Richard JC Atkinson
Richard John Copland Atkinson (born January 22, 1920 in Evershot , Dorset , † October 10, 1994 in Cardiff , Wales ) was a British prehistorian . Among other things, he excavated in Stonehenge in the 1950s .
Atkinson was educated at Magdalen College of Oxford University philosophy, politics and economics. In the Second World War he refused to do military service as a Quaker . In 1944 he became Assistant Keeper for Archeology at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and in 1949 he became a Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh and assistant to Stuart Piggott , with whom he was friends. In 1958 he became the first professor of archeology at University College Cardiff , where he remained until his retirement in 1983.
He excavated in Stonehenge from 1950 to 1964. Due to overburdened administrative work and later health problems, he was unable to publish the reports on the campaigns in full. In Stonehenge he worked with Piggott and John FS Stone .
He criticized the theory of Stonehenge as a Stone Age astronomical computer by Gerald Hawkins . He laid out his own theories about Stonehenge in a popular book published by Penguin. He also wrote a practical handbook of field archeology.
He also excavated Silbury Hill (filmed by the BBC), West Kennet Long Barrow and Wayland's Smithy .
In 1979 he became Commander of the Order of the British Empire .
Fonts
- Stonehenge. H. Hamilton, London 1956.
- Field Archeology. Methuen, London 1946.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Atkinson, Richard JC |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Atkinson, Richard John Copland (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British archaeologist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 22, 1920 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Evershot |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 10, 1994 |
| Place of death | Cardiff |