To understand how ancient people thought and behaved, archaeologists study personal ornaments like beads, hunting strategies and complex technologies such as adhesive or glue technology. For the latter, the consensus is that the more complex a technology is, the more complex the brain behind that technology must have been.
 
However, we know very little about adhesives, for example how they were made. Also ideas are rarely rigorously tested. I tested the hypothesis that recipes for compound glues are very sensitive to small changes in ingredients.
 
In this presentation I will show the results of two experimental studies: 1) into the production of Neanderthal birch bark tar using no pottery, and 2) testing the efficacy of South African Middle Stone Age compound adhesives.
 
Both studies underline that Neanderthals and early modern humans were the first kitchen chemists that had an in-depth understanding of the material properties of glue ingredients.
 

• Speaker: Dr Geeske Langejans - Leiden University & University of Johannesburg
• Date: Saturday 11 August 10:30
• Venue: The KwaZulu-Natal Museum 237 Jabu Ndlovu Street, Pietermaritzburg