Skara Brae women archaeologists who were written out of history

[Judi Lynn]

By Huw Williams
BBC Scotland reporter

Published 21 March 2019



ORKNEY LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES
The photographs were taken at Skara Brae, probably in 1929

An "excavation" on social media has provided names for four women shown in pictures of a dig in Orkney.

The women - shown in photographs taken in 1929 - had been assumed to be tourists or visitors.

But since Prof Dan Hicks, from the University of Oxford, tweeted the images they have been named as archaeologists working on the site.

Those behind the search say it shows how women have been written out of the history of archaeology.

More:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-47639736?fbclid=IwAR2Zj0AvDQLipn5Swk2Q20s7hEc7UMqgZkTx1V37Wr9MgNs-NQLxqA3QZ0A

[jpak]

1. Flappers

[niyad]

2. Thank you so much for posting this evidence of the dismissal of women. "Assumed to be tourists"

Of course they could not be professionals, they were merely women! Grrrrrrr.

Would you consider cross-posting this in Women's Rights And Issues? Thanks in advance.

[Judi Lynn]

5. Absolutamente. Just got back from posting it a moment ago, after being away a while this morning.

I had never heard about any women in that field, either, until I started looking for archeology articles in the last few years, and fewer than fingers on one hand started surfacing in the material I saw. The only one I had heard of before that was the second wife of Louis Leakey, Mary Douglas Leakey, who had a career in her own right.

It has been a long, hard struggle for women in archeology. Awful. Worked just as hard and just as long, but no one outside knew about them. Insane.

Thank you, niyad.

[Ligyron]

3. Well, isn't that just typical...

And totally wrong, but did ya notice how none of those people look like they're dressed for doing any "excavating" as per the labeling i.e., digging in the dirt? IDK, maybe as a professional you were expected to dress like that no matter what back then.

I can remember when I was just a little kid in the late 50's early 60's how no man would go out into the world without shit, tie and Fedora no matter how stinkin' hot it was.

Some things have gotten better anyway.

[Judi Lynn]

6. I wondered about that, too. All I can guess is someone told them to go get cleaned up for pictures..

However, if you can remember old photos, there were quite a few taken with male archaeologists standing around in complete suits, which did seem strange. It always looked as if they didn't want to get their nice suits dirty so they left that to the brown people.

Not too sure what they were up to with the photos. Could be they only wanted people back home to see them less disheveled.

[safeinOhio]

4. I got my minor in Anthropology in 2000 and I can't

remember any male instructors in the department just 20 years ago.
My father was a Prof in Animal Science and when he started in the 50s, he didn't have any female grad students. When he retired in the 90s, 3/4 of his grad students were females.
The world is changing for the better.

[Judi Lynn]

7. That's good news, then. Thank you for taking the time, safeinOhio.