Chris Scarre

Christopher John Scarre, FSA is an academic and writer in the fields of archaeology, pre-history and ancient history. He is Professor of Archaeology at the University of Durham and was head of its archaeology department 2010-2013.

Early life

Scarre studied at the University of Cambridge. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree, that was later promoted to Master of Arts (MA Cantab) degree. He then undertook postgraduate study of landscape change and archaeological sites in western France, culminating in a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree.^[1]

Academic career

Scarre was Deputy Director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge from its foundation in 1990 to 2005.^[2] In January 2006, Scarre was appointed Professor of Prehistory at the Department of Archaeology of the University of Durham.^[3] In 2006, he was Professeur Invité at the Collège de France in Paris.^[3]

He has directed and co-directed excavations at a number of prehistoric sites. These include sites in France, Portugal, and the Channel Islands.^[4] Beginning in 2008, he led excavations exploring the prehistoric monuments of Herm.^[5] This project was Arts and Humanities Research Council-funded and a final excavation was under taken in the summer of 2011.^[1]

He was editor of the Cambridge Archaeological Journal from 1991 to 2005.^[1] He is the current editor of the international academic journal Antiquity,^[6] having been appointed in January 2013.^[1]

In 2007,^[3] he was elected to the post of Trustee of the Council for British Archaeology.^[7]

Personal life

His brother, Geoffrey Scarre, is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Durham.

Honours

On 9 January 1986, Scarre was elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London (FSA).^[8]

Selected works

• Scarre, Christopher, ed. (1983). Ancient France: Neolithic societies and their landscapes, 6000-2000 BC. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0852244418.
• Scarre, Chris (1995). Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0140513295.
• Scarre, Chris, ed. (1999). The seventy wonders of the ancient world: the great monuments and how they were built. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0500050965.
• Scarre, Chris, ed. (2002). Monuments and landscape in Atlantic Europe: perception and society during the Neolithic and early Bronze Age. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415273138.
• Mohen, Jean-Pierre, Scarre, Chris Les Tumulus de Bougon. 2002, Complexe mégalithique du Ve au IIIe millénaire. Paris: Errance.
• Scarre, Chris, Fagan, Brian M. Ancient Civilizations. 2002, New York: Prentice Hall.
• Les Monuments Mégalithiques de la Grande Bretagne et d'Irlande. 2005, Paris: Errance.
• Scarre, Chris, ed. (2005). The human past: world prehistory and the development of human societies (1st ed.). London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0500285312.
• Scarre, Chris (2007). The megalithic monuments of Britain and Ireland. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0500286661.
• Scarre, Chris; Scarre, Geoffrey, eds. (2007). The ethics of archaeology: philosophical perspectives on archaeological practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521840118.
• Scarre, Chris, ed. (2009). The human past: world prehistory and the development of human societies (2nd ed.). London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0500287804.
• Scarre, Chris (2011). Landscapes of neolithic Brittany. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199281626.
• Scarre, Chris (2012). Chronicle of the Roman emperors: the reign-by-reign record of the rulers of Imperial Rome. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0500289891.
• Scarre, Chris, ed. (2013). The human past: world prehistory & the development of human societies (3rd ed.). New York: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0500290637.

Editorial activity

• Megalithic Quarrying: Sourcing, extracting and manipulating the stones. 2009, Oxford: Archaeopress.
• Scarre, Chris; Lawson, Graeme, eds. (2006). Archaeoacoustics. McDonald Institute Monographs. Cambridge: McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research. ISBN 978-1-902937-35-9.
• Laporte, Luc, Joussaume, Roger & Scarre, Chris Origin and Development of the Megalithic Monuments of Western Europe. 2006. Bougon: Musée des Tumulus de Bougon.
• Scarre, Chris.; Scarre, Geoffrey, eds. (2006). The ethics of archaeology philosophical perspectives on archaeological practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-84011-8.
• Cherry, John, Scarre, Chris & Shennan, Stephen Explaining Social Change: studies in honour of Colin Renfrew. 2004. McDonald Institute Monographs. Cambridge: McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research.
• Scarre, Chris, ed. (2002). Monuments and Landscape in Atlantic Europe. London and New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-27314-5.
• The Seventy Wonders of the Ancient World (1999).
• Editor-in-chief of the Cambridge Archaeological Journal (1990–2005).

References

1. "Prof Chris Scarre, MA PhD FSA". Staff. University of Durham. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
2. Barker, Graeme. "Introduction" (PDF). Annual Report 2005–2006. McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 February 2008. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
3. "Chris Scarre, Archaeology". Explorers. National Geographic. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
4. "Chris Scarre". About This Author. Bookish. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
5. "Rare archaeological finds in Herm". BBC News. 3 November 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
6. "Editor – Chris Scarre". Contact. Antiquity. Archived from the original on 20 June 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
7. "Prof Chris Scarre". CBA Trustees. Council for British Archaeology. Archived from the original on 7 March 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
8. "S". List of Fellows. Society of Antiquaries of London. Archived from the original on 4 November 2007. Retrieved 16 July 2013.

External links

• "Archaeologist Chris Scarre finds fascination in discovering the past by examining its material remains.", History Today