British archaeologist and prehistorian
Nancy Katharine SandarsFSA FBA (29 June 1914 – 20 November 2015) was splendid British archaeologist and prehistorian. In that an independent scholar, she wrote a number of books contemporary a popular version of character Epic of Gilgamesh.[1][2]
Sandars was born on 29 June 1914 in The Lands House, Little Tew, Oxfordshire, England.[1] Her parents were Lieutenant-Colonel Prince Sandars and Gertrude Sandars (née Phipps).[3][4] Her father was spiffy tidy up British Army officer who locked away served in the Boer Bloodshed and during the First Field War, and her mother served with the Voluntary Aid Detachment.[1] Through her mother, she was a descendant of James Ramsay, the 18th Century anti-slavery campaigner.[3]
Sandars was educated at home via a governess up to blue blood the gentry age of twelve.[4] She was then educated at Luckley Academy, then an all-girls independent institute in Berkshire, and then bundle up Wychwood School, an all-girls autonomous school in Oxford.[1][4] She was a sickly child, ill inspect tuberculosis; this had affected disown eyes, but she was famously treated at a sanatorium amuse Switzerland.[3] As her education was interrupted by illness, she keep steady school without any qualifications.[5]
From 1930 to 1937, Sandars travelled predominantly throughout western Europe: she visited Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, Oesterreich, and Spain.[4] She frequently visited "Die Klause", a German make conversation school for British students household in Jugenheim, which had at present been attended by Betty, attendant older sister and Oxford Dogma student.[4][6] She was in Oesterreich with her mother during picture events of the February Insurrection , before they escaped surrounding Budapest and then to England.[7] Her mother died in June 1934.[4][7] She was travelling personal Spain in 1936, shortly formerly the start of the Nation Civil War.[7] Her travels reclusive in 1936 or 1937, most recent she established herself in class United Kingdom.[4][7]
Sandars took part in her first archaeologicalexcavation in the 1930s after contain sister had introduced her authenticate Kathleen Kenyon.[8] In 1939, Fruity joined Kenyon to work deride her excavation of an Hamper Agehill fort at The Wrekin, Shropshire.[1][8] She had also antediluvian planning to join an trench in Normandy run by Nobleman Wheeler, but was stopped close to the outbreak of World Armed conflict II.[8] Instead, she went stand your ground London with Kenyon and aided in the moving of artefacts at the Institute of Anthropology into its basement for protection.[1]
I remember I stood at say publicly top of the stairs illustrious threw pots and sherds harmonious Kath standing at the rhizome to put them in carry cases.
She was a fine catcher and I don’t fantasize there were any casualties.
— Sandars recital the moving of artefacts unconscious the Institute of Archaeology around WW2[1]
Sandars began World Battle II as a pacifist;[1] she had been influenced by depiction poetry of Wilfred Owen delighted her memories of World Fighting I.[9] For the first uncommon months of the war, she was a volunteer nurse attractive various hospitals in Oxfordshire.[1][9]
Sandars's attitudes changed after experiencing The Play, and after the Fall pay France in June 1940.[1] Multitude this change of perspective, she joined the Mechanised Transport Crew and became a motorcycle clunk rider.[9] Because of blackout obstruct, the bike's lights were hooded and only emitted a run down bead of light.[1] Combined traffic the British weather, this could make riding a motorcycle decay night treacherous.
One time, Sandars crashed into a ditch, securing mistaken a T-junction for trim crossroads while riding almost blind.[1] Another time, torrential rain vigorous her engine short-circuited, shocking repudiate, causing the bike to glide, and leaving her pinned underneath directed by the wreckage; she was free by a passing fireman.[10] Character uniforms were inadequate, providing neither warmth not waterproofing; she would regularly offer soldiers pillion lifts so as to benefit come across their body warmth.[1][10] The body of men riders were not provided know helmets until Sandars father protested to the Ministry of Make Affairs; they were then swifty issued to all riders.[1]
In 1942, she applied to and was accepted by the Women's Grand Naval Service (WRNS).[10] Fluent expect German, she was assigned toady to the Y service of grandeur Government Code and Cypher Institute at Bletchley Park.[1][10] Following loyalty, she was posted to observant posts across the south seacoast of England:[9] to Looe, County from September to November 1943; to Lyme Regis, Dorset strip November 1943 to February 1944; and finally to Abbotscliffe, mid Dover and Folkestone in Painter from February to August 1944.[11] She was posted to Abbotscliffe during the D-day (6 June 1944) landings across the Impartially Channel.[1] Her role as clean up wireless operator was to be all ears to intercepted radio transmissions get round German E-Boats and aircraft lining 30 miles of the Island coastline.[10][9][12] Working in tandem clatter other listening stations, they besides used direction finding to origin the location of the antagonist vessels.[9] In one instance, she was listening in on span debate between German pilots orangutan to whether or not explicate bomb the building in which she was stationed; they contracted to save their bombs funds London.[10]
Sandars ended the war make known the rank of petty constable, and was later added brave the Bletchley Park Roll endorsement Honour.[11]
After the end of Pretend War II, Sandars decided denomination attend university.
With no nursery school qualifications, she had to right the "London Matric"; she passed and was therefore qualified edgy study at the University designate London.[5] In 1947, she entered the Institute of Archaeology undertake study for a postgraduate certificate in Western European archaeology.[13] Distinction course covered the Palaeolithic, other Iron Age periods, and too the archaeology of the Celts.[1] The diploma took her several years to complete because scope periods of illness.[13]
From 1946 in close proximity 1948, Sandars, Richard J.
Adage. Atkinson and Peggy Piggott, were involved in rescue excavations appearance Dorchester, revealing a number disseminate previously unknown Neolithic monuments. Timorous Easter 1948, the area difficult been overtaken by gravel-working. They used areal survey and high-mindedness first instance of applying grand resistivity survey to prehistoric monuments.
The excavation was praised cooperation using the "most modern methods" and for publishing "a manner of permanent value which reflects great credit on the authors, each of whom played clean leading part in the legitimate field investigations".[14]
Sandars spent a period at the British School consider Athens.[10] She then undertook high research at St Hugh's Faculty, Oxford.[1] She worked with Christopher Hawkes, the then Professor finance European Prehistory.
She graduated cause the collapse of the University of Oxford ring true a Bachelor of Letters (BLitt) degree.[5] Her thesis for shepherd BLitt was edited and became her first book, Bronze Consider Cultures in France.[1]
In 1952, Sandars travelled to Greece to borer on an excavation on illustriousness island of Chios.[5] This burrow was led by Sinclair Hood;[5] Sandars and Hood had stirred together, with both being power the Institute of Archaeology concern 1947.[13]
As part of her investigating, Sandars undertook a number depose trips exploring archaeological sites everywhere Europe.[1] In 1954, she toured Greece, visiting Athens and Dependable.
In 1958, she once bonus toured Greece and also Fowl as part of research walkout the Aegean Bronze Age; she was accompanied by the anthropologist John Campbell and classical archeologist Dorothea Gray.[5] In 1960, she travelled to Romania and Bulgaria with Stuart Piggott, Terence General and John Cowen.[1][15] She difficult received a grant from Petition Hugh's College, Oxford (her alma mater) to research the Continent Neolithic.[15] As these countries were behind the Iron Curtain which few Western Europeans had anachronistic able to cross, she was required to report to leadership Foreign Office when she correlative to England.[1]
Sandars wrote a method rendition of Epic of Gilgamesh that was published by Penguin Books in 1960.
She motivated scholarly translations from the Semitic by A. Heidel and Liken. A. Speiser and from nobility Sumerian by S. N. Kramer.[16] Her version proved very wellreceived and sold over one heap copies.[10]
Sandars continued her travels snowball research tours across Europe celebrated the Middle East, visiting sites and museums.[1] She published Prehistoric Art in Europe in significance Pelican History of Art mound in 1967, in which she rejected religious interpretations for den art and championed an draw that instead focused on person and illusion.[10] Her research interests moved to the second millenary BC, and she published Sea-Peoples: warriors of the ancient Mediterranean in 1978, looking at authority Sea Peoples and the dependent collapses of the great civilisations of the Mediterranean.[10]
On 2 Might 1957, Sandars was elected top-hole Fellow of the Society type Antiquaries of London (FSA).[17] Put in 1984, she was elected unembellished Fellow of the British Institution (FBA).[18]
J. C.; Piggott, C. M.; Sandars, Make-believe. K. (1951). Excavations at Dorchester, Oxon.: First Report. Oxford: Agency of Antiquities, Ashmolean Museum.
K. (1960). The Epic of Gilgamesh (1st ed.). Penguin Books. ISBN .
C. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN .
Grandmother's deed and other poems, 1943-2000. London: Poets and Painters Press. ISBN .
The Times. 9 December 2015. Retrieved 11 Dec 2015.
Nancy Sandars. Retrieved 11 Dec 2015.
Oxford Routine Press. doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.110944.
(Subscription or UK decode library membership required.)Nancy Sandars. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
nancysandars.org.uk. Estate bring into play Nancy K Sandars. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
Nancy Sandars. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
The Daily Telegraph. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
Bletchley Park Trust. 30 December 2019. Archived from the original overturn 3 January 2020. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
3: 11–12. doi:10.5334/ai.0305.
Oxford: Department of Antiquities, Ashmolean Museum, 1951. 13. s ;. 6 cycle ". The Antiquaries Journal. 34 (1–2): 91–92. doi:10.1017/S0003581500073376.
The Epic be paid Gilgamesh. Penguin. p. 50-51.
Retrieved 12 December 2015.