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Friday, September 21, 2001

 

Peter Hiscock - from AUARCH-L:
Sadly I must inform list members of the death of Professor Rhys Jones in Canberra on Wednesday night. He was 60. As many of you know Rhys had been bravely fighting leukaemia for several years.

Rhys Maengwyn Jones was born at the Bangor District Hospital in north Wales on 26th Februray 1941, and grew up in Blaenau Ffestiniog exploring Medieval castles and megalithic monuments. Speaking Welsh as his first language Jones proved adept at languages, history, chemistry and physics in his schooling near Cardiff during the early 1950’s. At the age of sixteen an essay he wrote on the excavation of a Bronze Age mound in Wales won him a scholarship, and eventually Rhys enrolled in and obtained a degree in archaeology at Cambridge University. He became a ten pound migrant in 1963 when he took up a position at the University of Sydney, where he completed his PhD. He was appointed to ANU in 1969 and remained there until his recent retirement.

Rhys is perhaps best known for his remarkably subtle and powerful work in Tasmania, begun as his PhD research. He undertook research in many other regions, including western New South Wales (Mungo) and Arnhem Land. In recent years he vigorously pursued the accurate dating of human colonisation of Australia. His publications number in the hundreds, many of which were influential in driving the research goals of Australian archaeology. Rhys was always dynamic and enthusiastic, and his debate lively and insightful. His energy and love of research, together with his sense of fun, influenced many of us who had the pleasure to know him. Rhys leaves a void in Australian archaeology and will be greatly missed.

 

Trust prosecution leads to convictions for burial ground damage The New Zealand Historic Places Trust's action in prosecuting Payne Sewell Limited and Higgins Contractors Limited for damaging an archaeological site was vindicated today with both companies being found guilty of causing damage or modification to an archaeological site.

 

Auckland: Hamlin's Hill management plan adopted
The hill, which lies next to the noisy Southern Motorway has a long history of settlement over several centuries by Maori who took advantage of its strategic location close to Manukau Harbour and Tamaki Estuary shellfish beds and freshwater springs surrounding the hill itself.

Opinions in items linked in this column are not those of the Association.

An archive of news posts can be accessed at http://www.nzarchaeology.org/blog/archive/