Peter Storr Garlake (11 January 1934 - 2 December 2011) was a

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

, who made influential contributions to the study of

Great Zimbabwe Great Zimbabwe was a city in the south-eastern hills of the modern country of Zimbabwe, near Masvingo. It was settled from 1000 AD, and served as the capital of the Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe from the 13th century. It is the largest stone struc ...

and Ife,

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

Life

Garlake began his career in

African art African art encompasses modern and historical paintings, sculptures, installations, and other visual cultures originating from indigenous African diaspora, African communities across the African continent. The definition may also include the ar ...

and archaeology as a Nuffield Research Student, British Institute in Eastern Africa from 1962 to 1964, carrying out excavations at Manekweni in

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

.M. Sibanda, H. Moyana et al. 1992. ''The African Heritage. History for Junior Secondary Schools. Book 1''. Zimbabwe Publishing House. From 1964 to 1970, Garlake served as the Rhodesian Inspector of Monuments and was on faculty at the University of Rhodesia. During this time his research focused on the early history of

. He argued that Great Zimbabwe was constructed by the ancestors of the current inhabitants of the area, the

Shona people The Shona people () also/formerly known as the Karanga are a Bantu peoples, Bantu ethnic group native to Southern Africa, primarily living in Zimbabwe where they form the majority of the population, as well as Mozambique, South Africa, and world ...

, as opposed to being constructed by a non-African or outsider civilization. This research was opposed by the Rhodesian government, including the prime minister,

Ian Smith Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 191920 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to 1979. He w ...

, and Garlake was forced to leave the country in 1970. Garlake relocated to Ife, Nigeria, and between 1971 and 1973 was a senior research fellow at the University of Ife, where he researched the early art and archaeology of Ile-Ife. From 1976 to 1981, Garlake held an appointment as lecturer in the Department of Anthropology at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. Following Zimbabwean Independence, Garlake returned to Zimbabwe and spent the next ten years conducting his research on early Zimbabwean rock art. Garlake was married to the British art historian Margaret Garlake.

Works

*''The Early Islamic Architecture of the East African Coast'' (1966) *''Great Zimbabwe'' (1973) *''The Kingdoms of Africa'' (1978) *''The Hunter's Vision'' (1995) *''Early Art and Architecture of Africa'' (2002)

References

1934 births 2011 deaths 20th-century archaeologists 21st-century archaeologists 20th-century Zimbabwean writers 21st-century Zimbabwean writers Zimbabwean people of British descent White Rhodesian people Zimbabwean exiles University of Zimbabwe Zimbabwean archaeologists Zimbabwean expatriates in Nigeria Academic staff of Obafemi Awolowo University Zimbabwean expatriates in Mozambique Rhodesian archaeologists Rhodesian people of British descent Academic staff of the University of Zimbabwe Great Zimbabwe {{Zimbabwe-bio-stub