Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 25, 2026

Nigel Spivey

Nigel Jonathan Spivey is a British classicist and academic, specialising in classical art and archaeology. He is a senior lecturer in classics at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Emmanuel College. After attending Caterham, he studied at Cambridge, the British School at Rome, and the University of Pisa.

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Jul 25, 2026
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Nigel Spivey
Nigel Spivey on 7 March 2013
Born (1958-10-18) 18 October 1958
Academic background
EducationCaterham School
Alma materEmmanuel College, Cambridge
Academic work
DisciplineClassical studies
Sub-discipline
Etruscan iconography, polychromy in Greek sculpture
InstitutionsUniversity of Cambridge

Nigel Jonathan Spivey (born 18 October 1958) is a British classicist and academic, specialising in classical art and archaeology. He is a senior lecturer in classics at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Emmanuel College. After attending Caterham, he studied at Cambridge, the British School at Rome, and the University of Pisa.

As an undergraduate, he was a three-time champion in hammer throw at the Oxford–Cambridge athletics match; he remains a member of the Achilles Club, an Oxbridge sports organisation. During the 1990s, he conducted "Lunch with the FT" interviews for the Financial Times newspaper alongside his academic career.1a

TV

He has presented various television series:

Published works include

  • Understanding Greek Sculpture (1996)
  • Etruscan Art (1997)
  • Greek Art (1997)
  • Enduring Creation: Art, Pain, and Fortitude (2001)3
  • Panorama of the Classical World (with Michael Squire) (2004)
  • The Ancient Olympics: War Minus the Shooting (2004)
  • Songs On Bronze: The Greek Myths Made Real (2005)
  • Greek Sculpture (2013), an "entire renovation" of Understanding Greek Sculpture.4
Footnotes

Footnotes

Explanatory notes

  1. The morning after one such interview, with the poet Gavin Ewart, Spivey received a call from Ewart's wife: "There are two things you need to know," she said. "The first is that Gavin came home yesterday happier than I have seen him in a long time. The second – and you are not to feel bad about this – is that he died this morning."2

References

  1. Engel, Matthew (28 April 2012). "Let's do lunch!". The Financial Times. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  2. Engel, Matthew (28 April 2012). "Let's do lunch!". The Financial Times. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  3. Miller, Andrew (28 April 2001). "For the delight of vultures". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  4. Spivey, N. (2013), "Preface" in Greek Sculpture, Cambridge University Press, 9780521756983
External links