John Armstrong Davison correspondence and papers
Contains digital mediaDetails
Type of record: Archive
Title: John Armstrong Davison correspondence and papers
Classmark: MS 455
Creator(s): Davison, John Armstrong()
Date(s): 1922-1969
Language: English
Size and medium: 44 items in 8 boxes
Persistent link: https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/5400
Description
John Armstrong Davison (1906-1966) was professor of Greek language and literature at the University of Leeds from 1951 until his death in December 1966. He was educated at Haileybury and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1929, and his academic career began immediately afterwards with appointment as assistant lecturer in Greek and Latin at Manchester, where he eventually rose to a senior lectureship in 1950. He enjoyed two visiting professorships at Toronto - in classics at Victoria College in 1949-50, and in Greek at Trinity College in 1959-60. The University of Tübingen entertained him twice in a similar capacity in 1963 and in 1965.
Professor Davison's first interest was the Greek lyric poets but he later turned to Homeric studies. He contributed numerous articles and reviews to learned journals but his only lengthy published works were a contribution to A Companion to Homer (1962), edited by A J B Wace and F H Stubbings, and a posthumous volume of essays, From Archilochus to Pindar (1968). His contribution to the former comprised chapters 6 and 7, respectively entitled 'The transmission of the text' and 'The Homeric question'.
The papers in this collection were very kindly given to the Library by Professor Davison's widow, Mrs. Marjorie Davison. They include material from his days at Haileybury, illustrative of the teaching of classics at a public school; fair copy lecture notes and some essays from his undergraduate career at Oxford, and numerous notes and lectures from his later years as a university teacher.
As well as presenting these papers, Mrs. Davison also generously gave to the Library her husband's very choice collection of modern printed books on Homeric topics.
The papers include (1) material from his public school days at Haileybury; (2) fair copy lecture notes and some essays from his undergraduate career at Oxford; (3) notes and lectures from his later years as a university teacher; (4) some correspondence, including one batch of letters concerning the decipherment of the Linear B script.
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Biography or history
John Armstrong Davison (1906-1966) was professor of Greek language and literature at the University of Leeds from 1951 until his death in December 1966. He was educated at Haileybury and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1929. He immediately became assistant lecturer in Greek and Latin at Manchester, where he was promoted to a senior lectureship in 1950. He also held several visiting professorships in Canada and Germany. His first interest was the Greek lyric poets, but later he turned to Homeric studies. He wrote numerous articles and reviews in learned journals, and contributed to 'A Companion to Homer' (1962), edited by A.J.B. Wace and F.H. Stubbings, namely chapters 6 and 7, respectively entitled 'The transmission of the text' and 'The Homeric question'. His posthumously-published volume of essays, 'From Archilochus to Pindar' (1968) completed his works.
System of arrangement
The MS 455 catalogue is based on an historic inventory, created in 1979. The arrangement of material does not necessarily represent the original order of the archive and it is considered partly processed by an archivist. When making requests to consult, please be aware that there may be discrepancies between description and physical arrangement. The retrievable unit for this collection is file level.
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Access to this material is unrestricted.