I am presenting this column as a sort of sequel to my recent column about swimming in Paleolithic Art and rock art. In doing online research for the subject of swimming I ran across a number of online websites which talked about Mermaids and mermaid mythology in South Africa. I do not know how authentic all this material is, and I cannot personally vouch for any of it, but I found it interesting enough that I want to present it to you and let you decide for yourself.
One traditionally published source was Wilcox’s 1963 volume on The Rock Art Of South Africa. Wilcox published a photo of a panel he designated “Ezelzacht near Oudtshoorn, Cape Province.” Wilcox continued “the story behind the painting – was, according to Dr. Bleek, told to a Mr. Ballot by an old Bushman then still living in the district, but this record seems to have been lost. It is described as a fine old legend, the subject being the ‘watermaidens’. The site is only about 30 miles from the sea and we can plausibly guess that the creatures, fish-like up to the waist and human above, were based upon the marine mammal the dugong of the Indian Ocean seen by Bushmen at the coast. This animal or its near relation the manatee is believed also to have given rise to the mermaid legend of European folklore.” (Wilcox 1963:35) Doctor Bleek and Mr. Ballot were not identified so the provenance of the data there is weak, but the photograph seems genuine enough.
More recently, many other writers have found pictures of the same panel and used them, often to illustrate stories of indigenous mythology of South African peoples. In a 2020 article titled “Are Mermaids Real? You Decide,” the writer (using the name Mecheshier) wrote – “South Africa: In the mountains near Oudtshoom in the “Little Karoo” are inexplicable mermaid paintings that have baffled archaeologists for years. These paintings are very unique and are engraved into the walls, not painted. The paintings have been referred by the native people as water spirits or mermaids. There is also a legend in the Karoo which speaks of a beautiful mermaid that can be seen sitting on a rock combing her hair. Tales about the mermaid are still active today; children are warned not to go near deep pools because Water-auntie or the Water-meid might pull them in.”
You can see the problems here immediately. In spite of calling the panel “paintings” three times he says they are “engraved into the walls, not painted.” I really do not know what to make of this. The illustration of the panel in Wilcox (1963) certainly looks real enough, the painting looks authentic. These figures look less authentic in many of the later illustrations, but these just may be cases of photographic enhancement. In any case, with the figures apparently sporting fish-like tails, and with many of them in swimming-like positions, this panel is pretty convincing.
Then we have a photograph of a figure identified as a mermaid by Diane Carnevale in her blog “La Bella Vita – Mermaids in Art.” She stated that it came from the Karoo region of South Africa as well.
Then we have some pictures of so-called mermaids, also of indeterminate origin. I found these online as public domain photographs, a couple of which were labeled as from the Karoo Caves also, although one was labeled “Cave of the Swimmers.” The difference in style, however, makes me somewhat suspicious of them so I present them to you as possibles without further comment.
I will finish this up with some lovely mermaids from approximately 2,200 BCE. These relief carvings are from Chandraketugar, India. “Chandraketugarh is a 2500 years old archaeological site located near the Bidyadhari river, about 35 kilometres (22 mi) north-east of Kolkata, India, in the district of North 24 parganas, near the township of Berachampa and the Harua Road trailhead. Once it was an important hob of international maritime trade. The history of Chandraketugarh dates back to almost the 3rd century BCE, during the pre-Mauryan era. Artefacts suggest that the site was continuously inhabited and flourished through the Shunga-Kushana period, onwards through the Gupta period and finally into the Pala-Sena period. Archaeological studies suggest that Chandraketugarh was an important town and a port city. It had a high encircling wall complete with a rampart and moat. The residents were involved in various crafts and mercantile activities.” (Wikipedia)
So, are any of these images of real mermaids? Well – no, but the myths have given us many great stories and portrayals, and the world is richer for them.
NOTE: Some images in this posting were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the original reports at the sites listed below.
REFERENCES:
Carnevale, Diane, 2013, The mermaid in art, 17 July 2013, La Bella Vita, https://dianecarnevale.blogspot.com/search?q=karoo . Accessed online 9 March 2023.
Mecheshier, 2020, Are Mermaids Real? You Decide, 16 May 2020, https://discover.hubpages.com/education/Are-Mermaids-Real-You-Decide. Accessed online 8 March 2023.
Wikipedia, Chandraketugarh, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandraketugarh. Accessed online 18 March 2023.
Wilcox, A. R., 1963, The Rock Art of South Africa, Thomas Nelson and Sons, Johannesburg,
South Africa.
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