The remarkable story of Harry Burton - from life in Stamford to photographing the Tutankhamun excavations with Howard Carter in Egypt
Harry Burton is to be given the rare privilege of a blue plaque in Stamford this year by the town's civic society.
Many passers-by may well ask 'Harry who?', yet he is responsible for some of the most familiar and iconic photographs of the 20th century.
Almost exactly a century ago he found himself at the centre of the world - at the heart of an event that made front page headlines across the globe.
When Harry came into the world, born into a big family in a modest terraced home in Stamford on September 13, 1879, he did not seem destined for greatness.
But in modern speak, he truly lived his best life. And more.
In those days, when the British Empire was at its height, it was not uncommon for young men of modest means to head overseas to seek their fortune and a life more glamorous than they could expect back home.
Yet Harry's life path was extraordinary.
He was the fifth of 11 children to be born to William and Ann Burton at 18 Burghley Lane, an address which no longer exists due to changes in house numbering.
According to the 1881 census, William was a journeyman cabinet-maker, but he was also known as a joiner, carpenter, and upholsterer.
It was perhaps wise to keep your skill set so diverse and yourself in demand with so many mouths to feed.
Harry began his education at St Martin's School, aged four, and the family moved across to 5 Church Lane when he was about 10.
"Due to changes in house numberings over the years, it is impossible to locate the exact house where the Burtons lived," explained Elaine Hooper, a Stamford and District Local History Society member who first proposed the blue plaque.
Harry's path to a life less ordinary owes a lot to wealthy philanthropist Robert Henry Hobart Cust, cousin to John Henry Cust, Stamford's MP from 1890-95.
Why and how the Burtons came into contact with Hobart in the 1890s is unclear, but what is certain is the impact it had on Harry's life.
Hobart, who had a house in St Paul's Street, even offered to pay for Harry's education and took the 17-year-old Burton to Italy.
"According to various sources Harry moved in with Hobart, later became his secretary and subsequently went with him to Florence in the late 1890s," Elaine added.
"Hobart was very interested in Renaissance art, thus the move to Florence, and it is probably here where Harry developed his skill as a photographer."
While living la dolce vita in Florence he met wealthy American lawyer Theodore Davis.
He sponsored several excavations in Egypt as archaeologists sought to unlock the mysteries hidden among the Valley of the Kings.
When Hobart returned to England in 1910, Harry travelled with Davis around Egypt as his photographer.
Burton developed a reputation as an art photographer and in 1914 began working for the Metropolitan Museum, in New York and Cairo, refining his technique and use of new technology.
While in Egypt, Burton also met Minnie Duckett whom he married in 1914.
But it was his partnership with Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter on the Tutankhamun dig that would send his profile into orbit.
Carter had been excavating in the Valley of the Kings since 1915, and on his sixth season, in November 1922, he made the breakthrough of a lifetime.
Hearing of his reputation as the finest archaeological photographer of his time, Carter promptly asked the Met for the loan of Burton’s services.
Professor Christina Riggs wrote about Burton's work in her 2019 book, 'Photographing Tutankhamun', after an extensive study of the excavation's photographic archive.
"His flair with a camera emerged in the 1890s, in Florence, just as photography was becoming more accessible as a technology," she told the Mercury.
"Not only were cameras becoming more affordable, but photographers could buy glass plates (negatives) that were pre-coated with light-sensitive emulsion, making it much easier to take and develop images.
"His photographs were exactly what art historians and archaeologists at the time wanted, including the fact they were in black and white, the ideal tone - it was thought - for keeping accurate records."
For the next eight years, Burton divided his time between Tutankhamun and the Egyptian Expedition.
Between 1914 and his death in 1940, he produced and printed more than 14,000 glass negatives and left a stunning legacy - a complete photographic record of dozens of decorated tombs as they were preserved.
Among his most recognisable images is the iconic gold mask taken in situ on the mummified body of Tutankhamun.
The excavation of the tomb and its remarkable trove of treasures captured the public imagination and catapulted Burton to celebrity status.
Not bad for a boy from Burghley Lane.
"There are a few myths around about Burton," said Margaret Beaumont, treasurer for the Lincolnshire-based Ancient Egypt and Middle East Society.
"One source said that (Hollywood film studio icon) Sam Goldwyn lent him a movie camera, but the Met Museum website states that his first cine camera was bought by one of the Met trustees.
"Burton would certainly have met Hollywood bigwigs on his visit there, though, and may have been lent one then.
"By that time he was something of a celebrity himself due to the international interest in Tutankhamun."
Even last year he was the subject of a BBC documentary, 'The Man who Shot Tutankhamun'.
Professor Riggs added: "Burton was known as a natty dresser - he was fond of plus-fours and bow-ties - and visited a tailor near Bond Street whenever he and Minnie passed through London."
His humble beginnings were far behind him, but he did not forget his roots, not with such a big family back home.
"Harry returned to Stamford on a regular basis and used his eldest brother John's address at 5 Belton Street as a communication address while he was in England," Elaine said.
Sadly, but perhaps fittingly, Harry final resting place was 2,395 miles from home in Egypt.
He is buried at the American Hospital, in Asyut, where he died in 1940 from complications related to diabetes and other health issues.
While he never forgot Stamford, Burton made his life and his name among the searing heat and scorched sand of North Africa.
Perhaps, ultimately, that's where his heart lay.
The lack of a memorial here may explain why his name is not as familiar as it should be to us.
But thanks to the Stamford Civic Society, that will finally be put right, exactly a century after he found fame.
Elaine hopes to be there in person next November when Egypt remembers Carter's momentous excavation and Burton took his place in history.
"Next year sees the centenary of the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb, so I think it's time Harry's achievements deserve more recognition from the town of Stamford."
