Sir John Evans was born on November 17, 1823, in Burnham, Buckinghamshire, England.

He was an English archeologist, geologist, and paper manufacturer. In 1840, he became head of the paper-manufacturing business of John Dickinson & Co. Ltd at Nash Mills, Hemel Hempstead, but was especially distinguished as an antiquary, archeologist, and numismatist. He was president of several societies and institutions, e.g., The Society of Antiquaries (1885-1892), The Royal Numismatic Society (1874-1908), The Geological Society of London (1874-1876), and The British Association for the Advancement of Science (1897-1898). He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1864 and for twenty years (1878–1898) he was treasurer of the Royal Society. He was appointed High Sheriff of Hertfordshire for 1881. He received honorary degrees from several universities, and he was a corresponding member of the Institut de France. He was created a Knight of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in 1892. He was the author of the books “The Coins of the Ancient Britons” (1864), “The Ancient Stone Implements, Weapons and Ornaments of Great Britain” (1872), and “The Ancient Bronze Implements, Weapons and Ornaments of Great Britain and Ireland” (1881).

In 1850, he married Harriet Ann Dickinson (-1858) and after her death, he remarried Frances Phelps (1826–1890). In 1892, he remarried Maria Millington Lathbury (1856–1944). He died on May 31, 1908, in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, England.