Artefacts of Excavation

Although the EES 'distribution lists' note 'St Alban's Museum' it is clear that at the time of the early 1890s distribution there was no relevent institution as a museum was not founded until 1898 (Hertfordshire County Museum). 

There was a very active local society - St. Albans Architectural and Archaeological Society - which formed in 1845. One of its members in 1890-91 was Rev. Dr John Griffiths whose son, Francis (Frank) Llewellyn Griffith, excavated with Flinders Petrie from 1884 and went on to become Professor  of Egyptology at the University of Oxford. 

The transactions of the Society for 1887 record:

"Mr. Frank LI. Griffith then read a paper on Egyptian exploration and discovery during the present century, giving an outline of the operations of the Egypt Exploration Fund. He also exhibited and described some antiquities disinterred by him at Defenneh and other localities in the Delta of the Nile. On the motion of the Chairman, a cordial vote of thanks was given to Mr. F. L. Griffith; also to the Egypt Exploration Fund, for the present of antiquities. "

The transactions of the Society for 1890 and 1891 record that at the Society meeting on Dec. 4th 1890 Egyptian artefacts from the EEF were displayed: 

"The Chairman announced that a letter had been received from Dr. Griffith, expressing his regret, that on account of illness he was unable to be present and speak on the subjects which he proposed to illustrate. The Egyptian Antiquities had been sent, and were placed on the table, labelled".

Correspondence with the society in Feburary 2015 (Tony Cooper, pers. comm.) confirmed that the Society are not in the possession of any EEF objects today, nor are there any surviving records of what happened to them. It is possible that these were transferred to another museum collection that the Griffith's were particularly associated with, perhaps Brighton Museum as Frank's brother, Arthur, a practising lawyer in Brighton, was a Chair of the Brighton Museum Committee and keen to acquire Egyptian artefacts for that institution.