Background
Colin Renfrew was born on July 25, 1937, in Stockton-on-Tees, England. He is a son of Archibald Renfrew and Helena Douglas (Savage) Renfrew.
St John's College, St John's Street, Cambridge CB2 1TP, United Kingdom
In 1962, Renfrew received a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from St. John's College. In 1964, he got his Master of Arts degree and then, in 1965, Colin attained a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the same college. In 1976, Renfrew obtained a Doctor of Science degree from St. John's College.
Abbey Mill Ln, St Albans AL3 4HB, United Kingdom
In his early years, Colin attended St. Albans School, Hertfordshire.
St John's College, St John's Street, Cambridge CB2 1TP, United Kingdom
In 1962, Renfrew received a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from St. John's College. In 1964, he got his Master of Arts degree and then, in 1965, Colin attained a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the same college. In 1976, Renfrew obtained a Doctor of Science degree from St. John's College.
Souidias 52, Athina 106 76, Greece
Colin attended British School at Athens.
From left to right: Ernestine Elster, Colin Renfrew and Marija Gimbutas at the publication celebration for the first volume of the Sitagroi excavations.
(Monuments in Central and Western Europe have proved to be...)
Monuments in Central and Western Europe have proved to be older, than their supposed Near-Eastern forerunners, and the record must be almost completely rewritten in the light of these new dates. "Before Civilisation" is an attempt to do this with the help of analogies from more recent and well-documented primitive societies.
https://www.amazon.com/Before-civilization-radiocarbon-revolution-prehistoric/dp/0394481933/?tag=2022091-20
1973
(This book focuses on the application of contemporary math...)
This book focuses on the application of contemporary mathematical techniques to the study of culture change and formulates problems in archaeology, anthropology and historiography in such a way, that they are susceptible to treatment of a mathematical kind.
https://www.amazon.com/Transformations-Mathematical-Approaches-Culture-Change-ebook/dp/B01DY7M7P6/?tag=2022091-20
1979
(The first of two volumes, reporting on excavations at a m...)
The first of two volumes, reporting on excavations at a middle neolithic to early bronze age site in northeast Greece.
https://www.amazon.com/Excavations-Prehistoric-Northeast-MONUMENTA-ARCHAEOLOGICA/dp/0917956516/?tag=2022091-20
1986
(In this book, Colin Renfrew directs remarkable new light ...)
In this book, Colin Renfrew directs remarkable new light on the links between archaeology and language, looking specifically at the puzzling similarities, that are apparent across the Indo-European family of ancient languages, from Anatolia and Ancient Persia, across Europe and the Indian subcontinent, to regions as remote as Sinkiang in China.
https://www.amazon.com/Archaeology-Language-Puzzle-Indo-European-Origins/dp/0521386756/?tag=2022091-20
1987
(Since its first edition, Renfrew and Bahn’s "Archaeology:...)
Since its first edition, Renfrew and Bahn’s "Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice" has been the leading academic source on what archaeologists do and how they do it. This resource is a comprehensive introduction to archaeology’s theories, methods and practices in the field, the laboratory and the library. The sixth edition.
https://www.amazon.com/Archaeology-Theories-Methods-Practice-Sixth/dp/050028976X/?tag=2022091-20
1991
(Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? T...)
Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? These questions were posed by Paul Gauguin in a famous canvas, painted in Tahiti, that heralded the beginning of the modernist era. But they are also the questions, asked by modern prehistorians in their quest to reconstruct the human story. In "Figuring It Out", Colin Renfrew investigates the profound convergence between the two disciplines, drawing illuminating parallels between the way the modern artist seeks to understand the world by acting upon it, and the way the archaeologist seeks to understand the world through the material traces of such actions.
https://www.amazon.com/Figuring-Out-Colin-Renfrew/dp/0500051143/?tag=2022091-20
2003
(This work provides a thorough survey of the key ideas in ...)
This work provides a thorough survey of the key ideas in archaeology, and how they impact on archaeological thinking and method.
https://www.amazon.com/Archaeology-Key-Concepts-Routledge-Guides/dp/0415317584/?tag=2022091-20
2004
(In this book, Colin Renfrew covers human existence before...)
In this book, Colin Renfrew covers human existence before the advent of written records – which is to say, the overwhelming majority of our time here on earth. But Renfrew also opens up to discussion, and even debate, the term "prehistory" itself, giving an incisive, concise and lively survey of the past, and how scholars and scientists labor to bring it to light.
https://www.amazon.com/Prehistory-Making-Modern-Library-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B00125L81W/?tag=2022091-20
2008
(This book is a summary of the landmark conference, held i...)
This book is a summary of the landmark conference, held in Cambridge in 2005, where specialists in simulations and molecular genetics, as well as archaeologists came together to present and evaluate the state of the art and to discuss future possibilities.
https://www.amazon.com/Simulations-Genetics-Prehistory-Institute-Monographs/dp/1902937457/?tag=2022091-20
2008
archaeologist paleolinguist author
Colin Renfrew was born on July 25, 1937, in Stockton-on-Tees, England. He is a son of Archibald Renfrew and Helena Douglas (Savage) Renfrew.
In his early years, Colin attended St. Albans School, Hertfordshire. Later, he entered St. John's College, Cambridge, where he studied Natural Sciences, then Archaeology and Anthropology.
In 1962, Renfrew received a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from St. John's College. In 1964, he got his Master of Arts degree and then, in 1965, Colin attained a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the same college. In 1976, Renfrew obtained a Doctor of Science degree from St. John's College.
Colin also attended British School at Athens.
Renfrew received several honorary degrees from different universities.
During the period from 1956 till 1958, Colin served in the Royal Air Force as a pilot officer. In 1965, he began his career as a lecturer at the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Sheffield, a post he held until 1972. Between 1968-1970, Colin directed excavations in Sitagroi, Greece. Also, it was in 1968, that he failed in contesting the Sheffield Brightside parliamentary constituency on behalf of the Conservative Party.
In 1972, Colin was appointed a Professor of Archaeology at the University of Southampton, a post he held until 1981. During his tenure at the University of Southampton, Renfrew also headed excavations in Orkney and Phylakopi on the island of Milos, Greece.
In 1981, Renfrew was promoted to the post of a Disney Professor of Archaeology at the University of Cambridge, a position he held until his retirement in 2004. Between 1986-1997, he held a position of a Master of Jesus College. During the period from 1987 until 1991, Colin co-managed excavations in Markiani on Amorgos and in Dhaskalio Kavos, Keros, Greece.
During the period from 1990 till 2004, Colin served as a director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research. From 2006 till 2008, he headed excavations on the Cycladic Island of Keros.
Moreover, during his lifetime, Colin acted as a guest lecturer at different universities and colleges, including the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1967; the University of Glasgow, in 1975; Harvard University, in 1977; the University of New Mexico, in 1982; Stanford University, in 1993 and the University of California, Berkeley, in 1997.
Currently, Colin Renfrew is a Senior Fellow at the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research and a co-director of the Keros Island Survey. Moreover, since 2004, he has been acting as a chair and managing council at the British School at Athens.
(In this book, Colin Renfrew directs remarkable new light ...)
1987(This book focuses on the application of contemporary math...)
1979(This book is a summary of the landmark conference, held i...)
2008(Monuments in Central and Western Europe have proved to be...)
1973(Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? T...)
2003(Since its first edition, Renfrew and Bahn’s "Archaeology:...)
1991(In this book, Colin Renfrew covers human existence before...)
2008(This work provides a thorough survey of the key ideas in ...)
2004(The first of two volumes, reporting on excavations at a m...)
1986Colin is a member of the House of Lords. He was made a life peer on June 24, 1991 as Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, of Hurlet in the District of Renfrew.
Colin is a member of Austrian Academy of Sciences, German Archaeological Institute and a foreign member of the American Philosophical Society and National Academy of Sciences of the United States.
Colin married Jane Margaret Ewbank, an archaeologist, on April 21, 1965. Their marriage produced three children — Helena Margaret, Alban Robert and Magnus Archibald.