Raman signatures of the modern pigment (Zn,Cd)S1−xSex and glass matrix of a red bead from Magoro Hill, an archaeological site in Limpopo Province, South Africa, recalibrate the settlement chronology

► Two beads excavated on Magoro Hill were spectroscopically analyzed. ► The pigment coloring the red bead was identified as cadmium sulfoselenide. ► The pigment was only used during the 20th century. ► This recalibrates the settlement chronology obtained from oral tradition.