Saturday, January 18, 2025

History Colorado Tour

This month we’re taking a look at two of the other important parts of archaeology: the lab work and the exhibit work. We will have a guided tour of History Colorado’s exhibits with a focus on their archaeological material, and a glimpse into the Emery Archaeology Laboratory. It is impossible to overstate the importance of these two often overlooked aspects of the archaeological process, one of which processes and catalogs untold amounts of archaeological data and artifacts, the other of which has to make the painful decisions about how to present what information in the most effective way to the public.

Saturday, September 6, 2025

Palaces on the Hill: Archaeology of the Central City, CO Brothel District

Dr. Jade Luiz, Assistant professor of anthropology at Metropolitan State University of Denver

Denver Public Library: Virginia Village Branch Library
1500 South Dahlia Street Denver, CO 80222

 About the talk:

In 2023, the Central City, Colorado brothel district became the location of an archaeological field school conducted by Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology. This district, active on what was considered Pine Street between the 1860s and 1912, consisted of 5 houses that either burned or were pulled down with no additional building taking place on the site afterwards. In addition to serving as an excellent site for training students in archaeological practices, Central City has an unusually enthusiastic relationship with its history of sex work, best represented in its annual “Madam Lou Bunch Day” festival celebrating one of the more famous madams from the period. For this reason, the project has also become an excellent case study in public archaeology and community engagement. Students have started to uncover tantalizing clues into the lives of the people living and working in the district. While the public has certain perceptions regarding what life was like as a nineteenth-century sex worker in a Colorado gold mining town, researchers are attempting to use archaeological investigation to determine the real lived experiences of the people living on Pine Street.

About Professor Jade Luiz:

Dr. Jade Luiz is assistant professor of anthropology at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She received her Ph.D. from Boston University where she specialized in historical archaeology, nineteenth-century urbanism, gender, and archaeology of the senses. Her research delves into the history of nineteenth-century prostitution, with her dissertation work focusing on an archaeological collection from a North End brothel on Endicott Street. As a result of this research, she has contributed to several publications and has recently published a book on this collection with Routledge titled Archaeology of a Nineteenth-century Brothel in Boston, MA: Erotic Facades. In June 2023 Dr. Luiz began directing an archaeological field school for MSU Denver investigating the historic sex district of Central City, Colorado.

Friday, October 24 2025

Justinain's Tree: Underwater Environmental Histories in Byzantine Harbors 
(Anna Marguerite McCann and Robert D. Taggart Lectureship in Underwater Archaeology)

Dr. Brita Lorentzen,  Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology and director of the Tree-Rings and Archaeological Wood Analysis Lab at University of Georgia

Metropolitan State University Archaeology Laboratory
Cherry Creek Building on Auraria Campus, Second Floor, Room 241

About the talk:

“Harbors were and remain epicenters of economic and social exchange and hold equally dynamic environmental histories. Constructing artificial harbor works or adapting natural coastal features to accommodate maritime activity—like that which fueled transport and exchange in the Byzantine Empire—required investment of both material resources and labor, which left far-reaching ecological impacts.
In this lecture, I discuss the evolution and environmental history of the harbor at Lechaion in ancient Corinth revealed from the recent Lechaion Harbour Project excavations by the Danish Institute at Athens and Greek Department of Underwater Antiquities. I concentrate on environmental data encoded in wooden harbor works from Lechaion and show how we can use this information to reconstruct the harbor’s development during the 5th-6th centuries AD, uncover the network of natural resources used to create Corinth’s artificial harbor works, and better understand the impact that centers of maritime trade had on coastal, marine, and forest ecosystems in the Byzantine Empire.”

About Professor Brita Lorentzen:

Brita Lorentzen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology and director of the Tree-Rings and Archaeological Wood Analysis Lab at University of Georgia. She completed her PhD at Cornell University, where she also served as a research scientist and lab manager of the Cornell Tree-Ring Laboratory. She is an environmental archaeologist who uses tree-rings, stable isotope geochemistry, and archaeobotanical methods to investigate human interactions with climate and environment, transmission of shipbuilding materials and technologies, and their long-term impacts on forest and coastal ecosystems. She has conducted archaeological and heritage science fieldwork above and underwater throughout the East Mediterranean, Southeast Europe, and North America, including as a dendrochronologist for the Lechaion Harbor Project in Corinth (Greece), Mazotos Shipwreck Project (Cyprus), and underwater excavations at Dor/Tantura Lagoon and Akko Bay (Israel). She also co-directs the TREE Project investigating Byzantine-Medieval wooden monuments, artwork and modern forests in the Troodos Mountains (Cyprus).

Saturday, November 1, 2025

The Ancient Maya Script of Hand Forms Embedded in Figural Art

Dr. Rich A. Sandoval is Associate Professor of Anthropology for the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Metropolitan State University of Denver

Denver Public Library: Eugene Field Branch Library
810 S University Blvd, Denver, CO 80209

About the talk:

In this presentation, Dr. Sandoval will discuss his recent work on deciphering the Ancient Maya hand-sign script. The symbols of this special writing consist of arm and hand configurations held by figures in Maya texts. Texts otherwise consist of hieroglyphic writing and an array of iconography. In a recent article, he examined the hand signs of Altar Q, an 8th century sculptural text from the Classic Maya site of Copán (modern Honduras). Relying on a mix of analytical methods, he claimed that each of Altar Q's hand signs are numerals with calendrical function. The publication stands as the first time a decipherment proposal for Ancient Maya textual hand signs has been supported and verified by multiple lines of evidence and peer review. The presentation will provide an overview of this initial decipherment, with the goal of demystifying the process, methodology, and verification.

About Dr. Rich A. Sandoval:

Dr. Rich A. Sandoval is Associate Professor of Anthropology for the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Metropolitan State University of Denver (PhD in Linguistics, CU Boulder). He is broadly interested in the diverse ways that language and other modes of meaning making are mutually enacted. His research has specifically involved Hand Talk and other traditional signed-language practices of Indigenous America, with a focus on how hand signs and speech are combined within linguistically coherent expressions. His earlier work describes this phenomenon in modern Arapaho (indigenous to the Denver area). His current work examines it within Ancient Maya texts, where (speech-based) hieroglyphs are accompanied by the hand signs of depicted figures.

Saturday, December 6, 2025

Community Archaeology at Amache, Colorado's Japanese American Confinement Camp

Dr. Bonnie Clark, University of Denver

Denver Public Library: Park Hill Branch Library
4705 Montview Blvd, Denver, CO 80207

About the talk:

The forced removal and subsequent incarceration of over 120,000 people of American of Japanese descent during World War II is a pivotal incident in world history.  The sites of this confinement are significant resources for both research about and re-engagement with this critical, yet shadowed experience.  Since 2008, Dr. Bonnie Clark has led collaborative archaeological investigations at the site of Amache, Colorado’s War Relocation Authority confinement facility.  In this talk Clark will discuss the ongoing project, highlighting insights about the camp’s cultural landscape and the strategies of a confined people to reknit community and reclaim humanity. 

About Dr. Bonnie Clark:

Dr. Bonnie Clark is a Professor in the University of Denver’s Anthropology Department. A professional archaeologist since 1990, Dr. Clark’s work has focused on using the tangible past– artifacts, architecture, settlement patterns–to tell a more inclusive history of western North America. Dr. Clark’s research interests include the relationships between material culture, ethnicity, and gender; cultural landscapes; community-engaged research; and heritage management. She teaches a range of classes for the anthropology department including Historical Archaeology, Cultural Narratives, and Anthropologies of Place. Dr. Clark serves as the Curator for Archaeology of the University of Denver Museum of Anthropology.

Saturday February 24, 2024

Dr. Michael J. Kolb, Professor of Anthropology, Metropolitan State University, Denver, Colorado

Status and Gender in Hawaiian House Complexes

Denver Public Library Eugene Field Branch

Abstract:

Exploring the material culture of Hawaiian house sites is vital for a better understanding of ancestral social structures. Traditional household spaces were designed around the the ‘ai kapu (taboo) system of sanctions that governed social interaction to accommodate daily subsistence and production activities. Results indicate a distinct post-1650 C.E. intra-site distribution of faunal remains that is concomitant with status and potentially gender food consumption. This patterning, however, does not ideally match the model derived from ethnographic descriptions.

Bio:

Michael J. Kolb (Ph.D. 1991, UCLA) is Professor of Anthropology at Metropolitan State University and Presidential Teaching Professor Emeritus at Northern Illinois University. His research focuses on ancient and historical household and political economies and the building of monumental architecture. He has published, amongst other things, on the labor energetics in medieval Sicily, prehistoric Europe, and Oceania. His most recent book is Making Sense of Monuments (London 2020).

Saturday April 13, 2024

Dr. Noel Hidalgo Tan Cruz, Senior Specialist in Archaeology at the SEAMEO Regional Centre for Archaeology and Fine Arts in Bangkok

Crouching Tigers, Hidden Elephants

Abstract:

While a global phenomenon, rock art has been a relatively recent subject of study in Southeast Asia with the number of known sites growing from a handful in the 1960s to over a thousand today. Research accelerated in the last 20 years with better recording and analytical techniques as evidenced by the increased number of papers on Southeast Asian rock art in international conferences and journals since the 2000s. The majority of sites are located from Indonesia and Thailand, where sustained episodes of research have been conducted. New dates from Indonesia challenge long-standing ideas about the ‘origin’ of art while other discoveries shed light on the movements and activities of peoples across this diverse landscape. This lecture presents a survey of rock art across Southeast Asia from the deep past to more modern times and shows how rock art can help us better understand the archaeology of Southeast Asia. 

Short bibliography and/or website on lecture topic:

https://www.southeastasianarchaeology.com/rock-art-of-southeast-asia/

(includes a bibliography and overview)

Bio:

Noel Hidalgo Tan is the Senior Specialist in Archaeology at the SEAMEO Regional Centre for Archaeology and Fine Arts in Bangkok, where he works to promote the archaeology of Southeast Asia by building capacity among regional archaeologists, finding ways to engage the public about archaeological and cultural heritage, and conducting archaeological research. His main research interest is in the rock art of Southeast Asia, where he spent his postgraduate work documenting sites in Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. His recent projects include rock art documentation in western Laos and southern Thailand; the protection of regional underwater cultural heritage; archaeology, tourism and the protection of Southeast Asian cultural heritage sites; and developing future capacity in regional archaeology education in Southeast Asia. He is the managing editor of the SPAFA Journal (www.spafajournal.org) and runs an online resource website on Southeast Asian Archaeology (www.SoutheastAsianArchaeology.com)

Saturday June 8, 2024 10:30-3:00 PM Central City, Colorado

The regular seasons offerings may be over, but we have a rare opportunity. Dr Jade Luiz is running an archaeological field school in Central City where she is excavating the remains of several brothels in the historic red-light district.

We are pleased to invite you to come up to visit on Saturday, June 8th to tour the site! Those who are interested may also have the opportunity to dig under the instruction of Dr. Luiz and her students, either on the day of June 8th or during the other volunteer opportunities Dr Luiz is opening up.

We will be there from 10:30 PM to about 3:00 PM. Please be aware that the site is located at approximately 8,500 ft in altitude on a steep slope. It is located just off a paved road, but the slope to access it is substantial. Regardless of whether you come to tour the site or to volunteer, wear appropriate clothing. Bear in mind that it is an active archaeological site.

There is no parking at the site itself. I personally would recommend stopping at the large visitor parking lot directly in front of the Central City Police Department and climbing the hill to the intersection of Spruce St and Pine St, where you will find the site.

This is a FREE activity which does NOT require a reservation! I hope that you join us and, if you are interested in further volunteer opportunities to get your hands dirty with some archaeology, Dr Luiz will be happy to provide further information!

September 29: Aurora Archaeology-Smoky Hill & Senac-A visit to two archaeological sites in Aurora with a guided tour by Dr. Gordon Tucker

November 23 2024

Prehistoric Occupation in the Colorado Piedmont at Cherokee Ranch

Caitlin Calvert, The Denver Society of the Archaeological Institute of America

January 28, 2023

The Powars II Site

Dr. Spencer Pelton, Wyoming State Archaeologist

Abstract:

The Powars II site is the oldest of only five prehistoric hematite quarries known from the western hemisphere. Previous salvage excavations demonstrated a remarkable quantity of Paleoindian artifacts, but until recently it was unknown if the site contained intact archaeological deposits. Excavations conducted during the last several years demonstrate the presence of intact quarry features and associated artifacts dating to ca. 11,600 to 12,700 BP. Most use occurred between ca. 12,100 and 12,600 years BP by early Paleoindian foragers using a diversity of Younger Dryas-aged spear point styles. This presentation will summarize the status of major findings at this important early American site.The Powars II site is the oldest of only five prehistoric hematite quarries known from the western hemisphere. Previous salvage excavations demonstrated a remarkable quantity of Paleoindian artifacts, but until recently it was unknown if the site contained intact archaeological deposits. Excavations conducted during the last several years demonstrate the presence of intact quarry features and associated artifacts dating to ca. 11,600 to 12,700 BP. Most use occurred between ca. 12,100 and 12,600 years BP by early Paleoindian foragers using a diversity of Younger Dryas-aged spear point styles. This presentation will summarize the status of major findings at this important early American site.

Bio:

Spencer Pelton received his PhD from the University of Wyoming in 2018 and became the Wyoming State Archaeologist in November, 2019.  Spencer primarily researches the early Prehistory of the High Plains and Rocky Mountains, but also maintains interests in global human dispersal and the peopling of the Americas. Spencer conducts excavations at several Paleoindian sites in Wyoming, most recently at the Powars II red ocher quarry, the La Prele Clovis site, and the Sisters Hill site. Spencer lives in Laramie, WY with his wife Hallie and their dog Cashew.

February 25, 2023

Iran Past and Present: Archaeology, Architecture and Gardens

Andrew Moore, PhD, Past President of the Archaeologial Instute of America & Rochester Institute of Technology (retired)

Abstract:

Iran, a land of stunning beauty, possesses a cultural heritage of extraordinary richness.  This talk will describe some of the fascinating sites to be found there that have been explored by archaeologists.  We will discuss several of the sublime buildings that reveal the great beauty and technological skill of Islamic architecture.  Iran, too, is famed for its gardens, laid out around the palaces of rulers and notables.  We will examine their underlying structure and consider their influence on garden design worldwide.  Iran today is a country with a sophisticated population who have experienced radical political and economic changes over the last century.  The talk will conclude by touching on some of these events and their wider impact.

Bio:

Andrew Moore’s archaeological interests span the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and Europe. His research has concentrated on the advent of agriculture and sedentary life in the Middle East and their spread to Africa and Eurasia. Moore has conducted field research in Syria, Iraq, Palestine, Croatia and other countries.

In the 1970s Moore excavated Abu Hureyra in the Euphrates Valley in Syria, a site threatened by the construction of a new dam. The site was significant because it documented the transition from foraging to farming around 13,000 years ago, much earlier than had been suspected. Research on the record from this key site continues.

Moore is currently investigating the spread of farming around the Mediterranean and into southern Europe. Moore has excavated two Neolithic villages, Danilo and Pokrovnik, on the Croatian coast and has conducted extensive landscape surveys of the surrounding region. The project has demonstrated that agriculture reached the Adriatic region as a mature mixed farming system brought in from farther east by migrating farmers around 8,000 years ago.

Moore has taught archaeology at the University of Arizona and Yale University. Moore has spent two decades in academic administration, as Associate Dean in the Graduate School at Yale, and latterly as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, then Dean of Graduate Studies, at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). He is currently Professor and Dean Emeritus at RIT, and an Honorary President of the Archaeological Institute of America, the largest and oldest archaeological organization in North America.

Moore’s publications include Village on the Euphrates (with G.C. Hillman and A.J. Legge, Oxford University Press 2000) and Early Farming in Dalmatia (with Marko Menđušić, Archaeopress 2019). His degrees are from the University of Oxford (B.A., M.A., D.Phil.) and the University of London (Dip.Arch.).

March 11, 2023

Cultural Heritage and Imaginaries: The Politics and Practices of Archaeology

Nam C. Kim, PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Abstract:

The past, whether real, tangible, embellished, or imagined, can be a particularly powerful and alluring source of symbols, narratives, and ideas. Echoes from the distant past can reverberate and affect the lives of contemporary and descendant communities, and issues related to politics, cultural heritage management, tourism, and national identity can all be tied to our reconstructions of the past. This kind of dynamic is evident across many countries, particularly those that have experienced recent histories of conflict, regime change, or newly gained independence. This lecture explores the social contexts and political dimensions of practicing archaeology, and it features research on ancient Vietnam as a backdrop. Here, archaeological investigations increasingly complement traditional sources of information, such as ancient texts, legendary accounts, and heroic folk tales. As such, artifacts, remnant architecture, and sacred landscapes have become significant for the national story of Vietnam, its deeper past, and the cultural identities of its past and present populations.

Bio:

Professor Kim is an anthropological archaeologist interested in sociopolitical complexity, early forms of cities, factors associated with significant cultural change, and the relationship between modern politics, cultural heritage, and the material record. He is especially interested in the cultural contexts and social consequences of organized violence and warfare, as manifested in various cultural, spatial and temporal settings. Much of his recent research has been geographically focused on East and Southeast Asia, and since 2005 he has been conducting archaeological fieldwork in Vietnam at the Co Loa settlement in the Red River Delta. A heavily fortified site located near modern-day Hanoi, Co Loa is purportedly connected to Vietnamese legendary accounts and is thus viewed by many as integral to the genesis of Vietnamese civilization and early state formation in Southeast Asia.

April 29, 2023

Toys, burial goods or ritual objects? – West African figurines and their archaeological traces

André Luiz Ruivo Ferreira Burmann, PhD candidate, Goethe-University

Abstract: 

West African figurines are a notable part of the world heritage. Both legally and illegally, they were (and continue to be) collected and exhibited in museums and collections all over the world.

Studies of these impressive 3D representations of humans, animals, and hybrid beings have focused mainly on formal, iconographic and stylistic aspects of the figurines. A supra-regional examination of their long history of human interaction and deposition is often absent. Contextual studies on the archaeology of figurines are rather rare, and, mostly, center on a small regional scale. However, in the last few decades, work taking place in some larger study areas, such as the Nigerian Nok Culture, have revealed new insights into the study of figurines. This presentation will share work in progress of a large-scale West African synthesis of archaeological sites and archaeological contexts that have yielded figurines. How were these objects disseminated over time and space? Which figurine traditions appeared when and where? What do we know about their (last) use respectively their way of deposition? Has the latter changed over time? And what role did the Nok Culture possibly play in this development?

Bio:
André Luiz R. F. Burmann is a Ph. D. candidate in Pre- and Protohistory of Africa at the Institute for Archaeological Sciences, Goethe-University in Frankfurt (Germany). He studied Prehistoric Archaeology and Archaeology of the Roman Provinces, in addition to Portuguese Philology at the Universities of Munich and Frankfurt/Main. His 2016 Master thesis focused on the archaeological context of terracotta sculptures from the Central Nigerian Nok Culture (1500 BC–1 AD). For the three following years, André Burmann was a research associate in the DFG Research Training Group “Value and Equivalence” at the University of Frankfurt. His Ph.D. research focuses specifically on West African figurines yielded from archaeological contexts, aiming to analyze and compare relevant sites and features through time and space to examine the development of depositional patterns of figurines. Moreover, André has worked in different museums and with curation teams since being a student. From 2019 to 2021, he was a Scientific Trainee at the LWL Museum for Archaeology, the Westphalian State Museum in Herne, followed by a working stay in the Museée d´Angoulême in France. Burmann is an active member of the Pan-African Archaeological Association (PanAf), the Society of Africanist Archaeologists (SAfA), the West-African Archaeological Association (WAAA), the ICOM Germany Young Professionals Network and the children’s development organization Enfants avec Espoir e.V. Since September 2022, he works at Engagement Global gGmbH in Bonn, being responsible for networking and public relations in the German-African Youth Office.

Saturday October 28, 2023

Dr. M. Dores Cruz, Senior Researcher, University of Cologne, Germany

Title: The “engenho” at Praia Melão: Archaeology in the making in São Tomé (São Tomé e Príncipe)

Abstract:

While 'archaeology' often suggests elusive, buried traces, this isn't the case at Praia Melão, where monumental ruins are the only tangible evidence of São Tomé's early plantation history. Despite its architectural magnificence, local populations perceive it as a ruin, a place of ghosts, and do not relate to the site. This research is the first scholarly investigation of this unique site, which embodies the colonial legacies and power relations that shaped the modern Atlantic world. The archaeological work is centered on political awareness and community involvement, shifting the focus from empire-making to marginalized peoples, past and present. This project in historical archaeology demonstrates a decolonizing, interdisciplinary approach for reconciling different forms of knowledge and promoting community empowerment, while also highlighting the obstacles of building a new disciplinary approach in a country with no prior contact with archaeology.

Bio:

Dr. M. Dores Cruz is an Africanist anthropological archaeologist with interdisciplinary research interests in practice, critical academic engagement with materiality, landscape studies, historical archaeology, archaeology of the recent past, heritage, and memory studies. She is currently a Senior Researcher at the Institute for African Studies (University of Cologne). Her extensive experience includes Lusophone and Anglophone countries, and she is dedicated to collaborative work with diverse local and descendant communities. She is focusing on two projects: her monograph, Terra de Heróis: a landscape biography of Mandlakaze, and the collaborative project Bitter Island: Sugar and Portuguese colonial landscapes in the making of the modern Atlantic World, which aims to document, study, and preserve São Tomé's 16th and 17th-century cultural heritage and history, seminal to the development of the capitalist plantation system.

Saturday November 25, 2023

Another Racket on Pine Street – Archaeology of Central City Red Light District

Dr. Jade Luiz, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Metropolitan State University of Denver

Hybrid Lecture Denver Public Library Eugene Field Branch & Zoom

Abstract:

Sex work in the American west held a precarious position during expansion and as urban centers sought to establish themselves as legitimate cultural and economic centers in the nation at large. The relationship of the sex district in Central City, Colorado and its residents to the neighbors was no exception. Preliminary research into the sex district in Central City and the material culture recovered during the 2023 MSU Denver field school excavation suggests a disconnect; while the brothel sites might have been viewed as opulent respites for the surrounding miners and businessmen, the often-violent resistance of Central City residents to the presence of the sex district is also evidenced in the historical and archaeological record.

Bio:

Dr. Jade Luiz is assistant professor of anthropology at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She received her Ph.D. from Boston University where she specialized in historical archaeology, nineteenth-century urbanism, gender, and archaeology of the senses. Her research delves into the history of nineteenth-century prostitution, with her dissertation work focusing on an archaeological collection from a North End brothel on Endicott Street. As a result of this research, she has contributed to several publications and has recently published a book on this collection with Routledge titled Archaeology of a Nineteenth-century Brothel in Boston, MA: Erotic Facades. In June 2023, Dr. Luiz began directing an archaeological field school for MSU Denver investigating the historic sex district of Central City, Colorado.

January 29 2022

Climate Change to Culture Change? The Case Study of the Copper to Early Bronze Age Transition in Iberia

Katina Lillios, PhD, University of Iowa

Abstract:

How can we trace the relationship between climate change and culture change in the ancient past? A collaborative and interdisciplinary project coordinated by Katina Lillios, with Antonio Blanco-González, Brandon Lee Drake, and Jose Antonio López-Sáez, offered insights into this question through the lens of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE of Iberia. This project was the first to comprehensively examine of one of the major episodes of cultural change in later prehistoric Iberia from a comparative regional perspective and assess its relationship to the 4.2 ky BP climate event. In this talk, I summarize the available cultural, demographic and paleoenvironmental evidence for Iberia, and explore the diverse ways that the 4.2 ky BP event seems to have played out in different regions. 

Professor Lillios is Professor and Chair of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Iowa. She received her BA in Archaeology and Art History from Boston University, and her PhD in Anthropology from Yale University. Her research has centered on the histories of the people who lived in Portugal and Spain from the Neolithic through the Bronze Age (4000-1000 BC), a dynamic period characterized by episodes of political centralization, devolution, and climate change. In this research, she brings together a concern for memory and object biographies to understand the ways that people of the past used objects and monuments of their own past, such as heirlooms and ancestral burials, to shape their futures. She recently authored the book The Archaeology of the Iberian Peninsula: From the Paleolithic to the Bronze Age (Cambridge University Press, 2020).

February 26, 2022

The Archaeology Of Cheese: Cattle, Strainers, Chemistry, and Genes

Peter Bogucki, PhD, Princeton University

Abstract:

The story of the earliest use of dairy products in prehistoric Europe weaves together archaeology, analytical chemistry, and genetics. During the sixth millennium B.C., Neolithic communities with many cattle made pottery with perforations, whose logical function was the straining of curds from whey for making cheese. Identification of bovine milk lipid residues in strainer fragments confirmed this hypothesis, and subsequent studies have revealed evidence for the use of dairy products at many sites. It is also probable that dairying was a factor in the further spread of agriculture to northern and western Europe around 4000 B.C.  At roughly the same time, the genetic mutation to overcome lactose intolerance occurred. In order for it to have any adaptive advantage, it needed to spread among people who already knew the use of dairy products. Thus the emergence of dairying is a compelling example of the interplay between human cultural development and biological evolution.

Short bibliography and/or website on lecture topic:

https://neomilk-erc.eu/

Curry, Andrew. “Archaeology: the milk revolution.” Nature News 500.7460 (2013): 20.

Bio:

Peter Bogucki is the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs at the School of Engineering and Applied Science at Princeton University, where he has executive oversight of advising and degree progress for over 1,300 candidates for the Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree, as well as being an archaeologist. He received his B.A. magna cum laude in Anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1974, and his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1981. His main fields of study have been European prehistory and early farming societies in Europe, encompassing subsistence, settlement, and household studies, bioarchaeology and zooarchaeology, and interactions between foragers, farmers and borderlands.  His work has focused on eastern, central and north/northwestern Europe, with major field work at Neolithic sites in Poland.  His recent research collaborations have been with Mélanie Salque and Richard Evershed at the University of Bristol in 2010-2013 on analysis of ceramic sieves for milk lipid residues, and ongoing work since 2012 with Chelsea Budd and Rick Schulting at Oxford University on analysis of stable isotopes in human skeletons from Osłonki in Poland.  Dr. Bogucki’s edited volumes include Ancient Europe: an Encyclopedia of the Barbarian World, 8000 B.C. – A.D. 1000. (with Pam J. Crabtree in 2004), and his authored volumes include his 2017 The Barbarians, for which he has received the AIA’s Felicia A. Holton Book Award.  Since 1990, he has been a member of a team of authors directed by Paul Bahn to contribute to collective works on archaeology, major titles including Archaeology: the Essential Guide to Our Human Past in 2017.

March 26, 2022

Wine and Truth: The Ancient Greek Symposium

Kathleen M. Lynch, PhD, University of Cincinnati

Abstract:

The ancient Greeks developed an elaborate system of preparing and serving wine, enjoyed by small groups of men in a practice called the symposium. This form of wine drinking required specialized pottery shapes, and these shapes frequently bear self-referential sympotic or cultural imagery. As the wine warmed the drinkers, they formed bonds that carried over into their daily lives including providing political allies, a particularly useful thing in the early years of Athenian democracy. This talk will explore the immensely important social role of Greek wine drinking as well as the surprisingly underwhelming role of food in Archaic and Classical Athens (600-400 B.C.). We’ll examine the cupboards of an ancient house to understand the importance of the symposium to real Athenians. Feel free to enjoy a glass of wine during the lecture!

Biography:

Kathleen is a Classical Archaeologist who has worked on sites in Italy, Greece, Albania, and Turkey. In particular, she is a ceramic specialist interested in Athenian figured wares from archaeological contexts. Her research currently spans a number of ceramic related topics from issues of Attic chronology to iconography to symposia to the Greek household. In addition, her research considers the role trade played in shaping Attic potters’ and painters’ outputs. In general, the goal of Kathleen’s research is to place material culture back into its context of use in order to understand better the people who used the objects. She is currently publishing ceramic material from Gordion and the excavations of the Athenian Agora.

Kathleen’s book, The Symposium in Context, ASCSA Publications, won the 2013 AIA Wiseman Award for best book in archaeology. She won the 2014 UC Dolly A.B. Cohen Award for excellence in teaching, and the Provost’s Award for faculty excellence in 2016.

At UC she teaches Classical Mythology and courses on Greek and Roman archaeology.

When she isn’t poring over pottery, she enjoys knitting and gardening.

April 23, 2022

Hannibal’s War Elephants

Patrick Hunt, PhD, Stanford University

Abstract:

Since the Roman poet Juvenal stated two thousand years ago that Hannibal would be eternally famous for bringing elephants over the Alps, history has proved him right:  this seems the single most memorable fact history has recorded about Hannibal. What kind of elephants, how many and how they journeyed was not as recorded in detail, but this can be deduced as well from the writings of Polybius and Punic coins of the late third century BCE. It appears both African and Asian war elephants traveled with Hannibal’s army and this lecture details what facts we know about Hannibal’s elephants trained for Hellenistic warfare since Alexander the Great first encountered them in India a century earlier.

Short bibliography and/or website on lecture topic:

Patrick Hunt. Hannibal (Simon and Schuster, 2017).

Patrick Hunt. “Hannibal’s Elephants” Electrum Magazine, November 2017

(http://www.electrummagazine.com/2017/11/hannibals-elephants/)

Patrick Hunt. “Elephants, African” in Encyclopedia of Environmental Issues, Salem Press, 2011, 431-33.

Patrick Hunt. “Jumbo Journey” Monocle (Alpino) 02 Winter 2010-11, 20.

Bio:

Patrick Hunt is with the Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies at Stanford University, the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at UCLA, the School of Cultural Diplomacy in London, the Fromm Institute in San Francisco, and the Institute for EthnoMedicine. He holds his Ph.D. from the Institute of Archaeology, University of London, and has also studied at the University of California at Berkeley, and the American School of Classical Studies in Athens. His research interests are Alpine archaeology, archaeological science, archaeometry, geoarchaeology, forensic archaeology, Roman archaeology, Celtic archaeology, and Hannibal studies. His main publications include Alpine Archaeology (2007), and Ten Discoveries That Rewrote History (2007), as well as numerous articles and encyclopedia entries, and his most recent book is Hannibal.

January 30, 2021

Dimitri Nakassis, PhD, University of Colorado Boulder

Map is not territory: culture-history and archaeology in the Aegean Bronze Age

Abstract:

Pick up any book on early Greek history or archaeology, and you will read about Bronze Age people called Minoans and Mycenaeans. Who were the Minoans, and who were the Mycenaeans? It’s become increasingly clear that these questions aren’t as easy to answer as we might think. These classifications aren’t simply empirical ‘facts’ about the world; rather, they are theoretical constructions that may also be products of an outdated way of thinking about human societies. In this lecture I focus on the Late Bronze Age in the Aegean to illustrate the problems with certain kinds of archaeological abstractions, and I suggest new ways of thinking about Late Bronze Age communities and their history.

Bio

Dimitri Nakassis (Ph.D. Texas 2006) studies the material and textual production of early Greek communities, especially of the Mycenaean societies of Late Bronze Age Greece. His book, Individuals and Society in Mycenaean Pylos (Brill 2013), developed new methods for investigating individuals named in the administrative Linear B texts and argued from this evidence that Mycenaean society was far less hierarchical and much more dynamic than it had been considered in the past. He has published articles and book chapters on Homer and Hesiod, Greek religion and history, archaeological survey, Linear A, and the economy, society and prosopography of the Mycenaean world. He is currently writing a second book tentatively entitled “Mycenaean histories,” which is a polemic against the traditional study of the Mycenaean palaces. He is co-director (with Sarah James and Scott Gallimore) of the Western Argolid Regional Project (WARP), a diachronic archaeological survey in southern Greece, and co-director (with Kevin Pluta) of the “Pylos Tablets Digital Project” project, which involves the digital documentation of all the administrative documents from the “Palace of Nestor” at Pylos. In 2015 he was named a MacArthur fellow.

2021 Braidwood Lecture February 13, 2021

John M. Marston, PhD, Boston University

Agricultural Strategies and Environmental Change in Ancient Anatolia

Abstract:

Identifying how societies make decisions about agricultural practices is important for understanding why some agricultural systems flourish over hundreds or thousands of years while others lead to environmental degradation and societal collapse. Archaeological data offer a unique long-term perspective on the sustainability of agriculture and how societies adapt to complex, intertwined changes in environment and economy on both local and regional scales.

In this lecture, I present recent work from the ancient urban center of Gordion in central Anatolia (modern Turkey), where complex agricultural strategies were employed to adapt to coincident environmental and social change on both local and regional scales. By situating Gordion within its regional agricultural setting over time, I conclude that an understanding of local political economy is necessary to reconstruct agricultural decision making and helps to predict patterns of anthropogenic environmental change.

Bio:

John (Mac) Marston is Associate Professor of Archaeology and Anthropology, and Director of the Archaeology Program at Boston University.  He holds his degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles (Ph.D.) and Washington University, St. Louis, and his research interests are environmental archaeology and paleoethnobotany, sustainability and resilience, agricultural risk management. Mediterranean and Near Eastern archaeology, stable isotope biogeochemistry, and paleoenvironmental reconstruction.  Professor Marston has numerous articles in preparation, and his most recently published volume is Agricultural Sustainability and Environmental Change at Ancient Gordion (University of Pennsylvania Museum Press, 2017).

2021 Joukowsky Lecture March 20, 2021

William M. Murray, PhD, University of South Florida

My 40 Year Search for the Battle of Actium

Abstract:

In 31 BC, Octavian defeated Antony and Cleopatra in a naval battle off Cape Actium in Western Greece. A few years later, the victor constructed on the site of his personal camp a grand Victory Monument to commemorate the event. I first visited this site in 1978, and since then, have been trying to explain what I found there: the ruins of a massive rostral display whose complex details preserve evidence for the sizes of Antony’s and Cleopatra’s largest warships. After a brief attempt to find battle debris in the sea off Cape Actium, I was asked by Dr. Konstantinos Zachos to join his team in analyzing the results of his systematic excavations of the site. His work, conducted over a quarter century, has added much to our knowledge of this important monument—its original design, its elaborately decorated altar, its dedication text, and its period of use. At the same time, emerging 3D technologies have allowed me to comprehend the rostral display more fully, to visualize the monstrous sizes of the ships that fought in the final naval battle, and to restore the text of the dedication inscription. In this lecture, I will summarize the main results of our research, but do so in a personal manner, in the context of my own 40-year journey of discovery in search of the Battle of Actium.

Bio:

Bill Murray was born in State College, Pennsylvania, and grew up as a “townie,” next to Penn State University, where his father was head of the History Department. In the 1960s, Murray’s parents bought a 30-foot sloop and spent summers in the Virgin Islands living aboard with their three kids. Murray learned how to dive, saw first-hand the influence of the sea over those who live along its shores, and faced shipwreck more than once. When he went to Penn State, and then Penn, he became captivated by Greek and Roman culture and decided to move to Greece to study ancient port cities for his Ph.D. dissertation. Ever since learning of the discovery of a complete warship ram just south of Haifa in November 1980, Murray has been obsessed with extracting evidence from the weapon to understand ancient galley warfare.  He is now is the Mary and Gus Stathis Professor of Greek History and the Director of the Ancient Studies Center at the University of South Florida, and recent publications include The Age of Titans (2012, Oxford University Press).  Professor Murray is a past AIA Norton Lecturer, was the 2013/2014 AIA Bass Lecturer, and is a 2020/2021 AIA Joukowsky Lecturer.

April 24, 2021

Michael Hoff, PhD, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

Antiochia ad Cragum in Rough Cilicia: Pirates, Romans, and More Pirates

Abstract:

Antiochia ad Cragum, located on the south Turkish coast in the ancient region of western Rough Cilicia, was founded by Antiochus IV of Commagene during the Julio-Claudian period. The site had previously served as one of the bases for the infamous “Cilician Pirates,” but Antiochus’ eponymously-named city was certainly less famous. Nevertheless, excavations since 2005 have revealed much of the inner workings of the small city, especially regarding relationships between Emperor and city. This lecture highlights the noteworthy discoveries at the site made since excavation began.

Bio:

Professor Michael Hoff has been teaching art history at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln since 1989. Hoff specializes in Greek and Roman archaeology in which his research focuses on the history of Roman Athens and on archaeology of Asia Minor. He has excavated in North Wales (Caernarvon) and Greece (Athenian Agora, Corinth, Kavousi, the Sanctuary of Zeus at Nemea). Hoff now conducts research in Turkey where from 1997 to 2004 he co-directed the architectural survey team of the Rough Cilicia Archaeological Survey Project and since 2005 serves as Project Director of the Antiochia ad Cragum Excavations on the south coast of Turkey. Hoff has authored many articles in international journals and has co-edited several books: The Romanization of Athens (1998) and Rough Cilicia: New Historical and Archaeological Approaches (2013). He has lectured on his research at over 40 colleges and universities throughout North America, Europe, and Australia.

May 8, 2021

Munyaradzi Elton Sagiya, Curator of Archaeology, National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, PhD candidate, University of Zimbabwe

Indigenous knowledge, skills and practices in conserving Great Zimbabwe

Abstract:

World over, Zimbabwe is probably the only country named after an archaeological site – (i.e. Great Zimbabwe). Today, the most outstanding material remains are the stone structures, built without use of mortar or any binding material. This makes Great Zimbabwe a unique expression of a built tradition in Africa and a challenging cultural heritage place to restore and conserve. Traditional stone masonry persists amongst the local communities and remains invaluable for conserving Great Zimbabwe and similar sites elsewhere in Zimbabwe. However, in the ever expanding literature and studies on this premier national monument and a world heritage site, indigenous skills, knowledge and practices of carrying out restorations are silent. The traditional knowledge on the conservation of Great Zimbabwe and more than 360 other similar recorded monumental stone buildings in Zimbabwe with some few in neighbouring countries of Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa remains undocumented, overlooked and in some cases dismissed as irrelevant. However, a closer look at the conservation processes at Great Zimbabwe, reflects that indigenous conservation skills have been used since its occupation period. In this presentation, I rely on personal experiences as a local person, and one of the curators at Great Zimbabwe as well as other qualitative data-sets to explore and examine indigenous skills, knowledge and practices critical to its restoration and conservation of this archaeological site.

Bio:

Munyaradzi Elton Sagiya is a Curator of Archaeology employed by the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe and a PhD candidate at the University of Zimbabwe. His doctoral research examines the governance of archaeological heritage in Zimbabwe. Since 2010 – present, Munyaradzi has been involved in layered and complex curatorial duties and responsibilities at Great Zimbabwe World Heritage Site. His research interests include decolonising heritage management practices, community archaeology and museology. Munyaradzi has been a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Cologne, Germany (June –July 2019) and at the University College of London, Qatar (September – November 2019).

November 27, 2021

Colonizing Provincial Egypt: Pyramids and the Early State

Professor Richard Bussmann, PhD,
Institut für Afrikanistik und Ägyptologie – Abteilung Ägyptologie, Universität zu Köln

Abstract:

When we think of the pyramids of Egypt, we usually refer to the gigantic pyramids of Giza. These were statements of power in the early ancient Egyptian state. Yet, power does not become effective simply by building monuments. It rests on the ability of rulers to manipulate social relationships. In Egypt, the relationship between centre and the hinterland was key for governing the country. The early state struggled for over one thousand years, ca. 3000 to 2000 BC, with defining this relationship. One attempt to colonize the hinterland was by the crown to build small pyramids at provincial sites in order to impose royal authority locally. This lecture presents fresh archaeological fieldwork from one of the provincial pyramids. It discusses challenges archaic states were facing in early history and the ways people accommodated their lives within them.

Bio:

Richard Bussmann studied Egyptology, Assyriology and Theology at the Univeristy of Heidelberg, the Free University of Berlin, Humboldt University Berlin and Goettingen University. He received his PhD in Egyptology from the Free University of Berlin in 2007. His PhD thesis focused on the archaeology and history of local community shrines in the times of the pyramids. In 2010, he held a post-doctoral research fellowship of the Humboldt Foundation at Cambridge University. In the same year, he was appointed Lecturer, and in 2014 Senior Lecturer in Egyptology and Egyptian Archaeology at University College London. In 2016, he took up his current position as professor of Egyptology at the University of Cologne. Dr Bussmann combines archaeology and philology in his research. He is interested in the society and culture of provincial Egypt in the Old and Middle Kingdoms (ca. 2700 to 1700 BC), using theories from social anthropology, archaeology, and cultural history. He directs a project on the early inscriptions of ancient Egypt and is co-director of an archaeological fielwork project at Zawyet Sultan, in Middle Egypt. Dr Bussmann is currently finalising a book for Cambridge University Press, provisionally entitled “Egypt in the shadow of the pyramids: archaeology of society and culture, 2700-1700 BC”.

January 18, 2020 2020

Dr. John Hoffecker, University of Colorado Boulder

Landscape archeology and human dispersal on the East European Plain

Abstract:

The dominant landform on the continent of Europe is an immense plain that stretches from the eastern slope of the Carpathians to the Ural Mountains. Owing to its geographic isolation from the North Atlantic, the East European Plain is characterized by a continental climate and reduced biological productivity relative to western Europe, while its archaeological record exhibits some similarities to the High Plains of North America. For decades, archaeologists have struggled to piece together a record of Paleolithic settlement in a landscape largely devoid of natural shelters. Between 50,000 and 30,000 years ago, modern humans occupied the East European Plain and the sites include open-air habitation areas and large-mammal kill-butchery locations, sometimes associated with springs. Innovative technologies allowed them to expand their diet breadth to small vertebrates and to survive extreme winter temperatures. Dispersing from the southern latitudes, modern humans may have found parts of the East European Plain unoccupied by local Neanderthals, who apparently lacked these technologies. Despite the success of their initial occupation, much of the modern human population of the East European Plain appears to have been wiped out 40,000 years ago by the ash plume of the CI volcanic eruption, followed by a protracted interval of extreme cold climate (Heinrich Event 4).

Bio:

My primary research focus is the global dispersal of anatomically modern humans, which began more than 50,000 years ago in Africa. My specific geographic focus is Eastern Europe, where I have done field and lab research since the late 1980s. Since 2001, I have been working at open-air sites on the East European Plain, in both Russia and Ukraine, that were occupied by modern humans more than 30,000 years ago. In 2012, I began a new field project at Mira, located on the Lower Dnepr River. I also have worked for many years in Alaska. Recently, my Alaskan research has addressed questions about the emergence of Inupiaq settlement and economy on the coast of NW Alaska, and in 2011 I completed the field phase of a multi-year project at Cape Espenberg (northern Seward Peninsula).

February 15, 2020

Karin Larkin, PhD, University of Colorado Colorado Springs

Archaeology of the Ludlow Massacre

Abstract:

The 1913-1914 southern Colorado coalfield strike and Ludlow Massacre changed labor relations, law, and practice in Colorado and had lasting impacts on labor law reforms that occurred in the United States over the subsequent decades. The Colorado Coalfield War Archaeological Project (CCWAP) formed to focus an archaeological lens on the social and material conditions of coal camp laborers and their families during a turbulent time of widespread industrial growth and corporate imperialism in America. The archaeological site of the Ludlow tent colony offers a more complete picture of the lives of the men, women, and children who lived in the coal camps of Colorado during the nineteen-teens. Dr. Larkin will discuss how the archaeology refined our understanding of this important era in labor history.

Bio:

Karin Larkin is Assistant Professor and Curator for the Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Dr. Larkin received her PhD in Anthropology and MA in Museum Studies from CU Boulder. She has done archaeological fieldwork in numerous regions including: the Southwest, Chihuahua, and Colorado including the Ludlow Massacre Site. Her research focuses on understanding community interaction, social change, and negotiating social discord through material culture. She was the second Project Director for the Colorado Coalfield War Archaeological Project (CCWAP) and is co-editor of the Archaeology of Class War, published in 2009 by University Press of Colorado and a recent article in the International Journal of Historical Archaeology called Decolonizing Ludlow.

March and April were canceled due to the Pandemic.

October 3, 2020

Dr. M. Dores Cruz, Institut für Afrikanistik Universität zu Köln

Sugar, identity and Class: São Tomé and Príncipe in the making of the early modern Atlantic world

Abstract:

In the 15th and 16th century, São Tomé and Príncipe was considered as so remote that volunteer settlers were rare, and early settlement was done almost exclusively with those who could not refuse: degredados (transported convicts) from Portugal and slaves from the African coast. Due to its location it acted as a nexus between Europe-Africa and the Americas, playing a pioneering role in the emergence of the modern Atlantic world and the capitalist plantation system. Seen first as a bridge between Portugal and West Africa, soon it emerged as the prototype for plantation agriculture based on the binomial sugar-slave labor, which was later exported to the New World, where it developed and expanded. Despite its importance there has been no archaeological research in São Tomé and heritage projects are very limited.

This paper presents exploratory research done in March 2020, aimed to evaluate the possibility for a historical archaeology project, centered in the sugar economic cycle of São Tomé, suggesting lines of evidence and preliminary data on possible location of plantations sites. It centers on the archaeological site of Praia Melão, the only known and identified sugar mill in São Tomé, already in existence during the early sugar plantation period, occupied and in use until early to mid-19th century. I will introduce the site and explore the centrality of São Tomé and Príncipe in the making of the Atlantic world, the need for archaeological research to answer questions on the unique role of island territories in the development of the Atlantic world and in the history of the African continent.

Bio:

M. Dores Cruz graduated from Binghamton University (SUNY) with a Ph.D. in anthropology. Her interests are interdisciplinary and cross both archaeology, history and socio-cultural anthropology, focusing particularly in archaeology of the recent past, heritage and landscape studies in sub-Saharan Africa, but also in Europe. Her recent research has focuses in the biography of a landscape in Southern Mozambique during the 19th and 20th centuries. Currently she is developing a project to address the origins of the plantation system and of the Atlantic world by focusing in São Tomé and Príncipe during the 16th and 17th centuries.

She has held a number of international teaching and research positions (College of William and Mary, University of Pretoria (South Africa), Virginia Commonwealth University and University of Denver). Currently, Dores is a senior researcher at the Institute of African Studies, University of Cologne (Germany).

November 28, 2020

Mr. Noor Agha Noori. M.Phil, Director, Archaeological Institute of Afghanistan

Recent Archaeological Excavations in Afghanistan

Abstract:

Recent archaeological explorations seem to affirm that Afghanistan is the emerging place of many civilizations in South and Central Asia. This land was also the confluence of many trade goods along what would become known as the silk road. Due to the significant geographical location, many empires attempted to occupy the area which left significant influence on local cultures, religions, art, trade, customs, and politics. This amalgamation of cultures opened new ways for connecting people from different parts of the word furthering Afghanistan’s position as a place of exchange. As early as the bronze age, and perhaps earlier, archaeology sites in Afghanistan show evidence of the export of raw materials, most notably lapis lazuli and tin, were exported to Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and Indus Valley civilizations.

Recent archaeological explorations in Afghanistan resulted have resulted in very important and exciting discoveries which have shed light on hereto previously understudied periods of Afghan history. Of particular significance are the recent survey and excavations of sites like site of Mes Aynak and Topdara. In this presentation Mr. Noor Agha Noori will discuss recent and ongoing archaeological activities and their contribution to the history of the region.

Bio:

Mr. Noor Agha Noori is the Director of Archaeological Institute of Afghanistan (AIA) since 2017. He holds an M.Phil. in Archaeology from Hazara University, Pakistan. After his studies he worked with different International Archaeological missions such as the Italian Archaeological Mission and British Archaeological team. He started his career with Archaeology Institute of Afghanistan as a Field Archaeologist at Mes Aynak Archaeological site in Logar Province of Afghanistan. In 2012 he joined National Museum of Afghanistan as Assistant Curator and later served National Museum as Acting Chief curator. Beside other duties at National Museum, Mr. Noori play a key role in organizing the International Exhibitions on Bactrian Treasure and objects from Mes Aynak. He has played a key role in sorting, labeling, cataloguing, and databasing Afghan antiquities. He has also participated in an archaeology outreach program for school boys in Afghanistan.

Mr. Noori has worked as the head of excavation for the Archaeology Institute of Afghanistan (AIA) and the field director of the Mes Aynak Archaeological Project (MAAP). As field director he was able to introduce new and advanced Archaeological excavation and recording systems.

Currently, Mr. Noori is the Director of the Archaeology Committee of Afghanistan which is the only committee working on the policy level for archaeological matters in the country. He is a board member for both the India-Afghanistan Foundation (IAF) and the Kabul Historic Garden Trust (KHGT). The latter is responsible for the management and preservation of Historic Gardens in Kabul.

Mr. Noori has represented Afghanistan in various academic national and international conferences and workshops. He has written and published various articles about Afghanistan’s cultural heritage.

December 26, 2020

Mr. Abdul Hafiz Latify, M.S. University of Baroda

Afghanistan during the Bronze Age: Trade and Cultural Contacts with the Neighboring Regions

Abstract:

The Later Prehistoric Period (Chalcolithic/Bronze) research in the region of modern day Afghanistan began in the early part of twentieth century but the general picture of this period in this region remained obscure until the middle of 20th century. Those early phases of researches did not have the Later Prehistoric Periods as an individual theme for the archaeological investigations; it received impetus with the discovery and excavation of Mundigak and Deh Morasi Gundai. Subsequent studies on the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age sites in Afghanistan demonstrated that the material culture unearthed from various sites here reveal remarkable similarities with those found elsewhere in South Asia, Central Asia, and Iran. These discoveries along with the geographical location of Afghanistan and its abundant resources prompted archaeologists to undertake research here to understand the development of Chalcolithic/Bronze Age Cultures here and the nature of interaction networks between the contemporary neighboring civilizations. Although these research is limited in nature, it nevertheless clearly demonstrated that the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age settlements in Afghanistan underwent fundamental socio-cultural changes and ecological adjustments; from the very small villages to much more stratified societies. In the aforesaid context, this lecture will provide a glimpse of the Bronze Age Period research in the region of modern day Afghanistan and highlight the socio-cultural contacts with the neighboring regions as well as the nature of trade.

Bio:

Mr. Abdul Hafiz Latify is currently a PhD research scholar at the Department of Archaeology and Ancient History at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. He holds a B.A. in Archaeology from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, and a M.A. from the department of Ancient History, Culture and Archaeology at the University of Allahabad.

Mr. Latify has worked as a Curator at the National Museum of Afghanistan and is currently a member of the Archaeology Institute of Afghanistan. He has organized and participated in archaeology training workshops, survey, excavation, and material studies in and relating to Greece, India, and Afghanistan.

Mr. Latify has published and presented multiple papers on the topics of Afghan archaeology, history, and cultural heritage preservation both in Afghanistan and internationally. He was selected as an editor for the proceedings of the “Preserving the Cultural Heritage of Afghanistan” conference which was published by the University of Chicago.

His primary area of interest is Pre and Proto-Historic archaeology with a focus on the Bronze Age Afghanistan and trade with Central and South Asia.

January 26, 2019

Linda Scott Cummings, Ph.D., and R.A. Varney, M.A., PaleoResearch Institute

Examining Food: Beyond Identification, Calories, and Nutrients – What is the Carbon Content?

Abstract:

Food is integral to the archaeological record, but dating charred food crust in vessels presents challenges. While issues of recovery and lab treatment have been mastered, assumptions about food being a simple representation of the past remain. The question is: are these records all they appear to be? And how do the principles of cooking chemistry help us understand radiocarbon dating charred food? An example from one Oneota (Blood Run) vessel yielded three radiocarbon dates from three sampling locations (two congruent, one discrepant), underscoring the importance of understanding the sample material and cooking chemistry. Research with multiple paired charred food crust and annual samples shows the effectiveness of chemical pretreatment to obtain congruent dates. Current research, supported by an NSF grant, is developing a chemical pretreatment method to produce congruent dates on paired samples and is studying dates from rim versus body sherds. This work combines knowledge of archaeology, food chemistry, lab chemistry, and radiocarbon dating to produce recommendations and methods for more accurate dates on charred food crust, as well as to identify when a sample cannot yield an accurate date.

Bio:

Dr. Linda Scott Cummings is President and CEO of PaleoResearch Institute, Inc., which she founded in 1972. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Colorado after founding PRI, with a mission to make science more accessible to archaeologists and geologists. Trained primarily as an archaeologist and palynologist, her expertise has expanded to include phytolith and starch identification and interpretation of FTIR and XRF signatures. She leads several teams and oversees all research at PRI, with current focus on developing new chemical pre-treatment protocols for dating crusty charred food residues with support from the State of Minnesota and NSF. Her work encompasses projects from the entire North American continent and other areas of the world.

February 23, 2019

Jamie Hodgkins, University of Colorado, Denver

Climate change and the evolution of us

Abstract:

New species of the genus Homo are discovered more frequently, revealing that our own family lineage is far more complex than once thought. However, this diversity has been whittled down to one remaining species, Homo sapiens. Understanding why our species survived when others didn't is key to determining what makes us "human." This lecture summarizes work in progress to reconstruct the daily foraging habits and nutritional choices of early modern humans in Africa and our closest fossil relatives, the Neandertals in Europe. This is achieved by reconstructing landscape use, hunting, and foraging behaviors, and mobility patterns, using a combination of zooarchaeology, isotope geochemistry, and aerial photography. Ecological changes experienced by hominids in both locations will also be discussed.

Bio:

Jamie Hodgkins received her Ph.D. from Arizona State University in 2012 and is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Colorado Denver. Her archaeological work, conducted in Spain, France, Italy, Bulgaria, Morocco, and South Africa, focuses on reconstructing the behaviors of early modern humans and Neandertals to understand what those behaviors indicate about being "human." Her publications center on how humans (including Neandertals) and animals dealt with climate change in the Pleistocene in peer-reviewed journals, including The Journal of Human Evolution, Journal of Archaeological Science, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. CU Denver students participate in her fieldwork at Pinnacle Point and Arma Veirana, gaining experience in excavation, 3D coordinate data collection, and artifact curation.

March 30, 2019

Jordan Karsten, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh

Bones and Borscht: How Neolithic Human Remains from Ukraine Enable the Reconstruction of European Population History and Our Understanding of Ancient Warfare

Abstract:

Recent developments in ancient DNA research have allowed archaeologists to reconstruct human migrations, reshaping our understanding of the past. Two large-scale migrations in European prehistory are now recognized: the movement of Neolithic farmers into Europe from the Near East, and the movement of nomadic pastoralists from the Pontic-Caspian steppe at the close of the Neolithic and beginning of the early Bronze Age. This latter movement is suggested as the mechanism that spread Indo-European languages and established modern European genetic signatures. To better understand these events—such as the extent of interbreeding between expanding Neolithic farmers and existing Mesolithic hunter-gatherers, and evidence for intergroup conflict—this research focuses on Verteba Cave, Ukraine. Verteba Cave is one of the only known mortuary sites associated with the Late Neolithic farmers who bordered the steppe. The skeletal and genetic data collected from this site are shedding new light on this consequential time in European population history.

Bio:

Jordan Karsten is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Religious Studies and Anthropology at the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh. He is a biological anthropologist with research interests in human osteology, bioarchaeology, forensic anthropology, and paleoanthropology. His current work investigates the biological and behavioral consequences of the transition to agriculture in prehistory, conducted through the analysis of human skeletons from Verteba Cave.

April 27, 2019

Marilyn A. Martorano, M.A., Martorano Consultants LLC

Did these prehistoric ground stone artifacts play the first hard rock music? What we know today about lithophones in Colorado

Abstract:

A new class of prehistoric artifacts called portable lithophones (from the Greek for "stone" and "sound") has been identified from Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in southern Colorado. A lithophone is a musical instrument made of a purposely-selected rock, which is tapped or rubbed to produce musical notes. While portable and stationary lithophones have been used globally, only a few highly-modified, portable examples have been formally recognized in North America, and none were previously documented in Colorado. The artifacts studied were initially thought to be grinding stones, pestles, or digging tools, but testing has verified their acoustical properties. The characteristics of twenty-two analyzed lithophones will be discussed, and samples will be demonstrated.

Bio:

Marilyn A. Martorano is the owner/archaeologist of Martorano Consultants LLC in Longmont, Colorado, with over 40 years of experience in cultural resource management in the Rocky Mountain region. Her research interests include Culturally Modified Trees (CMTs), the archaeology of early Hispano settlements and the Old Spanish National Historic Trail (OSNHT), and the newly-identified prehistoric artifact type in Colorado, lithophones. She is a Registered Professional Archaeologist (RPA) and has received multiple awards for her archaeological work.

Joukowsky Lecture: September 14, 2019

Lisa Nevett, PhD, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

New Fieldwork from Classical Olynthos (Greece): towards an archaeology of identity

Abstract:

Among ancient historians the city of Olynthos is best-known as a regional power from northern Greece which alternately fell under the sway of Athens and of the kingdom of Macedon, before finally being sacked and razed to the ground by the Macedonian king, Philip II, in 348 BCE. To archaeologists, Olynthos represents the single most extensive and detailed source of information about Greek houses, as a result of the excavations there by David Robinson (1928-1938). Since 2014 the site has been the subject of renewed investigation by the Olynthos Project, which has been undertaking field survey, geophysical survey and excavation in and around the city. In this lecture I explore the potential of the evidence from Olynthos for understanding the creation and expression of identity by the city’s inhabitants. I address various ways in which they actively manipulated their material culture at the level of the household, the neighborhood and the city as a whole in order to navigate their complex political and cultural positions.

Bio

My research looks at the Greek and Roman worlds, using the material record as a source for understanding social issues. This work has focused on domestic space, challenging traditional (text-based) ideas about relationships within households, particularly between men and women. At the same time I have used the organization of the house as a barometer through which to explore wider problems such as the origins of the Greek drinking party (the symposium); the formation of the citizen state in Greece during the earlier first millennium, and the nature of the interactions between Greeks and Italians as the Roman world expanded eastwards towards the end of the first millennium BCE. My current research follows two strands: first, I am co-directing a new field project at Olynthos, in Greece, in order to grapple with the methodological problems involved in trying to obtain a clearer and more detailed picture of domestic activities based on the archaeological record (particularly from finds) – a goal which demands new field techniques, conceptual models and analytical strategies from those currently used in Classical Archaeology. The outcome will be a new, uniquely detailed, picture of domestic activity in the Classical Greek world. Second, I am expanding my use of the built environment beyond domestic space to the civic and religious areas of Greek cities, in order to explore the roles played by ‘muted groups’ (women and individuals of low social status) in those settings.

Bibliography on lecture topic:

Cahill, N.D. 2002. Household and City Organization at Olynthos. New Haven, Yale University Press.

Nevett, L.C. 1999. House and Society in the Ancient Greek World. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Chapter 4.

Nevett, L. C. 2015. Artefact Assemblages in Classical Greek Contexts: towards a new approach. In Household Studies in Complex Societies: (micro)archaeological and textual approaches, M. Müller (ed.). Chicago, Oriental Institute Seminars 10: 101-116.

Nevett, L.C. et al. 2017. ‘Towards a Multi-Scalar, Multi-Disciplinary Approach to the Classical Greek City: the Olynthos Project.’ Annual of the British School at Athens 112, 155-206.

‘Structural History and Classical Archaeology, 25 Years On’. In L.C. Nevett and James Whitley eds. An Age of Experiment: Classical Archaeology Transformed. Cambridge, McDonald Institute of Archaeology, 2018, 139-147.

October 12, 2019

Sarah Milledge Nelson, PhD, Distinguished University Professor, University of Denver

Archaeology and Fiction — Is It Useful? Credible? The Making of Ancient China’s Tiger Queen.

Abstract

This talk is based on the artifacts from the unlooted tomb of Lady Hao, a historical person in the Shang dynasty around 2500 BCE. She is also mentioned in the oracle bones that represent the earliest readable Chinese writing. As a war leader. shaman, landowner, mother of three, and presumably the bringer of horses and chariots to Shang, she is a character whose life is worth celebrating, as well as worth being brought to the public as a fictionalized story. 

Bio

My field is archaeology. For more than two decades I have done research in Korea and for 10 years in China. I am interested in the explanation of culture change from the appearance of pottery to the formation of the state, especially the problems of the origins of agriculture (in my area this is more millets than rice) and the distribution of the knowledge of bronze technology I also research gender issues. also research gender issued (e.g. when, how, and why did division of labor by gender become status differentiation?). To explore gender I have researched the paleolithic figurines in Europe, the queens of the Silla kingdom of early Korea, and the “goddess temple” in northeastern China. Other regions where I have done archaeological research include south-eastern Utah and the Colorado high plains. In these areas I have examined diverse problems, such as the sedentism/mobility indicated by archaeological sites, and the distribution of site types on the landscapes. Along these lines, I have create or adapted several computer spatial programs for use in both regional and site research. Foreign interests: Korea China Japan Cross-departmental interests: gender issues, archaeo-astronomy Northeast Asia.

Bibliography on lecture topic

Chang, 1983 K. C., Art, Myth and Ritual. Harvard U. Press

2005 The Rise of Kings and the Formation of City-States in The Formation of Chinese Civilization

Elvin, Mark 2004 The Retreat of the Elephants: An Environmental History of China

Keightley, David. 1978 Sources of Shang History: The Oracle Bone Inscriptions of Bronze Age China

Linduff, Katherine, 2002 Women’s Lives Memorialized in Burial at Anyang.

Nelson, Sarah, 1994 Performing Power in Ancient China, in The Dynamics of Power, M. O’Donovan, ed.Carbondale.

2008 Shamanism and the Origin of States. Left Coast Press.

Pankenier, David 1995 Cosmo-Political Background of Heaven’s Mandate.Early China 20:121-176

***Zheng Zhenxiang, 1997 The Royal Consort Fu Hao and her Tomb, in Mysteries of Ancient China
, J. Rawson, ed.

The 3-starred article is by the excavator of Fu Hao’s tomb.

November 16, 2019

Jeffrey S. Brzezinski, PhD, University of Colorado, Boulder

New Perspectives on the Intersection of Religion and Politics in Ancient Oaxaca, Mexico

Abstract

The end of the Formative Period (1800 BCE – 250 CE) in Mesoamerica witnessed significant changes in the social and political organization of many of the region’s complex societies. Archaeological research has documented shifting patterns in inter-regional interaction, particularly through the trade of goods and ideas, as well as the development of social inequality and institutionalized political authority. Traditional models of social and political organization have maintained that the economic practices of leaders and elites, mediated through technology and access to valuable raw materials and “prestige goods”, were the fundamental means by which hierarchical societies developed and changed. Though religious beliefs and cosmology have been shown to be intimately connected to institutions of state control, these social phenomena have been theorized as being imposed by elites as a form of ideology. The emphasis on leaders’  primary role in religion has limited consideration of the ways in which other collectivities (e.g., commoners, outlying communities, cults, etc.) with divergent religious practices may have negotiated and even contested the authority of political leaders.

This talk discusses the fundamental role of religion in the social and political development of the early complex societies of Oaxaca, Mexico. In some instances, such as the rise of the Monte  Albán state in the Valley of Oaxaca, religious practices led to new political innovations that cemented authority in the hands of leaders for centuries. Other examples, including the fragmented “city-states” of the Mixteca Alta and the nascent Rio Viejo polity on the Pacific coast, demonstrate that religion may have prevented the degree of integration necessary for stable, centralized polities to emerge. In each case study, Jeff discusses the archaeological evidence for political negotiations, mediated through religious practice and belief, that occurred between people of various levels of power. Jeff’s recent dissertation research on the coast of Oaxaca has also shown that diversity in religious practices among communities in the lower Rio Verde Valley during the Terminal Formative period (150 BCE – 250 CE) led to stronger affiliations to local communities, which may have caused the Rio Viejo polity to collapse at 250 CE.

Bio

Jeffrey S. Brzezinski is an adjunct professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado Boulder. He specializes in the development and organization of early complex polities in Oaxaca, Mexico. His dissertation research focused on political integration in the lower Río Verde Valley during the later Formative period, from the perspective of the hinterland site of Cerro de la Virgen.

January 20, 2018

Dr. Michael Hoff, University of Nebraska

Antiochia ad Cragum in Rough Cilicia: From Piracy to Mosaics

Abstract:

Since 2005, the Roman-era city of Antiochia ad Cragum in Rough Cilicia (Turkey) has been undergoing excavation. The project has revealed much of the public quarter of the ancient city, exploring the Great Bath with a large colorful mosaic, an Imperial Temple, and recently the Civic Bouleuterion (council-house/odeion). Before its founding in the first century CE, the site was a base for the notorious Cilician Pirates in the late Hellenistic period, and the research project is actively seeking traces of this pirate past.

Bio:

Dr. Michael Hoff specializes in Greek and Roman archaeology in Asia Minor. He has excavated in Wales, Greece, and Turkey, where he co-directed the architectural survey team of the Rough Cilicia Archaeological Survey Project (1997-2004) and has served as Project Director of the Antiochia ad Cragum Excavations since 2005. He is currently Hixson-Lied Professor of Art History at the University of Nebraska.

February 10, 2018

Dr. Mark Varien, Executive Vice President of the Research Institute at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center

The Deep History of Pueblo Indians: A People Transformed by the Neolithic Revolution

Abstract:

The introduction of maize (corn) farming into the southwestern United States four thousand years ago marked the beginning of Pueblo Indian society, one of the world's most innovative and resilient cultures. Research by the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, including the Village Ecodynamics Project, the Basketmaker Communities Project, and the Northern Chaco Outliers Project, uses computer simulation, excavation, and laboratory analysis to reconstruct thousands of years of this history. This research illustrates how the Neolithic Revolution in the Four Corners region led to exponential population growth and rapid culture change. It also shows how the Pueblo people's response to climate change transformed their lives, including the complete depopulation of the Mesa Verde region at the end of the thirteenth century and the subsequent settlement concentration in New Mexico and Arizona, where Pueblo people reside today. This work provides new insights into Pueblo history and offers lessons relevant to the modern world.

Bio:

Mark Varien is the Executive Vice President of the Research Institute at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center in Cortez, Colorado. He seeks to further Crow Canyon’s mission of increasing knowledge through research, conducting research within public education programs, and partnering with American Indians. He holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Arizona State University, where his dissertation was awarded the Society of American Archaeology’s 1998 Best Dissertation Award. Having joined Crow Canyon in 1987, he has served in various leadership roles. His research interests include household and community organization, migration studies, cultural landscapes, human impact on the environment, human response to climate change, and American Indian involvement in archaeology.

Saturday, March 10, 2018

Dr. Caroline Goodson, Birkbeck College, University of London

Power in the Medieval Italian Countryside. The Village and Monastery of Villamagna (Lazio)

Abstract:

The site of Villamagna, Italy (70 km south of Rome), provides a unique vantage point into the transformation of central Italian social structures and economies during the passage from antiquity to the middle ages. Excavation has revealed the transition of an imperial Roman villa into a proprietary monastery and then a feudal estate, abandoned at the time of the Black Death. Charting the changes in social structures and representation of power, the research revealed a high-status residence built into the Roman buildings around c. 900. In the late tenth century, the property became a monastery, whose abbots created a castle and acquired agricultural properties farmed by peasants living in a village of huts, which was also excavated. An extensive burial ground with over 400 medieval graves provides a new lens for examining life and death, with ongoing bio-archaeology research examining life course and changes in health. The presentation will show how the imperial legacy of Villamagna remained a significant tool for advancement throughout the middle ages.

Bio:

Caroline Goodson is a Reader in Archaeology and History at Birkbeck College, University of London. She holds her Ph.D. from Columbia University, is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, a Rome Prize recipient, and was awarded a Leverhulme Trust Research Fellowship for her project, "Urban gardening in Early Medieval Italy." She is the Field Director at the site of Villa Magna in Italy. Her research focuses on the formation of early medieval societies in the post-Roman world (especially Italy and North Africa), examining the nature of power, the relationship between religious beliefs and day-to-day experiences, and how cities facilitated new forms of social and political authority. Her work is deliberately interdisciplinary, moving between archaeology and history.

April 4, 2018

Mr. Jim R. Jansson, Trustee, National AIA Governing Board

Finding the Ancient River Called Sagra: How Archaeology Spoke When History Was Silent’

Abstract:

Around 560 B.C., a legendary and unlikely victory was fought by a greatly outnumbered Locrian army against invading Krotonian forces on the banks of the Sagra River in Magna Greacia. Over time, the location of both the Sagra and the battlefield was lost. This is the story of how archaeological detective work, beginning in 2010, led to the identification of the river and the battlefield, allowing for the construction of a reasonable hypothesis for how the Locrians managed to win the Battle of the Sagra.

Bio:

Jim Jansson has over 18 years of experience in excavation, survey, lab work, and research in Calabria, Italy, involving both Hellenized Italics and Locrian Greeks, under the auspices of the Foundation for Calabrian Archaeology and the University of Kentucky. He is a Trustee of the National AIA Governing Board, a Founding Director, and a senior excavator of the Foundation for Calabrian Archaeology. Professionally, he is a Senior Vice President and Financial Adviser of RBC Wealth Management, Inc.

May 5, 2018

Dr. J. W. Hanson, University of Colorado, Boulder, The Social Reactors Project

Oppidum Cadavera: Assessing the impact of ancient urban systems on the development of Europe

Abstract:

Cities have always been a hallmark of the ancient world and have fundamentally impacted the development of urbanism in modern Europe and beyond. However, the exact nature of the relationship between the ancient and modern urban systems is poorly understood. This talk will use new data and innovative methods to explore these issues: How similar or different is ancient and modern urbanism? To what extent did ancient urbanism act as a template for the modern world? What does this tell us about the survival or destruction of urban systems, and the long-term resilience of urban systems?

Bio:

J. W. Hanson is a historian and archaeologist specializing in the urbanism and economy of the Greek and Roman world. He holds a B.A., M.St., and D.Phil in Archaeology from the University of Oxford. He is a Research Associate at the University of Colorado, Boulder, working for the Social Reactors project. His publication, An Urban Geography of the Roman World, 100 BC to AD 300, was published in 2016.

October 27, 2018

Dr. Andrea M. Berlin, Boston University

Title: Revolt! Why the Jews took on Rome

Abstract:

What led to the catastrophe of the Jewish Revolt against Rome? Why would a small population dare to challenge such a mighty ruling power? New archaeological evidence reveals a growing cultural divide beginning about two generations before the Revolt, shedding new light on its prehistory. The lecture will focus on the constructions of Herod the Great and his sons, particularly the places built to impress his patrons. The appearance and character of some of these buildings created conditions that intensified Jewish unity and eventually persuaded some to organize against Rome.

Bio:

Professor Andrea M. Berlin is the James R. Wiseman Chair in Classical Archaeology at Boston University. She holds an M.A. from the University of Chicago’s Oriental Institute and a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. With over thirty years of experience excavating in the eastern Mediterranean (from Turkey to Egypt and Italy), her field of expertise is the Near East from the time of Alexander the Great through the Roman era. She is particularly interested in the realities of daily life and the intersection of politics and cultural change in antiquity. She is an accomplished teacher and lecturer for the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA), including the 2018/2019 AIA Norton Lecturer.

November 24, 2018

R.A. Varney and Linda Scott Cummings, PaleoResearch Institute

Chocolate, Mayans, and Climate Models

Abstract:

Chocolate (Theobroma cacao) was not only "Food of the Gods" and currency for the Maya, but also an everyday and ritual beverage. Cacao trees are highly sensitive to environmental conditions, specifically available water, which historically and currently controls the distribution of this valuable resource. Requirements include temperatures between 20−30∘C and no more than a 3-month period with less than 100mm of rainfall. This restricted distribution likely enhanced cacao's monetary value, leading to wars fought to control the best growing territories. Recovering direct evidence of cacao from archaeological sites is difficult. This research uses modeling of past climate, including monthly precipitation values, and mapping the models over the Mayan region to identify areas that might have supported cacao growth. Comparing these locations with modern distribution sheds light on the importance of cacao during the florescence, growth, and subsequent decline of the Mayan civilization.

Bio:

R. A. Varney, paleoecologist, has worked for PaleoResearch Institute (PRI) since 2003. He is a co-developer of the microscopic charcoal recovery technique for AMS radiocarbon dating and is responsible for extracting microscopic remains, counting pollen, and the chemical pre-treatment of radiocarbon samples. His particular interests include climate change (especially at the end of the Pleistocene), scientific method development, archaeological chemistry, and climate modeling of the past. He has worked at various sites, including the Dent Site re-evaluation and the Laetoli Footprint site in Tanzania.

February 11, 2017

Dr. Jack Hanson, University of Colorado

New Perspectives on Ancient Urbanism

Abstract:

Despite the importance of cities in the Greek and Roman world, we have had little idea about basic aspects of ancient urbanism, such as the number, distribution, change over time, and size of settlements, and their populations compared to villages. Drawing on new research from his forthcoming book, this talk attempts to answer some of these questions, exploring what this information reveals about life in the ancient world compared to the medieval and modern worlds.

Bio:

J. W. Hanson is a historian and archaeologist specializing in the urbanism and economy of the Greek and Roman world. He is a Research Associate at the University of Colorado, Boulder, working for the Social Reactors project.

March 11, 2017

Nick Card, University of the Highlands and Islands

Secrets of the Ness of Brodgar: a Stone-Age Complex in the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site

Abstract:

The Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site is renowned for iconic prehistoric monuments like the Ring of Brodgar, the Stones of Stenness, Maeshowe, and Skara Brae. Recent research, particularly the stunning discovery of a Neolithic complex at the Ness of Brodgar enclosed within a large walled precinct, is radically changing views of this period. The magnificence, refinement, scale, and symmetry of the Ness structures, decorated with color and artwork, bear comparison with the great temples of Malta. These excavations are revealing a 5,000-year-old complex, socially stratified, and dynamic society. The Ness excavations have received international recognition and have been featured in National Geographic.

Bio:

Nick Card is an Honorary Research Fellow of the University of the Highlands and Islands and the Director of the Ness of Brodgar excavations since 2004. His interests lie in all aspects of the prehistory of Britain and the Highlands and Islands, with a particular reference to the Neolithic. He has lectured widely on the Ness excavations, the World Heritage Site, and Orcadian archaeology, and is an AIA Kress Lecturer for 2016/2017.

April 15, 2017

Dr. Minette Church, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs

“The line is a line drawn upon a map, and the Country is a wilderness”: British Colonial Memory and the San Pedro Maya of Western Belize

Abstract:

Despite documentary evidence to the contrary, Sir John Alder Burdon, governor of British Honduras (1925-1931), wrote that there was "no record of any indigenous population" except far in the interior. This talk explores the effects of "truth-through-repetition" on historical and social memory in post-colonial settings, particularly concerning the San Pedro Maya of Western Belize. These colonial narratives have impacts on Maya descendants and their relations with archaeological sites and with archaeologists who work in Belize. The exploration of such cases is necessary for setting the record straight at both geopolitical and local scales.

Bio:

Minette Church is an Associate Professor at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, and Faculty Director of the UCCS Heller Center for the Arts and Humanities. Her areas of geographic interest are Belize, Central America, and the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. She focuses on the archaeology of parenting and childhood, landscape archaeology, border regions, and colonial/post-colonial transnational identities.

Kress Lecture-Saturday, October 14, 2017

Dr. Kieran O'Conor

The Castles of Ireland

Abstract:

By c.1600, Ireland was one of the most castellated parts of Europe, with castles continuing to be built into the 1640s. This illustrated lecture will outline the main types of castle constructed and inhabited in Ireland from the 12th to the 17th century, detailing their architecture, dating, and functions. The ethnicity of the inhabitants—including the debated question of when native Irish (Gaelic Irish) lords adopted fortifications regarded as castles—will be discussed. Finally, the lecture will address why an estimated 8,000 castles were built in Ireland throughout this period.

Bio:

Dr. Kieran O'Conor has a Ph.D. from University College Cardiff, Wales, and worked for the Archaeological Survey Branch of the National Monuments Service, including excavating Carlow Castle in 1996. He was appointed a research fellow and director of the Medieval Rural Settlement project at the Discovery Programme before joining the staff of NUI, Galway in 2000. He has published widely on castles, medieval rural settlement, elite settlement in high medieval Gaelic Ireland, and medieval landscapes.

November 11, 2017

Dr. Peter Wood, Emeritus Professor of History, Duke University

Missing the Boat: Ancient Dugout Canoes in the Mississippi-Missouri Watershed

Abstract:

When archaeologists discuss the great Mississippian site at Cahokia, a crucial puzzle piece is missing: how trade goods and tribute moved great distances. No huge, ancient wooden canoe has been recovered in the Mississippi Valley. However, indirect evidence strongly points to the existence and importance of such vessels. This slide talk explores how long these dugout canoes were in use and why they disappeared.

Bio:

Peter H. Wood is an Emeritus Professor of History at Duke University, where he taught early American history from 1976 to 2008. He is the co-author of the U.S. History survey, Created Equal, and the author of widely used books on early American slavery, Black Majority and Strange New Land. A wide-ranging scholar, he has written about Native American demography, African American slave labor camps, and the images of black Americans created by artist Winslow Homer. His research interests include seventeenth-century French exploration and material culture, such as African American dipper gourds and Sea Island fanner baskets. His essay, "Missing the Boat," will appear in the journal Early American Studies.

January 24, 2016

Erik DeMarche, D.E.P.A.S. (Dickinson Excavation Project and Survey)

Abstract:

All forms of cultural heritage are threatened by conflict. This talk examines methods that can be taken to preserve mobile tangible cultural heritage from the deleterious effects of conflict, using World War II as a case study.

Bio:

Erik DeMarche is a field archaeologist and surveyor with experience in Greece, Turkmenistan, and the Americas. His primary interests include Mycenaean archaeology and archaeology endangered by conflict.

February 21, 2016

Dennis Murphy

Modern Uses of Ancient Water Technology in Anatolian Turkey

Abstract:

Ancient Greek and Roman builders employed great engineering skill in constructing water systems. This study looks at how ancient water systems in Anatolian Turkey can still be utilized in a modern context, showing that modern hydraulic engineers face the same problems of gradient and velocity as the ancient builders. The Elaiussa Sebaste aqueduct provides a prime example, where ancient builders experienced engineering problems in the same challenging areas where modern water systems experience leaks. Farmers today retrace the ancient route, repairing the old channels or using new concrete conduits for domestic and agricultural use. The paper will look at the construction techniques employed in building these water systems and their continued use into the modern era.

Bio:

Dennis Murphy is a long-time member of the AIA and an "avocational archaeologist" focused on the study of ancient water systems, primarily in Southern Turkey. He is an active member of several European Archaeological Societies (Frontinus Gesellshaft & Deutsche Wasserhistorische Gesellschaft) through which he publishes his studies.

March 20, 2016

Jennifer Campbell, State University of New York at Potsdam

Abstract:

Caravanserai spaces (palatial rest-stops on medieval caravan routes) are of particular interest as places with historic associations where historic memory can be actively formed. The Caravanserai Networks Project focuses on Mughal period caravanserais (1500-1900 CE) in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab Provinces of Pakistan and expanding into Northern India. The research examines how these structures were intended to be used during Mughal rule and how they were reused in subsequent periods (Sikh, Afghani, British, and Pakistani). These unfolding histories anchor our relations to these structures today as active places of identity maintenance, heritage, and tourist sites, requiring management to balance expectations toward tourism, education, protection, preservation, and development.

Bio:

Jennifer Campbell is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Anthropology, State University of New York at Potsdam. Her research interests include architectural life histories, trade, complex societies, and cultural heritage. She is the Co-Director of the Caravanserai Networks Project in Northern Pakistan and Northern India.

September 17, 2016

Dr. Tammy Stone, University of Colorado, Denver

Point of Pines Pueblo

Abstract:

Point of Pines Pueblo, in the mountains of central Arizona, is an 800-room pueblo occupied from 1265-1400 AD by people ancestral to modern-day Zuñi peoples. For 35 years of its occupation (1265-1300), an enclave of people from the Kayenta region (ancestral to modern-day Hopi) was present at the site. The nature of the relationship between these two groups, before, during, and after the presence of the enclave, is the topic of the talk.

Bio:

Tammy Stone, Ph.D., R.P.A., is a Professor of Anthropology and Associate Dean in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Colorado Denver (UCD). Her academic background is concentrated in archaeology, with particular emphasis on the dynamics of factionalism and alliance formation in communities in Southwestern Pueblos. She has published 4 books and more than 25 articles and book chapters.

October 15, 2016

Dr. Mark Aldenderfer, University of California, Merced

“All compounded things are subject to decay”: The archaeology of Tibetan Buddhism

Abstract:

The material expression of Buddhism on the Tibetan Plateau offers insight into the transformation and evolution of Buddhist thought as it encounters indigenous, pre-Buddhist conceptions of landscape and religion, borrowings from Central and East Asia, and the changing political fortunes of the emerging Tibetan empire. The lecture will explore this past through four vignettes: the "pagan" Buddhists of Mustang, the tombs of the Buddhist kings of Tibet, the top-down Buddhists of Dulan, and the lost Buddhist past from Tholing in far western Tibet. The speaker is the only Western archaeologist to have been granted formal permission to conduct research in the Tibet Autonomous Region.

Bio:

Mark Aldenderfer is a Professor of Anthropology at the University of California at Merced. His areas of specialization include the Tibetan plateau and the Himalayan arc, the archaeology of foraging societies, Archaic/Pre-ceramic Andes, high-altitude cultural and biological adaptations, the archaeology of Buddhism, and the archaeology of religion. He has conducted fieldwork in Tibet, Nepal, Peru, Argentina, Ethiopia, and the United States, and was the AIA’s Norton Lecturer for 2013/2014.

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Erik DeMarche, M.A., Dickinson Excavation Project and Survey (D.E.P.A.S.) & The Mycenae Foundation

The Throne of Agamemnon

Abstract:

Dubbed by the media as the ‘Throne of Agamemnon,’ the discovery of the throne of Mycenae constitutes the first Mycenaean throne found on mainland Greece. On June 12, 2014, a large fragment of a stone seat was discovered below the citadel. After two years of intensive study by an interdisciplinary team, it was securely identified as part of the royal throne from the last phase of the citadel at Mycenae.

Bio:

Erik DeMarche is a field archaeologist and surveyor with experience in Greece, Turkmenistan, and the Americas. His primary interests include Mycenaean archaeology and archaeology endangered by conflict.

February 15, 2015

Dr. Charles M. Musiba, University of Colorado, Denver

Title: Towards a Community Based Conservation and Sustainable Use of Tanzania’s Heritage: The Laetoli Footprints Project

Abstract:

Cultural World Heritage Sites in Africa are increasingly important for shaping socioeconomic development, stewardship, preservation, conservation, and sustainable use. For many years, the management of these sites in Africa was based on European ideas of conservation, which disconnected local African communities. Today, new discourses in countries like Tanzania are making it possible to engage local people in the management of these sites. A strategy for sustainable management is creating opportunities for local communities to be involved in tourism activities for economic empowerment. This talk will discuss the planned development of the paleoanthropological sites of Laetoli and Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania as examples of how local communities can benefit from cultural World Heritage Sites.

Bio:

Dr. Charles M. Musiba's research focuses on human origins in East Africa, covering the paleoecology of Laetoli, animal trackways, and taphonomy. His work is interested in the link between human evolution and climate change, specifically the reconstruction of ancient landscapes at the 3.5 million-year-old Pliocene paleoanthropological Site of Laetoli. His current research combines field excavation, systematic study of hominin specimens (including Australopithecus afarensis), establishing a better geologic framework, documenting animal trackways, and applying multiple analytical methods to identify past ecological changes.

March 8, 2015

Dr. Matthew Johnson, Northwestern University

Understanding Bodiam Castle

Abstract:

Bodiam Castle, built in the 1380s in south-eastern England, is perhaps the most extensively-discussed and controversial castle in medieval Europe. Was it built for defense against the French, or was it a symbolic "fairytale castle"? This talk reports on three seasons of archaeological survey at Bodiam by a team from the University of Southampton (UK) and Northwestern University (USA), in collaboration with the National Trust. The team surveyed the castle fabric, mapped the surrounding landscape, and conducted geophysical survey. The presentation offers a new view of the castle, stressing its active role in regional politics and economics, and understanding Bodiam at a series of scales, from the smallest human action to the castle’s place in world history.

Bio:

Matthew Johnson is a Professor in Anthropology at Northwestern University. His interests cover the archaeology of England and Europe AD 1000-1800, including castles, houses, landscapes, and theoretical and interdisciplinary approaches. He has published six books, including Behind the Castle Gate, English Houses 1300-1800, and Archaeological Theory: An Introduction.

May 17, 2015

Dr. Chris Beekman, University of Colorado

The Original Performance Piece: The Shaft Tomb Figures of Western Mexico

Abstract:

Anthropomorphic ceramic figures have been looted from shaft and chamber tombs in western Mexico for over a century, with thousands existing in collections today. The scarcity of examples excavated by archaeologists remains a problem for understanding their significance. However, increasing evidence suggests that the figures had a use-life before being placed in the tombs. This has major implications for our understanding of their uses, meaning, and interpretation as visual culture.

Bio:

Dr. Chris Beekman received his Ph.D. in 1996 based on fieldwork in the state of Jalisco, western Mexico, where he continues his research into ancient Mesoamerican society. He has conducted archaeological fieldwork in California, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Tennessee, and West Virginia, and joined the University of Colorado in 2001.

October 18, 2015

Dr. William Fitzhugh, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

Basque Whalers and Southern Inuit

Abstract:

Two hundred years before the 19th-century Arctic whaling explosion, Spanish Basques were sending scores of ships to hunt whales in Labrador and Newfoundland. Their role was forgotten until the discovery of the Basque whaling center in Red Bay, Labrador, in the 1970s. This lecture reconstructs the Basque enterprise in North America during the 16th-17th centuries with new information from the speaker’s archaeological research at Petit Mecatina on the Quebec Lower North Shore. Combining land and underwater archaeology, this research reveals how Eskimos—the first New World whalers—partnered with Basques and for 200 years kept other Europeans at bay, a period that could be called “The Eskimo Wars.”

Bio:

William Fitzhugh is Director of the Arctic Studies Center and Curator of the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution. His areas of specialization are arctic archaeology, circumpolar cultures, Mongolia, and Vikings (especially in the Western Atlantic). He has been recognized for his work in exhibits, documentaries, and research.

September 20, 2015

Dr. Paul Miller, University of Edinburgh

Etruscan Tombs

Abstract:

The Orientalizing (720−580 BC) and Archaic (580−400 BC) tombs of Etruria have shaped modern perceptions of the ancient Etruscans through lavish grave goods, monumental architecture, and vivacious tomb frescoes. These perceptions of the Etruscans in death have also shaped the scholarly understanding of their life, including how they built their homes, public buildings, and temples. By comparing the Etruscan built environment with their tombs, this presentation highlights the similarities and differences between how the Etruscans portrayed life and how they actually lived it.

Bio:

Paul M. Miller is a recent Ph.D. Archaeology graduate of the University of Edinburgh. His doctoral thesis examines the interaction between humans and the built environment in Early Iron Age central Italy and the Etruscan civilization. He has practiced archaeology throughout the U.S. Southwest and the Great Basin.

January 19, 2014

Dr. Michelle Koons, Denver Museum of Nature and Science

Water and Power: The Political Dynamics of the Moche of Ancient Peru

Abstract:

This presentation examines the role of water and irrigation in the sociopolitical organization of the Moche archaeological culture (A.D. 250-900) from the arid north coast of Peru. The Moche are recognized by distinct archaeological signatures (ceramics, monumental architecture, murals, metalwork) found over ten valley systems. Research at the previously unexplored site of Licapa II, a mid-sized ceremonial center in the Chicama Valley, will explore how water and politics were integrally entwined in this desert landscape. The marginal location of Licapa II, over 25 km from the river, likely played a part in defining its political role. The presentation will compare data from Licapa II and other Moche centers to better understand Moche sociopolitical dynamics across space and time, and will explore how the engineering and management of the complex irrigation network were vital to Moche organization.

February 23, 2014

Dr. Katina Lillios, University of Iowa

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Dr. Jodi Magness, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The Ancient Synagogue and Village at Huqoq, Israel

Abstract:

Since 2011, Professor Magness has been directing excavations in the Roman-Byzantine village and synagogue of Huqoq in Israel’s Galilee. In June 2012, excavations reached the synagogue’s floor, revealing stunning mosaics. One section depicts female faces flanking a Hebrew or Aramaic inscription referring to rewards for good deeds. Another section preserves part of a large male figure dressed in a Roman military-style tunic, to whose left are pairs of foxes with their tails tied together and a lighted torch between them. This is a depiction of the episode in Judges 15:4 where Samson takes revenge on the Philistines. This lecture provides an overview of the excavations, including the discoveries from the summer 2013 season.

May 4, 2014

Dr. Sarah Nelson, University of Denver

The Gold Crowns of Silla (Korea) and the Tomb of a Queen

Abstract:

The largest mounded tomb from the Silla kingdom in Korea was found to be that of a queen, who wore a pure gold crown and a golden belt of leadership. These objects make it clear she was a ruling queen, yet she does not appear in the official list of kings (though some queens do). The talk explores how archaeology can solve this mystery, given the absence of writing in the tomb.

January 13, 2013

Dr. Payson Sheets, University of Colorado

What was that Horrible Thing that happened around the World in AD 536?

Abstract:

Literate cultures in AD 536 recorded intense cold, crop failures, starvation, and deaths, with about 75% of the people in a northern Chinese kingdom reportedly dying. Tree rings in North America, Europe, and Asia record 15 years of cold beginning in that year. Ice cores in Greenland and Antarctica record a dramatic increase in sulfur, indicating a volcanic eruption as the cause. Since 1969, research on the eruption of Ilopango volcano in El Salvador has struggled with radiocarbon dating, but recent work suggests the eruption must have occurred more recently than the 5th century. It appears the Ilopango eruption is the most likely candidate for the worst worldwide disaster in the past few millennia.

February 17, 2013

Dr. Nicholas Hudson, University of North Carolina, Wilmington

Of Pots and People: Updates from the Field, Tell Timai, Egypt

Abstract:

Over 4,500 kilograms of pottery have been recovered from the University of Hawa’ii at Manoa excavations at Tell Timai in Egypt, spanning over 1000 years of occupation at ancient Thmuis. This talk presents the highlights of the ceramic finds, linking this history to the people and industries that built the city, from a small suburb of Mendes to a Roman regional capital and an important Early Christian bishopric. Contexts of discovery include evidence of the city's ancient perfume industry, a household's place on the wrong side of history, and evidence of a population occupying a fading city in the seventh century AD. The talk explores how to tell grand histories from the smallest and commonest of archaeological artifacts: the pot sherd.

March 24, 2013

Dr. Nicholas Rockwell, University of Denver

Uncovering the Lower Classes in Ancient Greek Warfare and Politics

Abstract:

Traditional focus in ancient Greek warfare has been on the heavily-armed infantryman, the hoplite, dominant in the compact mass formation (phalanx) for roughly three hundred years (c.650−350 BC). However, over time, light-armed soldiers—slingers, archers, javelin-men, and peltasts—increasingly made significant contributions, bringing fundamental changes to warfare. Connected to these military developments were transformations in the political sphere: as light-armed soldiers, generally from the lower classes, played a more significant role, there was a tendency for states to become more democratic. This lecture will examine these military and political developments and their broader implications for ancient Greek society.

April 28, 2013

Sally J. Cole

Ann Axtell Morris: Art in Archaeology of the Southwest and Mesoamerica

Abstract:

Ann Axtell Morris, archaeologist, artist, and author, accompanied her husband, prominent archaeologist Earl H. Morris, on major, multi-year Carnegie Institution expeditions during the 1920s and 1930s in the U.S. Southwest and Mexico. She recorded architecture, rock art, murals, landscapes, and expedition work in watercolor paintings and drawings, pioneering methods of documentation still in use. Her works provide context for important sites like Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Chichen Itzá, Yucatan, and Mesa Verde National Park. Her watercolors offer information about ancient use of color in a time of black-and-white photography. Her two books, Digging in Yucatan and Digging in the Southwest, have inspired generations to pursue and value archaeology.

October 27, 2013

Dr. Lanny Bell, Brown University

The Magic of Art and Writing in Ancient Egypt

Abstract:

In ancient Egypt, writing was an art, and art was hieroglyphic—images were used not merely as decoration, but as symbols conveying ideas. Writing (text) and art (iconography) were intimately related and complementary. The magical power of representations and the spoken or written word was rooted in the belief that the outer form determined its true being, and a thing's whole essence was revealed in its name. Egyptians were interested in the repetition of events that conformed to mythological prototypes. Actual events that were random or unique were considered "unreal" and often not worth recording. The lecture will stress the need to study the grammar and vocabulary of Egyptian art to "read" the iconography of scenes as surely as one would read a text, and the caution required in interpreting any report or representation literally, as the victor gets to write the history.

October 28, 2013

Dr. Lanny Bell, Brown University

Tutankhamun: The Life and Death of a God King

Abstract:

Tutankhamun (1334−1325 BCE), the Son of the Sun, was a god in his own time but a mortal on earth. While his monuments and tomb contents reveal his divine status, the presentation will explore his human side: What did he look like? Who were his parents? How did he die, and how old was he? Did he have children, and what role did his widow Ankhesenamun attempt to play in the selection of the next king? Why was his tomb so richly provided? Tutankhamun remains a man of mysteries, with scholars holding very different opinions. The new traveling exhibits provide an occasion to reexamine these issues, though not all can be resolved with confidence. Ancient history is built on probabilities, and the presentation will offer a reconstruction of Tutankhamun's family relationships and the factors that seem to have determined the line of succession at the end of the 18th Dynasty, while noting professional criticism of the recent DNA analysis undertaken on the mummies.

November 10, 2013

Dr. Mark D. Mitchell, Paleocultural Research Group

Before Lewis and Clark: The Rise and Fall of the Heart River Confederacy, A.D. 1400-1750

Abstract:

The villages and towns near the confluence of the Heart and Missouri rivers were empty when the Corps of Discovery passed by in October 1804. Two hundred years earlier, the political and economic alliance uniting these communities—the Heart River Confederacy—was the hub of a vast commercial network encompassing 1 million square kilometers of the Northern Plains. Heart River traders dealt in marine shell, copper, pottery, chipped stone raw materials, maize, tobacco, and bison hides and meat. This network led to population movements, economic intensification, settlement aggregation, and warfare that built the political-economic landscape encountered by European traders in the 1700s. Archaeological methods and data are crucial for tracking the changing fortunes of the Heart River communities and for understanding the long-term impact their history had on the course of colonial interaction on the Northern Plains.

October 28, 2012

Dr. Larry Conyers, University of Denver

Mapping the Ice Age Landscape of Coastal Portugal with Ground-Penetrating Radar: Using Geology, Geophysics and Archaeology to place Ice Age Hunters in their Environment

Abstract:

Upper Paleolithic reindeer and auroch hunting groups in Europe survived in a landscape very different from today. In coastal Portugal, ground-penetrating radar and geological mapping have placed a number of sites ranging in age from 30,000 to 25,000 years ago in an environment that was dry, cold, and populated by herds of large herbivores. Hunting strategies and subsistence methods can be inferred by placing information from standard archaeological methods into this complex ancient world.

November 4, 2012

Dr. Nikos Xanthoulis, Academy of Athens and the Greek National Opera

The Sounds of Ancient Greece

Abstract:

The subject of this lecture-concert will be ancient Greek music (800 B.C. to 400 A.D.). The study of this art leads to the roots of Western culture, with words like music, melody, chord, tone, rhythm, and poetry all having Greek origins. Our knowledge of ancient Greek music has increased dramatically through evidence from archaeology, art, literature, music theory books, non-literary documents, and musical scores. The lecture will also cover the myths concerning music and musicians, and will include songs performed by reconstructed instruments, such as the ancient lyre and salpinx (ancient trumpet).

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Kevin Black, Assistant State Archaeologist, Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation

Colorado Mountain Archaeology

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Dr. Deborah Carlson, AIA NATIONAL VISITING LECTURER

The Tektas Burnu Shipwreck

Abstract:

Underwater excavations off the Aegean coast of Turkey at Tektas Burnu (1999−2001) revealed the remains of a small Greek merchant ship that sank between 440 and 425 B.C. Remains include a pair of marble ophthalmoi (eyes)—the only ones ever found with an ancient vessel—and the earliest securely dated examples of lead-filled anchor stocks. The ship carried a primary cargo of wine and pine tar in over 200 transport amphoras, with the largest portion of the amphora cargo assigned to Ionian Erythrae. The ship was wrecked at a time when Athens was the leading naval power and controlled maritime trade. As the only Classical shipwreck fully excavated in Aegean waters, the Tektas Burnu ship promises to shed light on local trade networks during a period when Ionia was thought to be mired in "economic paralysis" brought on by Athenian imperialism.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Dr. Craig Lee, Metcalf Archaeology and Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research

Withering Snow and Ice in Your Backyard: A 10,000-year-old Archaeological Record Under Threat by Global Warming in the Mid-Latitude Rocky Mountains

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Dr. Marc Levine, Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Teotihuacan Attraction: Examining the demand for Teotihuacan Artifacts in US Museums and Art Market

Sunday, May 15, 2011

John M. Scott Senior Staff Archaeologist, Metcalf Archaeological Consultants Post Graduate Research Student, University of Bristol

From Trajan to ‘TE’: 2000 Years of Conflict Stratigraphy in Wadi Yutm, Southern Jordan

Archaeological reconnaissance in Wadi Yutm of southern Jordan during the spring of 2010 observed well-preserved Roman forts from the time of Trajan to modern defensive structures likely occupied during WWI and the Six-Day and Yom Kippur wars. Research to the north of Yutm and to the immediate south in Aqaba suggests that Iron Age and Islamic Period fortifications may also be present within this strategic valley. The landscape of Wadi Yutm appears to have been militarized during different eras to control passage through the valley that was a major route to and from Nabataean Petra, Roman Jerash, and Ottoman WWI fortified towns of Ma’an and Amman. The reconnaissance was preparatory to an intensive 9000 acre archaeological survey of the wadi that will be led by the author and conducted by an international team of archaeologists from the United States, Great Britain, Belgium, and Jordan. The survey is planned for March and April of 2011. This project will document all encountered cultural resources and will search particularly for the Ottoman strongholds of Kethera and Khadra attacked by Lawrence and the nascent Arab Army of the Great Arab Revolt in WWI. The preliminary results of this survey will be presented publicly for the first time.

October 23, 2011

Dr. Nancy T. de Grummond, AIA Norton Lecturer

Etruscan Human Sacrifice in Myth and Ritual

Abstract:

Scholars have long been reluctant to believe the Etruscans (700 B.C. to 1st century B.C.) practiced human sacrifice, dismissing references in written sources and artwork. Recent excavations in the monumental sacred area on the Pian di Civita at Tarquinia have proven that human sacrifice was indeed practiced, through the discovery of burials of infants, children, and adults. Some individuals were demonstrably "marginal" in society. One child was decapitated and his feet placed at the base of and underneath a wall, evidently as a foundation deposit. The archaeological context included a stone altar, a sacred building, and a ritual deposit of symbols of secular power. The talk will discuss the literary, archaeological, and iconographical evidence to be studied anew to determine real sacrificial practice as opposed to fictional, symbolic, or mythological matter.

Bio:

Nancy T. de Grummond is the Distinguished Research Professor with the Department of Classics at Florida State University in Tallahassee. She specializes in Etruscan archaeology, religion and myth, and Scythian archaeology.

January 24, 2010

Linda Scott Cummings, Ph.D.

Delving into the Mystery of the Visible, Nearly Visible, and Invisible Records of PaleoEnvironment and PaleoSubsistence at Archaeological Sites

Abstract:

Understanding the environmental setting in which people lived is critical to understanding any people, just as the picture of ancient diet colors our opinion of past populations. Both elements combine to build a picture of the past as "real people" who lived in well-defined time and space.

AIA NATIONAL VISITING LECTURER

October 3, 2010

Dr. John G. Younger, University of Kansas

Women in Prehistoric Greece

Abstract:

This talk presents an overview of what is known about the lives of women in the Minoan-Mycenaean world. Using images in fresco, on seals and finger rings, pottery, and information from Linear B, the presentation will examine their production of textiles and cooking pottery, their work-groups, participation in cult, administration of sanctuaries, and coming of age ceremonies. Information about their sexuality and family life is limited as Aegean art rarely portrays intimacy, sex, or children. Their absence in certain portrayals (e.g., on stone relief vessels or playing musical instruments) can sometimes be inferred as a sign of their presence being too powerful to represent.

Bio:

Dr. John G. Younger is a Professor of Classics and Director of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies at the University of Kansas.

November 14, 2010

Dr. Nicole Branton, Field Office Archaeologist, USDA Forest Service

Searching for Lost Towns along the Laramie River

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

March 9th, 2008

Dr. Albert Leonard, University of Arizona

New Bottles Old Wine

Abstract:

Dr. Leonard, an archaeologist with a background in Mediterranean excavations and a wine expert, will weave these two topics into a discussion accessible to all.

Bio:

Dr. Albert Leonard is from the University of Arizona's Classics and Near Eastern Studies department and is also a wine expert with Le Cordon Bleu (London) and the Culinary Institute of America (Napa Valley).

April 6th, 2008

Dr. Robert Hohlfelder, University of Colorado 

Poseidon's Deepest Secrets: A Shipwreck Survey off Southern Crete, 2007

February 20th, 2007

Dr Richard Talbert, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Milestones, Itineraries, Sundials: Roman Travel Aids and Their Value

March 14th, 2007

Dr. Cyprian Broodbank, University College, London

The Making of the Mediterranean : From the Earliest Times until the Iron Age

December 16th, 2007 Dr. Payson Sheets, University of Colorado

Ancient Maya Villagers, What the volcano preserved in Ceren, El Salvador

November 4th, 2007 Dr John K. Papadopoulos, University of California – LA

The Art of Antiquity: Piet de Jong and the Athenian Agora

Abstract:

The lecture is based on Dr. Papadopoulos' excavations in the heart of Classical Athens.

Bio:

Dr. John Papadopoulos is a member of the Classics Department at UCLA. His expertise includes extensive work in Greece and southern Italy, as well as at aboriginal and historic sites in Australia.

October 8th, 2006

Dr. Jonathan Kent, Metropolitan State College of Denver

Human and Animal Sacrifice in Northern Peru

November 12th, 2006

Dr Stephen Lekson, University of Colorado

Chaco Canyon : An 11th century Pueblo capital

AIA VISITING LECTURER

April 19, 2005

Prof. Shelley Wachsmann

Some went down to the Sea in Ships (Psalms 107:23): Mediterranean Seafaring in the Bronze Age (3000-1200 B.C.)

February 23, 2004

Bill Hammond, University of Colorado School of Medicine

Prehistoric Denver: In Praise of Hunter-Gatherers

Abstract:

Humans have occupied the Denver area for 11,000 years or more, a history far longer than the last 150 years of Euroamerican settlement. During the long prehistoric era, the Hogback Valley west of Denver was the most densely inhabited part of the region by Native American hunter-gatherers. Since 1973, the Denver Chapter of the Colorado Archaeological Society has conducted an intensive program of survey and excavation in the Hogback Valley on the Ken-Caryl Ranch. Dr. Hammond will give an overview and update of the work and a perspective on the hunter-gatherer lifestyle.

Bio:

Dr. Bill Hammond is an Emeritus Professor of Pathology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. He is an active member and past President of the Denver Chapter of the Colorado Archaeological Society and has been co-principal investigator of the chapter's excavation at Swallow Site on the Ranch since 1991.

AIA VISITING LECTURER

March 30, 2004

Stephen Dyson, Park Professor of Classics
Classics Department, Complex University at Buffalo, New York

Looking at Ancient Pompeii

Abstract:

Pompeii because of the nature of its destruction is often treated as a special, even unique archaeological site. Emphasis is often placed on a limited range of finds made there. However, Pompeii was a very typical medium sized Roman community. Such small towns were the background of the Roman system and their success explains how Rome survived so long.
This lecture will look at Pompeii as a working community. After a short introduction on the history of Pompeii and the history of excavation, I will 'walk' the audience through the site in the manner of an ancient Roman, looking at the ways in which the archaeological record provides insight into social, economic and political activity. The lecture will provide both an overview of the site and an understanding of its place in Roman community history. My approach in this lecture grows out of my book COMMUNITY AND SOCIETY IN ROMAN ITALY. It will be of interest to both classical archaeologists and ancient historians as well as interested lay people.

Short bibliography and/or website on lecture topic (for lay reader):
P. Zanker Pompeii

CV for Stephen Dyson

Stephen L. Dyson, Park Professor of Classics
Classics Department 338 MFAC-Ellicoot Complex University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY 14260
Email: cldyson@acsu.buffalo.edu

Education
BA Brown University Diploma in Classical Archaeology-Oxford University MA,PhD Yale University
Honors and Awards
Fulbirght Scholar ACLS Fellow NEH Fellow Visiting Fellow, MacDonal Institute for Archaeological Research, Cambridge University
Past Positions
Assistant Professor- Professor Wesleyan University-1963-1991 Mellon Professor-Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies Director-Summer School, American Academy in Rome
Areas of Specialization
Roman Archaeology Roman History History of Classical Archaeology
Fieldwork
Buccino, Italy Cosa, italy Soissons, France Sardinia, Italy
Main Publications
The Roman Villas of Buccino-1984 The Creation of the Roman Frontier-1985 Community and Society in Roman Italy-1992 Ancient Marbles to American Shores-1998 The Roman Countryside-fall 2003 Portrait of an Archaeologist-The Life of Eugenie Sellers Strong-fall 2003
AIA Positions
President First Vice President Chair, Program Committee Book Review Editor, American Journal of Archaeology Charles Eliot Norton Lecturer

January 13, 2003

Dr. Sarah Nelson, University of Denver

Do Jade and Pigs Create Complex Society? The Hongshan Culture in Northeast China in Perspective

Abstract:

The Hongshan Culture (4500−3000 BC) in Northeast China is an anomaly among early jade cultures. It is the earliest "Jade Age" culture in China, and its features—including the Goddess Temple with lifesized statues, finely-carved pendants and ornaments in burials, and ceremonial structures—set it apart. This talk explores how it came to be and what kind of socio-economic structure might have supported these developments.

February 17, 2003

Andrew Gulliford, Fort Lewis College

Preserving Sacred Indian Landscapes

Bio:

Andrew Gulliford is a Professor of Southwest Studies and History and Director of the Center of Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. He has researched Native American sacred objects and places throughout the West, Alaska, and Hawai'i. He has worked with the Ute to document, preserve, and protect the Ute Trail and with the Eastern Shoshone on museum and preservation planning. He reviews tribal museums and historic sites for the American Association of Museums and has received multiple awards for his contributions to America's natural and cultural resources and historic preservation.

Andrew Gulliford has researched Native American sacred objects and sacred places throughout the West, Alaska, and Hawai'i. A graduate of Colorado College (B.A., M.A.T.) and Bowling Green State University in Ohio (Ph.D.), he is a professor of Southwest Studies and History and Director of the Center of Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. Previously he directed the Public History and Historic Preservation Program at Middle Tennessee State University near Nashville. His photographs of American Indian sacred sites have been published in Norenewable Resources (1994), The Secretary of the Interior's Report to Congress: Federal Archaeological Programs and Activities, 1993 (1993), and Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, Report to Congress and the President, 1993 (1993). His previous books include Boomtown Blues: Colorado Oil Shale, 1885-1985 (1989) and America's County Schools (1984, 1996), both published by the University Press of Colorado.Formerly the director of the Western New Mexico University Museum in Silver City, New Mexico, Gulliford curated one of the largest prehistoric Mimbres pottery collections. He has worked with the Ute to document, preserve, and protect the Ute Trail on Colorado's Western Slope, and he now works with the Eastern Shoshone in Wyoming on museum and preservation planning. For the American Association of Museums he reviews tribal museums and historic sites with Indian collections, and for the Smithsonian Associates program, he has led tours on the Columbia and Snake Rivers in Washington and Oregon and on the Lewis and Clark Trail by canoe and horseback in Montana and Idaho.
He has received a Take Pride in American National Award from the secretary of agriculture for "outstanding contributions to America's natural and cultural resources"; the National Volunteer Award from the chief of the United States Forest Service; the Second Annual James Marston Fitch Mid-Career Award for Historic Preservation; and the Award of Merit from the American Association for State and Local History.
In summers, he backpacks, hikes, and canoes the West with his wife and two sons.

AIA VISITING LECTURER

March 3, 2003

C. Brian Rose

Recent Greek and Roman Excavations at Troy, Turkey

Abstract:

Since 1988, archaeologists from the University of Cincinnati and the University of Tubingen, Germany, began new excavations at Troy to examine all phases of habitation, from the Bronze Age through the Byzantine period. Work has concentrated on the theater, temple of Athena, the Bouleuterion or Council House, and the Sanctuary of the Samothracian Gods. Excavation has clarified the city's rise after Alexander the Great, its reconstruction by Augustus and his Julio-Claudian successors, and the manipulation of its legendary heritage. The lecture also includes a discussion of several new monumental tombs recently discovered near Troy.

JOINT LECTURE WITH CAS

March 8, 2003

Dr. Steve Lekson, University of Colorado

New Thoughts on the Ancient Southwest

Abstract:

Southwestern archaeology is often presented as a statistical correlation of ancient peoples and past climates. While climatic reconstructions are critical, ancient societies overcame environmental limitations to develop polities and civilizations. This presentation argues that it is possible to write an archaeological "history of the ancient Southwest" that goes beyond climate and crops to explore events, catastrophes, rises and falls, war and peace, heroes, and villains, illustrating some of the dramatic incidents in Southwestern prehistory and linking them in a historical narrative.

April 21, 2003

Dr. Larry Conyers, University of Denver

Ground-penetrating Radar for Archaeological Exploration

Abstract:

Ground-penetrating radar can be used to "see" into the ground to discover and map buried archaeological sites. Images of what lies below the surface can be visualized in three-dimensions prior to excavation, or instead of excavation. Examples will be shown from sites in Colorado and from around the world, including Petra, Jordan, Moche sites in Peru and Central America.

April 29, 2003

Jo Anne Van Tilburg

Among Stone Giants: The Life of Katherine Routledge and Her Remarkable Expedition to Easter Island

Abstract:

Jo Anne Van Tilburg, the world's leading authority on the stone statues of Easter Island (Rapa Nui), delivers a thrilling true-life tale and a fascinating biography of Katherine Routledge, the first female archaeologist to excavate these world-famous monoliths. Routledge, co-leader of the Mana Expedition of 1913, encountered a population recovering from near-extinction. Her pioneering work preserved the faith and traditions of this prehistoric isle and laid the groundwork for modern archaeology.

Bio:

Dr. Jo Anne Van Tilburg is a research associate of the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA, director of UCLA's Rock Art Archive, director of the Easter Island Statue Project, and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

September 15, 2003

Dr. Carol Patterson

Form Follows Function: The depiction of ancestry, power and ceremony through gesture in Hawaiian Petroglyphs

Abstract:

This presentation examines the gestures, postures, and proxemic arrangements of anthropomorphic figures found in Hawaiian petroglyphs and demonstrates how they parallel the Hawaiian social structure. Sites can be grouped into three categories consistent with Hawaiian religious beliefs, class and ranking systems, and family kinship structures. Variations in "style" are likely deliberate forms that functioned in a broader communication system, rather than the result of stylistic evolution.

JOINT LECTURE WITH CAS

October 13, 2003

Adrienne Mayor

The Monster of Troy: Fossil Discoveries in Ancient Greece

AIA VISITING LECTURER

November 11, 2003

John K. Papadopoulos

Shameless Potters and Ravagers of Kilns: Athenian Pots & Topography

Abstract:

Athenian black- and red-figure pottery has long been prominent in classical archaeology. This lecture goes beyond the pots to focus on the makers: the potters themselves—who they were, and how and where they worked. Clues come from the scenes on the pottery and a re-examination of archaeological and literary evidence. New discoveries in central Athens, including unpublished material from the American excavations in the Athenian Agora, add significantly to knowledge, particularly for the location of the Potters' Quarter (Kerameikos) and the identity and gender of some potters. In reviewing this evidence, some radical revisions are suggested for the topography of early Athens.

Bio:

John K. Papadopoulos is a Professor in the Department of Classics and the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA. His areas of specialization are Classical Archaeology & Aegean Prehistory and the Archaeology of Colonialism. He has excavated widely in Australia, Greece, and South Italy.

December 15, 2003

Catherine Gaither

Sacrificial Foundations in Andean Prehistory

Abstract:

This presentation will focus on the behavior of human sacrifice in the Andean region. The practice of child sacrifice among the Inca will be briefly discussed, and then the talk will focus on the practice of human sacrifice among the Moche (AD 200 – 800) of the north coast of Peru. Specifically, the sacrifice victims found at the site of Huaca de la Luna will be discussed regarding the significance this behavior may have had within the Moche culture.

January 14, 2002

Astrid Olgivie

Sagas, Sea Ice and Sediments: Climatic Clues from the Viking Age

February 19, 2002

J. McKim Malville

Megaliths, Neolithic Astronomy and Emerging Cultural Complexity in Southern Egypt

March 11, 2002

Doug Bamforth

Allen Site - New information on Plains Paleoindians conflicts with current views on their lifeways

AIA VISITING LECTURER

March 25, 2002

Prof. João Zilhão

The Early Upper Paleolithic Burial of the Lagar Velho Child and Implications for Admixture Between Neanderthals and Modern Humans

May 13, 2002

J. Hoffecker

The Ecology of the Neanderthals and the Transition to Modern Humans: An East European Perspective

September 24, 2002

Steve Cassells

Hunting the High Country: Prehistoric Game Driving in the Colorado Front Range

AIA VISITING LECTURER

October 15, 2002

Michael Vickers

Stones in Venice: recycled marble from Constantinople and Athens

Abstract:

Venice was built on a mud flat in the Lagoon: all the building materials-timber, bricks, stone and marble had to be imported from elsewhere. It is usually impossible to say precisely where the marble comes from beyond identifying the original quarries. Exotic marbles in Venice were rarely newly quarried, however, but were recycled from earlier buildings whose ruins were to be found in the lands of the eastern Mediterranean that the Venetians controlled. Fragments of Proconnesian marble in a and around the basilica of San Marco (notably the lily capitals on the façade, and the so-called Pilastri Acritani) come from the Constantinopolitan church of St Polyeuktos, excavated in the 1960s under the auspices of Dumbarton Oaks. A monument at the Arsenal for Francesco Morosini, under whose command a "chance shot" hit the Parthenon with unfortunate results, probably incorporates reworked fragments of that building. The imagery of the Morosini monument is comparable with that of the Parthenon's west pediment.

Short bibliography and/or website on lecture topic (for lay reader):

J. Binder, "The West Pediment of the Parthenon: Poseidon," Studies Presented to Sterling Dow on his Eightieth Birthday (Durham, NC, 1984) 15-22.

R.M. Harrison, A Temple for Byzantium: the discovery and excavation of Anicia Juliana's palace-church in Istanbul (Austin, Texas 1989).

C. Renfrew and J. Springer Peacy, "Aegean marble: a petrological study", Annual of the British School at Athens 63 (1968) 45-66.

M. Vickers, "Wandering stones: Venice, Constantinople and Athens", in K.-L. Selig and E. Sears (eds.), The Verbal and the Visual: Essays in Honor of William S. Heckscher (New York, Italica Press, 1990), 225-242.

November 19, 2002

Christopher Beekman

From core-periphery networks to local agents-Scales of analysis in West Mexican archaeology

Abstract:

Serious archaeological research in western Mexico is relatively recent, with the institution of long-term regional surveys in the 1970s within the lake basins of central Jalisco. These survey data were discussed and analyzed in terms of regional core and periphery networks. Today's excavations, however, have adopted current theoretical approaches emphasizing agency and the importance of individual action in our analyses. Each of these scales of analysis seems to have its place, but how do we fit them together? The speaker will discuss his current archaeological project in central Jalisco, incorporating students from the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Colorado at Denver.

Biography:

Dr. Christopher Beekman is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Colorado at Denver. He received his degree from Vanderbilt University in 1996. His archaeological fieldwork has ranged from Ecuador to Egypt to Mexico and Central America.

December 10, 2002

Martin C J Miller

The Pagan Origins of Christian Iconography

January 8, 2001

Dr. Carol Patterson, Metro State College of Denver

On the trail of the Spider Woman

February, 20, 2001

Dr. Paolo Visona, Mamertion Foundation

The 1998 – 2000 Field Seasons at Contrada Mella

March 12, 2001

Mark Mitchell, US Forest Service

Sopris phase Ceramics of southeast Colorado

April 17, 2001

Dr. David Anthony, Hartwick College

Prehistoric Origins of Indo-European Languages

Monday, May 21, 2001

Dr. Jonathan Kent

Herders, Traders and Petroglyphs in the Northern Peruvian Andes

September 10, 2001

Payson Sheets

Following the Footsteps of the Ancients; Remote Sensing in Costa Rica

AIA VISITING LECTURER

October 15, 2001

Dr. Hector Williams

Goddesses, Whores, Vampires, and Gladiators: Excavating Ancient Mytilene (Lesbos)

Bio:

Hector Williams directs UBC’s archaeological excavations at Mytilene and Stymphalos and is publishing material from excavations at Anemurium in Turkey. He is a research associate of the University of Chicago’s Kenchreai excavations and the University of Pennsylvania’s Gordion Project. He is interested in the application of geophysics to archaeology, is a Past President and Trustee of the Vancouver Maritime Museum, and serves on the board of the Canadian Archaeological Institute at Athens.

November 19, 2001

James Dixon

Archaeological Evidence for the 1st Human Colonization of North America

December 11, 2001

Richard Marlar

Cannibalism in the Four-Corners Region: Question of Cannibalism of the Anasazi - Evidence from the Cowboy Wash Site (5MT10010)

Abstract:

The existence of cannibalism is a highly controversial issue in the archaeology of the American Southwest. Disarticulated, cut-marked, and heat-altered human remains at Anasazi sites have been interpreted as evidence of cannibalism, with osteological studies indicating processing consistent with food preparation. Opponents suggest non-cannibalistic practices like secondary interment, corpse mutilation, or ritualized witch executions. The lecture will present evidence that consumption of human flesh did occur, as demonstrated in preserved human fecal material containing identifiable human tissue remains from a site with archaeological and osteological evidence of cannibalism. Possible explanations for the cause of these incidences will be addressed.

Bio:

Richard Marlar is a Professor of Pathology, and Biochemistry and Genetics at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. He also directs the Biomolecular Archaeology Research Laboratory, which focuses on developing new molecular methods to address archaeological questions, such as tool utilization and food sources using protein residue analysis and DNA methods. He has been conducting biomolecular archaeology research for the last 9 years.

November 13, 2000

Dr. Monica Visona

Archaeology along the Niger River

December 19, 2000

Dr. Dean Saitta

Archaeology of the Colorado Coalfield War

Coming soon.