Gertrud Seidmann

Gertrud Seidmann, (16 September 1919 – 15 February 2013) was an Austrian-British linguist and jewellery historian, specialising in engraved gems.

Her first career was as a linguist, teaching German and applied linguistics at Battersea County School, the University of Oxford, and the University of Southampton: she was awarded the Goethe Medal in 1968. She formally retired in 1979 and dedicated herself to researching jewellery and engraved gems, becoming a research associate of the Institute of Archaeology and of Oxford's Beazley Archive.

In 2004, Seidmann matriculated into Wolfson College, Oxford to study for a Master of Letters (MLitt) research degree. She thereby became the University of Oxford's oldest ever student. She went on to undertake research towards a doctorate in the School of Archaeology. In 2011, due to ill health and at the age of 91, she ended her studies and was awarded a Certificate of Graduate Attainment by the university.

Selected works