Leakey Legacy Essay Research Paper The search

Leakey Legacy Essay, Research Paper

The search for the explanation of human origins is the goal and often life long commitment of many Anthropologists. Every time a major discovery is made we move closer to discovering a piece of the puzzle that is human evolution. Major contributions have been made by a number of men and women. Some of the more famous names like Raymond Dart, and Tim White are known for the huge discoveries they made. However, no name is more famous in the search for human origins then Leakey. The Leakey legacy began with Louis Leakey more then seventy years ago when he graduated from Cambridge University. Mary Leakey became part of the legacy with her marriage to Louis in 1934. Richard Leakey, son of Mary and Louis, and his wife Meave Leakey further added to the accomplishments of his family by following in his parents footsteps. It is the amazing dedication of each member in the Leakey family that separates them from other anthropologists, and makes them the greatest contributors in the search for an explanation to our past.

Louis Leakey was born near Nairobi, Kenya in 1903. His birth was the beginning of a family legacy in Archeology that still continues today. Some people say he was born to be an archaeologist. L. Leakey went to school at Cambridge University, majoring in Anthropology. After graduating in 1926, Leakey got a job as an African expert on an archaeological mission to Tanzania. Afterward, he returned to Cambridge to continue his studies of Anthropology. While studying again at Cambridge Louis began to develop his view that early man had developed in Africa. Louis left Cambridge returning again to Tanzania to study the Olduvai Gorge and the Homo sapiens skeleton. He was amazed with his work at Olduvai but decided he could always come back so he left to go on his own expeditions.

Louis Leakey was now 23 and studying many sites where he found many interesting things, such as tools, bones and other artifacts. A few years of this fieldwork gained Leakey honorable recognition from other archaeologists, and subsequently he was awarded with a two year Fellowship at St. John s College in England. Louis was now a very busy man, he published his first book The Stone Age Cultures of Kenya Colony during this time. Also, while working at St. John s Leakey got a grant to return to Olduvai Gorge. Louis Leakey was beginning to become a big name in the world of Archeology. Working at Olduvai Gorge he discovered the oldest Homo sapiens in the world. However, many people had begun to contradict his theories on human origins and their roots in Africa. Louis continued to make discoveries in Africa where he found older skulls that could be proved of their age. On returning to England, Louis was shocked to find out that his reputation was in great danger. However, these doubts did not last long after he argued his reputation back at a conference in Cambridge. People were once again starting to believe in his discoveries.

Louis Leakey s problems were not over after the conference in Cambridge. In 1936 he encountered financial problems, so he was forced to write his autobiography, White Africa. That book along with another, about the Kikuyu culture, was enough to bring him out of debt. At this same time he met his wife to be, Mary Nicol. Mary was also interested in human origins and would go on to further enhance the Leakey legacy (see later section focused on Mary Leakey). In 1939 Leakey became a Civilian Intelligence Officer for the Kenyan government, and was later drafted to the African Intelligence Department. At the end of WWII his work included collecting information for the government as a spy.

In June of 1947, Leakey returned to Archaeology at an excavation site on Rusinga Island. He discovered the first Proconsul skull with a complete face in 1949. Unfortunately for Leakey this was not the missing link, but it was a link between monkey and ape. The discovery also blessed Louis with an increase of research funds. With the much-needed money Leakey continued work at Rusinga where he found more artifacts, and more Proconsul remains. In 1951 Louis decided to return to the site were he began his work. He and Mary went back to the Olduvai site, here he searched for the man that created tools. This is where Louis would make his greatest discovery. In 1959 his excavations paid off, Leakey and his wife found a new skeleton that he called Zinj . The skeleton was put on display at the fourth Pan African Congress where it caused madness among the people there. It also caused Louis and Mary some new worldwide fame, and a considerable amount of money to continue excavation work at Olduvai. In his final years Louis worked at the Corynkon Museum and Mary took over the excavation with Louis visiting in all of his free time. Louis died in 1972 of a heart attack at the age of 69. Louis had only begun to uncover the many mysteries that the Leakeys are known for. His wife Mary continued the work he started and began her own legacy with many new discoveries.

Mary D. Leakey was born Mary Nicol on February 6, 1913 in London, England. She lived a difficult childhood which saw her growing up in a number of different countries, and finally in Dorgogne. It was there at the age of eleven that her interest was sparked in prehistory after meeting Abbe Lemozi, who was excavating at the Cavrerets. Upon her father s death in 1926, Mary s life changed dr