Clarence van Riet Lowe (4 November 1894 – 7 June 1956) was a South African civil engineer and archaeologist. He was appointed by

Jan Smuts Field Marshal Jan Christian Smuts, (24 May 1870 11 September 1950) was a South African statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various military and cabinet posts, he served as prime minister of the Union of South Af ...

as the first director of the Bureau of Archaeology and was among the first group to investigate the archaeological site of

Mapungubwe The Kingdom of Mapungubwe (or Maphungubgwe) (c. 1075–c. 1220) was a medieval state in South Africa located at the confluence of the Shashe and Limpopo rivers, south of Great Zimbabwe. The name is derived from either TjiKalanga and Tshivenda ...

Early life and career

Van Riet Lowe was born in

Aliwal North Aliwal North (officially Maletswai) is a town in central South Africa on the banks of the Orange River, Eastern Cape Province. It is a medium-sized commercial centre in the northernmost part of the Eastern Cape. History Sir Harry Smith, then ...

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with t ...

to James Martin Lowe and Maria Wilhelmina Lowe (née van Riet). He was the eldest of three children. He went to school in Zastron, at Grey College, Bloemfontein and the

South African College The South African College was an educational institution in Cape Town, South Africa, which developed into the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the South African College Schools (SACS). History The process that would lead to the formation of t ...

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

, where he studied civil engineering. He served in the

South African artillery South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

during both

World War I 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 ...

and

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 ...

. During WWI he was stationed in East Africa,

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

, Palestine,

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 ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. During WWII he returned as artillery battery commander and was promoted to the rank of Major. His interest in archaeology was piqued when he collected

hand axe A hand axe (or handaxe or Acheulean hand axe) is a prehistoric stone tool with two faces that is the longest-used tool in human history, yet there is no academic consensus on what they were used for. It is made from stone, usually flint or ch ...

s in the Wadi el-'Arish between

and Gaza in 1917. After the First World War he returned to Cape Town to complete his degree in civil engineering. He worked in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...

and

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

and in 1922 he transferred to

Knysna Knysna () is a town with 76,150 inhabitants (2019 mid-year estimates) in the Western Cape province of South Africa. and is one of the destinations on the loosely defined Garden Route tourist route. It lies at 34° 2' 6.3168'' S and 23° 2' 47 ...

where he replaced the Westford Bridge that had been washed away in a flood. It was here that his interest in archaeology was again sparked. In 1923 he became assistant engineer in the

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...

which meant that he spent considerable time out assessing and supervising construction of 89 bridges. This also gave him time to locate, catalogue and collect artefacts from more than 300 prehistoric sites, mainly in the valleys of the Wilger,

Vals Vals is the word for waltz in many European languages. Vals or VALS may also refer to: * Peruvian waltz * Venezuelan waltz * Vals (dance), a dance related to Argentine tango * VALS, "Values And Lifestyles," a psychographic segmentation tool Place ...

, Rhenoster, Caledon, Modder and Riet rivers and around the towns of Smithfield,

Fauresmith Fauresmith is located 130 km south west of Bloemfontein, South Africa. The town, named after Rev Phillip Faure and Sir Harry Smith, is the second oldest town in the Free State. Fauresmith is the only town in South Africa, and one of only ...

and Wilton. From 1926 he corresponded with the School of African studies at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

and the

South African Museum The Iziko South African Museum is a South African national museum located in Cape Town. The museum was founded in 1825, the first in the country. It has been on its present site in the Company's Garden since 1897. The museum houses important A ...

regarding his finds and donated his artefacts to museums in

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legislative capital Cape To ...

, Cape Town and the

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), is a multi-campus South African public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg. It is more commonly known as Wits University or Wits ( or ). The university ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

. After 1928 he travelled to many areas in the

Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal. * South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...

and

Cape Province The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...

. During this time he wrote and illustrated a paper on Smithfield culture and co-authored ''"Stone Age Cultures of South Africa"'' with A.J. Goodwin for the ''"Annals of the South African Museum"''. In 1931 he became President of section E of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science and represented them at the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BSA) Centenary Meeting in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He also represented South Africa on the International Historical Monuments Commission at the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

He was involved in the investigations of

in conjunction with Professors Fouché, Malan and Tromp of the

University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria ( af, Universiteit van Pretoria, nso, Yunibesithi ya Pretoria) is a multi-campus public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto capital of South Africa. The university was established in 1908 ...

in 1933 and wrote about it in 1936. The president of the BSA,

initiated the creation of the Bureau of Archaeology in 1935 with van Riet Lowe as its first director. In the same year the University of the Witwatersrand awarded him the title "Professor of Archaeology", but the title did not include any teaching responsibilities. He spent his time creating a basic geological and climatological background for investigation of early man in South Africa using data obtained from the deposits of the Vaal River in conjunction with South African Geological Surveys. In 1937 van Riet Lowe was elected President of the South African Museums' Association. He undertook research in, amongst other places, Egypt and

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kno ...

. In 1938 he received his D.Sc (Archaeology) from the University of Cape Town. In the same year he collaborated with

Robert Broom Robert Broom FRS FRSE (30 November 1866 6 April 1951) was a British- South African doctor and palaeontologist. He qualified as a medical practitioner in 1895 and received his DSc in 1905 from the University of Glasgow. From 1903 to 1910, he ...

, the co-discoverer of

Mrs. Ples __NOTOC__ Mrs. Ples is the popular nickname for the most complete skull of an ''Australopithecus africanus'' ever found in South Africa. Many ''Australopithecus'' fossils have been found near Sterkfontein, about northwest of Johannesburg, in a r ...

. In 1939 he collaborated with E.J. Wayland to produce ''"The Pleistocene Geology and Prehistory of Uganda, Part II"'' (published in 1952). During the Second World War the government of

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

invited him to

Lourenco Marques Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,08 ...

in the company of

Abbé Breuil Henri Édouard Prosper Breuil (28 February 1877 – 14 August 1961), often referred to as Abbé Breuil, was a French Catholic priest, archaeologist, anthropologist, ethnologist and geologist. He is noted for his studies of cave art in the Somme an ...

in 1941 and 1944. He attended the Pan-African Congress on Prehistory in

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper h ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

(1947) and

Livingstone, Zambia Livingstone is a city in Zambia. Until 1935, it served as the capital city of Zambia (then Northern Rhodesia). Lying 10 km (6.2 mi) to the north of the Zambezi River, it is a tourism attraction center for the Victoria Falls and a border t ...

(1955). In 1954 he retired from the Bureau of Archaeology (then called the "Archaeological Survey") and lectured for a single term at the University of Cape Town.

Awards, recognition and membership

Van Riet Lowe received numerous accolades including: *1934 Fellow of the

Royal Society of South Africa The Royal Society of South Africa is a learned society composed of eminent South African scientists and academics. The society was granted its royal charter by King Edward VII in 1908, nearly a century after Capetonians first began to conceive ...

. *1935 Member (and later secretary) of the Commission for the Preservation of Natural Historic Monuments *1935 King George V Silver Jubilee Medal *1942 Member of the "Sentrale Volksmonumente-komitee" (in English: "Central People's Monument Committee") *1942 Medal of

Voortrekker Monument The Voortrekker Monument is located just south of Pretoria in South Africa. The granite structure is located on a hilltop, and was raised to commemorate the Voortrekkers who left the Cape Colony between 1835 and 1854. It was designed by the a ...

Committee *1943 South African Medal of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science *1954 Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal *1956 Medal of the Historical Monuments Commission

Selected publications

*Van Riet Lowe, C. and Malan, B.D. (editors). 1949. ''Die gedenkwaardighede van Suid-Afrika.'' Pretoria: Staatsdrukkery. * *Van Riet Lowe, C. 1929. ''Further notes on the archaeology of Sheppard Island'',

South African Journal of Science The ''South African Journal of Science'' is an open access, multidisciplinary academic journal published bimonthly by the Academy of Science of South Africa. The journal has a 2021 impact factor The impact factor (IF) or journal impact factor ( ...

26. *Van Riet Lowe, C. 1937. ''Prehistoric rock engravings in the Vaal River basin'', Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 24. *Van Riet Lowe, C. 1944. ''Notes on Dr. Francis Cabu's collection of stone implements from the Belgian Congo'', Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 30. *Van Riet Lowe, C. 1952. ''The Pleistocene Geology and Prehistory of Uganda'', Geological Survey of Uganda Memoir no. 6. Colchester *Van Riet Lowe, C. 1952. ''The Distribution of Prehistoric Rock Engravings and Paintings in South Africa'', Archaeological Survey Series 7. Cape Town. * * * *

Personal life

Van Riet Lowe married Iris Ethelwynne Kelly in Cape Town in 1922. They had a son and a daughter. He was an accomplished illustrator and copied by hand a large number of the cave paintings and

petroglyphs A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

that he discovered. He also collected beads made by the

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

inhabitants as part of his private collection. He died on 17 June 1956 in Knysna following a minor operation.

References

External links