John Durell Hunt (28 May 1900 – 19 January 1976) was a

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

, antiquarian, and collector. Together with his wife Gertrude (née Hartmann), he amassed the Collection that today forms the basis of The Hunt Museum,

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Early life and education

John Durell Hunt ('Jack') was born in Watford, Herefordshire, England to John Hunt (''c.''1870–1929), architect, and Effie Jane Hunt (née Sherry). The eldest of five children, John attended King's College School, Cambridge and served two years of military service between 1918-1920 before training to become a doctor at

St Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by Rahere (die ...

Career

He encouraged Lord Gort to restore

Bunratty Castle Bunratty Castle (, meaning "castle at the mouth of the Ratty") is a large 15th-century tower house in County Clare, Ireland. It is located in the centre of Bunratty village ( ga, Bun Ráite), by the N18 road between Limerick and Ennis, near Sha ...

. He is commemorated by a bust in the castle because of this. He also led to the creation of both the

Craggaunowen Craggaunowen is an archaeological open-air museum in eastern County Clare, Ireland. It is named for the 16th-century castle which is one of its main components. Craggaunowen is located 10 km east of Quin, County Clare. The name Craggaunowe ...

and

Lough Gur Lough Gur () is a lake in County Limerick, Ireland between the towns of Herbertstown and Bruff. The lake forms a horseshoe shape at the base of Knockadoon Hill and some rugged elevated countryside. It is one of Ireland's most important archae ...

visitor centres through his interest in prehistory. The Hunts first settled at Lough Gur, near Limerick, and later in Dublin. In both these domestic settings, they housed and openly displayed their valuable collection.

Personal life

John married Gertrude Hunt (née Hartmann) in London in 1933. They adopted two children, John Hunt, junior and Trudy Hunt, who were later trustees of the Hunt Museums Trust and directors of the Hunt Museum.

References

External links

Shannondev.ie - News Releases 2007
*https://web.archive.org/web/20080807121211/http://www.huntmuseum.com/framesets_hunts/hunts_frameset.html *https://web.archive.org/web/20070318131822/http://www.ul.ie/vpacad/HonDocs/Cit-J%20Hunt.htm *http://www.recirca.com/articles/johnhunt/index.shtml *https://web.archive.org/web/20080705095051/http://www.shannonheritage.com/Attractions/Craggaunowen/CraggaunowenCastle/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, John Irish antiquarians 1900 births 1976 deaths 20th-century antiquarians Museums by city Irish archaeologists