Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (349 page)

Jazdzewski , Konrad
(1908–85)
[Bi].

Polish archaeologist and leading prehistorian. Born in Silesia he was educated at Poznan University between 1926 and 1930, attaining his doctorate in 1935. He held various academic posts in Poznan and Warsaw, and in 1939 was nominated to the Chair in Prehistory at Wilna University but was prevented from taking it up because of the outbreak of war. After WW2 he served as Director of the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography in
ód
, where he stayed until his retirement in 1979. Simultaneously he was associate professor and in 1959 full professor in
ód
University. During this time he excavated a number of important sites including Brze
Kujawski and
eg Piekarski. He was elected an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in March 1976.
[Obit.:
Antiquaries Journal
, 66 (1986), 499]

 
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Jefferson , Thomas
(1743–1826)
[Bi].

Born in Shadwell, Virginia, USA, Jefferson trained as a lawyer but was also a committed amateur archaeologist. He was Governor of Virginia between 1779 and 1781 before becoming a member of the House of Congress. In 1784, he excavated a burial mound on his estate in Virginia in order to establish its age and cultural affinities. The work was carried out very scientifically, with careful observation and an understanding of stratigraphy; it was reported in 1801 in
Notes on the state of Virginia
(London: John Stockdale). In 1799, when he was President of the American Philosophical Society, he circulated a letter to members enjoining them to make accurate plans, drawings, and descriptions of ancient remains. Jefferson was the third President of the USA, in office 1801–9. In retirement he founded the University of Virginia.
[Bio.: K. Lehmann-Hartleben , 1943, Thomas Jefferson , archaeologist.
American Journal of Archaeology
, 47, 161–3]

 
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A Viking royal site of the 10th century
ad
in East Jutland. The complex is dominated by two large mounds, the biggest barrows in Denmark, 78m in diameter and 11m high. They are believed to have contained the burials of the last pagan monarchs: Gorm , who died in ad 950, and his queen Thyra . However, excavations by Ejnar Dyggve in 1941–7 revealed that the southern mound contained no burial, prompting speculation that Gorm and Thyra were buried together in the northern barrow, the chamber of which had been cleared in 1821 and 1861. Between the barrows stands a Romanesque church outside which is a very fine
SYMBOL
stone bearing the oldest crucifixion scene yet known in Denmark. A second stone has a magnificent lion drawn on it. Both the stones carry runic inscriptions telling of the exploits and Christian conversion of Gorm the Old and Harald Bluetooth. There are also the remains of a large stone-edged monument in the shape of a ship in the churchyard.
[Rep.: E. Dyggve , 1948, The royal barrows at Jelling.
Antiquity
, 22, 190–7]

 
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