Roger Moorey
Encyclopedia
Peter Roger Stuart Moorey, FBA, FSA (30 May 1937 – 23 December 2004) was a British
archaeologist and historian of Mesopotamia
and the Ancient Near East
, and former Keeper of Antiquities at the Ashmolean Museum
of the University of Oxford
. Moorey also served as Vicegerent
of the University's Wolfson College
.
Roger Moorey was educated at Mill Hill School
, and read Modern History at Corpus Christi College, Oxford
, Oxford
. Between school and university he did his National Service
, learning Russian in Intelligence, and serving in Cyprus
. His time in Cyprus (with its fine archaeological heritage) probably reinforced a childhood interest in ancient history and may well have prompted his interest in the post of Assistant Keeper of Antiquities which became available at the time of his graduation in 1961.
Moorey's excavation interests and experiences were broad, excavating at Jerusalem under Kathleen Kenyon
in 1963 and in Abu Salabikh
in Iraq
under Nicholas Postgate in the 1970s.
He was eventually appointed as Keeper of Antiquities, which post he remained in until his retirement in 2003, shortly before his death.
Moorey was noted for his interdisciplinary approach and interests, as well as his willingness to assist many other archaeological researchers in their studies, his untimely death in 2004 meeting with universal sadness in the field of archaeology and ancient history.
, 2003. ISBN 0-900416-80-7.
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 historian of Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
and the Ancient Near East
Ancient Near East
The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia , ancient Egypt, ancient Iran The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia...
, and former Keeper of Antiquities at the Ashmolean Museum
Ashmolean Museum
The Ashmolean Museum on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is the world's first university museum...
of the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
. Moorey also served as Vicegerent
Vicegerent
Vicegerent is the official administrative deputy of a ruler or head of state: vice + gerere .-Related usage:*The Byzantine Emperors held as a title "God's Vicegerent on Earth"....
of the University's Wolfson College
Wolfson College, Oxford
Wolfson College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Located in north Oxford along the River Cherwell, Wolfson is an all-graduate college with over sixty governing body fellows, in addition to both research and junior research fellows. It caters to a wide range of...
.
Roger Moorey was educated at Mill Hill School
Mill Hill School
Mill Hill School, in Mill Hill, London, is a coeducational independent school for boarding and day pupils aged 13–18. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, an organisation of public schools in the United Kingdom....
, and read Modern History at Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...
, Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
. Between school and university he did his 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...
, learning Russian in Intelligence, and serving in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. His time in Cyprus (with its fine archaeological heritage) probably reinforced a childhood interest in ancient history and may well have prompted his interest in the post of Assistant Keeper of Antiquities which became available at the time of his graduation in 1961.
Moorey's excavation interests and experiences were broad, excavating at Jerusalem under Kathleen Kenyon
Kathleen Kenyon
Dame Kathleen Mary Kenyon , was a leading archaeologist of Neolithic culture in the Fertile Crescent. She is best known for her excavations in Jericho in 1952-1958.-Early life:...
in 1963 and in Abu Salabikh
Abu Salabikh
The low tells at Abu Salabikh, around 12 miles northwest of the site of ancient Nippur in Al-Qādisiyyah province, Iraq mark the site of a small Sumerian city of the mid third millennium BCE, with cultural connections to the cities of Kish, Mari and Ebla...
in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
under Nicholas Postgate in the 1970s.
He was eventually appointed as Keeper of Antiquities, which post he remained in until his retirement in 2003, shortly before his death.
Moorey was noted for his interdisciplinary approach and interests, as well as his willingness to assist many other archaeological researchers in their studies, his untimely death in 2004 meeting with universal sadness in the field of archaeology and ancient history.
Publications
- P.R.S. Moorey, Excavation in Palestine, Lutterworth Press, 1982. ISBN 0-7188-2432-6.
- P.R.S. Moorey, A Century of Biblical Archaeology, Lutterworth Press, 1991. ISBN 0-7188-2825-9.
- P.R.S. Moorey, Ancient Mesopotamian Materials and Industries: The Archaeological Evidence, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994. ISBN 0-19-814921-2.
- Review — Bryn Mawr Classical Review
- Ancient Near Eastern Terracottas in the Ashmolean Museum — online catalogue.
Festschrift
Potts, Timothy, Roaf, Michael & Stein, Diana (eds), Culture through Objects: Ancient Near Eastern studies in honour of P.R.S. Moorey, Oxford: Griffith InstituteGriffith Institute
The Griffith Institute is an institution based in the Ashmolean Museum of the University of Oxford for the advancement of Egyptology as a discipline. The Griffith Institute is named after the eminent Egyptologist Francis Llewellyn Griffith, who bequeathed funds within his will for the foundation of...
, 2003. ISBN 0-900416-80-7.
Obituaries
- Roger Moorey, Obituary, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
(22 January 2005) - Roger Moorey, Obituary, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, obit by Ashley Jones (3 February 2005) - Roger Moorey, 1937–2004, American Journal of ArchaeologyAmerican Journal of ArchaeologyThe American Journal of Archaeology , the peer-reviewed journal of the Archaeological Institute of America, has been published since 1897...
, obit by O. Muscarella (July 2005)