William Matthew Flinders Petrie, born June 3rd 1853 in Charlton, Kent, was the grandson of Captain Matthew Flinders, the first man to chart Australia. Petrie was named after his father William, who was a civil engineer and professional surveyor and his maternal grandfather Matthew, a famous navigator and explorer. Petrie's mother Anne had a love for science, namely fossils and natural minerals. When he was 4, Petrie became so ill that his mother became convinced he was a weak child, since she was a scholar herself, she taught him at home and introduced him to Hebrew, Latin and Greek. Both Anne and her husband William taught and encouraged their son the play around with rocks, minerals and anything else that interested him. At a young age, Petrie developed an interest in archaeology, particularly in the area of ancient weights and measures. Petrie had an inquisitive mind and developed an insatiable appetite for facts, toying with mathematics, discovering geometry and devising chemical experiments at the age of 15. …
