TRIBUTES have been paid to a York achaeologist and historian who has died, aged 82.

An expert in Roman and medieval archaeology and history, Dr Ronald Butler, of Green Lane, is credited with making a huge contribution to the knowledge of York’s past.

He belonged to many historical organisations, published influential writing about the city’s archaeology and buildings and was a key player in the campaign to restore York Minster.

Dr Butler, whose wife, Marie, died in 2010, leaves a son Paul, and three grandchildren.

Paul said: “He was gentle, generous and tolerant. The family will remember him as a loving dad and grandad. He was a font of knowledge and was really enthusistic about sharing that. He loved York, he loved the history of York and felt a great affinity with the place and played an intergral part in the archaeology and understanding of the history of York.”

Dr Butler was born in Nottinghamshire and had a sister, Joy, and brother, Lauwrence. He gained a double first in Classics and in Archaeology at Peterhouse, Cambridge, followed by a doctorate.

He moved to York from London in the 1960s as an investigator with the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments and was part of a team which produced volumes of magisterial inventories on the city – still the basic reference books for York’s archaeology and building history. He also produced booklets on York’s Bars and Walls and on Medieval York.

In the 1960s and 1970s, when the Minster underwent a restoration campaign, Dr Bulter became secretary of the York Minster Excavation Committee, a role he held for 20 years.

His roles also included vice president for Yorkshire Architectural and York Archaeological Society (YAYAS), writing articles for York Historian and president of the Yorkshire Archaeological Society.

Dr Butler’s friend, Peter Addyman, said: “A quiet and retiring scholar, but when approached an acute and helpful adviser, critic and source of useful ideas, Dr Butler will be a significant loss to York and Yorkshire’s history and archaeology, and to the York Archaeological Trust.”

Dr Butler’s funeral will be held a the Church of Our Lady, Acomb, on Monday.