Federico Halbherr

Federico Halbherr (Rovereto, then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, 15 February 1857 – Rome, 17 July 1930) was an Italian archaeologist and epigrapher, known for his excavations of Crete.

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Life

First studying in Vienna alongside Paolo Orsi, he then moved to the University of Rome to become a student of Domenico Comparetti, where Halbherr became professor of ancient Greek epigraphy in 1889. Students under him included, among others, Gaetano de Sanctis, Luigi Pernier and above all Margherita Guarducci, who completed and edited Halbherr's work on his death.

He carried out important excavations at Phaistos, Gortyna and Hagia Triada, whose results he presented in several publications. In 1910 he was the founder and first director of the Italian Archaeological Mission to Crete (what later became known as the Italian Archaeological School of Athens). His most important Greek discovery was the major inscription in the Greek Doric script of the late 6th and early 5th centuries BC containing the Laws of Gortyna on family law, which was found in the 1884-87 excavations at Gortyna - a cast of it is on display in the Sala Dutuit of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei's base at Palazzo Corsini alla Lungara (Halbherr was an associate of the academy). He was also among the pioneers of archaeological studies of Cyrene.

Works

Writings

Edited by Margherita Guarducci

Letters

Bibliography

External links