RICHARD TREADWELL HALLOCK

Richard Treadwell Hallock (1906–1980) was a distinguished Elamitologist and Assyriologist affiliated with the University of Chicago’s Department of Oriental Languages. He served as associate professor (1963–1970) and later professor (1970–1971), retiring as professor emeritus. His career included foundational work on the Persepolis Fortification Tablets, revolutionizing understanding of Achaemenid Persian administration and languages. Hallock earned a B.A. at the University of Toronto (1929), an M.A. (1931), and Ph.D. (1934) from the University of Chicago under Edward Chiera. His research spanned cuneiform studies, Elamite grammar, and Assyrian lexicography.

Hallock’s major contributions include editing the Assyrian Dictionary project and publishing Persepolis Fortification Tablets (1969), which established a comprehensive corpus of Achaemenid administrative records. His work clarified Elamite syntax, Iranian onomastics, and imperial bureaucratic systems. He was honored as a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy (1972) for his transformative contributions.

During WWII, Hallock served in military intelligence, later resuming academic work at the Oriental Institute. His publications addressed cuneiform scripts, grammatical analyses, and historical reconstructions, shaping Achaemenid studies through meticulous textual analysis and interdisciplinary approaches.