Theodore Bent’s 1891 Great Zimbabwe expedition

Record summary

The British archaeologist James Theodore Bent visited and investigated Great Zimbabwe in 1891, publishing The Ruined Cities of Mashonaland in 1892. His expedition produced plans, descriptions, and collections, while still arguing for a non-African origin of the monuments. This lead is useful for tracing how field documentation, artifact collecting, and interpretive prejudice became entangled in colonial archaeology. Later excavations and historical archaeology substantially revised Bent’s conclusions, identifying construction and occupation histories rooted in southern African societies and regional exchange.