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Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation

Mini Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2024.

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Other Authors: Bothma, Cobus
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2025
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Bothma, Cobus
author_browse Bothma, Cobus
author_facet Bothma, Cobus
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2023 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Mini Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2024.
format Thesis
id oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/100248
institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:36:31.522Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2025
publishDateRange 2025
publishDateSort 2025
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
record_format dspace
source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/100248 Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation Bothma, Cobus celine34776@gmail.com Nel, Celine UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Ruin potential Sensitive re-inhabitation Re-integration Reversible construction Archive Engineering, built environment and information technology theses SDG-09 SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure Mini Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2024. Located just south of Mashishing (Lydenburg), this project centres around a cluster of Late Iron Age ruins left by the Koni, who are a pre-colonial agro-pastoral society that shaped the Mpumalanga escarpment with extensive terraced landscapes and circular stone-walled settlements. Positioned on a site with varying degrees of stone ruin condition, this project aims to transform these remains into a productive interpretation centre and archive, narrating a story of harmonious interaction between people, landscape, and livestock. Currently, the general public remains unaware of the origins of these ruins, making this project a platform for public archaeology through collaboration between Mashishing community members, other locals, tourists and archaeologists to reframe their understanding and explore the significance of this heritage. Through its focus on the considered reactivation of these ruins, the project enhances Mashishing’s cultural identity while supporting sustainable ecotourism, responding to the disruption caused by a road that fragments one of the ruin homesteads, and subsequently aiding in the future protection of these historic sites. With an integrated program that includes an artefact archive, a small-scale dairy with traditional sour milk processing (amasi/mafi), an eatery, and a communal pottery workshop, the site embodies circularity as dairy products are created and fermented in locally crafted clay pots, connecting service and production in a closed loop, reflective of past site use. Importantly, this workshop provides members of the Mashishing community—some of whom are active potters—a dedicated space to share and showcase their craft with others, creating a cultural exchange that benefits heritage preservation. This space is designed to attract tourists, students, archaeologists, museum curators, farmers and members of the Mashishing community, creating a strong tourism node between major attractions like Dullstroom and the Kruger National Park. The architectural approach embraces three core concepts: memorialisation, re-signification, and reframing. Memorialisation subtly reinforces lower-significance ruins using earthen berms, paying homage to their historical context. Re-signification emphasises high-significance ruins with minimalist boundary markers, while reframing uses framed views and programmatic prompts to offer intimate, reflective engagement with selected ruins. By blending contemporary and traditional construction techniques with a focus on reversible construction, the project facilitates sensitive re-inhabitation, positioning Bakoni heritage as a driver of cultural and ecological development. Architecture MArch (Prof) Unrestricted Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure 2025-01-22T13:22:51Z 2025-01-22T13:22:51Z 2025-04 2024 Mini Dissertation * A2025 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/100248 DOI: https://doi.org/10.25403/UPresearchdata.27330693.v1 https://doi.org/10.25403/UPresearchdata.27330693 en © 2023 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle UCTD
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Ruin potential
Sensitive re-inhabitation
Re-integration
Reversible construction
Archive
Engineering, built environment and information technology theses SDG-09
SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation
title Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation
title_full Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation
title_fullStr Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation
title_full_unstemmed Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation
title_short Reframing the ruin : reinterpreting a Bakoni site through experimental preservation
title_sort reframing the ruin reinterpreting a bakoni site through experimental preservation
topic UCTD
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Ruin potential
Sensitive re-inhabitation
Re-integration
Reversible construction
Archive
Engineering, built environment and information technology theses SDG-09
SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/100248
https://doi.org/10.25403/UPresearchdata.27330693