Edward Thurlow Leeds (29 July 1877 – 17 August 1955) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

archaeologist and

museum curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

. He was Keeper of the Ashmolean Museum from 1928 to 1945.

Biography

He was born in Eyebury,

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

on 29 July 1877, the second son of

Alfred Nicholson Leeds Alfred Nicholson Leeds (9 March 184725 August 1917) was an English amateur palaeontologist. Biography Leeds was born at Eyebury, Peterborough, the youngest of the eight children of Edward Thurlow Leeds (180251) and Eliza Mary Leeds (née Nichol ...

palaeontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

and Fellow of the Geological Society, and his wife Ferrier. He was educated at

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils 13-18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. The headma ...

and then as a classical scholar at Magdalene College, Cambridge. After graduation in 1899, his first position was as cadet in the Federated Malay States Civil Service. He spent two years in China to learn the language. In 1903, ill health forced him to abandon this career path. In five years of

convalescence Convalescence is the gradual recovery of health and strength after illness or injury. It refers to the later stage of an infectious disease or illness when the patient recovers and returns to previous health, but may continue to be a source of ...

, he spent much time on geological work in the

gravel pit A gravel pit is an open-pit mine for the extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may naturally fill with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either ...

s at Eyebury, where his interest in archaeology developed. In 1908, he was appointed an Assistant Keeper at the Ashmolean Museum,

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. Later that year, the museum was reorganised, and he became Assistant Keeper of the Department of Antiquities. Throughout the period of his Assistant Keepership, his main field of research was

Anglo-Saxon archaeology The archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England is the study of the archaeology of England from the 5th Century AD to the 11th Century, when it was ruled by Germanic tribes known collectively as the Anglo-Saxons. History and overview The Anglo-Saxon peri ...

. In 1928, he was appointed Keeper of the Ashmolean and of the Department of Antiquities. He held both those positions until his retirement in 1945. After his retirement, he continued to work in the Ashmolean, where he catalogued collections of Chinese, Annamese and

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

n coins in the Heberden Coin Room. He married Alice Marjory Wright in 1925. She accompanied him on some of his excavations. He died at his home in Oxford on 17 August 1955. A ''

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

'' in his honour was published in London in 1956. Leeds saw a draft of the book and began writing a response to an essay by C. F. C. Hawkes. Though incomplete, the paper was edited by Sonia Chadwick and published posthumously in the first volume of ''

Medieval Archaeology ''Medieval Archaeology'' is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal covering the archaeology of the medieval period, especially in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established in 1957 by the Society for Medieval Archaeology and is publishe ...

''.

Publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leeds, Edward Thurlow 1877 births 1955 deaths People from Peterborough People educated at Uppingham School Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge 20th-century British archaeologists English archaeologists English numismatists People associated with the Ashmolean Museum