Woman Going to Solomon's Mines By Air

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 603, 4 March 1929, Page 14

Woman Going to Solomon's Mines By Air

Intrepid English Explorer Plans Expedition ANCIENT CIVILISATION Exploration by airplane is to be one of the thrills of Miss Gertrude CatonTliompson, whom the cables announced recently as ready to leave London on a trip to Southern Rhodesia to visit King Solomon’s mines. She will be accompanied by Miss Norie, a professional architect, and Miss K. Kenyon, daughter of Sir Frederic Kenyon, Director of the British Museum. The scene of their future work is the legendary site of Kin£ Solomon’s mines. On this site stands the Zimbabwe ruins, consisting of large circular walls with fortified gateways, which are commonly supposed to be fortresses and temples. Local legends say that King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba were associated with an older civilisation there, and Sir Rider Haggard has perpetuated these legends in his books. An airplane will probably be used by Miss Caton-Thompson in her preliminary survey of the ruins. She considers the airplane of the greatest value in exploration work, and hopes to obtain a machine from Bulawayo, the nearest town of importance. “I shall be glad when I can get to grips with my job,” she declared before her departure. “It is a long journey, and the preliminary work is very tedious.” A cool, self-possessed young woman. Miss Caton-Thompson is of medium height. Her face is still slightly tanned by the hot sun of Egypt, where she did brilliant work for the Royal Anthropological Institute. “On the outward journey I shall spend some time in Egypt,” she stated. “I am going up country to collect equipment.

“I shall take a boat at Port Said and land at Beira, in Portuguese East Africa, and then go straight to Southern Rhodesia. The whole of February and probably March will be occupied with prospecting, gleaning information, and finding local labour. My assistants are joining me in March. I selected Miss Norie because, as I view the problem before us, I think it will be extremely valuable to have thorough architectural records of the ruins. Miss Kenyon has just come down from Oxford University, and this will be her first introduction to excavation work. The British Association has been granted permission to excavate two important groups of ruins—one at Zimbabwe and the other at Dlilo-Dhlo (pronounced Flo-Flo). Dhlo-Dhlo lies to the north of Bulawayo. I hope to begin work as sc% i as the rainy season ends, probably early in March.” Describing the objects of her expedition. Miss CatonThompson explained: “Scattered over this region are between 300 and 400 ruins, but they are not all of the same age. There are conflicting opinions in the archaeological world as to their probable date. There is a strong feeling in favour of their being remote, prehistoric B.C. There is, on the other hand, an equally strong and well-au-thenticated view that they are not earlier than mediaeval. Years of Excavation

“The advocates of both points of view have made out quite a good case but the evidence on neither side in conclusive. In my opinion the solution to the problem will be found only by prolonged and careful excavation and observation. carried out over probably a number of years in different parts of Rhodesia. It is not my job to hold preconceived theories as to which is correct. The job of the excavator is to be as accurate an observer and recorded as is possible. If the ruins are mediaeval they are conceivably native work, executed with a certain infiltration of outside ideas—pi obably borrowed from mining prospectors. The other school would see m them a definite foreign civilisation entering purely for the purpose of mining.” Old Legend Miss Caton-Thompson would not herself on the question of v r Klns Solomon and the Queen of Sheba were ever associated with the .rii? 5 s an old le &end,” She 7"% know that the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon had ver'V large dealings in gold, and that Rho*S a gold * minin S country, but there is no other literary or archaeological evidence for that view. One docsn t rule out the possibility of Asia hb. l “s nCe ’ ° f course - 14 is conceit* fl i ~t haL - you mi Sht get people from the direction of Asia Minor, but it is pure speculation. There is not a WbL me . r L t of evi dence that it was so. When the early Portuguese and Dutch settlers reached the coast of Mozambique, in the Middle Ages, they found Th« tribal organisation there. The most famous ruler of the kinodom was called Mono Motapa. “'f ° f the inhabitants, showing the magnificence of the kingdom, havl been handed down to us by the early colonisers. My main object wilt be lo discover the dwelling sites of ancient people.” Miss Caton-Thomo they a do not ***l? 11 be arm *d, but y „ « ' .anticipate any occasion ior using their weapons. “I shall report the result of my first season’® in vestigations to the meeting of tuZ British Association. S ?akeLl ™ added. Uth AfHca next P -hi