MARSHALL, John Hubert. Chester 19.3.1876 — Guilford, Surrey 17.8.1958. Sir. British Archaeologist in India. Son of Frederic Marshall and Annie Evans. Educated at Dulwich College, studies at King’s College, Cambridge (M.A.), and at British School of Athens. Studied classical archaeology and participated in 1898-1901 in excavations in Athens (also at Knossos in Crete) and was invited to India by Curzon. In 1902-28 Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India. Conducted excavations at Charsada (Puṣkalāvatī, 1903), Rājgīr (Rājagṛha, 1905), Sārnāth (1906-08), Saheṭh-Maheṭh (Śrāvastī, 1908-09), Bhīṭa (1911-12), Sāñcī (1912-29), Taxila (with intervals from 1913, 1928-34), Mohenjo-Daro (1924-25, excavations were started by R. D. Banerji in 1922 and continued by Mackay, 1926-31). Retired in 1928, continued on special duties until 1934. Married 1902 Florence Longhurst (sister of —> A. H. Longhurst), one son and one daughter. C.I.E. 1910, Sir 1914.
Marshall is best remembered of his work at Sāñcī, Taxila, and Mohenjo-Daro. At Sāñcī he was the first to work systematically (Cunningham in 1851 having done much damage). He was also the founder of the study of Indus civilization. Especially in the beginning he was skilled and professional archaeologist, who strictly opposed to hasty conclusions and unnecessary restoration, but working continuously in India he could not follow the development of his field in Europe and in the end his methods were partly antiquated. In prehistory he was no more interested than Cunningham before him. Among his students and assistants were R. D. Banerji, Th. Bloch, Cousens, Longhurst, Mackay, Nicholls, Rea, Sahni, Spooner, M. A. Stein and J.-Ph. Vogel.
Publications: “Excavations at Charsada in the Frontier Province”, ASIAR 1902-03, 1903-04; “Rājagṛha and its Remains”, ASIAR 1905-06; “Excavations at Sarnath”, ASIAR 1906-07; “Excavations at Sahēṭh-Mahēṭh”, ASIAR 1910-11; “Excavations at Bhīta”, ASIAR 1909-10, 1911-12; “Excavations at Sañci”, ASIAR in the 1910s.; “Excavations at Taxila”, ASIAR 1913ff.
– A Guide to Sanchi. 14+154 p. 15 pl. Calcutta 1918, 2nd ed. 1936; A Guide to Taxila. 8+124 p. 15 pl. Calcutta 1918, 2nd ed. 1936, 4th 1960; Conservation Manual. 91 p. Calcutta 1921.
– Mohenjo-daro and the Indus Civilization. 1-3. L. 1931 (with contributions by others).
– “Monuments of Muslim India”, Cambridge History of India 3, 1928, 568-640.
– With A. Foucher: The Monuments of Sāñci. 1-3. L. 1939.
– “On Greeks and Śakas in India”, JRAS 1947, 3-32.
– Taxila. An illustrated Account of Archaeological Excavations carried at Taxila. 1-3. Cambridge 1951.
– The Buddhist art of Gandhara. The story of the early school. Its birth, growth and decline. 18+118 p. 111 pl. Memoirs of the Department of Archaeology in Pakistan 1, Cambridge 1960.
Sources: D. Barrett, JRAS 1959, 92f.; *G.N. Das, American Anthropologist 61, 1959, 1071-1074; *P. Demiéville, CRAI 1959, 14-17; *B. Subba Rao, JOIB 8, 1958-59, 118-120; E. Waldschmidt, ZDMG 109, 1959, 16-25; M. Wheeler, D.N.B. 1951-1960, 698f.; Wikipedia with photo.
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