The earliest recorded people in South Africa are the bushman. The bushman prefer a minimalist approach to clothing. This is because of the extreme temperatures in Southern Africa, as well as their nomadic lifestyle. The men and women wore a piece of animal skin, called a Shona around the waist and when temperatures dropped, a large hide would be worn over the shoulders. The exception to this was when certain ceremonies were performed, the women and girls would wear Dancing Skirts, and children wore aprons called the Chi-Clothe. For footwear, the bushman generally wore nothing at all, though they sometimes wore skin sandals. Both men and women adorned themselves with accessories for beauty and spiritual reasons, such as bracelets, earrings, necklaces, and headbands.

            To make the bushman’s articles of clothing and accessories they used materials that they were able to hunt or gather within their home range. These materials include roots, reeds, porcupine quills, horns, wood, seeds, ostrich eggs, feathers, tortoise shells, and animal hides. The animal hides used were mainly from the Gemsbok (hems-bock), Duiker (die-kher), Steenbok (stean-bock), and Springbok. The hides were prepared immediately after the hunt. The animal would be skinned and the hide stretched out to dry. Once the hide was completely dried the hair was removed with a stone scraper. Afterwards the skin is buried in the sand in order to become soft enough to cut and trim to the desired shapes and sizes. The piece of clothing was then decorated.

        Porcupine quills                   Animal horns        Ostrich (used for feathers)

           Ostrich egg                         Gemsbok                         Duiker

             Steenbok                         Springbok                         Tamboti Tree

                                                                       (used for bark, roots, and seeds)

Shona

            The Shona is the most common and basic article of clothing for the bushman. It is essentially their version of our modern day shorts. It is made from animal skins such as Steenbok or Duiker. The Shona are decorated with ostrich eggshells, feathers and porcupine quills.

Shona

Dancing Skirt

            The skirt was usually made of Springbok skin and was worn exclusively for dancing ceremonies. The skirt was wrapped around the back and fastened in front. In the process of making the skirts, the women would occasionally dye the skirts using various fruits and roots off trees.

Dancing Skirt

Chi-Clothe

            The Chi-Clothe is made of the soft hide of the Steenbok or Duiker. The Chi-Clothe is very similar to our modern day apron in that the front of the body is covered and the back exposed. It is tied together at the back with strips of animal skin.

Chi-Clothe

Sandals

            Although rarely worn by the bushman, as their feet were hardened and calloused from extensive use, sandals were occasionally put on in order to provide some relief from the extreme heat of the desert sand of the Kalahari. The sandals were made from the toughest leather to be found which was from the Gemsbok.

Sandals

Accessories

          The bushman women spent a lot of time creating necklaces, bracelets, and headbands. The making of these accessories was seen as a social event or gathering. These gatherings were normally had when the men were out on a hunt. Although many different items were used in the making of these accessories, the most commonly used and important material was the eggshell of the ostrich. Small pieces of shell were formed into shape by carefully tapping them with a piece of horn and a stone. A hole was made through the beads using bone and they were strung together using sinew. Earrings were typically given as gifts from the men of the tribe to the women.

                         Bracelets                                       Necklaces

Earrings