Colonel Sir Henry George Lyons FRS (11 October 1864 – 10 August 1944) was a British

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

and director of the

Science Museum A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. Henry Lyons was born in

, the son of General Thomas Lyons. Lyons was educated at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin * Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...

and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich and at the age of 18 was elected to the Geological Society. In 1884, he was commissioned a

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the Royal Engineers. He was posted to

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...

in 1890. In 1892 he cleared and surveyed several Ancient Egyptian temples at

Buhen Buhen ( grc, Βοὥν ''Bohón'') was an ancient Egyptian settlement situated on the West bank of the Nile below (to the North of) the Second Cataract in what is now Northern State, Sudan. It is now submerged in Lake Nasser, Sudan; as a resu ...

. From 1909-1911 he was the first head of the department of geology at the University of Glasgow. In 1896, he married Helen Hardwick, a daughter of the London architect

Philip Charles Hardwick Philip Charles Hardwick (London 1822–1892) was an English architect. Life Philip Charles Hardwick was born in Westminster in London, the son of the architect Philip Hardwick (1792–1870) and grandson of architect Thomas Hardwick (junior) ( ...

(1822–1892). In 1920, with the retiring rank of colonel, Lyons became Director of the Science Museum, and was knighted in 1926. He introduced working models, exhibited new developments such as the aeroplane, cinema, radio, and gramophone. He also contributed the children's gallery. He served as President of the Geographical Association in 1929. He died at

Great Missenden Great Missenden is an affluent village with approximately 2,000 residents in the Misbourne Valley in the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire, England, situated between the towns of Amersham and Wendover, with direct rail connections to London Mar ...

, aged 79.

Publications

"Magnetic Observations in Egypt, 1893—1901"
in Proceedings of the Royal Society, vol. 71, 1902-03.
"On the Relation between Variations of Atmospheric Pressure in North-East Africa and the Nile Flood"
in ''Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences'', vol. 76, no. 507, April 22, 1905.
''The Physiography of the River Nile and its Basin''
(Cairo: National Printing Department, 1906).
''A Report on the Temples of Philae''
(Cairo: National Printing Department, 1908).
''The Cadastral Survey of Egypt, 1892-1907''
(Cairo: National Printing Department, 1908).
"The Importance of Geographical Research"
in ''Science'', N.S. vol. xlii, no. 1087, October 29, 1915.
"Science in Egypt"
in ''Nature'', vol. 110, no. 2756, August 26, 1922.

References

External links

Website in memory of the Hardwicks
Sir Henry Lyons wife's family 1864 births 1944 deaths Military personnel from London British colonels British curators Businesspeople from London Directors of the Science Museum, London Fellows of the Royal Society Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich Knights Bachelor People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Presidents of the Institute of Physics Presidents of the Royal Meteorological Society Royal Engineers officers British geologists Victoria Medal recipients {{UK-scientist-stub