Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1812-1978 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
120 boxes, 10 outsize boxes and 3 shelves of outsize maps
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Born, 1890; educated, Bradford Grammar School, 1899-1904; University College, London, 1907-1912; art classes at the Slade School of Fine Art, 1909-; Franks studentship in archaeology to study Roman pottery in the Rhineland, 1913; junior investigator for the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (RCHM), 1913; PhD, 1920; Royal Field Artillery, 1914-1917; 76th Army Brigade, 1917-1919; Military Cross, 1918; RCHM, 1919-1920; Keeper of Archaeology at the National Museum of Wales and Lecturer in Archaeology at the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire, Cardiff, 1920; Director of the National Museum of Wales, 1924; excavated Roman sites, Segontium, 1921-1922 and Gaer near Brecon, 1924-1925; Keeper of the London Museum, 1926; established the Institute of Archaeology, 1937; excavations of the Romano-British villa and cult centre at Lydney Park, 1928-1929; Roman and immediately pre-Roman St Albans, 1930-1934 and the hill fort of Maiden Castle, Dorset, 1934-1937; 42nd Royal Artillery Regiment, 1939-1943; Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India, 1944-1948; excavations at Taxila, 1944-1945; the Roman trading station of Arikamedu, 1945; the Indus city of Harappa, 1946 and the southern megalithic sites of Brahmagiri and Chandravalli, 1947; part-time professorship at the Institute of Archaeology in the University of London, 1948-; Secretary for the British Academy, 1949-1968; archaeological adviser to the newly formed Pakistan Archaeological Department; excavation of the hill fort of Stanwick in Yorkshire, 1954 and Charsada, Pakistan, 1956; member of the UNESCO team concerned with the preservation and conservation of Mohenjo-daro, 1960s; television broadcaster, in 'Animal, Vegetable, Mineral?' and 'Buried Treasure'; Fellowship of the Royal Society, 1968; died, 1976.
Repository
Archival history
GB 0103 WHEELER 1812-1978 Collection (fonds) 120 boxes, 10 outsize boxes and 3 shelves of outsize maps Wheeler , Sir , Robert Eric Mortimer , 1890-1976 , Knight , archaeologist and broadcaster
Born, 1890; educated, Bradford Grammar School, 1899-1904; University College, London, 1907-1912; art classes at the Slade School of Fine Art, 1909-; Franks studentship in archaeology to study Roman pottery in the Rhineland, 1913; junior investigator for the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (RCHM), 1913; PhD, 1920; Royal Field Artillery, 1914-1917; 76th Army Brigade, 1917-1919; Military Cross, 1918; RCHM, 1919-1920; Keeper of Archaeology at the National Museum of Wales and Lecturer in Archaeology at the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire, Cardiff, 1920; Director of the National Museum of Wales, 1924; excavated Roman sites, Segontium, 1921-1922 and Gaer near Brecon, 1924-1925; Keeper of the London Museum, 1926; established the Institute of Archaeology, 1937; excavations of the Romano-British villa and cult centre at Lydney Park, 1928-1929; Roman and immediately pre-Roman St Albans, 1930-1934 and the hill fort of Maiden Castle, Dorset, 1934-1937; 42nd Royal Artillery Regiment, 1939-1943; Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India, 1944-1948; excavations at Taxila, 1944-1945; the Roman trading station of Arikamedu, 1945; the Indus city of Harappa, 1946 and the southern megalithic sites of Brahmagiri and Chandravalli, 1947; part-time professorship at the Institute of Archaeology in the University of London, 1948-; Secretary for the British Academy, 1949-1968; archaeological adviser to the newly formed Pakistan Archaeological Department; excavation of the hill fort of Stanwick in Yorkshire, 1954 and Charsada, Pakistan, 1956; member of the UNESCO team concerned with the preservation and conservation of Mohenjo-daro, 1960s; television broadcaster, in 'Animal, Vegetable, Mineral?' and 'Buried Treasure'; Fellowship of the Royal Society, 1968; died, 1976.
Presented by the family in two accessions in Sep 2005 and May 2007.
Papers of Mortimer Wheeler, [1944-1974], including:
Lecture notes of Wheeler's first wife Tessa while a UCL History student during the 1910s (Section A).
Correspondence with Glyn Daniel; Sir Cyril Fox; Christina Foyle; Jacquetta Hawkes; David Kendall; Kathleen Mary Kenyon; Sir Douglas William Logan; Stuart Piggott; Sir Ian Richmond and John Bryan Ward-Perkins (Section B).
Notes, reports, correspondence and administrative papers relating to Wheeler's excavations of Iron Age hill forts in north-western France in the 1930s (Section D).
Correspondence and other papers relating to archaeology in India and Pakistan, 1930s-1970s, in particular the UNESCO Mohenjo-Daro mission, late 1960 (Sections E and F).
Correspondence and other papers relating to archaeology in East Africa (Section H).
Itineraries, correspondence and other papers relating to Swan Hellenic cruises during the late 1950s to 1970s in the following places: Mediterranean; Iran; Nile; East Africa; India; Pakistan; Russia; Far East; Iraq, etc. (Section J).
Correspondence and other papers relating to institutions including the British Academy; British Museum; University of London (Sections K, L and N).
Correspondence and other papers relating to Wheeler's advisory role in connection with archaeological excavations beneath York Minster were carried out between 1966 and 1973 (Section M).
Scripts and other papers relating to broadcasting including BBC 'Roman Britain' and ''The Grandeur that was Rome' programmes (Section P).
Typescript and MS. articles, addresses, lectures and reviews by Wheeler including thesis on Rhenish pottery and a biography of Sir Cyril Fox (Section Q).
Papers and correspondence relating Wheeler's military postings in the First and Second World Wars (Sections R and S).
Wheeler's engagement diaries, 1952-1976 (Section T).
Original order.
Open. Some files will require checking under data protection legislation and may require a four week notice period. Please contact UCL Special Collections for further inforamtion.
Photocopies/photographs/microfilm are supplied for private research only at the Archivist's discretion. Please note that material may be unsuitable for copying on conservation grounds, and that photographs cannot be photocopied in any circumstances. Researchers who wish to publish material must seek copyright permission from the copyright owner.
English
The majority of the collection is catalogued and the list available online.
Compiled by Sarah Drewery.
Sources: Oxford DNB Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997. Sep 2008; updated July 2018 Associations Archaeology Learned societies Organizations Broadcasting programmes Broadcasting World War Two (1939-1945) World wars (events) Wars (events) Exhibitions Wheeler , Sir , Robert Eric Mortimer , 1890-1976 , Knight , archaeologist Swan Hellenic cruises BBC , British Broadcasting Corporation x British Broadcasting Corporation University College London Africa Pakistan South Asia India
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Presented by the family in two accessions in Sep 2005 and May 2007.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Papers of Mortimer Wheeler, [1944-1974], including:
Lecture notes of Wheeler's first wife Tessa while a UCL History student during the 1910s (Section A).
Correspondence with Glyn Daniel; Sir Cyril Fox; Christina Foyle; Jacquetta Hawkes; David Kendall; Kathleen Mary Kenyon; Sir Douglas William Logan; Stuart Piggott; Sir Ian Richmond and John Bryan Ward-Perkins (Section B).
Notes, reports, correspondence and administrative papers relating to Wheeler's excavations of Iron Age hill forts in north-western France in the 1930s (Section D).
Correspondence and other papers relating to archaeology in India and Pakistan, 1930s-1970s, in particular the UNESCO Mohenjo-Daro mission, late 1960 (Sections E and F).
Correspondence and other papers relating to archaeology in East Africa (Section H).
Itineraries, correspondence and other papers relating to Swan Hellenic cruises during the late 1950s to 1970s in the following places: Mediterranean; Iran; Nile; East Africa; India; Pakistan; Russia; Far East; Iraq, etc. (Section J).
Correspondence and other papers relating to institutions including the British Academy; British Museum; University of London (Sections K, L and N).
Correspondence and other papers relating to Wheeler's advisory role in connection with archaeological excavations beneath York Minster were carried out between 1966 and 1973 (Section M).
Scripts and other papers relating to broadcasting including BBC 'Roman Britain' and ''The Grandeur that was Rome' programmes (Section P).
Typescript and MS. articles, addresses, lectures and reviews by Wheeler including thesis on Rhenish pottery and a biography of Sir Cyril Fox (Section Q).
Papers and correspondence relating Wheeler's military postings in the First and Second World Wars (Sections R and S).
Wheeler's engagement diaries, 1952-1976 (Section T).
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Original order.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Open. Some files will require checking under data protection legislation and may require a four week notice period. Please contact UCL Special Collections for further inforamtion.
Conditions governing reproduction
Photocopies/photographs/microfilm are supplied for private research only at the Archivist's discretion. Please note that material may be unsuitable for copying on conservation grounds, and that photographs cannot be photocopied in any circumstances. Researchers who wish to publish material must seek copyright permission from the copyright owner.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
- Latin
Language and script notes
English
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
The majority of the collection is catalogued and the list available online.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Language(s)
- English