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Robert Broom [1866-1951]

By K. Kris Hirst, About.com

Robert Broom looking at Mrs. Ples (Statue, Sterkfontein)

Robert Broom looking at Mrs. Ples (Statue, Sterkfontein)

Thomas Sly (c) 2006
Definition: Robert Brooom was a Scots-born medical doctor, who at the age of 31 emigrated to South Africa. There he practiced medicine and in his spare time became a world-renowned expert in mammals and evolutionary theory. In 1934 at the age of 68, Broom retired from his medical practice and began working at the Transvaal Museum as a paleontologist. It was there that he began to search for early hominids, seeking more specimens of Taung baby.

Broom's paleontological work included excavations and study at some of the most important sites in South Africa, including Sterkfontein, Swartkrans, and Kromdraai.

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