Homer L. Thomas

{{Short description|American art historian and archaeologist (1913–2003)}} {{Infobox scientist | honorific_prefix = | name = Homer L. Thomas | honorific_suffix = | native_name = | native_name_lang = | image = Homer L. Thomas.gif | image_size = | image_upright = | caption = | birth_date = 1913 | birth_place = [[Kansas City, Missouri]] | death_date = {{death date|2003|05|28}} (aged 89)<ref name="Obituary"/> | death_place = [[Poolesville, Maryland]] | death_cause = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates =  | home_town = | other_names = | pronounce = | residence = | citizenship = | fields = Art historian and archaeologist | workplaces = {{Plainlist| * [[Asia Institute]] * [[University of Missouri]] }} | patrons = | education = {{Plainlist| * [[University of Chicago]] * [[Warburg Institute]] * [[Johns Hopkins University]] * [[University of Michigan]] }} | alma_mater = | thesis_title =  | thesis_url =  | thesis_year =  | doctoral_advisor =  | academic_advisors = | doctoral_students = | notable_students = | known_for = | influences = | influenced = | awards = | author_abbrev_bot = | author_abbrev_zoo = | spouse = | partner =  | children = | signature =  | signature_alt = | website =  | footnotes = }}

'''Homer L. Thomas''' (1913 – May 28, 2003) was an American archaeologist and art historian who was Professor Emeritus of Art History and Archeology at the [[University of Missouri]].

==Biography== Homer L. Thomas was born in [[Kansas City, Missouri]] in 1913. Having attended the [[University of Chicago]], the [[Warburg Institute]] in London and [[Johns Hopkins University]], Thomas received his Ph.D. from the [[University of Edinburgh]] in 1949. He subsequently worked at the [[Asia Institute]] in New York City and at the [[University of Michigan]].<ref name="Bio">{{cite journal |date=Summer 2003 |title=Professor Homer L. Thomas |url=https://library.missouri.edu/about/homerthomas/ |access-date=February 19, 2020 |journal=AHA Newsletter |publisher=[[American Historical Association]] |issue=8 }}</ref>

In 1950, Thomas joined the faculty of the [[University of Missouri]], where he taught courses in European Art and Archaeology, Oriental Art and Civilization, Roman Provincial and Early Christian Art, and Art of the Dark Ages. In 1960, together with [[Saul Weinberg]], Thomas played an instrumental role in re-establishing the Department of Art History and Archaeology at the University of Missouri. He played an important role in building the collections at [[Ellis Library]], particularly with respect to archaeology and art history.<ref name="Bio"/>

Throughout his career, Thomas carried out important archaeological field work in [[Yugoslavia]], [[Poland]] and [[Luxembourg]].<ref name="Bio"/> He received awards in [[Scotland]], [[England]], [[Denmark]] and [[Germany]] for his archaeological work.<ref name="Obituary"/> He was the author of numerous works on archaeology and art. A [[festschrift]] in his honor, ''Horizons and Styles: Studies in Early Art and Archeology in Honour of Professor Homer L. Thomas'', was published in 1993. Thomas was a Fellow of the [[Guggenheim Fellowship|Guggenheim Foundation]], the [[Society of Antiquaries of London]], and the [[Society of Antiquaries of Scotland]].<ref name="Bio"/>

Thomas retired as Professor Emeritus in August 1984, after which he moved to the [[Washington metropolitan area]].<ref name="Bio"/> He died in [[Poolesville, Maryland]] on May 28, 2003, at the age of 89.<ref name="Obituary">{{cite web |url=https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/kansascity/obituary-preview.aspx?n=homer-l-thomas&pid=1049958&referrer=1164 |title=Homer L. Thomas Obituary |website=[[Legacy.com]] |publisher=[[Kansas City Star]] |access-date=February 19, 2020 }}</ref>

==Selected works== * ''Near Eastern, Mediterranean and European Chronology'', 1967 * ''A Handbook of Archeology: Cultures and Sites: North Africa, Egypt, Southwest Asia, Mediterranean, Northwest Europe, Northern Europe, Central Europe, Southeast Europe, Eastern Europe, Western Asia'', 1993-1996

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Homer L.}} [[Category:1913 births]] [[Category:2003 deaths]] [[Category:Alumni of the Warburg Institute]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh]] [[Category:American art historians]] [[Category:Johns Hopkins University alumni]] [[Category:People from Kansas City, Missouri]] [[Category:University of Chicago alumni]] [[Category:University of Michigan faculty]] [[Category:University of Missouri faculty]] [[Category:20th-century American archaeologists]]