Kevin Barry Herbert was born in November 18, 1921 in Chicago. He attended Loyola University where his classical studies were interrupted by the advent of World War II. Enlisting in the Army Air Force, he served as a tail gunner on a B-29 in the Pacific Theatre, receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross and 11 air medals. Herbert earned a bachelor’s in classics from Loyola University in 1946 as well as both a master’s and a doctorate in classical philology from Harvard, in 1949 and 1954 respectively.

Prior to arriving at Washington University, in 1962, Herbert taught at Marquette University, Indiana University, St. Paul’s School and Bowdoin College. He served as curator of the John Max Wulfing Coin Collection, one of the largest university collections of ancient Greek and Roman coins, from 1968-1994, and as chair of Classics from 1982 until his retirement. He was named professor emeritus in 1992 but continued to teach, primarily through University College, until 2008.

A fellow of the American Numismatic Society, Herbert was the author of numerous books, monographs and catalogs, as well as dozens of articles and reviews. Major publications include three volumes on the Wulfing Collection (in 1979, 1987 and 1996) as well as Maximum Effort: The B-29s Against Japan (1983), a memoir of his experiences during World War II.

He died on February 10, 2015 of heart failure.