Santa Fe New Mexican (Paul Weideman)Petrie grew up in England, the son of a surveyor. As his father taught him how to use the surveying equipment of his time, Petrie learned to esteem precise measurement and accurate record keeping. A fascination with ancient monuments was first indulged with a survey Petrie began at Stonehenge when he was 19. In 1880, when he was 24, Petrie began a survey of the Great Pyramid of Giza.
While he was in Egypt, Petrie was aghast at the local disregard for historic monuments and mummies. When the Egyptians of the time found a tomb, they would hoard valuable artifacts, but mummies were discarded or used as fuel in trains and steamships. According to an online biography, Petrie was familiar with the cry, “We need more steam; throw a pharaoh on the fire!”
As members of the world scientific community learned of Petrie’s eye for detail and predilection for precise records, they began to hold him in high regard. In 1892, Petrie was named the first Edwards Professor of Egyptian Archaeology and Philology at University College in London. That position was named for Amelia Edwards, a traveler, writer, and founder of the Egypt Exploration Fund (today’s Egyptian Exploration Society), who left her fortune to University College. During his subsequent career Petrie and his students expanded the Edwards collection of Egyptian artifacts to about 80,000 objects. These are the heart of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology.
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