in
the near future.
Late in 1982 another area of great potential interest was investigated for the first time. Per
Inge Lindquist, as a part of the northern coastal survey programme, briefly assessed the
marine archaeological potential of the region around Mozambique Island, the most
122 Jo?o Mor?is
COLOUR STYLE Archaeological

cultural horizon
LIA- CHAKO
Ao.1625 + 1
El A -NAMOL
? ? - NAKWA
An. 690+105
LSA -OCCURINE
? ?- NAKWAHO
c 3000 ac
? ?- MUS?
??-RIANE
Figure 2 An outline scheme of the development of the rock paintings of norther

Mozambique based on typological and other criteria.
important cultural and economic centre in Mozambique from 1508 to 1898, when the c
was transferred to Maputo (Louren?o Marques). Besides providing new informatio
IA, research here should contribute to knowledge of pre-Portuguese trade in t
Ocean. The brief survey was carried out with the assistance of local fishermen
association with agentes de cultura, who are the Museum and Antiquity Services de
each province responsible for inventory work for the national campaign for cultural h
preservation. It resulted in the reporting of 17 sites, of which five were visited in
assess the extent and nature of work to be undertaken in the future. Our information
a high concentration of wrecks of the early 17th century and earlier, mostly of Portuguese
origin.
Field work was extended in 1983 to the northern areas of Nacala, Pemba and Ibo. A
preliminary report on this work is due to be published (Lindquist in press). This will
constitute a basis for the development of preservation policy and for the planning of further
research.
General evaluation of work in progress

The 1976-1983 survey programme has more than doubled the number of known sites (Table
1 ). It should also be emphasized that most of the sites discovered before 1975 consist either of
redeposited Stone Age materials such as surface scatters from erosion gullies and river
terraces, or, as mentioned above, have monumental aspects. During the colonial period,
archaeological goals were limited to providing a general description of archaeological sites,
without taking into consideration the nature of the deposits or of site formation processes.
This might be combined with a preliminary evaluation of the site's potential for further work
and of its relationship to other sites. A broader conceptual framework and appropriate
research methodology were definitely lacking.
The strategy designed for the 1976?1983 programme of surveys has involved the develop
ment of a sampling procedure that could be applied in different regions, and allow previous
results to be incorporated. There was an obvious need to compensate for the bias towards
Stone Age and southern region sites by proceeding with fieldwork in a number of unsurveyed
areas, and by deliberately concentrating our efforts on post-palaeolithic materials. Limited
resources necessitated the selection of small survey units, chosen as representative of
particular types of landscapes, geomorphology, vegetation and soil types. The sites located
were generally evaluated either through random surface collections or small scale excava
tion. Ideally, though this proved difficult to achieve, a collection of at least 300 sherds was
made from IA components in order to allow the application of further locational methods for
inter-site distribution studies (Sinclair in press c).
In conformity with the criterion of even coverage, the total number of sites identified by the
survey program is fairly equally distributed among the three regions with 34%, 30% and
35% in the south, south-central and northern regions respectively. It is clear, however, that
most of the sites discovered are either EIA (20%) or LIA (62%), the latter being particularly
easy to recognize. Our preliminary results also call for further work in areas that remain
unsurveyed such as Tete, Zambezia, Niassa and Cabo Delgado Provinces, as well as for an
extension of the time depth covered to include more palaeolithic sites.
Standard analytical procedures are being applied at the level of the site. Phosphate
analyses are carried out locally and radiometric as well as osteological information is
obtained through a cooperative agreement with the Swedish Board of Antiquities. It is hoped
that procedures for extracting palaeoenvironmental data from cave sediments will soon be
tested. In addition, computing facilities were recently made available. A ZILOG MCZ-2/20
microprocessor is now installed and in the near future will allow us to develop, with Swedish
assistance, a number of data retrieval and statistical applications that are currently being
tested (Sinclair and Lundmark 1983).
Education is another aspect of the work in progress. Up until 1975 African prehistory was
124 Jocuo Mor?is
not included in the Mozambican school syllabus. Since the foundation of the Universidade
Eduardo Mondlane Department of Archaeology in 1980, it has ensured the availability of
educational materials complete with regional examples, in particular by contributing to
textbooks at different levels from adult education to university. The Department has also
been directly involved in the education of agentes de cultura at the secondary school level.
Starting in 1983, this programme will graduate qualified technical archaeological assistants
to work in different provinces under the Secretaria de Estado da Cultura, and eventually to
go to university. It is also hoped that by 1985 or 1986 the university will be able to offer a
postgraduate course in archaeology, a prerequisite for the future expansion of archaeological
research.
On the principle that no archaeology can exist without public participation, popular
dissemination of results has also been increased. Information is regularly given to the press,
and locals participate in fieldwork, either as excavators or by visiting work in progress.
Contribution to the creation of site museums at some of the most important sites also falls,
human resources permitting, within our departmental terms of reference. In 1979, a site
museum was opened at Manyikeni after four seasons of fieldwork in which several hundreds
of local residents participated (I.I.C.M. 1979).
A policy of regular departmental publications is now being established through the series
Trabalhos de Arqueolog?a e Antropolog?a. Our current low productivity in this area is due to
considerable fluctuation of research personnel in the programme, which from 1978 until
recently only included one Mozambican archaeologist. At present four researchers con
tribute to the programme, two of them on a temporary basis through the agreement with the
Swedish Board of Antiquities.
In light of the above, we may reasonably claim that in less than a decade Mozambican
archaeology has contributed to a broader understanding of the nation's past, and provided
empirical evidence of value to colleagues and institutions operating in Southern Africa.
Theoretical considerations
The relevance of our archaeological survey programme is directly related to a growing

awareness of the significance of the past, and of the role of archaeology as a means of defining
this scientifically. It was independence and, above all, the struggle to forge a new nation, that
determined the nature of the propositions that are shaping the development of archaeology
in Mozambique. The development of theoretical frameworks is paradoxically stimulated by
the absence of a previous academic tradition. New forms of expression of scientific know
ledge are being produced and will eventually link up with popular consciousness and with
history.
However, it is worthwhile to note that, due to the prevailing level of underdevelopment
and for specific historical reasons that made written sources very scant, understanding the
'precolonial' past might wrongly be interpreted in a very narrow sense. This being the
case there is a danger that discussions become geared to definitions that establish a rigid inter
face between what is 'historical' and what is 'prehistorical'. We need to define method
ologies appropriate for dealing with the nature of the archaeological evidence, and which
avoid:
? accumulating data merely as a means of descriptive illustration of historical mechanisms,

? justifying general notions or schemes, which can then be used as specific ideologies, or
? formulating a general theoretical corpus, the scope of which is to explain an abstract concept
of the past.
What then is the alternative? The current programme began by trying to combine field
survey, as a means of enlarging the data base, with the search for a conceptual frame which,
as the work went on, would be able both to monitor it and to suggest new avenues of research.
Thus we have argued (Mor?is 1978) the need to situate our studies within an historical
framework, such that the analysis of archaeological remains is a part of an overall dialectic
process. For example, there is as yet no sound theory to explain the actual processes of social
formation of farming communities in southern Africa. Multivariate assemblages represent
ing predominantly family production units have, in the past, been approached within a static
framework that has ignored the dynamics of their formation in favour of empiricist
description of the data. A possible reaction might be to attempt to interpret the material in
terms of general historical processes such as 'modes of production'. This, however, is rather a
diffuse point of reference than a new paradigm and too abstract in concept to be made
analytically operational. Archaeology manipulates a concrete fraction of reality, the material
remains of past societies, and it is the whole modus operandi of such a society that we wish to be
able to understand, not merely the broad lines of its development, nor its peculiarities of
material culture.
Current research has led us to the development of the concept of'social formation' as the
most adequate formal object of archaeological study. The Marxist concept of mode of
production is used to refer to particular forms of production and related forms of social
organizations, whereas a social formation is a combination of different forms of production.
Archaeologically, a 'social formation' is meaningful in the same context as a 'type' when the
latter is the material expression of a particular historical process in time. Thus, for example,
it should be possible to accept the coexistence of specific forms of production (e.g. farming
and hunting) within a transitional historical period, without being led to formulate
interpretations based on single typological traits. It is the process that we wish to grasp, not
just the archaeological type; it is the social formation that we want to be able to characterize
and not the mode of production.
Thus the need for theory becomes evident and, within the framework structured above, we
may move from theory to data and back without internal contradiction. Unfortunately, it is
very difficult to achieve coherence when faced with the scant evidence recovered by
archaeology from the area so far. The goals of the survey programme, which include
development of theoretical concepts and the specific aim of more extensive qualitative site
analysis, are not in conflict but complementary, together constituting a balanced approach
that should be applied to research in the future.
One possible approach, in particular to the archaeology of farming communities, might be
to consider as a prime determining factor the terroir, defined by G. Sautter (1957) as 'la terre
travaill?e dans laquelle s'est incorpor?e un part marquant de l'?nergie de la communaut?
pr?sente et pass?e'. In other words, ethnoarchaeological research among present farming
communities can provide a baseline for projections into the past. Such a strategy involves the
study of ecology, carrying capacity and modern agrarian systems. The results of such studies
126 Jo?o Mor?is
may then be compared with information from archaeological contexts, and can be related to
the type of settlement, technology, diet or any other aspect of a past community or
communities for which we wish to infer the forms of social organization. It may eventually
become possible to establish correlations between particular forms of 'terroir' and types of
communities past and present.
Finally, it is essential to implement a systematic research programme that utilizes to the
full the potential for interdisciplinary cooperation between anthropologists and archaeolo
gists. We should begin by exploring the nature of social production and reproduction
represented in a set of informative sites, testing the possibilities of applying similar
methodologies and theoretical constructs in both disciplines. It is, however, not yet clear how
the extensive fieldwork involved in a survey programme that is designed mainly to define
cultural 'horizons', can be integrated with the intensive investigation demanded of the
concept of'terroir'. For this purpose, we must concentrate both on the large scale excavation
of sites and on an interpretation of farming communities that is based on the methods and
empirical approaches employed by anthropologists studying modern peasant societies.
Endnote
1 The sites are numbered according to a grid reference system based on the 1:50,000 scale
map which we use as the main unit for inventory purposes. The four first digits stand for
latitude and longitude respectively, the two letters to the sub-unit of the 1:250,000 scale
map of the region which comprises the 1:50,000 one, and the last digit or digits to the
series number of the site recorded in the 1:50,000 survey unit.
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Mozambican Archaeology: Past and Present

Author(s): João Morais

The Archaeological Survey Programme of 1976-1983

The south-central region

The southern region

The northern region

COLOUR STYLE Archaeological

Figure 2 An outline scheme of the development of the rock paintings of norther

General evaluation of work in progress

The relevance of our archaeological survey programme is directly related to a growing

? accumulating data merely as a means of descriptive illustration of historical mechanisms,

Silva, J. C. S. Martinez and R. T. Duarte): Zimbabwe in southern Mozambique. In

(Trabalhos de Arqueolog?a e Antropolog?a 3) (eds Instituto de Investiga??o Cient?fica de Mo?ambique

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