National Geographic Treasure Seekers Africa s Forgotten Kingdom

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00:00:14 In the heart of southern Africa
00:00:16 stands the remains
00:00:19 Great Zimbabwe.
00:00:23 For hundreds of years
00:00:25 a mysterious civilization
00:00:28 in the Zimbabwe plateau.
00:00:37 Then suddenly in the 16th century
00:00:40 leaving behind only a riddle:
00:00:47 Obsessed with legends of
00:00:50 a German explorer
00:00:59 Was this the legendary city of Sheba,
00:01:03 whose queen captured the heart
00:01:11 Fifty years later,
00:01:12 an archeologist in her quest
00:01:15 unearthed an even more
00:01:21 Had Great Zimbabwe been the center
00:01:24 one of the greatest cities
00:01:29 This idea sparked furious debate
00:01:32 and threatened to overturn
00:01:34 about Africans and their history.
00:02:18 1871. The German explorer Karl Mauch
00:02:24 he's convinced lies
00:02:32 Mauch has spent six years in Africa
00:02:37 and numerous scrapes with death
00:02:43 Against all odds,
00:02:44 Mauch discovers immense stone walls
00:02:52 He is over awed.
00:02:56 What he has found are the ruins
00:03:00 the only one of its kind
00:03:05 Mauch believes this discovery will be
00:03:16 Mauch's obsession with Africa
00:03:21 At that time,
00:03:26 Fantastic stories hinted
00:03:29 populated by exotic animals
00:03:38 At age 10,
00:03:42 Mauch vowed to one day
00:03:51 Like many Europeans,
00:03:52 Mauch's understanding of Africa
00:03:55 that grew out of the Bible.
00:04:00 "And she gave the King
00:04:05 Never again gave such an abundance
00:04:08 that the Queen of Sheba gave
00:04:13 Solomon, the wisest and richest
00:04:17 inspired many later legends.
00:04:20 One told of Solomon's gold mines
00:04:23 called 'Ophir'.
00:04:29 Others spoke of the enigmatic Queen
00:04:34 She was a beautiful seductress
00:04:38 paid homage to King Solomon,
00:04:41 and just as suddenly disappeared back
00:04:46 which lay hidden somewhere in Africa.
00:04:54 Arab traders pried
00:04:56 in search of the lands
00:05:03 The Africans
00:05:05 came to believe that Solomon's mines
00:05:09 were somewhere in the interior.
00:05:13 Mauch burned to be the man who would
00:05:23 But Mauch was poor,
00:05:28 Living in very modest circumstances.
00:05:30 I was bound by my parents to become
00:05:34 unfortunately, denied the opportunity
00:05:43 I've endeavored to obtain knowledge
00:05:46 by talking to doctors
00:05:49 I have studied the practice
00:05:52 birds and minerals.
00:05:56 Karl Mauch did not come from
00:05:59 Karl Mauch was a self made man.
00:06:01 What he did was he taught himself
00:06:05 all the sciences that were needed for
00:06:07 in Africa like Livingston,
00:06:10 That's what Karl March came from,
00:06:16 The dream of African exploration
00:06:21 By practicing gymnastics
00:06:24 in every season, over any ground,
00:06:28 I've tried to steel my body.
00:06:33 Mauch wrote to the
00:06:36 in hope of gaining their support
00:06:53 The response was harshly negative.
00:06:55 It warned that African exploration
00:07:00 It went without saying
00:07:01 this meant people of
00:07:10 He carried this letter
00:07:14 Karl Much was not accepted by
00:07:17 because really he wasn't a member
00:07:19 He was self taught,
00:07:21 he had no titles,
00:07:23 He had no hope, really.
00:07:27 The German Geographic Institute
00:07:33 African exploration was a dangerous
00:07:38 By the time Mauch dreamed of Africa,
00:07:40 hundreds of European adventurers
00:07:43 had already died there.
00:07:50 Most explorers were independently
00:07:55 In Africa, they could afford to
00:07:58 who became their laborers, porters,
00:08:05 Mauch, however, had nothing.
00:08:12 Determined to explore wildest Africa,
00:08:16 enlisted as a crew member on
00:08:19 South Africa in 1864.
00:08:27 At last the ship reached Africa.
00:08:29 How I wished for the time when,
00:08:33 I would be able to set foot
00:08:39 But the reality of Durban
00:08:41 and the many other
00:08:43 in South Africa clashed with
00:08:50 South Africa, in 1865, was inhabited by,
00:08:53 of course, a great number of tribes:
00:08:59 By this time, quite a few white,
00:09:02 had come settled, immigrated,
00:09:05 And, in fact, conquered a bit.
00:09:07 Mauch wanted to be at the frontier,
00:09:09 at the edge of the excitement,
00:09:15 But even in a small forest
00:09:18 he felt lost in an alien world.
00:09:25 It struck him all at once
00:09:26 That Africa might pose a greater
00:09:33 I got into denser bush.
00:09:35 The high trees were somber crowns
00:09:39 Even the small sound could be heard.
00:09:42 In all honesty,
00:09:46 I felt so terribly deserted
00:10:01 He overcame this panic and struck out
00:10:05 in what is now northern South Africa.
00:10:13 Mauch walked for three weeks
00:10:17 in exchange for food and shelter.
00:10:27 He joined one of the wagon trains
00:10:28 hat carried supplies
00:10:37 In his spare time, he took notes,
00:10:47 He fell in love with the country,
00:10:51 most especially the Boar,
00:10:54 He thought they were uncivilized,
00:10:57 and their treatment
00:11:06 A 'kafir' or native colored
00:11:10 not a man.
00:11:19 Mauch's trip to the frontier
00:11:22 but it carried him to
00:11:26 uncharted Africa.
00:11:34 Scattered African villages
00:11:37 dotted the vast tracks of
00:11:46 You have now, I could tell myself,
00:11:50 and entered the high school
00:11:53 You have become the top of the fall.
00:12:00 Over the next year,
00:12:01 Mauch tentatively ventured
00:12:05 to explore what lay beyond.
00:12:14 Many of the Africans he encountered
00:12:18 White settlers were pushing
00:12:20 and the Africans resisted
00:12:27 They were especially suspicious
00:12:30 or surveying the land.
00:12:33 To disguise his intentions,
00:12:37 He feigned a sort of madness.
00:12:40 It succeeded.
00:12:41 The Africans pronounced him insane
00:13:05 With just a simple compass
00:13:08 Mauch created the first maps and
00:13:17 He sent his journals to the
00:13:20 the same group that had rejected him.
00:13:24 They began to publish
00:13:26 And, to his great satisfaction,
00:13:28 portrayed him
00:13:31 German sponsors even began to send
00:13:42 Mauch's status grew even further
00:13:44 when he made the first gold discovery
00:13:51 Word quickly spread.
00:13:53 Prospectors filtered into the area,
00:13:55 but Mauch never staked a claim
00:14:07 I have before me a choice
00:14:09 between my gold discoveries
00:14:15 Without hesitation
00:14:18 and so gave up
00:14:34 Adventure and respect were what
00:14:38 and was finally achieving.
00:14:44 He wanted more.
00:14:58 In 1968, at the age of 31,
00:15:01 Karl Mauch set off on an expedition
00:15:10 I may, without exaggeration,
00:15:12 call this journey a long fight
00:15:22 Game were scarce.
00:15:23 Bands of hostile warriors
00:15:26 He lived in constant fear.
00:15:43 While mapping swampy coastlines,
00:15:49 He went without food for 8 days
00:15:55 Fevers and ill health would torment
00:16:08 Mauch revived when local Africans
00:16:10 of an abandoned stone city
00:16:18 Though still weak,
00:16:19 Mauch resolved to find the fabled city
00:16:21 and in January of 1871
00:16:26 he set forth on the adventure
00:16:40 When Mauch crossed the Lompopo River,
00:16:44 to Europeans.
00:16:53 It was also an alien world
00:16:55 in which Mauch offered an easy target
00:17:02 His trade goods quickly dwindled.
00:17:09 In these circumstances
00:17:12 One has to assume
00:17:15 when handing out presents.
00:17:23 As Mauch pushed into the interior,
00:17:26 villagers who did not own firearms
00:17:36 At one point
00:17:39 who did no work in return.
00:17:46 While other explorers bullied
00:17:50 Mauch tried negotiation
00:17:55 A cold wind blew during the night
00:17:59 I took pity on their naked skinny
00:18:03 and gave them my own woolen blankets.
00:18:08 His efforts to win their good
00:18:13 Eight months into the trip,
00:18:23 They had sliced open his bags
00:18:32 He felt trapped.
00:18:44 I could not flee.
00:18:45 As the second night followed
00:18:49 and it was, therefore, not surprising
00:18:53 to take my own life
00:19:05 But Mauch must have known
00:19:20 The next day he snapped out of his
00:19:25 There he hired guides who led him
00:19:38 Mauch beheld ancient walls
00:19:48 God be praised!
00:19:53 Only a few days before I was occupied
00:19:57 and today I stand before the most
00:20:12 After six hard years of exploration,
00:20:15 Karl Mauch discovered Great Zimbabwe.
00:20:18 He was amazed by what he saw.
00:20:24 Stone walls spread over a square mile
00:20:28 bounded on one end by ruins on a hill.
00:20:36 At the center of its all stood
00:20:39 30 feet high
00:20:50 Mauch realized he stood within
00:20:57 It had been a culture
00:21:02 Thousands had lived in the city,
00:21:09 Mauch dismissed the possibility of
00:21:18 Mauch was not immune to European
00:21:21 and they guided his thinking.
00:21:26 In Mauch's mind Africans built
00:21:31 It was inconceivable to him that
00:21:32 they could construct
00:21:36 The local Africans seemed
00:21:42 All are absolutely convinced that
00:21:52 Overlooking clear signs
00:21:55 and ignorant of archeology,
00:21:58 Mauch turned to the Bible and legend
00:22:09 The whole fantastic site,
00:22:12 was the Queen of
00:22:18 The center of the legendary
00:22:46 Mauch searched for evidence
00:22:49 He cut splinters from a wooden beam.
00:22:54 The smell which it exudes
00:22:57 to that
00:23:00 The color too is the same.
00:23:06 Mauch believed Sheba had imported
00:23:09 a land to the north of ancient Israel.
00:23:19 The local Africans tribes provided
00:23:23 He thought their customs of
00:23:26 had been learned
00:23:29 and passed down through the years.
00:23:35 Mauch was ecstatic.
00:23:37 He believed he had just made one of
00:23:41 a legendary lost city rescued from
00:23:53 Mauch's frenzy of excitement crashed
00:24:02 Desperate and alone,
00:24:04 he knew that to stay alive
00:24:12 After seven years
00:24:15 Mauch dragged himself to the coast
00:24:24 Germany had changed radically
00:24:29 War and politics
00:24:33 And Mauch's earlier exploits
00:24:37 But the greatest blow fell
00:24:42 scientists and historians,
00:24:49 A chemist determined that
00:24:51 from the Zimbabwe ruins
00:24:55 it wasn't cedar brought there
00:24:59 Others pointed out that
00:25:00 Mauch's sketches
00:25:03 looked nothing like the buildings
00:25:09 And they ridiculed the idea of
00:25:12 practicing Jewish rituals.
00:25:22 In his furious attempts
00:25:26 Mauch became more disoriented than he
00:25:28 in the wilds of Africa.
00:25:35 Racked by fevers, he grew increasingly
00:25:43 In early 1875,
00:25:45 Mauch fell to his death
00:25:50 The circumstances surrounding
00:25:57 Karl Mauch died at the age of 38.
00:26:09 Despite all that Mauch accomplished
00:26:11 and all that he overcome
00:26:14 the only memorial to him
00:26:16 stands in Germany at
00:26:25 His theories about a lost
00:26:28 find an eager audience,
00:26:30 especially in the British colonies
00:26:36 The imperial mission in Africa
00:26:42 To have it thought that
00:26:45 such enormous buildings as these
00:26:47 on such a vast scale
00:26:51 No one could have imagined it
00:26:53 no one could have believed it.
00:26:54 Therefore, for imperialism
00:26:57 that these building were thought
00:27:00 people other than Africans.
00:27:01 Almost anyone would do.
00:27:08 South African and Rhodesian settlers
00:27:11 for their vision
00:27:15 They countered any challenge
00:27:18 with a storm of vitriol and ridicule.
00:27:21 Only a formidable character
00:27:32 Fifty years later in 1929
00:27:35 one of the worlds
00:27:37 Gertrude Caton Thompson,
00:27:39 scoured the ruins of Great Zimbabwe
00:27:45 Years of hard work and struggle
00:27:48 had won Gertrude grudging respect
00:27:51 but Great Zimbabwe posed
00:28:00 All evidence of the identity
00:28:03 appeared to have been erased.
00:28:07 But failure was not an option
00:28:10 Tireless in her pursuit of the truth,
00:28:12 Gertrude would search
00:28:15 the key to unlock the mystery
00:28:26 Few would have predicted such a life
00:28:29 She was born in 1888
00:28:33 But it was also unstable.
00:28:36 Her father died when she was young;
00:28:40 From an early age, Gertrude
00:28:54 Travel was one of the few constants
00:28:58 Something of value had been gained
00:29:03 Pompeii and Rome stand out in memory
00:29:06 because I felt the first stirrings
00:29:12 But it would take time for these
00:29:26 In her twenties, Gertrude's existence
00:29:35 Life at home was pleasant
00:29:37 to do family during that pampered
00:29:41 Visits to relatives and friends
00:29:45 constant amusement at games, parties,
00:29:49 followed each other endlessly.
00:29:55 She became attracted to a young solider,
00:30:00 In 1914, just after the outbreak
00:30:04 Carlion received a short leave
00:30:07 He visited Gertrude.
00:30:15 Time flew.
00:30:16 And apart from the war we talked
00:30:22 I faced the fact that I loved him
00:30:31 For the next two years
00:30:35 Gertrude threw herself
00:30:46 In 1916, news arrived that turned
00:30:51 On September 16th
00:30:59 Gertrude never recovered
00:31:03 Almost 25 years later,
00:31:08 When I left to say good bye
00:31:11 After a parting embrace,
00:31:13 I noticed for the first time
00:31:18 She said in a tone of assertion,
00:31:24 I replied, "He was loved by
00:31:31 For Gertrude the option of marriage
00:31:35 died with Carlion McFarland.
00:31:39 And it wasn't a subject
00:31:42 or hardly at all.
00:31:44 But it must have had a huge influence
00:31:47 If she had become being married,
00:31:53 soldier's wife,
00:31:54 she might never have gone in
00:32:03 Gertrude withdrew from
00:32:07 In the later years,
00:32:08 one of the few deep friendships
00:32:10 was with the de Navarro family.
00:32:15 Gertrude helped raise their son
00:32:18 His memories are of a woman
00:32:19 whose strong character
00:32:22 But to him she was warm and devoted.
00:32:27 She was a formidable person.
00:32:31 Somebody of the type
00:32:35 Very much somebody of her age.
00:32:38 Passionate in support of
00:32:44 Obstinate.
00:32:47 No lover of fools,
00:32:52 Yet very loving and affectionate
00:32:56 to those lucky enough to have been.
00:33:05 In 1920, Gertrude sought to escape
00:33:08 of her earlier life.
00:33:10 She volunteered at
00:33:13 in the South of France.
00:33:17 During the visit
00:33:24 With the determination
00:33:27 Gertrude, now 32,
00:33:35 Archeology was still a new
00:33:39 Demand for specialists created
00:33:48 The discipline and precision
00:33:50 suited Gertrude's
00:33:59 Her dedication brought her
00:34:02 of one of the world's
00:34:10 He asked her to assist him
00:34:19 Sir Fliders Petrie was a demanding
00:34:23 but Gertrude excelled.
00:34:27 In 1924,
00:34:29 Sir Fliders Petrie helped her obtain
00:34:32 for her own dig in Egypt.
00:34:36 It was a great success.
00:34:38 Her conclusions pushed back the date
00:34:41 for the origin of
00:34:47 Although they have since
00:34:48 they contradicted
00:34:52 He severed all support.
00:34:54 Gertrude raised the funds herself
00:34:57 She would never relent to
00:35:08 An Anglo Rhodesian foundation
00:35:11 about conducting a dig
00:35:14 The hoped to uncover clues
00:35:17 that once flourished there.
00:35:21 Gertrude Caton Thompson
00:35:23 She had worked under the
00:35:26 and under the most impossible
00:35:32 and in the end running large scale
00:35:37 She was carefully chosen to
00:35:41 She was ideally suited to it.
00:35:49 The Foundation set one condition
00:35:53 about Great Zimbabwe's origins
00:35:55 to the British Association
00:35:58 in only eight months time.
00:36:01 This was a tight deadline
00:36:04 Undaunted, Gertrude accepted.
00:36:19 Gertrude arrived in Bera
00:36:27 The noise of the collapsing town,
00:36:30 the many ships in harbor dragging
00:36:33 and crashing into each other
00:36:38 Mercifully, I am not easily alarmed.
00:36:42 She rode out the storm
00:36:45 but found that the cyclone
00:36:53 Gertrude drove towards Rhodesia,
00:36:56 but the rain season
00:36:58 and the rivers to churning torrents.
00:37:13 After weeks of delay,
00:37:14 she finally reached Salisbury,
00:37:18 Rhodesia was named for the
00:37:20 and imperialist, Cecil Rhodes.
00:37:27 Rhodes master minded British expansion
00:37:31 personally controlling thousands of
00:37:34 as he created one of the
00:37:48 In the capital of Salisbury,
00:37:54 In just 40 years
00:37:55 white settlers had created a bustling
00:38:00 but it had been built
00:38:03 Whites lived well,
00:38:07 while blacks were relegated
00:38:09 with subsistence wages,
00:38:18 The white mindset
00:38:20 was pervasive, poisoning
00:38:26 When one prominent white woman asked
00:38:29 the upcoming excavation,
00:38:31 Gertrude said they could if they
00:38:36 Just as Gertrude expected,
00:38:42 At dinner one night
00:38:43 the governor promoted the idea
00:38:46 were of ancient and thereby
00:38:50 Gertrude countered that her job
00:38:57 I replied that I had no idea
00:39:01 and only hoped I might get an answer.
00:39:11 The team Gertrude brought to
00:39:14 reflected her willingness
00:39:17 It was an all women team.
00:39:20 I think very deliberately
00:39:23 and was one of the first feminists
00:39:29 It was one of the first all female
00:39:39 Gertrude and the others
00:39:42 in their first days there.
00:39:51 Normally, a site this size offers
00:39:55 for an archeologist,
00:39:56 but many others have been there
00:39:59 She was stunned by
00:40:06 Generations of treasure hunters
00:40:10 had laid bare practically
00:40:14 In brief, fulfillment of my task
00:40:21 For Gertrude Caton Thompson
00:40:23 the site at Great Zimbabwe
00:40:25 since Mauch's time.
00:40:27 What had happened in fact was
00:40:30 had decided they could would find
00:40:33 and they had literally pillaged,
00:40:36 pulled the walls down,
00:40:39 Prospectors formed the Rhodesian
00:40:42 to extract gold.
00:40:44 They dug numerous trenches
00:40:47 but found little gold.
00:40:49 What they did loot was
00:40:53 They'd melted it down
00:40:57 Priceless artifacts
00:41:05 Early treasure seekers
00:41:13 Cecil Rhodes bought two
00:41:18 and hired men to search
00:41:21 that it had been built
00:41:28 In their rush to prove that
00:41:33 excavators moved tons of topsoil,
00:41:36 of African origin.
00:41:39 The damage was irreparable.
00:41:41 As for evidence of white occupation
00:41:45 nothing was ever unearthed.
00:41:56 The devastated condition of the ruins
00:41:59 at an apparent dead end.
00:42:03 She and her team dug
00:42:05 and she paid the laborers
00:42:12 Still, she found nothing conclusive.
00:42:18 Time was running out.
00:42:20 The British Association
00:42:28 Gertrude arranged for a plane
00:42:30 so that she could inspect the ruins
00:42:37 She became one of
00:42:40 to use aerial observation.
00:42:45 As she swept past the hill ruins,
00:42:47 Gertrude spotted a path that from
00:42:52 It led to terraces
00:42:55 and had clearly not been used
00:43:02 Treasure seekers had overlooked
00:43:16 The next day, Gertrude moved her team
00:43:25 There they uncovered
00:43:27 untouched by anyone but
00:43:34 Everything that Gertrude Caton
00:43:41 There were changes in the pottery
00:43:45 but always African.
00:43:46 The only foreign material she found
00:43:51 and Far Eastern ceramics,
00:43:53 Near Eastern ceramics,
00:43:55 but these were firmly dated to
00:44:00 So they, in fact,
00:44:05 that this was a 13th century
00:44:10 that had trade connections overseas.
00:44:19 Gertrude determined that Great Zimbabwe
00:44:23 from the 9th to the 14th centuries,
00:44:26 a major hub in a huge sophisticated
00:44:35 Great Zimbabwe had straddled
00:44:39 as they carried ivory and gold
00:44:44 Their trade partners were
00:44:47 who were the great middlemen,
00:44:48 dealing in goods from as far away
00:45:02 Gertrude compiled her findings
00:45:04 for the British Association meeting.
00:45:20 She expected a hostile reaction
00:45:25 but headed into the controversy
00:45:33 Gertrude presented her findings
00:45:36 in Johannesburg
00:45:41 Her presentation was meticulous.
00:45:43 Her conclusions, crystal clear.
00:45:49 Instead of a degenerate offshoot
00:45:53 you have here a native civilization
00:45:56 showing national organization
00:45:59 originality and amazing industry.
00:46:06 She portrayed a living, vibrant,
00:46:14 in which the walls formed
00:46:18 where women cooked,
00:46:24 In one extraordinary paper,
00:46:26 Gertrude killed the myth
00:46:30 In its place, she described
00:46:35 It was estimated to house ten
00:46:39 a city as large as many
00:46:50 Many were scandalized.
00:46:51 They remained convinced that
00:46:53 Africans were simply incapable of
00:46:59 Several stormed from the room.
00:47:02 Even the normally calm Gertrude
00:47:05 by the fury her conclusions
00:47:09 Gertrude Caton Thompson's work
00:47:13 among the academics and scientists.
00:47:15 It did nothing to persuade the
00:47:24 And nothing that anyone could do
00:47:27 or in the fifty years subsequent
00:47:33 with such strong racial prejudices
00:47:46 She bade farewell
00:47:49 Her sense of irony surfaced
00:47:51 how the foreman asked
00:47:54 I explained that he would not
00:47:58 with no one to talk to
00:48:02 'Are there no black men in England?'
00:48:05 I replied,
00:48:08 'After a puzzled reflection he said,
00:48:13 Then who does the work?'
00:48:18 Gertrude left for England
00:48:22 but the controversy surrounding
00:48:28 In 1930, Gertrude's findings
00:48:31 were exhibited at
00:48:36 I undertook to be present
00:48:39 to answer questions
00:48:43 who continued to believe in
00:48:46 In the exhibit's wake came letters
00:48:49 and lively correspondence
00:48:54 I refrained from being drawn
00:48:59 But she kept a special file.
00:49:03 Caton Thompson was a
00:49:06 She could be quite cold and quite
00:49:11 She put the quality of her work
00:49:15 and she could not
00:49:17 And to her,
00:49:18 many of those who speculated on
00:49:29 Gertrude's combative nature worked
00:49:33 on her last major dig.
00:49:36 She traveled to South Arabia
00:49:40 but she fought constantly
00:49:43 from the food to the
00:49:47 Gertrude hoped to find connections
00:49:49 between South Arabia
00:49:53 Perhaps the Arab traders
00:49:54 who had brought goods to the African
00:49:58 had influenced
00:50:03 Gertrude looked for common
00:50:07 anything that might link
00:50:10 She encountered Arab's
00:50:12 who still practiced traditional stone
00:50:15 but their ties to
00:50:24 Towards the end of the expedition,
00:50:28 Sick and exhausted,
00:50:32 She began to suffer from
00:50:35 that plagued her
00:50:39 A doctor diagnosed a distended heart.
00:50:45 Now 50 years old, Gertrude settled
00:50:49 the deNavarros
00:50:52 They became the stable family
00:50:56 But in the end she moved in with us,
00:51:02 It was like having an extra and
00:51:04 living as part of the family.
00:51:11 Gertrude's greatest legacy
00:51:14 high civilization arose
00:51:20 White settlers could no longer claim
00:51:28 When the black majority in Rhodesia
00:51:32 they renamed their country 'Zimbabwe'
00:51:35 to identify themselves
00:51:44 The ruins which once illustrated
00:51:48 not stand for an independent,
00:51:55 As Gertrude Caton Thompson said,
00:51:58 "Great Zimbabwe lies in the