Raymond Arthur
Dart was born on February 4, 1893 in Toowong, Brisbane, Australia. He attended
school at the University of Queensland and
the University of Sydney. Then, in 1920,
Mr. Dart went on to the University of London, where
he studied under the anatomists Grafton Elliot Smith and Arthur Keith. Then a
Professorship of Anatomy opened up at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg,
Africa, and Elliot Smith influenced Mr. Dart to go for the position. Raymond
Dart was given the position, and he had to move to South Africa in 1922. He
went on to become a brilliant physical anthropologist and paleontologist.
In 1924, Raymond Dart found the discovery that made him famous. Mr. Dart
was working with his students in the Taung limestone works in the Harts Valley
in Bechuanaland. He offered a reward to those students who made the most
interesting finds. First, there was an endocranial cast found, which seemed at
first to
be just another
primate skull. Then, Dart noticed how amazingly close to human it looked. His
intrigue and dedication led him into 73 days of grueling chipping and digging,
which paid off in the end. Raymond Dart had discovered the Taung child, who was
only three years old at the time of death. He named it
Australopithecus
africanus, "australis" meaning south and "pithecus" meaning ape.
Dart also hypothesized that Australopithecus africanus used tools made
from the long bones of gazelles, antelopes and wild boar. Australopithecus
africanus was found at the
Makapansak Cave in
Tanzania dating to over 1 million years ago. The controversy over the bones
found in the cave comes down to whether these bones were used by
Australopithecus africanus as tools or whether they were simply an accumulation
of food refuse. The controversy continues today.
The world was soon as intrigued by Dart because Taung is neither ape nor
human, but is classified somewhere in between. This is because the Taung child
has an ape sized brain, but the dental and postural characteristics are close
to those of humans. The evidence that Dart had that showed human postural
characteristics dealt with the head. Since it was balanced on the vertebral
column, Dart knew that the Taung child walked on two legs rather than four.
Another reason the world was watching this discovery so closely was
because Asia had previously been seen as the site of the origin of man. This
discovery makes Africa the site of the origin of mankind. These were very new
theories, challenging the only concepts that had been really familiar to the
people at that time. This explains why his discoveries and ideas were not
welcomed by the public. The people may have been intrigued, but they were not
convinced. Also unconvinced were Raymond Dart’s old instructors,
Grafton Elliot Smith and
Arthur Keith. The few who believed in
Raymond Dart went into action. His biggest believer was a man named
Robert Broom. In 1936, Broom found and
identified two forms of Australopithecus, after laboring in the same area that
Raymond Dart had worked 12 years before. In 1947, the world renowned anatomist
Wilford Le Gros Clark went to Africa to find the truth, and he agreed with
Raymond Dart and Robert Broom. Finally, after 23 years and several more
discoveries in the same African area, the Taung child was recognized as an
important discovery. Even Arthur Keith wrote how he had been wrong and Raymond
Dart had been right.
There is still one major question that remains a mystery yet today. How
does Australopithecus connect to humans? Are they direct ancestors of the genus
Homo, or are they merely our cousins on the evolutionary scale? These are the
questions Raymond Dart has pondered since the day he found the Taung child.
Raymond Dart continued to teach at the University of Witwatersrand in
Johannesburg until 1958. This is where the Institute for the Study of Man in
Africa was founded in his honor. Raymond Dart was an inspirational man,
extremely confident in his conclusions. He ignored public opinion because he
believed in himself. Because of his bravery and tenacity, the world was forced
to take the discovery of the Taung baby seriously. He found some very important
clues to the evolutionary puzzle, but never lived to see it all put together.
Raymond Dart died in November of 1988, at the age of 95. He inspired many
people throughout his lifetime to continue to look for all of the answers.
Sooner or later, all of the clues will come into place and a great deal of the
final picture will be due to Raymond Dart.
References:
Dart, Raymond and Craig, Dennis. Adventures with the Missing
Link. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1959. Fagan, Brian. "The Passion
of Raymond Dart." Archaeology v. 42 (May-June 1989): p. 18. The
New Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th edition, Raymond Dart.
Raymond Arthur
Dart was born on February 4, 1893 in Toowong, Brisbane, Australia. He attended
school at the University of Queensland and
the University of Sydney. Then, in 1920,
Mr. Dart went on to the University of London, where
he studied under the anatomists Grafton Elliot Smith and Arthur Keith. Then a
Professorship of Anatomy opened up at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg,
Africa, and Elliot Smith influenced Mr. Dart to go for the position. Raymond
Dart was given the position, and he had to move to South Africa in 1922. He
went on to become a brilliant physical anthropologist and paleontologist. 
be just another
primate skull. Then, Dart noticed how amazingly close to human it looked. His
intrigue and dedication led him into 73 days of grueling chipping and digging,
which paid off in the end. Raymond Dart had discovered the Taung child, who was
only three years old at the time of death. He named it
