EGYPTIAN
ARCHAEOLOGY
Some of the many letters in the EES Lucy Gura Archive, written by Alan Gardiner to his friend, Ricardo Caminos
Ricardo Caminos copying inscriptions at Buhen for the EES
The photograph of Alan Gardiner above the desk in Caminos’ house
of Egyptian archaeology, it is becoming increasingly apparent that we cannot rely solely upon the publications and official records of excavation. Historians of the discipline must look to the personal accounts and life experiences of those who were at the centre of its development to place events and experiences in a more reflective socio-political context. Archival sources such as the Ricardo Caminos collection are invaluable as a means of accessing individuals of the past. These documents not only give further insight into Caminos as a person but provide a far greater understanding of his interpretations, his research agendas and the academic influences behind them, allowing us to view his life and work from a new and interesting perspective.
encouraged Caminos to pursue his professorship at Brown University, as well as his own literary studies and epigraphic projects, such as that at Gebel el-Silsila under the Egypt Exploration Society. Following the publication of Caminos’ Late Egyptian Miscellanies in 1954, Gardiner wrote: ‘I will not dwell upon the nice things you have said about me in your Preface, but will only say that if I devoted a good deal of time to working with you (in itself always a pleasure) it was eminently worth while, and you have rewarded me beyond my due’. It therefore seems a fitting tribute that the only photographs to decorate the walls of Caminos’ home, next door to the Society’s office in Doughty Mews, were portraits of Alan Gardiner and Battiscombe Gunn placed side by side above his desk, where they remain in what is now the Ricardo Caminos Memorial Library. In order to build a more accurate and unbiased history
q Alice Williams is Archive Assistant at the Egypt Exploration Society. Photographs © EES Lucy Gura Archive.
Who Was Who in Egyptology Fourth Edition. Edited by Morris Bierbrier First published in 1951, edited by Warren R Dawson, Who Was Who in Egyptology is a standard reference work for anyone interested in the history of Egyptology. From the earliest travellers to scholars and excavators of more recent times, the book contains biographical details of the lives and careers of those who have shaped the discipline, with photographs of many of its subjects. The second edition, edited by Eric Uphill, was published in 1969 and the third, edited by Morris Bierbrier, in 1995. The Egypt Exploration Society will shortly be publishing the fourth edition, again edited by Dr Bierbrier and containing many new and revised entries and a wider range of photographs than in previous editions. Publication of this volume has been made possible by the generous donations of EES members. If you would like to help the Society in this way, please go to: www.ees.ac.uk/support/index.html The fourth edition of Who Was Who in Egyptology will be published early in 2012. If you would like to be notified when it is published please contact rob.tamplin@ees.ac.uk
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