Sir David Towry Piper CBE FSA

FRSL The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

(21 July 1918 – 29 December 1990) was a British museum curator and author. He was director of the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...

1964–1967, and of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 1967–1973; and Fellow of

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...

, 1967–1973, and Director of the

Ashmolean Museum The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology () on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University of ...

, Oxford, 1973–85 and Fellow of

Worcester College, Oxford Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms w ...

, 1973–1985. He was knighted in 1983. The second of three sons of Stephen Harvey Piper, Professor of Physics at

Bristol University , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

, Piper was born at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

and educated at Clifton College and

St Catharine's College, Cambridge St Catharine's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1473 as Katharine Hall, it adopted its current name in 1860. The college is nicknamed "Catz". The college is located in the historic city-centre of Camb ...

(where he took an M.A.). Piper was Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Oxford for 1966–67. In 1956, Piper prepared a descriptive catalogue of the Petre family portraits at Ingatestone Hall for the Essex Record Office. He gave the 1968 Aspects of Art Lecture. Under the pseudonym Peter Towry, Piper wrote a number of novels, including ''Trial by Battle'' (1959), a story based on his experiences as an officer in the Indian army, training in Bangalore and then seeing action against the Imperial Japanese Army in Malaya during World War II. He was subsequently a prisoner of war in Japan for three years. In 1945, Piper married Anne Horatia (1920–2017), daughter of Oliffe Richmond, classics professor at Edinburgh University. She was a novelist and playwright. They had three daughters – Evanthe, Ruth, and Emma – and a son, theatre designer Tom Piper (born 1964).

Publications

His publications include: * * * As Peter Towry: * * * * (reprinted in 2019 by the

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

but as by David Piper) *

References

* R. J. B. Walker, 'Piper, Sir David Towry (1918–1990)', rev. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, May 200
accessed 5 March 2013
* 1918 births 1990 deaths People from Wimbledon, London People educated at Clifton College English curators British art curators Directors of museums in the United Kingdom Directors of the National Portrait Gallery, London Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Fellows of Christ's College, Cambridge Fellows of Worcester College, Oxford Slade Professors of Fine Art (University of Oxford) People associated with the Ashmolean Museum Knights Bachelor Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century British businesspeople {{UK-bio-stub