9 the state of science in south africa
A R C H A E O L O G Y A N D P A L A E O A N T H R O P O L O G Y
nally convinced the experts in far away Eu- Smuts had him appointed curator at the
rope and America that South Africa indeed Transvaal Museum in Pretoria, and it was
held the evidence of the earliest origins of in that phase of his career that he became
humanity. By the late 1940s, Dart’s Austra- fully involved in the study of human origins.
lopithecines were recognised as human Although Broom did not train students, he
ancestors and Africa was recognised as the
was a frequent guest lecturer in Dart’s class-
home of humanity.
es and it was students from these classes
that brought Broom’s attention to the sites
While the early years of archaeology were
in the Sterkfontein Valley. Broom, in colla-
boration with other researchers, especially
dominated by Goodwin and Van Riet Lowe,
JT Robinson, his successor at the Transvaal
the early years of palaeoanthropology were
Museum, produced a series of important
dominated by Raymond Dart and Robert
monographs in the Transvaal Museum
Broom. Raymond A Dart, an Australian-
Memoirs. The number of discoveries con-
trained anatomist, was appointed to the
tinued through the 1930s and 1940s, but
young Wits medical school in 1923. He had
almost none of the discoveries was made
hoped to pursue advanced research on
under controlled excavation.
neuroanatomy, but the facilities in Johan-
nesburg were still quite basic and bones
The fossil sites in the Sterkfontein Valley
and fossils were more accessible. Dart
were the preserve of researchers at the
taught anatomy as a scientific rather than
Transvaal Museum long after Broom’s death
purely medical field of study right from the
in 1951. After Robinson left for the United
start of his tenure. He created undergradu-
States, his place was filled by CK (Bob) Brain
ate science courses, began the training of
and later by Elisabeth Vrba. The sampling of
research students and started a museum of
miners’ diggings as a method of excavation
comparative anatomical and anthropologi-
changed by the 1960s, when more modern
cal interest in the department. His legacy
and rigorous excavation techniques were
was the training of generations of students
adopted. Brain started a series of long-term
(both medical and scientific) who were in-
excavations at Swartkrans aimed specifical-
stilled with an interest in human origins.
ly at sorting out the process by which the
Robert Broom, on the other hand, was a
caves formed and were subsequently filled.
Scottish medical doctor with an impas-
sioned interest in evolution. Although he
In the years before World War II, Dart was
had a brief stint as professor of zoology and
primarily occupied with the expansion and
geology at Victoria College (the University
administration of the medical school in Jo-
of Stellenbosch after 1918), and had an in-
hannesburg, but after the war he withdrew
ternational reputation on the study of fossil from heavy teaching and administration
mammal-like reptiles, he spent nearly the duties and devoted more of his time to
whole of his career in medical private prac- research on the fossil Hominins and their
tice. On retirement from his last clinical post sites. Of particular interest was the new
in 1933, the ever-supportive Prime Minister site at Makapansgat. Originally brought to
252
TWAS book_Chap9.indd 252 2009/10/06 12:05:24 PM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179 |
Page 180 |
Page 181 |
Page 182 |
Page 183 |
Page 184 |
Page 185 |
Page 186 |
Page 187 |
Page 188 |
Page 189 |
Page 190 |
Page 191 |
Page 192 |
Page 193 |
Page 194 |
Page 195 |
Page 196 |
Page 197 |
Page 198 |
Page 199 |
Page 200 |
Page 201 |
Page 202 |
Page 203 |
Page 204 |
Page 205 |
Page 206 |
Page 207 |
Page 208 |
Page 209 |
Page 210 |
Page 211 |
Page 212 |
Page 213 |
Page 214 |
Page 215 |
Page 216 |
Page 217 |
Page 218 |
Page 219 |
Page 220 |
Page 221 |
Page 222 |
Page 223 |
Page 224 |
Page 225 |
Page 226 |
Page 227 |
Page 228 |
Page 229 |
Page 230 |
Page 231 |
Page 232 |
Page 233 |
Page 234 |
Page 235 |
Page 236 |
Page 237 |
Page 238 |
Page 239 |
Page 240 |
Page 241 |
Page 242 |
Page 243 |
Page 244 |
Page 245 |
Page 246 |
Page 247 |
Page 248 |
Page 249 |
Page 250 |
Page 251 |
Page 252 |
Page 253 |
Page 254 |
Page 255 |
Page 256 |
Page 257 |
Page 258 |
Page 259 |
Page 260 |
Page 261 |
Page 262 |
Page 263 |
Page 264 |
Page 265 |
Page 266 |
Page 267 |
Page 268 |
Page 269 |
Page 270 |
Page 271 |
Page 272 |
Page 273 |
Page 274 |
Page 275 |
Page 276 |
Page 277 |
Page 278 |
Page 279 |
Page 280 |
Page 281 |
Page 282 |
Page 283 |
Page 284 |
Page 285 |
Page 286 |
Page 287 |
Page 288 |
Page 289 |
Page 290