Series RAS COLL5/6 - Archives

The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was founded by the eminent Sanskrit scholar Sir Henry Thomas Colebrooke on the 15th March 1823. It received its Royal Charter from King George IV on the 11th August 1824 'for the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia'. It continues as a forum for those who are interested in the languages, cultures and history of Asia to meet and exchange ideas.

John Hansman graduated from the State University of Iowa and subsequently served with the U.S. Navy Submarine Staff Corps. From 1957-1960, he worked in the administration of an economic development program of the Kurdish region, Northeast Iraq. In Iraq, he had been introduced to archaeology when salvage excavating a 6000 year old simple burial site. During the early 1960s, he served two years on the administrative staff in Southwestern Iran. He moved to Britain during the mid-1960s to complete a PhD in archaeology at the School of Oriental Studies, University of London. His thesis required historical surveys of ancient cultural sites in adjoining areas of Southern Iraq and Iran. Following graduation in 1970, Hansman remained in Britain some 20 further years, researching and publishing papers on ancient Middle Eastern cultures and historical geography, while periodically revisiting those regions to excavate and carry out archaeological reconnaissance. His excavations include: 1965 – Located Spasinou Charax. Capital of the small Parthian (Iranian) vassel state of Mesene (Characene) located on the Tigres river flood plain of Southern Iraq, a city that flourished ca. 129 B.C. – 220 A.D. 1966 – Located Hecatompylos, Greek name of an early Persian settlement refounded by Alexander the Great in 330 B.C.; later Iranian Qumis, flourished second and first century B.C. as winter capital of the Parthian empire. Cultural debris of this now isolated site, which extends some 2.5 miles, contains eroded remains of large mud brick structures. 1970 – Identified the site of Anshan, a royal capital of the Elamite civilization in South Iran; which flourished ca. 2300-1600 B.C. During three seasons, Hansman served as co-director, under the British Institute of Persian Studies, at the Hecatompylos site. The last of these operations closed down after four weeks following outbreak, in 1979, of the Iranian revolution. Over two seasons, he directed archaeological excavations at the medieval Islamic port site of Julfar on the Persian Gulf, in the United Arab Emirates.
In 1971-72, while based at London, Hansman organized an appeal for the sesquicentennial anniversary of the Royal Asiatic Society. He also mounted an exhibition of the Society's history and co-organized a symposium of international scholars on un-deciphered and little understood ancient Asian languages.
In 1977 and 2002 Hansman was commissioned by the successive curators at Iolani Palace (former residence of the Hawaiian kings), Honolulu, to identify ceramic material recovered from utility trenches successively opened on the palace grounds. These pieces consisted mostly of sherds from a variety of formal dinner ware used in two older, smaller palace residences that occupied that property earlier in the 1800s.
In 1980 he was elected a Research Fellow at Clare Hall graduate college, Cambridge University. Hansman was decorated in 1983 by Shaykh Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qasimi, ruler of Ra's-al-Khaimah, of the United Arab Emirates, for excavations undertaken over-several-years at the early, port site of Julfar on the Persian Gulf. Dr. Hansman is an affiliate of Clare Hall, Cambridge University; a Life Fellow, Society of Antiquaries and Fellow Honoris Causa, Royal Asiatic Society, all in the United Kingdom.

Gordon Waterfield was a British journalist, broadcaster and writer, chiefly known for his book What Happened to France?, in which he documents his experiences as a journalist in France during World War II.

Lesley Adkins is an English writer and archaeologist. She is a member of the Institute for Archaeologists and fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London. She has written several books including Empires of the Plain: Henry Rawlinson and the Lost Languages of Babylon.

Dr Roger B Parsons worked at the British Library and as Librarian at the Buddhist Society. Upon retirement in 2005, he started volunteering at the Royal Asiatic Society, undertaking cataloguing of the Society's collections, most notably the Rawlinson papers. He volunteered with the Society until mid-2024. In 2023, Roger received Life Membership of the Society in recognition of his work with the collections.

Sir Arthur John Gielgud was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. A member of the Terry family theatrical dynasty, he gained his first paid acting work as a junior member of his cousin Phyllis Neilson-Terry's company in 1922.

The Charles Lamb Society was founded in 1935 following the centenary of Lamb’s death. It aims to promote a wider and deeper understanding of the life and times of Charles and Mary Lamb. Each year they hold a series of events in London that try to preserve the spirit of Elian friendliness and good humour.

The Friends of Coleridge, founded in 1986 by David Miall and Rosemary Cawthray, exists to foster interest in the life and works of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge and his circle. They pursue these aims by publishing the journal The Coleridge Bulletin, by hosting a biennial Summer Conference, and by running events and workshops for members of the society, for schools and other institutes of education, and for the general public. Membership is open to all.

The National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) was set up to save some of the UK’s finest heritage at risk of loss. Taken together, the treasures it saves form a permanent memorial to those who have given their lives for the UK.

As a fund of last resort, NHMF provides financial assistance towards the acquisition, preservation and maintenance of some of the UK’s finest objects and landscapes. These range from historic houses and works of art to trains, boats and ancient landscapes. NHMF creates a world-class collection that belongs to the people of the United Kingdom forever.

NHMF receives annual grant-in-aid of £5million from the UK government to help save some of our most-loved treasures from being lost forever. The Fund originated in 1946 as the National Land Fund but was changed to its present form in 1980.

Adrian David Hugh Bivar, FRAS (1926 - 2015) was a British numismatist and archaeologist, who was Emeritus Professor of Iranian Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He specialized in Sasanian seals and rock reliefs, Kushano-Sasanian coins and chronology, Mithraic iconography, Arsacid history and pre-Islamic folklore.