Speiser, Ephraim Avigdor

Speiser, Ephraim Avigdor (1902–65) archaeologist, biblical scholar, linguist; born in Skalat, Ukraine, Austria-Hungary. He emigrated to the U.S.A. as a teenager. A research fellow at the University of Pennsylvania (1924–46), he was a leading authority on biblical lands and culture and excavated important Sumerian sites in Iraq. His books include Mesopotamian Origins (1930) and, as editor, At the Dawn of Civilization (Vol. I, 1965).