George Petrie (artist)

George Petrie (* 1790 in Dublin, Ireland, † 1866) was an Irish archaeologist, musician and painter.

Life

Petrie was the son of a miniature painter. In 1828 he became a member of the Royal Irish Academy, since 1829, he was one whose board ( council) to. He organized the Museum of the company, containing such famous pieces as the Tara Brooch. He was also involved in the Irish land survey ( Ordinance survey ). In the historical department, he was responsible for the collection and correct spelling of place names, but also compiled inventories of archaeological monuments and other antiquities. The report on the parish of Templemore appeared in 1837, after which the department was disbanded - supposedly for financial reasons, but it is suspected that the British wanted to supply the growing Irish nationalism and pride in the glorious past, no Irish material. He succeeded in 1845, the identification of Newgrange as Brú na Bóinne on the basis of early Irish literature. Petrie also worked as a journalist and founded in 1840 a ​​"dime sheet", the Irish Penny Journal. He was also known as a painter, mainly in water colors.

Writings

• Memoir of the Parish of Templemore. , 1837.
• On the ecclesiastic architecture of Ireland. In 1845.
• The Petrie Collection of the Ancient Music of Ireland. Gill, Dublin 1855 reprint. Farnborough 1967, Heppenheim 1969.
• Christian Inscriptions in the Irish Language. In: The Annuary of the Kilkenny Archaeological Society. Kilkenny 1872-1878.