KROM, Nicolaas Johannes. ’s-Hertogenbosch 5.9.1883 — Leiden 8.3.1945. Dutch Archaeologist and South-East Asian Scholar. Son of the Rijksarchivaris Cornelius Catharinus Nicolaas Krom (d. 1885) and Jeanne Marie Uranie Herderscheê. After school in Nijmegen, from 1901 studies of classical philology, Sanskrit (Kern and Speyer), Javanese and comparative linguistics at Leiden. Ph.D. 1908 Leiden (in classics). In 1910-15 Brandes’ successor as Government Archaeologist of Dutch India, worked in Java, where he organized continous survey and became well acquainted with Old Javanese. From 1919 Professor of Archaeology and Ancient History of Dutch India at Leiden, on a new chair. Married 1909 Betsy Marie van den Plas, one daughter and two sons. Among his students were Bernet Kempers, Galestin and van Lohuizen-de Leeuw sons.

Publications: Beschrijving van Barabudur. ’s-Gravenhage 1920, Englishversion Barabudur: Archaeological Description. 1-2. 478+365 p. the Hague 1927; Baraboedoer: het heiligdom van het Boeddhisme op Java. 87 p. 31 pl. Amsterdam 1930.

– Inleiding tot de Hindoe-Javaansche Kunst. 1920, 2nd ed. 1-3. pl. the Hague 1923, French 1926; Hindoe-Javaansche Geschiedenis. 1926, 2nd ed. 505 p. the Hague 1931.

– Smaller books and articles of Hindu archaeology of Java, etc., e.g. The life of Buddha on the Stūpa of Barabudur, according to the Lalitavistara-Text. 8+131 p. 120 ill. the Hague 1926; Het Hindoeïsme. 85 p. ill. Gids in het volkenkundig Museum 4. Amsterdam (1927?).

Sources: A.J. Bernet Kempers, Oudheidkundig verslag 1941-1947, 1-14 with bibliography; Vogel, JRAS 1946, 92f.;H.J. ‘t Hart-van den Muyzenberg, Biogr. Woordenboek van Ned. 3, 1989, 358f. in http://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/bwn/BWN/lemmata/bwn3/krom with photo and further references.