Basil Megaw

{{Short description|British archaeologist}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} '''Basil Richardson Stanley Megaw''' {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100%|FSAs|FRSE|FMA}} (22 June 1913 – 22 August 2002) was a British archaeologist. He was the first Director of the School of Scottish Studies at Edinburgh.

==Life== He was born on 22 June 1913 in Belfast the son of Arthur S. Megaw and his wife, Helen Bertha Smith.<ref>[https://www.myheritage.com/names/basil_megaw Basil Megaw] My Heritage</ref> He was educated at Mourne Grange then Campbell College in Belfast. He then obtained a place at Peterhouse, Cambridge where he graduated BA in Archaeology and Anthropology in 1935.<ref name="auto">{{cite web| url = http://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/basil-megaw-1-625490| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170409174300/http://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/basil-megaw-1-625490| archive-date = 2017-04-09| title = Basil Megaw – The Scotsman}}</ref> His brothers Eric Megaw and Peter Megaw were also notable in their fields.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.imuseum.im/Olive/APA/IsleofMan/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=IMT%2F1952%2F01%2F12&id=Ar00814&sk=B6A940E8&viewMode=image|newspaper=Isle of Man Times|date=12 January 1952|page=8|title=(no title)|via=iMuseum, Manx National Heritage}}</ref>

He joined the Manx Museum in 1936 as assistant director and in 1940 he replaced William Cubbon as Director, holding this post from 1947 to 1957.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.rse.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/obits_alpha/megaw_basil.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2017-09-03 |archive-date=2017-09-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904104552/https://www.rse.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/obits_alpha/megaw_basil.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1940 he was also appointed an Inspector of Ancient Monuments in England but could not take on this role due to the Second World War. He instead became a Scientific Officer for RAF Bomber Command.<ref name="auto"/>

From 1957 to 1969 he was Director of the School of Scottish Studies being replaced in 1969 by Prof John MacQueen (1929–2019).

In 1966 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. His proposers were Douglas Allan, Wreford Watson, Alexander Charles Stephen and Douglas Guthrie.<ref>{{cite book|title=Biographical Index of Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002|date=July 2006|publisher=The Royal Society of Edinburgh|isbn=0-902-198-84-X|url=https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp2.pdf|access-date=2017-09-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304074135/https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp2.pdf|archive-date=2016-03-04|url-status=dead}}</ref>

From 1974 to 1977 he was Vice President of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.

He retired fully in 1980 and died in Stevenage on 22 August 2002.

==Family==

He was married to Eleanor Hardy (d.1977). They had two children, Sam and Helen.

==References== {{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Megaw, Basil}} Category:1913 births Category:2002 deaths Category:Scientists from Belfast Category:Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Category:Academics of the University of Edinburgh Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Category:Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland Category:20th-century British archaeologists Category:20th-century antiquarians Category:Archaeologists from Northern Ireland