Sir Max Edgar Lucien Mallowan (6 May 1904 – 19 August 1978) was a prominent British

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

, specialising in ancient Middle Eastern history. He was the second husband of Dame

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fiction ...

Life and work

Born Edgar Mallowan in

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Toponymy Wandsworth takes its nam ...

on 6 May 1904, he was the son of Frederick Mallowan and his wife Marguerite (née Duvivier), whose mother was mezzo-soprano

Marthe Duvivier Marthe Louise Ernestine Duvivier (27 April 1850, Paris – 28 May 1933, Paris)Marthe Duvivier
at the

. His father's family was from Austria. He was educated at

Rokeby School Rokeby School is an 11–16 secondary school for boys located in Canning Town, Greater London, England. In 2010 the school relocated to new building on the Barking Road. Facilities at the school include technology and ICT rooms, a six court ind ...

and

Lancing College Lancing College is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in southern England, UK. The school is located in West Sussex, east of Worthing near the village of Lancing, on the south coast of England. ...

(where he was a contemporary of

Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires '' Decl ...

) and studied classics at New College,

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. He first worked as an apprentice to

Leonard Woolley Sir Charles Leonard Woolley (17 April 1880 – 20 February 1960) was a British archaeologist best known for his excavations at Ur in Mesopotamia. He is recognized as one of the first "modern" archaeologists who excavated in a methodical way, ...

at the archaeological site of Ur (1925–1930), which was thought to be the capital of

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

n civilization. It was at the Ur site, in 1930, that he first met Agatha Christie, the famous author, whom he married the same year. In 1932, after a short time working at

Nineveh Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ba ...

with

Reginald Campbell Thompson Reginald Campbell Thompson (21 August 1876 – 23 May 1941) was a British archaeologist, assyriologist, and cuneiformist. He excavated at Nineveh, Ur, Nebo and Carchemish among many other sites. Biography Thompson was born in Kensington, and ...

, Mallowan became a field director for a series of expeditions jointly run by the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

and the British School of Archaeology in Iraq. His excavations included the prehistoric village at

Tell Arpachiyah Tell Arpachiyah (outside modern Mosul in Ninawa Governorate Iraq) is a prehistoric archaeological site in Nineveh Province ( Iraq). It takes its name from a more recent village located about from Nineveh. The proper name of the mound on whic ...

, and the sites at Chagar Bazar and

Tell Brak Tell Brak (Nagar, Nawar) was an ancient city in Syria; its remains constitute a tell located in the Upper Khabur region, near the modern village of Tell Brak, 50 kilometers north-east of Al-Hasaka city, Al-Hasakah Governorate. The city' ...

in the Upper Khabur area (

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

). He was also the first to excavate archaeological sites in the Balikh Valley, to the west of the Khabur basin. Following the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

he served with the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF ...

in North Africa, being based for part of 1943 at the ancient city of

Sabratha Sabratha ( ar, صبراتة, Ṣabrāta; also ''Sabratah'', ''Siburata''), in the Zawiya DistrictLibya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

. He was commissioned as a

pilot officer Pilot officer (Plt Off officially in the RAF; in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly P/O in all services, and still often used in the RAF) is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countri ...

on probation in the Administrative and Special Duties Branch on 11 February 1941, promoted flying officer on 18 August 1941,

flight lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior Officer (armed forces)#Commissioned officers, commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) RAF officer ranks, system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries. I ...

on 1 April 1943 and at some point he also held the rank of

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

. He resigned his commission on 10 February 1954, but was permitted to retain that rank in retirement. After the war, in 1947, he was appointed Professor of Western Asiatic Archaeology at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

, a position which he held until elected a fellow of

All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: College of the Souls of All the Faithful Departed) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full members of ...

in 1962. In 1947, he also became director of the British School of Archaeology in Iraq (1947–1961) and directed the resumption of its work at

Nimrud Nimrud (; syr, ܢܢܡܪܕ ar, النمرود) is an ancient Assyrian city located in Iraq, south of the city of Mosul, and south of the village of Selamiyah ( ar, السلامية), in the Nineveh Plains in Upper Mesopotamia. It was a m ...

(previously excavated by A. H. Layard), which he published in ''Nimrud and its Remains'' (2 volumes, 1966). Mallowan gave an account of his work in ''Twenty-five Years of Mesopotamian Discovery'' (1956) and his wife Agatha Christie described his work in Syria in ''

Come, Tell Me How You Live ''Come, Tell Me How You Live'' is a short book of autobiography and travel literature by crime writer Agatha Christie. It is one of only two books she wrote and had published under both of her married names of "Christie" and "Mallowan" (the oth ...

'' (1946). Max's first wife, Lady Mallowan, known to millions as Agatha Christie, died in 1976; the following year, Mallowan married Barbara Hastings Parker, an archaeologist, who had been his

epigraphist Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

and Secretary of the British School of Archaeology in Iraq.

Honours

Mallowan was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in the 1960

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the King's Official Birthday, reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into Order (honour), national or Dynastic order of knighthood, dynastic ...

, and

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...

in 1968. He gave the 1969 Albert Reckitt Archaeological Lecture. He and Dame Agatha Christie were among a number of married couples each of whom held knightly honours in their own right.

Death

He died on 19 August 1978, aged 74, at Greenway House in Devon and was interred alongside his first wife, Dame Agatha, in the churchyard of St Mary's,

Cholsey Cholsey is a village and civil parish south of Wallingford in South Oxfordshire. In 1974 it was transferred from Berkshire to Oxfordshire, and from Wallingford Rural District to the district of South Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census recorded Cho ...

in Oxfordshire. His estate was valued at £524,054. His widow Barbara, the second Lady Mallowan, died in Wallingford in 1993, at the age of 85.Deaths England and Wales 1984-2006
(subscription required)

In popular culture

In 2022, Mallowan was portrayed by Lucian Msamati in the British-American film '' See How They Run''.

Selected works

* * * * *

References

External links

Agatha Christie/Sir Max Mallowan's blue plaque at Cholsey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mallowan, Max 1904 births 1978 deaths Academics of the University of London Archaeologists of the Near East Alumni of New College, Oxford Burials in Oxfordshire English archaeologists Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford Knights Bachelor People educated at Lancing College People from Wandsworth Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Royal Air Force wing commanders 20th-century archaeologists