Max Uhle was born in Dresdan, Germany on March 25, 1856 of royal heritage. He was sent to various boarding schools and eventually received his Ph.D. in 1880 from the University of Leipzig. His dissertation was on Medieval Chinese grammar. Later, he married Charlotte Grosse from Philadelphia.
Max Uhle is known as "Mad Max" and as the "Father of Peruvian Archaeology." He earned his title for work done at the Sun Temple of Pachacamac at the turn of the century. His site report, which is based on his work at Pachacamac, was labeled one of the finest of the time, and is still used as the basic text for studying South American archaeology.
Uhle first traveled to South America in 1892 in order to do research in Argentina and Bolivia for the Konigliches Museum fur Volkerkunde in Berlin. When he returned to South America in 1899, he was sponsored by the American Exploration Society in Philadelphia. This time, his expedition focused on the coast of Peru and spanned from the Moche Valley in the north to the Chala Valley in the south.
On this trip, he recovered a collection of approximately 9,200 items which represented over 3,000 years of Peruvian pre-history. He uncovered a variety of artifacts which included pottery, shells, textiles, metals, objects made of both wood and other plant material, and miscellaneous materials made from feather, bone and other animal materials.
His most famous find was a collection of pottery. The pottery shards had been recovered from cemeteries where they had been used as urns to bury the dead. This collection is known as the pottery of Nazca. It has been used to create and refine a chronological guide of the Peruvian history.
Max had a powerful woman behind him who supplied the financial backing which was required for all aspects of a successful excavation. This woman had a love and compassion for his work and findings. The woman was Mrs. Phoebe Hearst (Mother of William Randolf Hearst). Her generous contributions paid for all the labor and material expenditures that Max required. Max was not the only landmark archaeologist that the Hearst family supported; N.C. Nelson, Robert Heizer, F. Riddell and many others were sought out and gainfully employed. With virtually no financial burdens, he was unrestricted to do what he lived for -- the excitement of the dig! The Hearst Museum of Anthropology is filled with thousands of pieces of Max's life work.
References: http://www.answers.com/topic/max-uhle
Written By: Students in Introduction to Anthropology, Minnesota State University, Mankato