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Archives For November 30, 1999
The Archaeology Program is pleased to announce the appointment of its new Director. As of July 1, Dr. Scott Harris will be Director of Archaeology.
Dr. Harris received a PhD in geology from the University of Delaware and is a specialist in paleo-landscape evolution, primarily within coastal plain and contintental shelf environments. His most recent research has taken him to spaces off of the coast of the US southeast and Greece (the latter for which he was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship).
He follows James Newhard, who has served as Director of Archaeology since the inception of the major in 2013. Dr. Newhard steps down in order to more fully devote time to his responsibilities as interim Chair of the Department of Classics and as the Director of the newly-created Center for Historical Landscapes.
We wish Dr. Harris the best of good fortune, and thank Dr. Newhard for his years of service.
The Archaeology Program is pleased to announce a public lecture by Dr. Michael Galaty, professor and head of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures at Mississippi Sate University.
“From Plain to Plateau: The Origin of Social Complexity in Northern Albania”. Friday, March 24, 4:00 in Simons 309.
Research in northern Albania is shedding light upon the origins of social complexity, in particular upon the role of inter-regional interaction. Research conducted in the Albanian Alps, the Shkodra plain, and planned investigations on the Dukagjin Plateau in Kosovo highlight the role of interactions between groups inhabiting different ecological zones within the processes of complex social development and the negotiation of identity over the course of human history. Data generated by these various projects inform models of social complexity elsewhere in Europe, and elsewhere in the world.
Dr. Galaty is a former academic trustee of the Archaeological Institute of America, the author of dozens of seminal books and articles on emergent social systems, and recipient of significant grants and awards for his teaching and research.
Sponsored by the Archaeology Club, the Program in Archaeology, the Department of Classics, and the South Carolina Society of the Archaeological Institute of America.
Dr. Allison Sterrett-Krause has been working with students in processing the glass artifacts from Roman Carthage for the past several years, and is continuing this work this year. She will host an introductory session this Friday from 2:30-4:30 in BELL 217.
Meeting on Friday afternoons during the semester, volunteers are trained to catalogue and draw Roman glass fragments and asked to devote at least 12-15 hours over the course of the semester to our project. The team’s research goal is the eventual publication of late Roman and early Byzantine glass fragments from the Circus in Carthage.
This is an exciting opportunity to learn the basics of artifact analysis from a recognized expert in the field, in one of (if not the only) spaces in the country that holds ‘live’ unpublished glass artifacts from an archaeological project in the Mediterranean. In most cases, the artifacts stay in the country of origin, requiring extensive costs in travel for limited amounts of exposure to the material. In the case of the Roman glass assemblages from Carthage, the material has been legally exported, and are a 10-minute walk down the street. The unparalleled nature of this opportunity is palpable – both in terms of the thoroughness of the analysis and the opportunities for student training and high impact learning.
For more information, contact Dr. Allison Sterrett-Krause directly (sterrettkrauseae@cofc.edu). Owing to demand, working on the glass assemblages is currently limited to enrolled College of Charleston students, although visitors are welcome.
For archaeologists at CofC, the summer is time for exploration via fieldwork and in-depth study. In partnership with the South Carolina Society of the Archaeological Institute of America, we present a series of short reports from the field by Drs. Harris, Hays, Ibarra, Newhard, and Sterrett-Krause. Come to hear what new and exciting work is happening!
Thursday, September 8 at 7:00pm
Simons Center for the Arts, 309
College of Charleston
How do archaeologists identify the fragmentary shards of glass found in excavations as bottles, plates, and cups? Archaeologists at the College of Charleston can tell you. Sarah Legendre and Dr. Allison Sterrett-Krause presented preliminary findings of their work conducted over the summer in the annual celebration of summer research at the College of Charleston. Their study applied stepped regression analysis to develop a typological hierarchy, useful for identifying the functional type of most glass fragments found in Mediterranean contexts. The quantitative approach aids a field in which previous studies had used more empirical categories, not always informed by statistical methods.
Their work, funded by the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities, the Department of Classics, and the Yawkey Foundation and conducted at the Center for Social Science Research (CofC), will be formally presented at the upcoming 20th Congrès de l’Association Internationale pour l’Histoire du Verre in Fribourg, Switzerland.
This story is reproduced from its original posting the School of Science and Mathematics blog
Dr. Harris’ core research will allow for quantitive and qualitative analysis of coastal change in response to varied sea-level rise scenarios across a complex landscape in the North Euboean Gulf of Central Greece. Data gathered, analyzed, and interpreted through this project will also inform several major Bronze Age archaeological sites about their submerged paleolandscapes along the Southwestern edge of the gulf. The research site covers the marine portions of the ancient sites of Kynos, Mitrou, and Halai and from modern Arkitsa to the Theologos Peninsula about two hours north of Athens. The derived scientific products and interpretations will not only inform the maritime aspects of the terrestrial sites, but will also assist in the identification of submerged sites before, during and after the significant periods of seafaring in the Bronze Age along this major seaway. While many studies of the submerged portions of Greece focus strictly on submerged cities, specific shipwrecks, or the deep sea, this collaborative project will form a coherent regional investigation focused on paleolandscapes and coastal changes throughout antiquity. The broader context of the study will influence disciplinary thoughts on the preservation of ancient landscapes, of coastal deposits, and of submerged archaeological sites along an important ancient maritime seaway.
Submerged paleolandsc
apes hold a record of antiquity that informs us about past coastal conditions and human adaptations. Understanding the influence of how variable local sea-level changes have influenced the preservation potential of submerged coastal systems is crucial to understanding these interactions. Working with host faculty and two other Greek universities, we will map the seafloor between Theologos and Arkitsa Greece to answer questions of preservation potential in a natural experiment of differential sea-level change in this actively tectonic and rich Bronze Age maritime region. The scholar will bring expertise in coastal dynamics and advanced seafloor mapping techniques while the host institution provides expertise in understanding ancient sea-level histories in this region.
Congratulations to the following archaeology students and faculty mentors, who have received support for research and professional presentations from the College’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities:
Academic Year Research Award
Alana Acuff (Anthropology) and Jami Baxley (Classics)
Mentor: James Newhard
Title: The Global Electronic Repository of Aegean Scripts (GERAS): post-processing 3D structured light scanning imagery
Research Presentation Grants
Olivia Adams (Anthropology)
Mentors: Maureen Hays, Kimberly Pyszka
Title: Landscape Archaeology and GIS: Understanding Cultural Adaptations and Tenant Farming in the Low Country, Hollywood, SC
Conference: South Eastern Archaeological Conference
Zak Bartholomew (Anthropology)
Mentor: James Newhard, Norman Levine
Title: The Development of a Legacy GIS for the Contextualization of the Linear B Deposits from the Palace of Nestor at Pylos
Conference: Archaeological Institute of America Annual Meeting