Tour 1: Antiquarians, collectors and dealers

2. George Fabian Lawrence
(1861-1939)

Selected objects obtained by Lawrence

G. F. Lawrence was an antiquary, collector and dealer in antiquities. He supplied thousands of finds from prehistoric and Roman London to many museums, including the Guildhall and London Museum (predecessors of the Museum of London). He was employed by both museums at different times and was responsible for obtaining some of the more spectacular objects in both collections.

Lawrence was born on 16 May 1861 in the Barbican area of the City, close to where the Museum of London is today. His father was a pawnbroker and after leaving school Lawrence joined the family business. It was there that he began to take an interest in antiquities and began to search for objects himself. He would often buy antiquities from navvies who brought objects to sell at the pawnbrokers.

Soon Lawrence went into business himself and in the 1880’s became an antiquities dealer, opening a shop in Wandsworth. At first Lawrence specialised in collecting and dealing in London antiquities, particularly prehistoric objects from the Thames in west London. Later he collected items from other periods and places such as the Middle East, selling antiquities on to museums all around the world.

In 1901 the Guildhall Museum employed Lawrence on a part time basis to assist with preparing a catalogue of the collection. This was published in 1903 and is still used as a record of the early collections in the Museum today. In the same year Lawrence was also ‘…authorised by the sub committee of the Museum to visit sites of excavations in the city with a view to the acquisition of objects of interest that may be found.’

Lawrence continued this role at the new London Museum, where he was appointed ‘Inspector of Excavations’ in April 1911. At this stage the London Museum was developing its collections and displays for a public opening the following year. Lawrence's job was to assist with this task, acquiring newly discovered archaeological finds from building sites around London. He was hugely successful in this role and in the first six months of his employment provided over 1,600 objects for the new Museum.

Throughout this time Lawrence happily combined his work at the Museum with his private business as an antiquities dealer (something museum curators would avoid today). He often purchased finds from workmen on building sites and then sold them onto the London Museum, effectively working as buyer and seller! Apart from prehistoric objects, he acquired many Roman, Medieval and post Medieval objects for the Museum. His most famous acquisition was the Cheapside Hoard, a collection of over 230 pieces of jewellery dating to the late 16th – early 17th century. After the Museum opened he continued working there until his retirement in 1926.

In the late 1920’s and 30’s Lawrence continued to deal in antiquities. He also kept in contact with the London Museum and its new keeper, the famous archaeologist Mortimer Wheeler. Discoveries by Lawrence from the Thames in west London inspired excavations by Wheeler at Brentford in 1928. Lawrence helped to organise the dig and persuaded the Daily Express to help fund the work. He had widespread contacts in the media which led to appearances in newspaper articles and even on the BBC. At this time Lawrence also wrote an article about ‘Antiquities from the Middle Thames’ in the Archaeological Journal.

On 16 February 1939 Lawrence died of heart failure at his home, after a few days of illness. Lawrence has important place in the history of the Museum, Mortimer Wheeler stating in 1937 that ‘…but for Mr Lawrence, not a tithe of the objects found during building or dredging operations in the neighbourhood of London during the last 40 years would have been saved to knowledge.’

Extracted from Macdonald, J., 'Stony Jack's Roman London' in Bird J., Hassall, M., and Sheldon, H., 1996, Interpreting Roman London, Oxbow Monograph 58.

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