Maya Archaeologist Ben Thomas Visits UE

Last Thursday (Feb. 23) Maya archaeologist Ben Thomas spent the day at UE. Dr. Thomas is the Director of Programs at the Archaeological Institute of America and an assistant professor at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Dr. Thomas met with over 40 students in a number of small groups throughout the day to discuss everything from excavating in the jungle to the end of the Maya calendar in 2012 to careers in archaeology outside of academia, museums, and CRM. In the evening he gave a lecture to a packed house of over 120 people from both campus and Evansville about his research in caves along the Sibun River Valley of Belize. His explanations of the project’s goals and findings were laced with stories about the rigors and dangers of fieldwork in the jungle, including his encounters with a creature known in Belize as the “assassin bug.” All in all it was a great visit; Dr. Thomas had a wonderful time learning about our program and students and the students enjoyed discovering facets of archaeology about which they do not normally hear.

Ben Thomas to lecture on Maya archaeology in Belize

Dr. Ben Thomas, assistant professor at the Berklee College of Music and Program Director for the Archaeological Institute of America, will present "Caves, Chocolate, and Christianity: Maya Archaeology in Belize" on Thursday February 23 at 7:00 pm in the Schroeder Family School of Business Administration Building 170.  Dr. Thomas will speak on his six-year archaeological survey at the Sibun River in Belize.  All are invited to attend!

Events at the Reitz Home Museum

We are pleased that the Reitz Home Museum is showcasing the research of departmental faculty and students and the good work of departmental interns at the museum this semester.

February 9-26.  Antique Valentines are on display at the Reitz Home: http://tristatehomepage.com/fulltext?nxd_id=487102.  Senior archaeology major Elizabeth Bostelman was one of the curators of this exhibit. 

On February 20, Associate Professor of Art History Heidi Strobel will present "The Art of Mary Linwood" at 7:00 pm in the Carriage House.  This talk is based on Dr. Strobel's research of British textile artist Mary Linwood (1755-1845). 

On March 19, senior archaeology and art history major Leah Thomas will present "The Art of 18th Century Dining" at 7:00 pm in the Carriage House.  This presentation is based on research Leah conducted in summer 2011 while interning at George Washington's Mount Vernon, VA. 

Three UE Archaeology and Art History Majors present at Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention

Archaeology and Art History seniors Rachel Lawrence, Emily Mella and Leah Thomas presented their original research at the Phi Alpha Theta (History Honor Society) Bienniel Convention in Orlando, FL January 3-7, 2012. 

Leah (left rear) and Emily (right) enjoying Orlando when not in conference sessions.

Rachel presented a paper entitled "Vlad the Impaler: Incidents of an Unlikely Idol," Emily presented "The Development of European Religious Architecture," and Leah presented "The Art of 18th Century Dining."  Congratulations to these three members of the class of 2012!


Rachel gives her presentation at Phi Alpha Theta.

Dr. Amanuel Beyin to speak on February 9

Dr. Amanuel Beyin will give a presentation entitled "Recent Archaeological Explorations Along the Red Sea Coast of Eritrea and Lake Turkana (Northern Kenya)" on Thursday February 9, 7:00-8:00 in SOBA 273.  Dr. Beyin is a specialist in Paleolithic archaeology and African prehistory, and his interests include coastal archaeology, geoarchaeology, lithic technology, and early human dispersals out of Africa.  For more information about Dr. Beyin and his research, visit his website.

Six UE Archaeology Alumni Present at AIA Conference

Annually the Archaeological Institute of America hosts the biggest conference of Classical archaeologists in North America. Archaeologists from around the world attend. Presenting a paper, poster or workshop there is a true honor. This year the AIA conference was in Philadelphia during the first week in January and no fewer than six alumni participated. Congratulations to the following:

Danielle Riebe (above) (University of Illinois at Chicago), author of the poster “Signatures in Ceramics: Identifying Prehistoric Interaction through Ceramics on the Great Hungarian Plain”

Melissa Eaby (The Institute for Aegean Prehistory, Study Center for East Crete), coauthor of the paper “Death and Burial in Early Byzantine Chryssi, Crete”

Theresa Huntsman (Washington University in St. Louis) who authored the paper “Eternal Personae: The Performance of Etruscan Identity in Chiusine Cinerary Urns”

Theodora Kopestonsky (University of Tennessee, Knoxville), co-organizer of the session “Silent Participants: Terracottas as Ritual Objects”

Andrew Reinhard (American School of Classical Studies in Athens) who led a roundtable discussion entitled “How to Prepare Digital Images, Maps, Plans, and Tables for Archaeological Publications”

Robert Wanner (EAC / Archaeology) who organized the colloquium “Roman Dacia and Moesia: Developments in Archaeology and Heritage Preservation in Romania”

Way to go UE Archaeology Alumni!

Alumna Deb T. Wins Prestigious NSF Grant

The National Science Foundation recently awarded alumna Deb T. (pictured at right) a Doctoral Dissertation Improvment Grant. Deb is a PhD candidate at Florida State University and will be in Greece this spring doing research on Mycenaean (1600-1200 BC) cooking pots from two different regions. She is trying to uncover the economic and political significance of these vessels. NSF does not award this grant to scholars in the humanities very often; Deb's was an outstanding application. Congratulations Deb! For more information, follow these links:

http://classics.fsu.edu/News-and-Events/News-Highlights/Deb-Trusty-NSF-Grant

http://ogfa.fsu.edu/Students/Students-of-Distinction/Debra-Trusty