Today's Object of the Week is a blue plaque honouring a renowned North East archaeologist and academic specialising in the Anglo-Saxons.
A blue plaque on the wall of the former home of Dame Rosemary Jean Cramp was unveiled in Durham in October last year.
The unveiling was performed by the University’s Vice-Chancellor and Warden, Professor Karen O’Brien – herself the first female Vice-Chancellor of Durham University - alongside close friend and colleague of Dame Rosemary’s, the celebrated archaeologist Professor Sarah Semple.
The City of Durham Parish Council funds the production of new blue plaques around the parish area, as part of efforts to highlight hidden gems and historical locations.
This blue plaque has been installed on Church Street in Durham City, the former home of the late Professor, and said to be where she spent many happy years carrying out much of her research.
Professor Cramp lived and worked in this house from November 1972 until June 1988.
She grew up on a farm in Leicestershire, which is where her interest in archaeology began.
She was only 12 when she stumbled upon the remnants of a Roman villa and wrote to leading archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon, who wrote back and said: “This is evidence, don’t destroy it.”
Although a farmer has since ploughed over the fields, the excitement of such a big find stayed with her.
After graduating from St Ann’s College, Oxford, in 1950 and doing a spell there as a lecturer, Rosemary moved to the North East and joined the department of archaeology at Durham University in 1955.
It was there she was able to pursue her passion and focus on the Anglo- Saxon and later medieval periods.
In 1966, Rosemary was promoted to senior lecturer and five years later became the first female professor at Durham.
Over the next 35 years, she played a key role in expanding the archaeology department and carried out ground-breaking excavations.
Amongst her many achievements, Professor Cramp helped to develop the University’s Archaeology department and led excavations at the twin monastery of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow, home to the Venerable Bede.
Professor Cramp was a leading expert and voice on Anglo-Saxon and early medieval archaeology for over 70 years and served 19 years (1971-1990) as Head of Department in Archaeology at Durham University.
Rosemary retired from Durham University in 1990 and became emeritus professor.
Recommended reading:
- Why did a pilgrim throw this silver cross into the murky depths of a North-East river?
- The brilliant story behind this paving stone set in a County Durham village
- The trinkets of a man I never met - the story of my great grandfather's box
The creation of The Rosemary Cramp Fund, set up on her retirement, has facilitated numerous small grants to students and staff and, as the first female professor at Durham University, she has helped promote women within this academic field.
In the Queen’s Birthday Honour’s List of 2011, Professor Cramp was one of just eight women awarded a DBE (Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire). She was awarded the honour in recognition of her services to scholarship.
Dame Rosemary Cramp died in Durham, England, on April 27, 2023, at the age of 93. Her funeral was held at St Cuthbert's Church, Durham on May 19, with an additional memorial service held at Durham Cathedral on July 14.
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