Colin Renfrew, Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn
Encyclopedia
Andrew Colin Renfrew, Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, Ph.D.
, FBA
, FSA
, HonFSAScot (born 25 July 1937 in Stockton-on-Tees
) is a prominent British
archaeologist and highly regarded academic, noted for his work on radiocarbon dating
, the prehistory of languages
, archaeogenetics
, and the prevention of looting at archaeological sites. He developed the Renfrew Hypothesis
, which argues that Proto-Indo-Europeans
lived 2,000 years before the Kurgan
s, in Anatolia
, later diffusing throughout the Mediterranean and into Central and Northern Europe. This hypothesis contradicted the work of archaeologist Marija Gimbutas
who, as early as 1958 in an article entitled "Culture Change in Europe at the Start of the Second Millennium B.C. A Contribution to the Indo-European Problem" had postulated that the Indo-Europeans had migrated into Europe from the north, leading to the demise of the Goddess worshipping cultures of Old Europe.
Along with fellow Archaeologist Paul Bahn
, Renfrew has come up with the 'Renfrew and Bahns indicator of Religion and Ritual', a definition to determine whether the actions or conducts of Archaeological civilizations were a religious ritual. Professor Renfrew was formerly the Disney Professor of Archaeology at the University of Cambridge
and Director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
and is now a Senior Fellow of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research.
, Hertfordshire
(where one of the houses is named after him) and from 1956 to 1958 did National Service
in the Royal Air Force
. He then went up to St John's College, Cambridge
where he read Archaeology
and Anthropology
, graduating in 1962. In 1965 he completed his PhD
thesis "Neolithic
and Bronze Age
cultures of the Cyclades
and their external relations" and in the same year married Jane M. Ewbank.
In 1965 he was appointed to the post of lecturer in the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Sheffield
. Between 1968 and 1970, Renfrew directed excavations at Sitagroi
, Greece
. In 1968 he unsuccessfully contested the Sheffield Brightside parliamentary constituency on behalf of the Conservative Party
. In that year he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries
, in 1970 was elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
and in 2000 elected an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
.
In 1972 Renfrew became Professor of Archaeology at the University of Southampton
succeeding Barry Cunliffe
. During his time at Southampton
he directed excavations at Quanterness in Orkney and Phylakopi
on the island of Milos, Greece
. In 1973 Renfrew published Before Civilisation: The Radiocarbon Revolution and Prehistoric Europe in which he challenged the assumption that prehistoric cultural innovation originated in the Near East
and then spread to Europe
. He also excavated with Marija Gimbutas
at Sitagroi
in Greece.
In 1980 Renfrew was elected a Fellow of the British Academy. In 1981 he was elected to the Disney Professorship of Archaeology
in the University of Cambridge
, a post he held until his retirement. In 1990 Renfrew was appointed as Director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
. In 1987, he published Archaeology and Language: The Puzzle of the Indo-European Origins, a book on the Proto-Indo-Europeans
. His "Renfrew Hypothesis
" posited that this group lived 2,000 years before the Kurgan
s, in Anatolia
, later diffusing to Greece, then Italy, Sicily, Corsica, the Mediterranean coast of France, Spain, and Portugal. Another branch migrated along the fertile river valleys of the Danube and Rhine into Central and North Europe.
Renfrew served as Master of Jesus College
from 1986 until 1997. In 2004 he retired from the University.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
, FBA
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
, FSA
Society of Antiquaries of London
The Society of Antiquaries of London is a learned society "charged by its Royal Charter of 1751 with 'the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of the antiquities and history of this and other countries'." It is based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London , and is...
, HonFSAScot (born 25 July 1937 in Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...
) is a prominent British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
archaeologist and highly regarded academic, noted for his work on radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating is a radiometric dating method that uses the naturally occurring radioisotope carbon-14 to estimate the age of carbon-bearing materials up to about 58,000 to 62,000 years. Raw, i.e. uncalibrated, radiocarbon ages are usually reported in radiocarbon years "Before Present" ,...
, the prehistory of languages
Paleolinguistics
Paleolinguistics is a term used by some linguists for the study of the distant human past by linguistic means. For most historical linguists there is no separate field of paleolinguistics...
, archaeogenetics
Archaeogenetics
Archaeogenetics, a term coined by Colin Renfrew, refers to the application of the techniques of molecular population genetics to the study of the human past. This can involve:*the analysis of DNA recovered from archaeological remains, i.e...
, and the prevention of looting at archaeological sites. He developed the Renfrew Hypothesis
Anatolian hypothesis
The Anatolian hypothesis is also called Renfrew's Neolithic Discontinuity Theory ; it proposes that the dispersal of Proto-Indo-Europeans originated in Neolithic Anatolia...
, which argues that Proto-Indo-Europeans
Proto-Indo-Europeans
The Proto-Indo-Europeans were the speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language , a reconstructed prehistoric language of Eurasia.Knowledge of them comes chiefly from the linguistic reconstruction, along with material evidence from archaeology and archaeogenetics...
lived 2,000 years before the Kurgan
Kurgan hypothesis
The Kurgan hypothesis is one of the proposals about early Indo-European origins, which postulates that the people of an archaeological "Kurgan culture" in the Pontic steppe were the most likely speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language...
s, in Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, later diffusing throughout the Mediterranean and into Central and Northern Europe. This hypothesis contradicted the work of archaeologist Marija Gimbutas
Marija Gimbutas
Marija Gimbutas , was a Lithuanian-American archeologist known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of "Old Europe", a term she introduced. Her works published between 1946 and 1971 introduced new views by combining traditional spadework with linguistics and mythological...
who, as early as 1958 in an article entitled "Culture Change in Europe at the Start of the Second Millennium B.C. A Contribution to the Indo-European Problem" had postulated that the Indo-Europeans had migrated into Europe from the north, leading to the demise of the Goddess worshipping cultures of Old Europe.
Along with fellow Archaeologist Paul Bahn
Paul Bahn
Paul G. Bahn is a British archaeologist, translator, writer and broadcaster who has published extensively on a range of archaeological topics, with particular attention to prehistoric art...
, Renfrew has come up with the 'Renfrew and Bahns indicator of Religion and Ritual', a definition to determine whether the actions or conducts of Archaeological civilizations were a religious ritual. Professor Renfrew was formerly the Disney Professor of Archaeology at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
and Director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research is a research institute of the University of Cambridge in England.-History:The Institute was established in 1990 through a generous benefaction from the late Dr D. M. McDonald, a well-known and successful industrialist...
and is now a Senior Fellow of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research.
Biography
Renfrew was educated at St Albans SchoolSt Albans School (Hertfordshire)
St Albans School is an independent school in the city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, in the East of England. Entry before Sixth Form is for boys only, and co-educational thereafter. Founded in 948 by Wulsin , St Albans School is not only the oldest school in Hertfordshire but also one of the oldest...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
(where one of the houses is named after him) and from 1956 to 1958 did National Service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
in the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
. He then went up to St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
where he read Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
and Anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, graduating in 1962. In 1965 he completed his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
thesis "Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
and Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
cultures of the Cyclades
Cyclades
The Cyclades is a Greek island group in the Aegean Sea, south-east of the mainland of Greece; and a former administrative prefecture of Greece. They are one of the island groups which constitute the Aegean archipelago. The name refers to the islands around the sacred island of Delos...
and their external relations" and in the same year married Jane M. Ewbank.
In 1965 he was appointed to the post of lecturer in the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Sheffield
University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield is a research university based in the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It is one of the original 'red brick' universities and is a member of the Russell Group of leading research intensive universities...
. Between 1968 and 1970, Renfrew directed excavations at Sitagroi
Sitagroi
Sitagroi is a village and a former municipality in the Drama peripheral unit, East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Prosotsani, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 5,266 . The seat of the municipality was in Fotolivos...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. In 1968 he unsuccessfully contested the Sheffield Brightside parliamentary constituency on behalf of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. In that year he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries
Society of Antiquaries of London
The Society of Antiquaries of London is a learned society "charged by its Royal Charter of 1751 with 'the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of the antiquities and history of this and other countries'." It is based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London , and is...
, in 1970 was elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is the senior antiquarian body in Scotland, with its headquarters in the National Museum, Chambers Street, Edinburgh...
and in 2000 elected an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is the senior antiquarian body in Scotland, with its headquarters in the National Museum, Chambers Street, Edinburgh...
.
In 1972 Renfrew became Professor of Archaeology at the University of Southampton
University of Southampton
The University of Southampton is a British public university located in the city of Southampton, England, a member of the Russell Group. The origins of the university can be dated back to the founding of the Hartley Institution in 1862 by Henry Robertson Hartley. In 1902, the Institution developed...
succeeding Barry Cunliffe
Barry Cunliffe
Sir Barrington Windsor Cunliffe, CBE, known professionally as Barry Cunliffe is a former Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford, a position held from 1972 to 2007...
. During his time at Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
he directed excavations at Quanterness in Orkney and Phylakopi
Phylakopi
Phylakopi , located at the northern coast of the island of Milos, is one of the most important Bronze Age settlements in the Aegean and especially in the Cyclades. The importance of Phylakopi is in its almost continuous inhabitance throughout the Bronze Age Phylakopi (Greek=Φυλακωπή), located at...
on the island of Milos, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. In 1973 Renfrew published Before Civilisation: The Radiocarbon Revolution and Prehistoric Europe in which he challenged the assumption that prehistoric cultural innovation originated in the Near East
Near East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
and then spread to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He also excavated with Marija Gimbutas
Marija Gimbutas
Marija Gimbutas , was a Lithuanian-American archeologist known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of "Old Europe", a term she introduced. Her works published between 1946 and 1971 introduced new views by combining traditional spadework with linguistics and mythological...
at Sitagroi
Sitagroi
Sitagroi is a village and a former municipality in the Drama peripheral unit, East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Prosotsani, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 5,266 . The seat of the municipality was in Fotolivos...
in Greece.
In 1980 Renfrew was elected a Fellow of the British Academy. In 1981 he was elected to the Disney Professorship of Archaeology
Disney Professorship of Archaeology
The Disney Professorship of Archaeology, also known as the Disney Chair, is a professorship in the University of Cambridge. It was endowed with a donation of £1,000 by John Disney in 1851, followed by a further £3,500 in a bequest at his death...
in the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, a post he held until his retirement. In 1990 Renfrew was appointed as Director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research is a research institute of the University of Cambridge in England.-History:The Institute was established in 1990 through a generous benefaction from the late Dr D. M. McDonald, a well-known and successful industrialist...
. In 1987, he published Archaeology and Language: The Puzzle of the Indo-European Origins, a book on the Proto-Indo-Europeans
Proto-Indo-Europeans
The Proto-Indo-Europeans were the speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language , a reconstructed prehistoric language of Eurasia.Knowledge of them comes chiefly from the linguistic reconstruction, along with material evidence from archaeology and archaeogenetics...
. His "Renfrew Hypothesis
Anatolian hypothesis
The Anatolian hypothesis is also called Renfrew's Neolithic Discontinuity Theory ; it proposes that the dispersal of Proto-Indo-Europeans originated in Neolithic Anatolia...
" posited that this group lived 2,000 years before the Kurgan
Kurgan hypothesis
The Kurgan hypothesis is one of the proposals about early Indo-European origins, which postulates that the people of an archaeological "Kurgan culture" in the Pontic steppe were the most likely speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language...
s, in Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, later diffusing to Greece, then Italy, Sicily, Corsica, the Mediterranean coast of France, Spain, and Portugal. Another branch migrated along the fertile river valleys of the Danube and Rhine into Central and North Europe.
Renfrew served as Master of Jesus College
Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
from 1986 until 1997. In 2004 he retired from the University.
Positions, awards and accolades
- Renfrew was created a life peerLife peerIn the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
in 1991 as BaronBaronBaron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, of Hurlet in the District of Renfrew. - Balzan PrizeBalzan PrizeThe International Balzan Prize Foundation awards four annual monetary prizes to people or organisations who have made outstanding achievements in the fields of humanities, natural sciences, culture, as well as for endeavours for peace and the brotherhood of man.-Rewards and assets:Each year the...
, given in Prehistoric Archaeology for 2004. - Chair, Managing Council for the British School at AthensBritish School at AthensThe British School at Athens is one of the 17 Foreign Archaeological Institutes in Athens, Greece.-General information:The School was founded in 1886 as the fourth such institution in Greece...
, since 2004. - Visiting Scholar, Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, UCLA, 2005-06.
Books
- Renfrew, A.C., 1972, The Emergence of Civilisation: The Cyclades and the Aegean in The Third Millennium BC, London.
- Renfrew, A.C., 1973, Before Civilisation, the Radiocarbon Revolution and Prehistoric Europe, London: Pimlico. ISBN 0-7126-6593-5
- Renfrew, A.C., 1979. Cooke, Kenneth L. ed. Transformations: Mathematical Approaches to Culture Change. New York: Academic Press. ISBN 978-0125860505
- Renfrew, A.C. and Wagstaff, Malcolm (editors), 1982, An Island Polity, the Archaeology of Exploitation in Melos, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Renfrew, A.C., (editor), 1985, The Archaeology of Cult, the Sanctuary at PhylakopiPhylakopiPhylakopi , located at the northern coast of the island of Milos, is one of the most important Bronze Age settlements in the Aegean and especially in the Cyclades. The importance of Phylakopi is in its almost continuous inhabitance throughout the Bronze Age Phylakopi (Greek=Φυλακωπή), located at...
, London: British School at Athens and Thames & Hudson. - Renfrew, A.C., 1987, Archaeology and Language: The Puzzle of Indo-European Origins, London: Pimlico. ISBN 0-7126-6612-5
- Renfrew, A.C. and Bahn, P.Paul BahnPaul G. Bahn is a British archaeologist, translator, writer and broadcaster who has published extensively on a range of archaeological topics, with particular attention to prehistoric art...
, 1991, Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice, London: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-28147-5. (Fourth edition 2004) - Renfrew, A.C., 2000, Loot, Legitimacy and Ownership: The Ethical Crisis in Archaeology, London: Duckworth. ISBN 0-7156-3034-2
- Renfrew, A.C., 2003, Figuring It Out: The Parallel Visions of Artists and Archaeologists, London: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05114-3
- Renfrew, A.C., 2008, Prehistory: The Making of the Human Mind, Modern Library. ISBN 0-6796-4097-5
- Ernestine S. Elster and Colin Renfrew (eds), Prehistoric Sitagroi : excavations in northeast Greece, 1968-1970. Vol. 2, The final report. Los Angeles, CA : Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, University of California, Los Angeles, 2003. Monumenta archaeologica 20.
- Colin Renfrew, Marija GimbutasMarija GimbutasMarija Gimbutas , was a Lithuanian-American archeologist known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of "Old Europe", a term she introduced. Her works published between 1946 and 1971 introduced new views by combining traditional spadework with linguistics and mythological...
and Ernestine S. Elster (eds.), Excavations at Sitagroi, a prehistoric village in northeast Greece. Vol. 1. Los Angeles : Institute of Archaeology, University of California, 1986.
External links
- Renfrew's page at the MacDonald Institute
- Biographical interviews from Web of Stories (video)
- Interview with Alan MacfarlaneAlan MacfarlaneAlan Donald James Macfarlane FBA FRHistS is a renowned anthropologist and historian and a Professor Emeritus of King's College, Cambridge. He is the author or editor of 20 books and numerous articles on the anthropology and history of England, Nepal, Japan and China. He has focused on comparative...
(video) - 'Before Silk: Unsolved Mysteries of the Silk Road' by Colin Renfrew, YoutubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, {video} - Lecture on looting and illicit antiquities (MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
)