Isobel Foster Smith (22 December 1912 – 18 November 2005) was a Canadian-born British archaeologist who is best known for her work at

Avebury Avebury () is a Neolithic henge monument containing three stone circles, around the village of Avebury in Wiltshire, in southwest England. One of the best known prehistoric sites in Britain, it contains the largest megalithic stone circle in t ...

and its surroundings.

Early life and education

Smith spent her early life in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, studying for a BA in English and French at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

in 1935, followed by scholarships at the

University of Grenoble The Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA, French: meaning "''Grenoble Alps University''") is a public research university in Grenoble, France. Founded in 1339, it is the third largest university in France with about 60,000 students and over 3,000 resea ...

and the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

. After World War II, she moved to London where she enrolled for a part-time diploma at the Institute of Archaeology. She subsequently studied for a PhD on English

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

ceramics under the supervision of

Gordon Childe Vere Gordon Childe (14 April 189219 October 1957) was an Australian archaeologist who specialised in the study of European prehistory. He spent most of his life in the United Kingdom, working as an academic for the University of Edinburgh and th ...

Career

In 1956, Smith was approached by Gabrielle Kieller, the widow of archaeologist Alexander Keiller who had died the previous year leaving 15 years of intensive excavation at Avebury unanalysed and unpublished. She asked Smith to write up his excavations from the 1920s and 1930s, a huge task that was eventually completed with the publication in 1965 of ''Windmill Hill and Avebury''. She also undertook excavations at several sites in the area, including Windmill Hill. Smith took a permanent position at the

Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England The Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England (RCHME) was a government advisory body responsible for documenting buildings and monuments of archaeological, architectural and historical importance in England. It was established in 19 ...

, where she remained as Senior Investigator until her retirement in 1978.

Personal life

Smith moved to Avebury for the start of her work in 1956, and continued to live there for the rest of her life. She died on 18 November 2005 at the age of 92.

Bibliography

* Ashbee, P., and Smith, I. F., 1960. 'The Windmill Hill long barrow', ''Antiquity'' 34, 297–9 * Ashbee, P., and Smith, I. F., 1966. 'The date of the Windmill Hill long barrow', ''Antiquity'' 40, 299 * Cleal, R. 2004. ''Monuments and Material Culture. Papers in honour of an Avebury Archaeologist: Isobel Smith''. Oxford: Oxbow Books. * sobel Smith ''Windmill Hill and Avebury. Excavations by Alexander Keiller, 1925–1939''. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1965. 265 pp., 41 pls., 7 tables, 83 figs. 105s. * * Smith, I. F., and Evans, J. G., 1968. 'Excavation of two long barrows in North Wiltshire', ''Antiquity'' 42, 138–42.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Isobel 1912 births 2005 deaths British women archaeologists Prehistorians University of Toronto alumni Alumni of the UCL Institute of Archaeology 20th-century British archaeologists People of the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England Canadian expatriates in France Canadian emigrants to England Canadian expatriates in England