Arthur Evans, Clarence Bicknell, and the rock engravings in the Maritime Alps

We are pleased to publish here, in November 2024, the latest research paper by Graham Avery, Vice-Chairman of the Clarence Bicknell Association and diligent researcher into Clarence. Download the new paper in pdf by clicking here.

“Immediately after his discovery of rock engravings in Val Fontanalba, Clarence Bicknell contacted the prehistorians Arthur Evans ( Keeper of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford) and the Arturo Issel ( Professor of Geology at the University of Genova). Bicknell wrote papers for learned societies in London and Genova. Evans and Bicknell both believed in disseminating information about their finds, but they had different temperaments. Evans was a publicist and showman, on the model of Schliemann, while Bicknell was modest and unpretentious. Evans strayed into fantasy, but Bicknell stayed with facts. Referring to his work on the petroglyphs, Bicknell declared: ‘We are only the collectors of facts, and must leave to others the task of studying them more profoundly’.

“Evans’ contribution to the study of the petroglyphs, although brief, was important. His comment on the date of the halberds was a key input, which Bicknell could not have made, for he was not familiar with prehistoric weapons, or the technique of classifying artefacts into types arranged in temporal series. Bicknell’s most important practical contribution was his meticulous recording, cataloguing, and publication of the petroglyphs. His most significant contribution to their interpretation was the recognition that many of them depicted agricultural implements and beasts, that some of them were ploughs, and that the rectangular engravings connected by lines were huts and settlements, which led him to the conclusion that the sculptors were farmers living in valleys below.”

Download Graham’s new Evans paper in pdf by clicking here

Graham Avery writes “I have enjoyed writing this piece, which fills a gap of which I have long been conscious. For example, Valerie Lester in her biography of Clarence in 2018 said little about Evans and the various events in 1897-98 which are discussed my article. As you know, my first contribution to research on Clarence was my article of 2011 on ‘Clarence Bicknell and Reginald Farrer, 19 July 1910’. It was followed by many others.”

Indeed, we at the Clarence Bicknell Association are honoured that 25 papers by Graham Avery are published at https://clarencebicknell.com/documents/.    You can see a list of Graham Avery’s papers here.
You can read Graham’s bio here.

https://clarencebicknell.com/wp-content/uploads/evans_bicknell_petroglyphs_by_graham_avery.pdf