To celebrate International Women’s Day, Katie Crowther takes a look at Alice Lieder, an archaeologist, Egyptologist, and missionary from Scarborough.
Katie is part of a Culture& funded project, and has been working as a Researcher / Curator with us here at Scarborough Museums and Galleries.
Alice Lieder was an archaeologist, Egyptologist, and missionary from Scarborough. She was one of the few women to donate items to the Rotunda Museum in the nineteenth century. These objects can still be seen in the museum today, including a cat figurine (pictured) and a figure of Osiris. Her story is remarkable and complex. After moving to Cairo in 1835, she led a successful girls’ school and was heavily involved in prominent archaeological excavations. But Lieder’s success is marred by ethical issues surrounding neglect for local heritage and laws. Despite her valuable contributions to archaeology and education, her legacy, like many, is tangled in colonialism.
From Scarborough to Egypt
Alice Lieder was born in Scarborough and worked as a schoolteacher in Bridlington. In 1835 she moved to Egypt to work as a missionary, educating and providing Christian instruction to children in Cairo. Here she met Reverend John Lieder and the two were soon married. Together, they ran a thriving Christian school for the local children. Alice took charge of a day school for girls, which immediately flourished under her leadership. Her work at the school was so popular that the number of students she attracted often outdid those her husband could bring in for the boy’s school.
“Lieder’s Tomb”
As well as missionary work, the Lieders were involved in many excavation projects throughout the 1850s. At Giza, the couple became so well known for their archaeological efforts that one of the tombs near the Great Pyramid became known to locals as “Lieder’s Tomb.” Their success as Egyptologists comes with its share of ethical controversy. At this point in the nineteenth century, the laws surrounding excavations were unclear. It was not until 1869 that specific policies were put in place. The conditions surrounding the Lieders’ excavations, therefore, are murky.
An early Egyptologist
As well as collecting artefacts, Alice Lieder also made paper impressions, or “squeezes,” of the sites she explored. A “squeeze” is a bit like a brass rubbing, except damp paper is placed over the stone inscription and left to dry, recreating the carving underneath. This was a popular method for recording ancient inscriptions in the nineteenth century. Unlike other Egyptologists, Lieder carefully documented the dates, locations, and details of the scenes she recorded. Her skill and knowledge are undeniable, but her contributions have been long overlooked. For many years, her squeezes were wrongly attributed to a “Colonel Parker.” Despite her expertise, Alice Lieder is often absent from historical records and tributes to female Egyptologists.
Ethical controversies
Lieder’s story is not without its troubling aspects. Like many missionaries of her time, Lieder was part of a larger colonial project of social control. The Church Missionary Society (CMS), that Lieder was associated with, sought to impose authority over the local population. Key to their mission was the education of young girls. The CMS believed that, by influencing women, they could shape entire communities and control both families and society at large.
Troubling histories
Beyond her missionary work, Lieder’s archaeological activities reveal another layer of colonial entitlement. The Lieders disregarded sacred Egyptian history and prioritised their collections over respect for local heritage. It is therefore important to question how we should remember figures like Alice Lieder. Lieder accomplished lots in the way of education and archaeology, but these were achieved at the expense of local culture and history.