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Alexander Ormiston Curle FSAS CVO
He was born on 3 May 1866 at Abbey Park in Melrose in the Scottish Borders the son of James Curle, a solicitor.
Despite training as a lawyer his interests quickly changed to archaeology and antiquarianism. He published 11 archaeological papers between 1896 and 1908. In 1908 he was appointed Secretary of the newly created Royal Commission of Ancient Monuments of Scotland. From August 1908 until February 1909 he set out to record all of Scotland’s important monuments, undertaking the 300 mile trip largely by bicycle. Thus was created the first Inventory of Ancient Monuments.
In Edinburgh he lived at 8 South Learmonth Gardens.Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1911–12
In 1913 he succeeded
LL.D.
Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...
(1866–1955) was a Scottish lawyer and archaeologist who rose to be Director of the National Museum of Scotland
The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland, was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, and the adjacent Royal Scottish Museum (opened in ...
from 1913 to 1919 and Director of the Royal Scottish Museum
The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland, was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, and the adjacent Royal Scottish Museum (opened in ...
on Chambers Street in Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
1916 to 1931. He was also Secretary and later a Commissioner of the Royal Commission on the Ancient Monuments of Scotland. He was brother to the archaeologist James Curle.
Life
He was born on 3 May 1866 at Abbey Park in Melrose in the Scottish Borders the son of James Curle, a solicitor.
Despite training as a lawyer his interests quickly changed to archaeology and antiquarianism. He published 11 archaeological papers between 1896 and 1908. In 1908 he was appointed Secretary of the newly created Royal Commission of Ancient Monuments of Scotland. From August 1908 until February 1909 he set out to record all of Scotland’s important monuments, undertaking the 300 mile trip largely by bicycle. Thus was created the first Inventory of Ancient Monuments.
In Edinburgh he lived at 8 South Learmonth Gardens.Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1911–12
In 1913 he succeeded Joseph Anderson
Joseph Inslee Anderson (November 5, 1757 – April 17, 1837) was an American soldier, judge, and politician, who served as a United States Senator from Tennessee from 1797 to 1815, and later as the First Comptroller of the United States Treasur ...
as Director of the National Museum of Scotland.
In 1913 he excavated a vitrified fort
Vitrified forts are stone enclosures whose walls have been subjected to vitrification through heat. It was long thought that these structures were unique to Scotland, but they have since been identified in several other parts of western and northe ...
in Dalbeattie
Dalbeattie (, sco, Dawbeattie, gd, Dail Bheithe meaning 'haugh of the birch' or ''Dail'' ''bhàite'' 'drowned (''i.e.'' liable to flood) haugh') is a town in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Dalbe ...
in south-west Scotland. In 1919 he made his most important archaeological find, a large concealment of Roman and Gallic silver plateware at Traprain Law
Traprain Law is a hill east of Haddington, East Lothian, Scotland, It is the site of a hill fort or possibly ''oppidum'', which covered at its maximum extent about . It is the site of the Traprain Law Treasure, the largest Roman silver hoard ...
. In 1916 he succeeded Sir Thomas Carlaw Martin
Sir Thomas Carlaw Martin FRSE LLD (10 April 1850 – 26 October 1920) was a Scottish newspaper editor and Director of the Royal Scottish Museum.
Life
He was born at Woodcocklaw Farm in Linlithgow on 10 April 1850. He studied at Heriot-Watt Coll ...
as Director of the Royal Scottish Museum
The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland, was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, and the adjacent Royal Scottish Museum (opened in ...
.
He died in hospital in Edinburgh on 7 January 1955 and is buried in the family plot at Melrose Abbey
St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of th ...
.
In 2006 a plaque was unveiled at his family home at Priorwood in Melrose, naming him and his brother James as two of the three archaeological giants in Scotland.
Publications
*''The Treasures of Traprain'' (1923)Family
He was married to Jocelyn Winifred Butler. She died in 1925 and is buried in the modern north extension of Dean Cemetery. Their children included Mary Christian Curle (1904–1970)References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curle, Alexander Ormiston 1866 births 1955 deaths People from Berwickshire Scottish archaeologists Alumni of the University of Edinburgh