Mary Rothes Margaret Cecil, Baroness Amherst of Hackney

The Right Honourable The Baroness Amherst of Hackney OBE
1919 upon receipt of her OBE
Born	Mary Rothes Margaret Tyssen-Amherst (1857-04-25)25 April 1857 Didlington Hall, Norfolk, England
Died	21 December 1919(1919-12-21) (aged 62) London, England
Nationality	English
Other names	Lady William Cecil
Years active	1901–1919
Known for	Excavations in Qubbet el-Hawa and various birding books
Spouse(s)	Lord William Cecil
Children	William Cecil Thomas James Cecil John Francis Cecil Henry Mitford Cecil
Parent(s)	Baron Amherst of Hackney Margaret Susan Mitford

Mary Rothes Margaret Cecil, 2nd Baroness Amherst of Hackney, OBE (née Mary Rothes Margaret Tyssen-Amherst; 25 April 1857 – 21 December 1919) was a British hereditary peer, charity worker, amateur archaeologist and ornithologist. Thirty-two of the Tombs of the Nobles at Aswan were uncovered in her excavations and for many years were known as the "Cecil Tombs". She was one of the few English women to have held a peerage in her own right. The black crowned crane, balearica pavonia ceciliae was named in her honour.

Mary Rothes Margaret Tyssen-Amherst, known as "May" to her family, was born on 25 April 1857 in Didlington Hall near Swaffham in western Norfolk county, England to Margaret Susan (née Mitford) and William Amhurst Tyssen-Amhurst (1835–1909) (which was changed to the surname Tyssen-Amherst in 1877). Descending of wealthy Flemish traders, the Tyssen family acquired estates in Hackney and Norfolk, leading to a wide circle of friends and monetary influence. Her father, was a collector of books and antique artifacts, with a strong interest in Egyptian antiquities. He had large collections of books and manuscripts, many on the history of bookbinding and printing, and his collection of artifacts was at one time the third largest in England. May's mother was known for her wood carving skill, with her handiworks adorning Didlington Hall, as well as her needle skills, as an amateur surgeon. Her maternal grandfather, Admiral Robert Mitford, besides serving in the Royal Navy, was a naturalist who had studied engraving techniques and illustrated birds.