234 Proceedings of the Society, 1954-56
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234 PROCEEDING E SOCIETYTH F O S , 1954-56. A MEMORIA F ALEXANDEO L R ORMISTON CURLE. Alexander Curie was bor Junn ni e 1866 f Alexande o e thir n th , dso r Curie, W.S., of Priorwood, Melrose. He was educated at Fettes College and at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, and was admitted a Writer to the Signet in 1892, In 1908, on creatioe Royath e th f no l Commissio Anciene th n Historicand o an t l Monuments of Scotland, he was appointed its Secretary, and held this position until 1913 when he succeeded Dr Joseph Anderson as Director of the National Museum of Antiquities. In this same year, after ceasing to be the Commission's Secretary, s membersit e Nationaf s appointeo th t e wa A e on .h ls a dMuseu e coulmh d accomplish comparativel outbreae y th Firse littlen th o f te s k o a ,Worl th r dWa collections wer e buildine packestoredd th an takes d p an gdwa u , n ove usr fo re s Governmena gives t n 191officeswa i n e t 6h charg e bu Roya;th f eo l Scottish Museum as well, and he managed both institutions until 1919 when he was relieved Nationae th t a l Museu . GrahaJ r D my mb Callander Royae Th l. Scottish Museum directee h d retiremenuntif o reachee e lh rememberes i ag e e h 1931n d i th t d an , d there for two principal achievements—the raising, to a very marked degree, of generae th l standar collectione th f Departmene do th n i sintro e th Artf d -o t an , duction of much more attractive methods of display. Membership of the Ancient Monuments Commissio retainee nh d until 1951, resignin than gi t yea reasonr rfo s oactivs f healthwa publin e i H . c work outside his official appointments, serving t varioua se Counci timeth e Societ th n o sf o lf Antiquarie yo f Scotlando s e th , Advisory Board for Scotland under the Ancient Monuments Acts, the National Trust for Scotland, the Holyrood Trust, the Dalrymple Trust, etc. He was electe da Felloe Societ th f wf o Antiquarieo y f Scotlane o s th f o n 189 i dd 3an Society of Antiquaries of London in 1911; he was appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Orde awardes 1930wa n ri d degree dan ,th LL.Df eo Glasgoy b . w Universit twics wa e1935n e y i married H . 189n ,i Katharino 8t e Wray, daughter of Captain George Tancred of Weens, and in 1909 to Jocelyn Winifred, daughter of Henry Butler diee H Januarn di . y s eighty-nint195hi n 5i h year, survived daughtea d firss hi an tf n marriageo r so a y b . A memorial presente thio dt s Society should naturall concernede yb e th n ,i main, with Curie's careeantiquaryn a e Roya s thin s worth i a r hi sr d lkfo an , Commissio Ancienn no t Monuments deserve consideree b o dt d lise f firsto tTh . his published papers shows that, befor ealreads 1908wa e yh , actively interested bot fieln hi d archaeolog alsos t thiwa a , records n e i s h timed d yan an ;, associated wit Josepr hD h Anderson Nationae th t a , l Museu Antiquitiesmf o , through being one of the Society's Secretaries. It was consequently a logical move on the part of the Ancient Monuments Commissioners, whose policy it was to build up their Inventories on a basis of fresh research, to secure him as their own Secretary; and e confidenb y e himselindeeh ma influence s o te thawa wh fdon t i te Comth d - missioners in the decision, recorded in their first Report, that their Secretary should "visit each count turnn yi , wit objece hth personallf o t y inspecting each monumen satisfo t s a yo s [themt s truit ]e o t ..characte s a . condition.d an r " A resultsa , Curi abls embaro eewa t field-wora n ko k programm conceptioe eth n and scale of which far outran anything previously attempted; and an earnest thae made us t h e thiof efth o s unique opportunit Commission'e seee th b nn o i t s yi s earlier Inventory volumes. Berwickshire, Sutherland and Caithness he surveyed A MEMORIA F ALEXANDEO L R ORMISTON CURLE5 23 . single-handed between brough190 e Berwickshir1911e h d th 8d an t ,an tou e volume in 1909 and the two others in 1911 with no more than clerical assistance. In 1911 his staff was strengthened by an architect and an architectural draughtsman, with whose help he was able to survey three further counties (Wigtownshire, the Stewartr Kirkcudbrightf yo Dumfriesshired an , followine th than d i ) an t g year. He produced the Wigtownshire Inventory in 1912, though the other two volumes remained to be brought out later by his successor. The physical achievement represented by these early surveys is little short of prodigious, as Curie was not onl bicyclya ordinars forcee hi us s eo a d t y mean transportf so , wher have ew e cars eved an n cross-country vehicles alse h o t madbu , practicea writinf eo notep gu n si the evening, after a strenuous day's work in the open, and was able, moreover, drafo t t the finishea mn i d form read typisr yprinterfo d face tan tTh tha. t these pioneer t reaceffort no standard e o hth d s s expecte field-worn di k to-day, after half centura developmenf yo archaeologican ti l technique, mus t maktno forges eu w ho t great an advance they marked on most of the work done in the 19th century. As Commissionera laten i , r years, Curie constantly supported progressive l ideaal f so sorts, and was always delighted to assist in the work himself in a practical way. It was wholly typical of his continuing keenness and vigour that he walked to the top of Rubers Law at the age of seventy-nine to show the present writer the position of the Roman building-stones, of which he alone had knowledge. A recor s archaeologica hi e resf muc do f th o tf ho e foune l b th wor n n di kca Society's Proceedings. In the course of the sixty-two years during which he was a Fellow, he contributed or was joint author in no less than forty-eight papers. Man f theseyo , describing major excavations, posses permanensa t importance— for example, those on Traprain Law (joint authorship, 1914-21), Mumrills fort (joint authorship with Sir George Macdonald, 1925-9), Jarlshof (1931-5) and Freswick hoare (1939)th f f Romado O . n silver, unearthed durin e Trapraigth n excavations made ,h eseparata e recor greas hi dn ti boo Treasuree kTh of Traprain. Other papers, less important but recording fresh facts of great interest, are those on Ruber (1905)w sLa , Bonchester Hill hut-circled an , Strate th n Kildonaf si h o n (1910), LangweU (1911), Teroy (1912), Hawick Mote (1913) Troddan Du , n (1921), Wiltrow (1936 d Forsan ) e (1941 and 1948) s discussioHi . f domestino c candle- sticks (1926) also deserves mentio Society'e nth heres A . s Rhind Lecturer (1918) he discusse e Prehistoridth c Monument f Scotlando s ; these lectures have never been published e typescripth t bu , s depositei t e Librar e Nationath th n di f yo l Museum. His Scandinavian colleagues held him in high esteem for his pioneer wor Norsn ko e house Shetlann si fittin s Caithnessd wa dan gt i tha d lase an th t,t s lifpapehi e f shoulo r d have been presente e Vikinth o dt g Congress, helt da Lerwick in 1950. But Curie's contribution to the Society's activities was by no means confined to reports on his own discoveries. He was constant in attendance at meetings, and the discussions that followed the papers owed much to his wide knowledge of the Scottish monuments and to his familiarity with endless relics in British and foreign stylmuseumsn lecturinf eow o s mosHi s . gwa t happy delighted an , s dhi hearers laten i ; r ratey years eschewee an h ,t a , e readindth f formago l papers altogether, presenting his material from notes and slides in an easy conversational s generouwa style e H s. with informatio colleagueo nt - in advicd e th an s o et experienced, and was always strong in condemnation of an insular approach to archaeological questions. In this last respect he set an example by repeatedly tourin e Europeagth ne connection museumsth y b d an s, tha fosteree h t d with Scandinavian savants. Both by his own efforts and through his association with 236 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, 1954-56. his brother, Jame r sGeorg Si Curie d ean , Maedonald abls o exerwa t e e a h t, weighty formative influenc Scottise th n eo h archaeolog times hi f y.o To retur connectios hi o nt n wit Societye hth not;a requires ei servics hi f do n ei s variouit s offices Secretarya . s Thuwa e sh , junio seniorr o r , from 1901913o t 5 , Assistant Secretary from 1911919o t 3, Curato Museue th f ro m from 1911925o t 9 , Librarian from 1925 to 1938, Vice-President from 1938 to 1942 and again from 1946 to 1948, and a Councillor in 1904, from 1942 to 1944, and in 1945 and 1946.