Nancy Margaret Edwards, (born 8 January 1954) is a British

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and academic, who specialises in

medieval archaeology ''Medieval Archaeology'' is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal covering the archaeology of the medieval period, especially in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established in 1957 by the Society for Medieval Archaeology and is publish ...

and

ecclesiastical history Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of the ...

. From 2008 to 2020, she was Professor of Medieval Archaeology at

Bangor University Bangor University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It was established by Royal charter, Royal Charter in 1885 as the University College of North Wales (UCNW; ), and in 1893 ...

; having retired, she is now

emeritus professor ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

Early life and education

Edwards was born on 8 January 1954 in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, Hampshire, England to David Cyril Bonner Edwards and Ann Edwards. She was educated at Portsmouth High School, an all-girls

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea began as a f ...

, Portsmouth. She then studied

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

ancient history Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...

, and

medieval history In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

at the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1976. She undertook

postgraduate research Postgraduate research represents a formal area of study that is recognized by a university or institute of higher learning. The notion of "postgraduate" refers to studies following a undergraduate degree. Postgraduate research either occurs within ...

in archaeology at

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

, and completed her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 1982. Her

doctoral thesis A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...

was titled "A reassessment of the early medieval stone crosses and related sculpture of Offaly, Kilkenny and Tipperary".

Academic career

Edwards has spent all her academic career at

(or its predecessors University College of North Wales and University of Wales, Bangor). She was a lecturer from 1979 to 1992, a senior lecturer from 1992 to 1999, and a reader from 1999 to 2008. In 2008, she was appointed

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

of Medieval Archaeology. She retired in December 2020, and was made

. In addition to her full-time positions at Bangor, Edwards has held a number of temporary visiting appointments. She was a

visiting fellow In academia An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of ...

Clare Hall, Cambridge Clare Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1966 by Clare College, Clare Hall is a college for advanced study, admitting only postgraduate students alongside postdoctoral researchers and fellows. It was est ...

in 1991 and at

All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: The College of All Souls of the Faithful Departed, of Oxford) 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 me ...

in 2007. She was the O'Donnell Lecturer in Celtic Studies at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in 1999/2000; lecturing on "Early Medieval Stones and Stone Sculpture in Wales: Context and Connections". Edwards is Chair of the

Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales (RCAHMW; ; ), established in 1908, is a Welsh Government sponsored body concerned with some aspects of the archaeological, architectural and historic environment of Wales. ...

. She also served as the Chair of the

Gwynedd Archaeological Trust The Gwynedd Archaeological Trust () was an archaeological organisation established in 1974, until its dissolution in 2024 as the four Welsh Archaeological Trusts merged as Heneb. Overview The organisation was one of four Welsh Archaeologica ...

from 2004 until 2018.

Personal life

In 1983, Edwards married Anthony Huw Pryce. Together they have one son.

Honours

On 4 May 1989, Edwards was elected a

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

(FSA). In 2012, she was elected a

Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales The Learned Society of Wales () is a national academy, learned society and charity that exists to "celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines", and to serve the Welsh nation. The Learned ...

(FLSW). In July 2016, she was elected a

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

(FBA), the UK's

national academy A national academy is an organizational body, usually operating with state financial support and approval, that co-ordinates scholarly research activities and standards for academic disciplines, and serves as a public policy advisors, research ...

for the humanities and the social sciences.

Selected works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Nancy Living people British women archaeologists 20th-century British archaeologists 21st-century British archaeologists British medievalists British women medievalists Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Fellows of the British Academy Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales 1954 births People educated at Portsmouth High School (Southsea) Alumni of the University of Liverpool 21st-century British women writers 20th-century British women writers Alumni of Durham University Graduate Society Medieval archaeologists Academics of Bangor University