Peter Woodman facts for kids

Peter Woodman (2 July 1943 – 24 January 2017) was an important Irish archaeologist. He was an expert in the Mesolithic period in Ireland. This time was when the first people lived there, long before farming began.

Peter Woodman was a senior professor at University College Cork. He also used to be in charge of ancient items at the Ulster Museum.

Peter Woodman's Life and Work

Early Life and Studies

Peter Woodman grew up in Holywood, County Down, a town in Northern Ireland. He went to Queen's University Belfast to study archaeology. Archaeology is the study of human history by digging up old things.

After finishing his advanced studies, he started working at the Ulster Museum. There, he helped look after very old objects from prehistoric times.

Discovering Ireland's First People

In the 1970s, Peter Woodman led important digs. He excavated, or carefully dug up, sites from the Mesolithic period. Two key places he worked at were Mount Sandel and Newferry. Both are in County Antrim.

Mount Sandel is very special. It is the oldest known place where people lived in Ireland. His work helped us understand how the first people lived there.

Teaching and New Discoveries

In 1983, Peter Woodman became a professor at University College Cork. He kept studying the Mesolithic period. He found some of the first signs of Mesolithic life in the Republic of Ireland. This was at Ferriter's Cove on the Dingle Peninsula.

After he retired, he wrote a book called Ireland’s First Settlers: Time and the Mesolithic. This book brought together all his research from fifty years of work. It helps us understand the very first people in Ireland.

Awards and Recognition

Peter Woodman was recognized for his amazing work. In 1982, he became a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London. This is a special honor for experts in history and archaeology.

In 2009, he received the Europa Prize from the Prehistoric Society. This award is given to people who have made huge contributions to studying Europe's prehistory. That same year, the Prehistoric Society held a conference to honor him. They also published a special book about his work.

After Peter Woodman passed away in 2017, another archaeologist, James Mallory, praised him. He said Woodman was one of the best archaeology graduates from Queen's University Belfast. His work created the main ideas for all future studies of the Irish Mesolithic period.