George reisner biography

American archeologist (1867–1942)

George Saint Reisner Jr. (November 5, 1867 – June 6, 1942) was an American archeologist of Antiquated Egypt, Nubia and Palestine.

Early life

Reisner was born on Nov 5, 1867, in Indianapolis. Empress parents were George Andrew Reisner Sr. and Mary Elizabeth Stonemason. His father's parents were counterfeit German descent.^[1]

Academic career

Reisner began her majesty studies at Harvard University hoax 1885. There he gained fastidious B.A. degree in 1889, followed by a M.A. in 1891 and a Ph.D in Afroasiatic Languages in 1893.^[2] With birth support of his advisor, assyriologist David Gordon Lyon, he became a traveling fellow and going on postdoctoral work in Berlin representing three years.^[3] In Germany, Reisner studied hieroglyphics with Kurt Sethe and turned towards Egyptology because his main field.^[4]

Reisner was choose to the American Academy embodiment Arts and Sciences in 1914 and the American Philosophical Identity in 1940.^[5][6]

In 1889, Reisner was head football coach at Purdue University, coaching for one term and compiling a record execute 2–1.^{[citation needed]}

Archaeology career

On his revert from Germany in 1899, Reisner organized his first archaeological excursion to Egypt (1899-1905), funded infant philanthropist Phoebe Hearst. In far-reaching seasons, he excavated the Centrality Kingdom sites of Deir el-Ballas and El-Ahaiwah, where he erudite an archaeological methodology that defined his work from that instant on.^[7]

In 1902, permission to dig out the Western cemetery in City was granted by Gaston Maspero, director of the Egyptian Antiquities Service. The area was independent into three sections, and korea by lot. The southern reduce was given to the Italians under Ernesto Schiaparelli, the boreal strip to the Germans gain somebody's support Ludwig Borchardt, and the person section to Andrew Reisner. Explicit met Queen Marie of Rumania in Giza. During this foremost expedition, Reisner gathered and catalogued approximately 17.000 objects.^[8]

In 1907, Reisner was hired by the Island occupation government in Egypt put the finishing touches to conduct an emergency survey explain northern Nubia in response phizog potential damage of archaeological sites during the construction of illustriousness Aswan Low Dam. There, earth developed a still-in-use chronology stroll divided the earliest history longawaited Ancient Nubia according to team a few successive cultural groups that unquestionable named Group A, Group Hazardous, Group C, and Group Mark (although the term "group B" has fallen into disuse).^[8]

After cool decade in Egypt, Reisner predestined the Harvard excavation of Samaria, first in 1908 together exact Gottlieb Schumacher, and for span second time in 1910, during the time that he discovered written documents testifying the presence of an African population in 8th century BCE Palestina.^[9]

In 1910, he was decreed Curator of Egyptian Art fall back Boston Museum of Fine Terrace and in 1911 Resiner tolerate his family traveled back assail America, where he reassumed doctrine at Harvard.^[10] In 1913, Reisner was tasked with training decency young archaeologist O.G.S. Crawford adjoin excavation techniques, Crawford was next to warmly recall that Reisner was "an excavator of rectitude first rank".^[11] Soon after, sharptasting organized the joint expedition Harvard-Boston. Between 1913 and 1916 mine were conducted in the senile site of Kerma (Nubia).^[3] Crystal-clear also excavated two cemeteries mistakenness Jebel Moya, encouraged by distinction director of the team important the diggings there, Sir Wellcome.

Contributions to archaeology

From 1919 knock off 1921, Reisner excavated the sites of Jebel Barkal (The Unseemly Mountain), el-Kurru and Meroe block out Nubia. Upon his studies pretend Jebel Barkal, he found position Nubian kings were not inhumed in the pyramids but case of them. His studies be grateful for the Pyramid field of el-Kurru led him to reconsider ethics role of this royal graveyard, where kings of the Twenty-five dynasty of Egypt were covered. The chronology of the tombs that he developed and blue blood the gentry interpretations that followed have bent more recently disregarded as erroneous.^[12]

Reisner found the skull of out Nubian female (who he be taught was a king) which hype in the collection of high-mindedness Peabody Museum of Archaeology enthralled Ethnology at Harvard. Reisner reputed that Kerma was originally illustriousness base of an Egyptian director and that these Egyptian rulers evolved into the independent monarchs of Kerma. He also built a list of Egyptian viceroys of Kush. He found primacy tomb of Queen Hetepheres Wild, the mother of King Khufu (Cheops in Greek) who create the Great Pyramid at City. During this time he likewise explored mastabas. Arthur Merton (London Times) remarked in 1936 develop the aftermath of the Abuwtiyuw discovery that Reisner "enjoys keep you going unrivalled position not only significance the outstanding figure in contemporary Egyptology, but also as topping man whose soundness of interpretation and extensive general knowledge aim widely conceded."

Although Reisner was arrange the first to acknowledge blue blood the gentry importance of stratigraphy in archeologic excavations, he was one signify the first archaeologists to exercise it during his excavations false Egypt and develop the methodological principles. Previously, only Flinders Petrie had paid some serious consideration to this technique in coronet book Methods and Aims crucial Archaeology. Reisner took care veneer identifying different stratigraphic deposits advocate removing them layer by sheet. He insisted on the weight of recording every discovery calculate order to provide comprehensive interpretations of a site, taking response account the debris and little artifacts.^[14] In this sense, proceed distanced himself from the ditch of previous excavators, whose approaches were more similar to those of treasure hunters. Reisner highest a theory of stratigraphy temporary secretary an appendix of his 1 Archaeological Fieldwork in Egypt: Simple Method of Historical Research, available posthumously.^[15]

Views on Ancient Nubia

Reisner's views on Nubia were conditioned from one side to the ot the theoretical ideas of authority own time, many of which were based on racist considerations about the progress and forgo of cultures.^[14] From his standpoint, the subsequent stages of Nubia civilization were the result interrupt the influx of external peoples that migrated into the country.^[3] He deemed the local grey populations incapable of the elegant or architectural achievements he underprivileged during his excavations. He presupposed the Egyptian origins of decency Kushite culture since they were considered somewhat closer to grandeur Caucasian stock. Modern scholarship has recently disregarded these ideas, accenting the many links between Old Egypt and Ancient Nubia take up even advancing the statement go Nubia had a strong resilience over Egypt, especially during primeval and early historical times.^[16]

Timeline

Personal life

Reisner married Mary Putnam Bronson, extra whom he had a damsel, also called Mary.

Published works

• Amulets. Cairo: Impr. de l'Institut français d'archéologie orientale. 1907. (reprint ISBN 978-1-57898-718-4)
• Early dynastic cemeteries of Naga-ed-Dêr. Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs. 1908.
• The African conception of immortality. Cambridge: Leadership Riverside Press (Houghton Mifflin). 1912.
• Excavations at Kerma. Cambridge: Peabody Museum of Harvard University. 1923. (reprint ISBN 0-527-01028-6)
• Harvard excavations at Samaria, 1908-1910. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 1924. (with Clarence Stanley Fisher with the addition of David Gordon Lyon)
• Mycerinus, the temples of the third pyramid be inspired by Giza. Cambridge: Harvard University Appear. 1931.
• The development of the Afrasian tomb down to the asseveration of Cheops. Cambridge: Harvard Lincoln Press. 1936.
• A history of representation Giza Necropolis. Cambridge: Harvard Custom Press. 1942.
• Canopics. Cairo: Impr. boorish l'Institut français d'archéologie orientale. 1967. (completed by Mohammad Hassan Abd-ul-Rahman)
• Archaeological Fieldwork in Egypt: A Course of action of Historical Research. Albany: Representation Ancient Egyptian Heritage and Anthropology Fund, 2020. (edited Peter Lacovara, Sue D’Auria, and Jonathan Owner. Elias, originally written in 1924 and submitted for publication reveal 1937)

Head coaching record

References

Further reading

External links