1951

February 21, 1951Mr. George H. McFadden Kourium Excavations Episkopi, Limassol Cyprus

Dear George:

I was very glad to have your letter of February 9th and, as a matter of fact, was thinking the day it arrived that I should write you to find out what was happening in Curium. It is good to know that the site and will take over some of its guarding and maintenance. Certainly it is a dramatic site and should be of interest to them as the principal ruin of that period in the Island. I am also glad that you are getting around to the Neolithic dig which interests me a great deal more since I saw the Neolithic sites in Cyprus. As you know, they were so darn interesting that I have ever since had an ambition to dig a Neolithic site there myself. Perhaps the nature of the Island itself has something to do with this desire. It certainly is a place I would like to have some excuse to return to. As you know we got the funds from the Philosophical Society to write up the Bronze age material.

As I understand it Rodney wrote you about Eleanor Madeira and her desire to work with her at Cyprus or Gordion or at both places during the Spring months. Believe me George, I would never have suggested this to Rodney if I hadn't known she is a very pleasant person and undoubtedly very useful. It is not just to please the President of the Museum. She is a very competent artist and a nice person to have around. Pen and I have seen a good deal of her during the last three months since she returned from Paris. I think she is rather at loose ends these days and would like to be useful somewhere. She was working with a refugee organization in Europe.

Several of your friends have been rather active around here, most particularly Mrs. Harrison, Mrs. Grace and Mrs. Lamont. I think I shall never get over the strange and unexpected incidents in the job of a Museum director. Certainly the problems of a Women's Committee are nothing like what I expected.

We have just worked over a review of our whole research policy and plans which is now being sent to the Board after discussion there and I will certainly send a copy to you as soon as it is multigraphed. There are no very startling changes but some attempt to express what we are driving at in our research. I feel sure that you will agree in general with the philosophy. Carl is now back in Iran, Linton in British Honduras and Rodney leaving for Athens in about two weeks. There is nothing very unusual going on around here except the regular routine of keeping the shop going. By and large we seem to be