George MacDonald (numismatist)

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Sir George MacDonald KCB (born January 30, 1862 in Elgin , † August 9, 1940 in Edinburgh ) was a Scottish numismatist and archaeologist .

Life

Burial site in Dean Cemetery , Edinburgh

George MacDonald attended the Ayr Academy , which his father, the well-known archaeologist and epigraphist James MacDonald, headed as principal from 1862 to 1883. From 1878 to 1882 George MacDonald studied classical studies at the University of Edinburgh . He then deepened his studies at Balliol College at the University of Oxford , where he acquired first class degrees in the subjects of Classical Moderation and Literae Humaniores in 1885 and 1887 . After graduating, MacDonald first taught at the Kelvinside Academy in Glasgow, where his father had been the principal since 1883.

In 1892 MacDonald moved to the University of Glasgow , where Gilbert Murray had won him as Senior Assistant. During this time, MacDonald also came into contact with the Hunterian Museum . There he worked over many years to compile a catalog of the ancient coin holdings, which appeared in three volumes from 1899 to 1905 and established his scientific reputation. The museum thereupon appointed him in 1905 as an honorary curator for life. The Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres awarded him the Prix Allier de Hauteroche for the work in 1907.

MacDonald also devoted himself to archaeological and topographical exploration of Britain. Together with Alexander Park he led the excavations of the Roman fort in Bar Hill (1902), the results of which were published in 1906. Campaigns on Antonine Wall followed in 1910 . MacDonald and his friend Francis John Haverfield were among the leading experts on Roman Britain.

As a result of his recognition, MacDonald received a position in the Scots Education Department in 1904, where he rose over the years to permanent secretary (1922–1928). He continued his academic work: he lectured at the University of Glasgow, published studies on the topography and numismatics of Roman Britain (as well as over 200 articles for the Real Encyclopedia of Classical Antiquities ) and was involved in the Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies ( President 1921–1926), the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (President 1933–1940) and the Royal Numismatic Society (President 1935–1936). He was a full member of the British Academy , the Roman-Germanic Commission and the German Archaeological Institute (since 1928), a corresponding member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences (since 1931) and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (since 1933). MacDonald received honorary doctorates from the Universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Oxford and Cambridge and was made Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1927 .

Fonts (selection)

  • Catalog of Greek Coins in the Hunterian Collection. University of Glasgow. 3 volumes. MacLehose and Sons, Glasgow 1899-1905;
    • Volume 1: Italy, Sicily, Macedon, Thrace, and Thessaly. 1899, ( digitized version );
    • Volume 2: North Western Greece, Central Greece, Southern Greece, and Asia minor. 1901, ( digitized version );
    • Volume 3: Further Asia, Northern Africa, Western Europe. 1905, ( digitized version ).
  • Coin types. Their Origin and Development (= The Rhind Lectures. 1904, ZDB -ID 1035191-7 ). MacLehose and Sons, Glasgow 1905, ( digitized ).
  • with Alexander Park: The Roman Forts on the Bar Hill. Dumbartonshire. With a Note on the Architectural Details by Thomas Ross. MacLehose and Sons, Glasgow 1906, ( digitized version ).
  • The Roman Wall in Scotland. MacLehose and Sons, Glasgow 1911, ( digitized ; 2nd, edition revised, enlarged, and rewritten in great part. Clarendon Press, Oxford 1934).
  • The Evolution of Coinage. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1916, ( digitized version ).
  • The Silver Coinage of Crete. A metrological note. In: Proceedings of the British Academy. 9, 1919, ISSN  0068-1202 , pp. 289-317, (special reprint: British Academy, London 1919, digitized ).
  • as editor: Francis John Haverfield : The Roman Occupation of Britain. Being six Ford Lectures. Now revised. With a Notice of Haverfield's Life and a List of his Writings. Clarendon Press, Oxford 1924.
  • Research in Roman Britain 1914–1928. In: Report of the Roman-Germanic Commission. 19, 1929, pp. 1-85, doi : 10.11588 / berrgk.1930.0.33419 .
  • Roman Britain 1914-1928 (= British Academy. Supplemental Papers. 6, ZDB -ID 433299-4 ). Milford, London 1931.
  • The Hunterian Coin Cabinet. Being the Third Lecture on the David Muray Foundation in the University of Glasgow, delivered on May 24th, 1933 (= Glasgow University Publications. 29 = Lecture on the David Murray Foundation in the University of Glasgow. 3, ZDB -ID 1211044-9 ) . Jackson et al., Glasgow 1933.

literature

  • Sir George Macdonald, KCB, FBA In: Nature. No. 3695, August 24, 1940, p. 257, ( online ).
  • James Russell: George MacDonald (1862-1940). In: Robert B. Todd (Ed.): The Dictionary of British Classicists. Volume 2: G - N. Thoemmes Continuum, Bristol 2004, ISBN 1-85506-997-0 , pp. 606-607, = Compte Rendu International Numismatic Council. 53, 2006, pp. 27–29, (with picture, (full text) (PDF; 79 kB)).

Web links

Wikisource: George MacDonald  - Sources and full texts

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Fellows Directory. Biographical Index: Former RSE Fellows 1783–2002. (PDF file) Royal Society of Edinburgh, accessed March 18, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME MacDonald, George
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Scottish numismatist and archaeologist
DATE OF BIRTH January 30, 1862
PLACE OF BIRTH Elgin (Moray)
DATE OF DEATH August 9, 1940
Place of death Edinburgh