Siyakha Mguni
Biographic Data
| ID | 129572 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Siyakha Mguni |
| GIVEN NAMES | Siyakha |
| FAMILY NAME | Mguni |
| SIGNATURE | MGUNI S |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of the Witwatersrand |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 8 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 23 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 8 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2001 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Should the Lithosphere Tell Our Stories?
Using the Archive to Formulate a Chronology of Rock Art in the Southwestern Cape, South Africa. University of Cape Town, 2014
Probing deep into rock art
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Natural and Supernatural Convergences: Trees in Southern African Rock Art
Prehistoric sites with depictions of trees are fewer and farther apart than those exhibiting their animal and human counterparts in southern African rock art. Even so, this arboreal subject matter occupies a unique position in hunter‐gatherer belief and folkloric systems. From extant ethnographic testimonies concerning trees, this report assesses the graphic features and associations of these depictions and recognizes their peculiar ontological a…
Iconography of Termites' Nests and Termites: Symbolic Nuances of Formlings in Southern African San Rock Art
Formlings, now better understood to depict termitaria (termites' nests) and termites, are a pervasive category of San (Bushman) rock art north of the River Limpopo. This article investigates the associations of termites' nests in San thought, belief, and ritual, in an attempt to explain formling symbolism and why termites' nests, and not other subjects, were chosen for depiction. Unequivocal ethnographic testimonies of San spiritual world-view ar…
King's monuments: Identifying 'formlings' in southern African San rock paintings
The author demonstrates that the complex images of rock art known as formlings depict or evoke the equally complex architecture of ant-hills. Presented in cutaway and full of metaphorical references, they go beyond the image into the imagination
Cultured Representation: Understanding ‘Formlings’, an Enigmatic Motif in the Rock-Art of Zimbabwe
A rock-painting panel in the Matopo Hills, Zimbabwe, illustrates the distinctive features of the formling motif, a striking peculiarity of Zimbabwean San (Bushman) rock-art. The debate regarding the derivation and meaning of this motif has proceeded unabated until very recently. The motif has been interpreted variously as depicting natural and cultural material phenomena. In contrast to previous interpretations, this paper advocates an approach t…
Research into the formlings in the rock art of Zimbabwe
In 1929, commenting on southern Africa's rock art, Leo Frobenius remarked: '... oddities occur which are completely outside our understanding. There are large forms, shaped like galls or livers, into which human figures are painted ...' (1929: 333). He coined the term'formling' to 'denote this composite type of forms and yet not easily explained' (Goodall 1959: 62, my emphasis). These motifs (FIGURE 1) still remain poorly understood. In 1998, I b…
Iconography of Termites' Nests and Termites: Symbolic Nuances of Formlings in Southern African San Rock Art
Formlings, now better understood to depict termitaria (termites' nests) and termites, are a pervasive category of San (Bushman) rock art north of the River Limpopo. This article investigates the associations of termites' nests in San thought, belief, and ritual, in an attempt to explain formling symbolism and why termites' nests, and not other subjects, were chosen for depiction. Unequivocal ethnographic testimonies of San spiritual world-view ar…
Cultured Representation: Understanding ‘Formlings’, an Enigmatic Motif in the Rock-Art of Zimbabwe
A rock-painting panel in the Matopo Hills, Zimbabwe, illustrates the distinctive features of the formling motif, a striking peculiarity of Zimbabwean San (Bushman) rock-art. The debate regarding the derivation and meaning of this motif has proceeded unabated until very recently. The motif has been interpreted variously as depicting natural and cultural material phenomena. In contrast to previous interpretations, this paper advocates an approach t…
Research into the formlings in the rock art of Zimbabwe
In 1929, commenting on southern Africa's rock art, Leo Frobenius remarked: '... oddities occur which are completely outside our understanding. There are large forms, shaped like galls or livers, into which human figures are painted ...' (1929: 333). He coined the term'formling' to 'denote this composite type of forms and yet not easily explained' (Goodall 1959: 62, my emphasis). These motifs (FIGURE 1) still remain poorly understood. In 1998, I b…
Natural and Supernatural Convergences: Trees in Southern African Rock Art
Prehistoric sites with depictions of trees are fewer and farther apart than those exhibiting their animal and human counterparts in southern African rock art. Even so, this arboreal subject matter occupies a unique position in hunter‐gatherer belief and folkloric systems. From extant ethnographic testimonies concerning trees, this report assesses the graphic features and associations of these depictions and recognizes their peculiar ontological a…
King's monuments: Identifying 'formlings' in southern African San rock paintings
The author demonstrates that the complex images of rock art known as formlings depict or evoke the equally complex architecture of ant-hills. Presented in cutaway and full of metaphorical references, they go beyond the image into the imagination
Research into the formlings in the rock art of Zimbabwe
In 1929, commenting on southern Africa's rock art, Leo Frobenius remarked: '... oddities occur which are completely outside our understanding. There are large forms, shaped like galls or livers, into which human figures are painted ...' (1929: 333). He coined the term'formling' to 'denote this composite type of forms and yet not easily explained' (Goodall 1959: 62, my emphasis). These motifs (FIGURE 1) still remain poorly understood. In 1998, I b…
Cultured Representation: Understanding ‘Formlings’, an Enigmatic Motif in the Rock-Art of Zimbabwe
A rock-painting panel in the Matopo Hills, Zimbabwe, illustrates the distinctive features of the formling motif, a striking peculiarity of Zimbabwean San (Bushman) rock-art. The debate regarding the derivation and meaning of this motif has proceeded unabated until very recently. The motif has been interpreted variously as depicting natural and cultural material phenomena. In contrast to previous interpretations, this paper advocates an approach t…
Iconography of Termites' Nests and Termites: Symbolic Nuances of Formlings in Southern African San Rock Art
Formlings, now better understood to depict termitaria (termites' nests) and termites, are a pervasive category of San (Bushman) rock art north of the River Limpopo. This article investigates the associations of termites' nests in San thought, belief, and ritual, in an attempt to explain formling symbolism and why termites' nests, and not other subjects, were chosen for depiction. Unequivocal ethnographic testimonies of San spiritual world-view ar…
King's monuments: Identifying 'formlings' in southern African San rock paintings
The author demonstrates that the complex images of rock art known as formlings depict or evoke the equally complex architecture of ant-hills. Presented in cutaway and full of metaphorical references, they go beyond the image into the imagination
Natural and Supernatural Convergences: Trees in Southern African Rock Art
Prehistoric sites with depictions of trees are fewer and farther apart than those exhibiting their animal and human counterparts in southern African rock art. Even so, this arboreal subject matter occupies a unique position in hunter‐gatherer belief and folkloric systems. From extant ethnographic testimonies concerning trees, this report assesses the graphic features and associations of these depictions and recognizes their peculiar ontological a…
Probing deep into rock art
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Using the Archive to Formulate a Chronology of Rock Art in the Southwestern Cape, South Africa. University of Cape Town, 2014
Should the Lithosphere Tell Our Stories?
Archaeology (7 works) · Archaeology and Rock Art Studies (7 works) · History (6 works) · Rock art (6 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (5 works) · Art (4 works) · Epistemology (4 works) · Philosophy (4 works) · Aesthetics (3 works) · Anthropological Studies and Insights (2 works)