Groundbreakers: Women in Archaeology

About

“Groundbreakers: Women in Archaeology” is a display that highlights the pathbreaking work of British women archaeologists across the late 19th and early 20th centuries. From Rome to Ankara, from Cairo to the Levant, “Groundbreakers” charts a global history that spans geographies and generations through the rich archaeological archives of the British International Research Institutes (BIRI) and the Petrie Museum of Egyptian and Sudanese Archaeology.

On show will be an object trail across the museum’s display cases and a specially commissioned animated film featuring nine women archaeologists called “Nine Lives”.

Groundbreakers: Women in Archaeology is based on Women Transcending Boundaries: over a century of scholarship, fieldwork and friendship across the British International Research Institutes, an online research project created by the BIRI Digital Coordination and Strategy Project (2022-2026) and supported by the British Academy.

Event programme

In addition, an evening events programme of hybrid talks held at UCL’s Institute of Archaeology will take place on Monday 9 and Wednesday 11 November. Booking is required.

• Groundbreakers: The Joy of Lists, Letters and Wills - Women in the Archive on 9 November 2026.
• Groundbreakers: A reading of “A Thousand Miles Up the Nile” on 11 November 2026. This talk will be preceded by a Groundbreakers: Women in Archaeology guided tour in the Petrie Museum.

Being Human Festival

This exhibition is part of Being Human Festival, the UK’s national festival of the humanities, taking place 05 to 14 November 2026. Led by the School of Advanced Study, University of London, in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the British Academy.

Opening hours

Visit “Groundbreakers: Women in Archaeology” during the Petrie Museum’s opening hours.

Access

Access to the Petrie Museum, and all public areas within it, is step-free. Further information can be found on the planning your visit page.

Finding us

The Petrie Museum is located in Bloomsbury, in the heart of central London. The nearest tube stations are Euston Square (Metropolitan, Circle, Hammersmith & City), Goodge Street (Northern Line), Warren Street (Victoria Line), and buses 18, 30, 73, 134 and 205 stop three to five minutes away on Euston Road. See planning your visit.