Francis Hours

Who is Francis Hours?

Reverend Father Francis Hours, born 1921 in France and died 1987 was a French Jesuit archaeologist known for his work on prehistory in the Levant.

He gave the Lebanese a real scientific framework for prehistoric research and worked excavating various sites including J'ita II. He was also an author of many publications, some in collaboration with international archaeologists such as Jacques Cauvin and Lorraine Copeland. One of his most notable works was the Atlas des sites du proche orient which he started in 1974. This work has been completed and added to by various scholars including Oliver Aurenche and is now an online application of the Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée.