Rock Paintings
South Africa, Bergville · 1987-06-04
Official first day cover (FDC) · South African philately
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This cover is postmarked on 4 June 1987 in Bergville, with a special postmark depicting an eland. It carries the South Africa rock paintings set, SAPO [number to confirm], four stamps by Hein Botha reproducing San rock art depicting an eland, a leaping lion, a black wildebeest and a San dance scene. Each painting reproduced on this set comes from a specific, named site in or near the Drakensberg, the eland from the Sebasieni Cave in the Ndedema Gorge, the lion copied from a painting near Clocolan in the eastern Free State, and the wildebeest from the uMhlwazini Valley in Natal. The accompanying text notes a striking scholarly theory around the black wildebeest painting's rarity, that its scarcity in San rock art may reflect a deliberate social avoidance pattern similar to customs around in-laws.
Description of the Cachet
The cachet shows a group of stylised birds in flight, rendered in a soft watercolour wash of ochre, purple and cream tones that echo the natural pigments used in the actual rock art pictured on the stamps. The birds are arranged in a loose diagonal formation, their wings overlapping in a way that suggests movement and depth, with the colours bleeding softly into one another rather than being sharply outlined.
Information Card
ROCK PAINTINGS There are several thousand rock-painting sites in shallow caves and rock shelters throughout South Africa. These paintings provide a record of prehistory that reflects the material and cultural life of the people of the Later Stone Age. They can best be understood with reference to the recorded folklore and ethnography of the San (Bushmen). The art is perceptual in that much of it depicts wild animals and people, but it is also conceptual as it records ideas and beliefs such as the rain animal that lived in the clouds and whose voice was the thunder. San art is characterized by accurate observation, beautiful lines and a special ability to depict action. 16c stamp Eland, Sebasieni Cave The eland is prominent in San folklore and is central to creation myths. Apart from its value as meat, for which it was hunted, it was also an important symbol. Paintings of eland in every conceivable attitude, singly and in herds, are particularly plentiful in the Drakensberg, the eastern Orange Free State and the Eastern Cape. The eland depicted on this stamp is part of a long frieze in the Sebasieni Cave in the Ndedema Gorge of the Natal Drakensberg. 20c stamp Leaping lion, Clocolan There are paintings of lion scattered throughout the whole area in which San art is found, but they are particularly numerous in the eastern Orange Free State, from where this painting has been copied. Some authorities are of the opinion that lions symbolize medicine men who, when in a state of trance, were said to assume the form of lions. Such a condition was described in the folklore of the San recorded in the 1870's by Dr W.H.I. Bleek and his sister-in-law, Lucy Lloyd. 25c stamp Black Wildebeest, uMhlwazini Valley In spite of the fact that black wildebeest were formerly very numerous in Natal, paintings of them are comparatively rare. There is a theory that this is deliberate avoidance corresponding to the social avoidance of in-laws, which helped to reduce friction in daily living. The white tail hairs of the black wildebeest were nevertheless used for paint brushes. This painting is part of a scene in which the black wildebeest is confronted by a man armed with a bow and arrow. 30c stamp San Dance, Floukraal The hunters' life of the San and the way in which they gathered food gave a considerable amount of leisure time, some of which was occupied by dancing. Dances are depicted in some paintings, including those in which the monotonous rhythm and heavy breathing induced a state of trance in which the spirit was said to leave the body and go on a journey. In the dance depicted the participants are all women with the exception of the man on the right who holds a loop that surrounds the figure. This probably had a magical significance. The recumbent figures may be in a trance. The variations in size give depth to the picture. Text: H.C. (Bert) Woodhouse, author of When animals were people.
Theme: Science & Technology
Condition: FineGood condition. Minor wear or small imperfections, but overall well-presented.
Addressed: No
Signed: No
Stamp denomination: R0.91 (ZAR)
SG reference: 616-619
SAPO serial number: 4.21
Estimated value: ~US$0.06
This is a high-level, subjective estimate only, not a professional appraisal.
This first day cover (FDC) is part of Southern Covers, a private collection of 248 first day covers documenting the postal history and philately of South Africa and the homeland states. New to first day cover collecting? Read the guide to learn about cachets, postmarks, and stamp collecting terms, or browse the whole collection of Southern African FDCs.
