Ivor Noel Hume undertook archaeological excavations, working in advance of the reconstructions in the blitzed ruins of the City of London after World War Two. Noël Hume developed expertise in the Roman-period artifacts found in these excavations, along with the cosmopolitan remnants of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century London. Mostly self-taught in these early endeavors as there were no “experts,” Noël Hume became an international authority in many categories of material culture, particularly the history of English pottery and glass wine bottles. In 1950 J. C. Harrington, the National Park Service’s distinguished archaeologist, went to London seeking an expert in seventeenth-century glass. Noël Hume’s name was mentioned and contact was made. Subsequently, he was asked to consult on artifacts found in Colonial Williamsburg’s eighteenth-century sites. His public lectures reflected his early training and interest in the dramatic arts. Through his writings and his development of both field and laboratory techniques geared specifically for the archaeological remains of the historic period, Noël Hume is often considered the “father of historical archaeology.” He was a founding director of both the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology (1966) in Britain and the Society for Historical for Archaeology (1967) in America.

Teddy’s discovery of early English shipwrecks, the Warwick 1619, the Eagle 1638 and the Sea Venture 1609, discovered by Edmund Downing and Noel’s knowledge in his field, made for a great partnership of shared knowledge and from that they wrote the book, “Shipwreck!”.

The book is available to view in full here: Shipwreck! History from the Bermuda Reefs