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Friday 4 January 2013

ESAH Forum. 'The Wonderful World of Disney: Collecting Classical Antiquity'

The Hyde, Ingatestone, one-time home of the Disney family
(destroyed by fire 1965)
An Essex History event, this time in Ipswich.  UCS (University Campus Suffolk) will be hosting a lecture on Tuesday 14 May 2013 beginning at 5.30pm, when the guest speaker will be Professor David Gill.  

It will be a lecture regarding John Disney of The Hyde, Ingatestone and first President of the Essex Archaeological Society. The following information is taken from the UCS website (http://www.ucs.ac.uk/About/Events/Event-details-page.aspx?id=19096 ):

"Professor David Gill will discuss the work of John Disney in this lecture. The memorable exclamation ‘Yes, wonderful things’ was uttered by Howard Carter when he peered into the tomb of Tutankhamun. The origins of modern academic archaeology in the British Isles can be traced to Dr John Disney (1779-1857). In 1850 he donated his ‘valuable collection of ancient marbles and statuary’ to the University of Cambridge for display in the Fitzwilliam Museum. The following year he offered endowments to establish the Disney Professorship of Archaeology. The gift and benefaction allow the exploration of two key themes, firstly, the formation of classical collections in the 18th and 19th centuries; and, secondly, the creation of an academic discipline that would emerge out of antiquarianism. Disney, whose family came from Lincolnshire, lived at The Hyde, near Ingatestone, Essex. The collection was formed by the republicans, Thomas Hollis and Thomas Brand Hollis. Disney also contributed to the transformation of archaeological studies in East Anglia. He was the first President of the Essex Archaeological Society and he helped to create the Chelmsford and Essex Museum."

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