Julio Cesar Tello1880–1947Julio Cesar Tello was born on April 11, 1880, in Huarochiri, the mountain range of Lima. Julian Tello and Maria Red Asuncio’n, his parents, were farmers. Tello obtained his undergraduate degree from the College of Osma in Lima, Peru and from there started doctoral work in San Marcos in 1902. Julio Cesar Tello was the first Peruvian archeologist to treat archeological sites in a scientific manner. He is best known for his theory on the origins of Andean civilization. Tello worked as a Conservator in the National Library and Raimondi Museum while attending school. In 1909, he completed his “bachiller” in Medicine, the “titulo medico-cirujano”, with a thesis published on syphilis in ancient Peru. He was then granted a scholarship to Harvard University. Due to his scholarship, he studied at Harvard and received his Master’s Degree in Anthropology in 1911, instead of studying in Peru.Tello dedicated his life to the study of what he called the “Country as the Incas”. By 1908, he was interested in archaeological investigation, and his revealing thesis was shown to the Medicine Faculty of the University of San Marcos on “the antiquity of syphilis in the Peru”. In 1913, Tello returned to Peru with Hrdlicka to explore the central coast. He was also named the Director of the archaeological section of the old Museum of Natural History, which today is known as the Museum of Art of the Stroll Columbus of Lima.In 1918, he resigned his position and went to San Marcos. This is when he identified archaeological material in Chavin and transferred to Lima, which later founded the Museum of Archeology and became Professor of General Archeology. He later was named Director of the National Archeological Museum in 1924. Then, in 1928 he became Professor of America and Peruvian Archeology; he stayed in this position for the rest of his life. When he created the National Museum of Anthropology and Archeology, he was trying to reunite archeological collections in a place where they could show the past for people to admire. But his main goal was contribute to the history of Peru so that national identity would be strengthened. In 1929, he created the National patronage of archeology and developed famous Law 6634, which demonstrated that whenever we went into depths of the past, through archeology, new evidences of greatness illuminate to us and comfort us. In 1930, he lost his job as Museum Director at the University Museum, but stayed there as a Research Associate with no pay.Tello died June 7, 1947 and was buried in Old Magealena at the gardens of the National Museum of Archeology and Anthropology which he had founded years before. Tello was the first person, who was scientifically trained, to find Chavin, which has had lasting contributions. These contributions later helped the work of archeologist in perfecting schemes in their works of 1921 and 1942.References: http://www.unitru.edu.pe/arq/tello.html http://www.naya.org.ar/peru/tello.htm http://www.arqueologia.com.ar/peru/bb-tello.htm http://perso.club-internet.fr/dduguay/archeologie.htm Written by Brooke Thomas, 2004 Edited by Marcy L. Voelker, 2007 |