Howard Crosby Butler (March 7, 1872

Croton Falls, New York North Salem is a town in the northeastern section of Westchester County, New York, United States. The town, incorporated in 1788, is a suburb of New York City, located approximately 50 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. As of the 2020 census, N ...

– August 13, 1922 Neuilly) was an American archaeologist. Butler graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

, and later pursued special studies at the Columbia School of Architecture and at the American School of Classical Studies in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. In 1899, 1904, and 1909, he was at the head of archaeological expeditions in Syria. He became professor of the history of architecture at Princeton in 1905. Turkey's unsolicited request that he oversee the excavation of

Sardis Sardis ( ) or Sardes ( ; Lydian language, Lydian: , romanized: ; ; ) was an ancient city best known as the capital of the Lydian Empire. After the fall of the Lydian Empire, it became the capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian Lydia (satrapy) ...

represented a rare distinction for an American and a Christian. He directed five seasons of archaeological work at Sardis from 1910 to 1914, interrupted by the

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Most of the resulting finds kept in the excavation house perished in the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–22, thwarting the publication of projected volumes on pottery, lamps, bronze and stone objects, ivories, bones and glass. Butler became unwell on August 11, 1922 after returning from

, via Naples. He was admitted to the American Hospital of Paris in Neuilly on August 13 and died that night.

Works

He wrote many articles for archaeological journals and notable books on ''Scotland's Ruined Abbeys'' (1900) and ''The Story of Athens'' (1902). Expedition documents include “Architecture,” Part II of ''Publications of American Expedition to Syria'' (1903) and “Ancient Architecture in Syria,” in Division II of ''Publications of Princeton Expedition to Syria''. * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Howard Crosby 1872 births 1922 deaths American archaeologists Princeton University alumni Princeton University faculty