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A curious request...

Item

Title

A curious request...

Creator

Nina Liebenberg

Date Created

2021

Type

Email

Description

"Dear post-graduate researchers in Geological Sciences

I am a lecturer at the Michaelis School of Fine Art, and have brought my Honours in Curatorship students almost annually to visit the Mantle collection that forms part of your department. Dr Janney usually chats to us, and shows us the kimberlite specimens...

As of recently, I have been doing research on George Stow, a British born, South African geologist and ethnologist (who was also a poet, historian, artist, cartographer and writer) and who, during the 19th century, was responsible for documenting the rock art he found in the caves and shelters of South Africa.

In 1872, he was employed by Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of the Cape Colony, to survey the territory of Griqualand West. On this subject he read a paper before the Geological Society in London in 1873 (""Geological Notes on Griqualand West""). Two years later, Stow undertook the task of studying the geology of the country surrounding the diamond fields of Kimberley, travelling down to the junction of the Orange and Vaal rivers and beyond, in order to connect this research to the previous work he had done in the area.
I have attached a map he drew up during this time and would be very interested to know what a contemporary geologist makes of it...

I welcome any insights - and would especially be interested to know whether there are materials in the department which could possibly relate to it, such as specimens in the Mantle Room, or other maps perhaps? Or maybe you can just point me in the right direction and I can chat to someone else in the department or further afield?

I am keeping my fingers-crossed...
Regards,

Nina Liebenberg"

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Geological Sciences
Centre for Curating the Archive

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Sheet No 11 Bibliographic Resource