Srečko Brodar (May 6, 1893 – April 27, 1987) was a Slovene archaeologist, internationally best known for excavation of

Potok Cave Potok Cave ( sl, Potočka zijalka or ''Potočka zijavka'') is a cave in northern Slovenia, declared a high-elevation archaeological and paleontological site, occupied approximately 35,000 years BP (before present) by anatomically modern humans o ...

( sl, Potočka zijalka), an

Upper Palaeolithic The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...

cave site in northern Slovenia.

Life

Brodar studied at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hist ...

and

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

, graduating in 1920. Beginning in 1921, he taught at Celje Grammar School, and after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, during which he received a serious elbow injury, he in 1939 received his PhD from the

University of Ljubljana The University of Ljubljana ( sl, Univerza v Ljubljani, , la, Universitas Labacensis), often referred to as UL, is the oldest and largest university in Slovenia. It has approximately 39,000 enrolled students. History Beginnings Although certain ...

, and became a professor there in 1946, serving as the chair of Archaeological Department until retirement. Brodar was the director of the Institute of Archaeology at the

Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts The Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts ( sl, Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti (SAZU)) is the national academy of Slovenia, which encompasses science and the arts and brings together the top Slovene researchers and artists as members ...

, and a member of the

International Union for Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences The International Union for Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences (IUPPS) is a learned society, linked through the International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies to UNESCO, and concerned with the study of prehistory and protohistory. ...

. His son Mitja Brodar (1921–2012) was also a noted archaeologist.

Work

In 1928, he became famous with the excavation of

( sl, Potočka zijalka) and five other Palaeolithic sites in Slovenia, demonstrating the link between the Palaeolithic cultures of the eastern

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

and those of the

Pannonian Plain The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense, with only the ...

and northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Brodar's research focused on

Betal Rock Shelter Betal Rock Shelter ( sl, Betalov spodmol), a karst cave located on the south-eastern edge of the Lower Pivka (river), Pivka river valley on a slope just above the road from Postojna to Bukovje, Postojna, Bukovje is a Archaeological site, site whe ...

(), a multiperiod prehistoric site near Postojna in southwest Slovenia. He also discovered the first Mesolithic sites in

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, such as Špehovka Cave.

Awards

* 1949

Prešeren Award The Prešeren Award ( sl, Prešernova nagrada), also called the Grand Prešeren Award ( sl, Velika Prešernova nagrada), is the highest decoration in the field of artistic and in the past also scientific creation in Slovenia. It is awarded each yea ...

for excavations at Betal Rock Shelter. * 1960

for excavations at

Črni Kal Črni Kal (; it, San Sergio) is a village in southwestern Slovenia in the City Municipality of Koper. It is best known today for the Črni Kal Viaduct, the longest and the highest viaduct in Slovenia. Name The name ''Črni Kal'' literally means ...

* 1974 Kidrič Award

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brodar, Srecko 1893 births 1987 deaths Slovenian archaeologists Yugoslav geologists Slovenian paleontologists Prešeren Award laureates University of Zagreb alumni University of Ljubljana alumni University of Ljubljana faculty Yugoslav archaeologists

Life

Work

Awards

References

Further reading

External links