Dr. James Russell - Professor Emeritus UBC

James lived his life well; he was an engaging storyteller and was known to hold court with an attentive audience and a glass in his hand often filled with his favourite tipple: single malt scotch. He loved adventures and a ‘wee’ walk would frequently entail cross country treks well off the beaten track. He loved the craic and a good meal with wine as much as he enjoyed travelling and visiting new countries.

James, born in Glasgow in 1935, was raised in Edinburgh, where he was educated at the Royal High School before proceeding to Edinburgh University. There he specialized in Classics and graduated in 1957 as M.A. Honours 1st Class. In 1959 he married Jenny (nee Todd) and emigrated to Canada to join the Department of Classics at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg where he remained until 1966. During this time he pursued graduate studies at the University of Chicago, and he graduated as Ph.D. in Classics in 1965 with his dissertation on “The Forums of Roman Cities in the Western Roman Empire”. In 1966 he joined the Department of Classics at the University of British Columbia where he taught the rest of his career, retiring as Professor Emeritus in 1998.

James’ career in field archaeology began on Roman military sites in Wales (Castell Collen) and his native Scotland (Cramond, Rough Castle) in the 1950’s, and as a student at the University of Chicago he participated in the joint Chicago-Indiana excavation of the Corinthian port of Kenchreai in the early 1960’s. Since 1970 is interests have concentrated on the eastern part of the Roman Empire, most notably at the Roman/Byzantine site of Anemurium, a medium-sized city located on the south coast of Turkey, where he served as Director of Canadian excavations sponsored by UBC and largely funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for over thirty years.

James held resident senior fellowships at the Center for Byzantine Studies at Dumbarton Oaks (Harvard University) in 1978-79, the Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities at Edinburgh University in 1991, at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton in 1992 and at the Institute for the Humanities at Hebrew University, Jerusalem in 1997.

James lectured at more than 100 academic institutions around the world. And played a prominent role in the Archaeological Institute of America, he helped to found the local Vancouver Society of the Institute and served as the first president from outside the United States from 1992-94. In retirement James led educational tours and cruises as an expert guide in Scotland, Ireland, Italy, Dalmatia, Greece and Turkey for a number of organizations, including the Archaeological Institute of America, the National Geographic Society, Friends of the Library of Congress and Westminster Classic Tours.

James will be deeply missed by his wife of 65 years, Jenny (nee Todd), his 4 children, Elspeth (Luciano), Bill (Bernie), Kirsty (Tonino), Lucy (Fabio) and his 8 grandchildren, Leo, Liam, Clementina, Rory, Oliver, Isabel, Robin and Alan.

*In lieu of flowers, donations to the Alzheimers Society of BC would be welcome.