Michael D. Willis
Encyclopedia
Michael Willis is an Indologist and historian
at the British Museum
in London
, England
. He is curator of the early south Asian and Himalayan collections in the Department of Asia. Born in Vancouver
, Canada
, and raised in Kuwait
and Saudi Arabia
, Willis took his B.A. degree at the University of Victoria
where he studied with Siri Gunasinghe
and Alan Gowans
. Travelling to the University of Chicago
, he studied with J. A. B. van Buitenen
and Pramod Chandra, receiving his doctoral degree in 1988 after periods in India
and Cyprus
. He taught at SUNY New Paltz before joining the British Museum in 1994.
Willis's main research interest has been the cultural, political and religious history of north India from the fifth to the thirteenth centuries. He has published on the inscriptions of central India and its early temple architecture. After that, he researched the Buddhist history of India and produced a catalogue of reliquaries and related materials in the British Museum and Victoria and Albert Museum
. Concurrently Willis developed an interest in Tibet and published a popular book on the subject. The dust-jacket contains biographical data which has been used here. More recently, Willis has turned his attention to the Gupta dynasty, publishing a monograph on Hindu ritual and the development of temples as land-holding institutions.
Willis is a fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society
and an Hon. Research Fellow at Cardiff University
.
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
at the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He is curator of the early south Asian and Himalayan collections in the Department of Asia. Born in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and raised in Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
and Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Willis took his B.A. degree at the University of Victoria
University of Victoria
The University of Victoria, often referred to as UVic, is the second oldest public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It is a research intensive university located in Saanich and Oak Bay, about northeast of downtown Victoria. The University's annual enrollment is about 20,000 students...
where he studied with Siri Gunasinghe
Siri Gunasinghe
Siri Gunasinghe is a sanskritist, art historian, premier Sinhalese poet, novelist, literary critic and film maker.-Early life & Career:Siri Gunasinghe was born in Kegalle District of Sri Lanka...
and Alan Gowans
Alan Gowans
Alan Gowans was an art historian and university academic. A charismatic teacher and prolific author, his academic specialty was North American architecture, frequently highlighting such unheralded structures as gas stations, restaurants, motels, bungalows and mail-order homes, exploring their...
. Travelling to the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, he studied with J. A. B. van Buitenen
J. A. B. van Buitenen
Johannes Adrianus Bernardus van Buitenen was an Indologist at the University of Chicago where he was the George V. Bobrinskoy Professor of Sanskrit in the Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations...
and Pramod Chandra, receiving his doctoral degree in 1988 after periods in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. He taught at SUNY New Paltz before joining the British Museum in 1994.
Willis's main research interest has been the cultural, political and religious history of north India from the fifth to the thirteenth centuries. He has published on the inscriptions of central India and its early temple architecture. After that, he researched the Buddhist history of India and produced a catalogue of reliquaries and related materials in the British Museum and Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
. Concurrently Willis developed an interest in Tibet and published a popular book on the subject. The dust-jacket contains biographical data which has been used here. More recently, Willis has turned his attention to the Gupta dynasty, publishing a monograph on Hindu ritual and the development of temples as land-holding institutions.
Willis is a fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...
and an Hon. Research Fellow at Cardiff University
Cardiff University
Cardiff University is a leading research university located in the Cathays Park area of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom. It received its Royal charter in 1883 and is a member of the Russell Group of Universities. The university is consistently recognised as providing high quality research-based...
.