Item 0042 - Letter, 29 July 1886

Reginald Stuart Poole was born on February 27, 1832, in London, England.

He was an English archaeologist, numismatist, and Orientalist. His mother's family were well-known scholars of oriental literature. As a boy, he spent seven years in Egypt with his uncle Edward Lane, author of the “Arabic Lexicon” and developed an interest in Egyptian antiquities and Arabic literature and numismatics. In 1852, he was appointed an assistant in the British Museum and was assigned to the Department of Coins and Medals. In 1866, he became Assistant Keeper of Coins and Keeper in 1870. He was appointed Yates Professor of Archeology at University College, London, in 1889. Poole was the editor of the Official Catalogues of Greek, Oriental and English Coins and was the author of the Catalogue of the Coins of the Ptolemies (1883) and Coins of the Shahs of Persia (1886). He was a contributor to Smith's Dictionary of the Bible, the Kitto's Encyclopedia, and the Numismatic Chronicle. He lectured on archeology and art at the Royal Academy and the Slade School, University College. He was a member of the London Numismatic Society, an honorary member of the American Numismatic and Archeological Institute, the Imperial German Archeological Institute, a Life-Governor of University College, London, a Vice-President of the Egypt Exploration Fund, and Secretary of the Society of Medallists. He received an honorary LL.D. from Oxford for his services to archeology and literature.

He died on February 8, 1895, in London, England.