Richard Allan Tomlinson (born 25 April 1932), publishes under R. A. Tomlinson, is a British archaeologist. He was Professor of Ancient History and Archaeology at the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

from 1971 to 1995, and then director of the

British School at Athens The British School at Athens (BSA; ) is an institute for advanced research, one of the eight British International Research Institutes supported by the British Academy, that promotes the study of Greece in all its aspects. Under UK law it is a reg ...

from 1995 to 1996.

Early life

Tomlinson was born on 25 April 1932 to James Edward Tomlinson and Dorothea Mary Tomlinson (née Grellier). He was educated at King Edward's School, a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

day school for boys in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

. He then studied at

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...

. He graduated

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(BA), which was later promoted to

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA).

Academic career

In 1957, Tomlinson served as an assistant in the Department of Greek of the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. The following year, in 1958, he joined the

as an

Assistant Lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct r ...

. He was promoted to Lecturer in 1961 and Senior Lecturer in 1969. He 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 ancient history and archaeology in 1971. From 1988 to 1991, he served as Head of the School of Antiquity. Since 1995, when he left the university, he has been

Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, 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". ...

of the University of Birmingham. He was Chairman of th
Birmingham Branch

The Victorian Society The Victorian Society is a UK charity and amenity society that campaigns to preserve and promote interest in Victorian and Edwardian architecture and heritage built between 1837 and 1914 in England and Wales. As a statutory consultee, by la ...

between 1975 and 1978. From 1995 to 1996, he served as Director of the

. Previously, between 1978 and 1991, he had edited the School's

Annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year **Yearbook **Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), a ...

. He served as Chairman of its Managing Committee between 1991 and 1995. He is current vice-president, having been appointed to that post in 2001.

Personal life

In 1957, Tomlinson married Heather Margaret Murphy. Together they had four children: three sons and one daughter. His wife has predeceased him, dying in 2009.

Honours

On 8 January 1970, Tomlinson was elected

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).

Works

* ''Argos and the Argolid: From the End of the Bronze Age to the Roman Occupation'' (Ithaca, N.Y. : Cornell University Press, 1972) * ''From marble halls to mud huts'', Inaugural Lectures Series, From an Inaugural Lecture Delivered in the University of Birmingham on 14 November 1972 (Birmingham: University of Birmingham, 1973) * ''Greek sanctuaries'' (1976) * ''Epidauros'' (Archaeological sites) (1983) * ''Athens of Alma Tadema'' (1991) * ''From Mycenae to Constantinople: The Evolution of the Ancient City'' (1992)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomlinson, Richard 1932 births British archaeologists Academics of the University of Birmingham Living people Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Directors of the British School at Athens Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge