Theresa H. ('02) Receives Etruscan Foundation Research Fellowship and the Bothmer Predoctoral Fellowship at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

This spring I was recipient of both the Etruscan Foundation Research Fellowship, intended to fund the work of advanced PhD students and junior faculty in Etruscan art and archaeology, as well as the Bothmer Predoctoral Fellowship at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, an academic year in-residence fellowship where I will be working with Dr. Carlos Picon, Curator of Greek and Roman Art, to study the objects relating to my dissertation in their collection, as well as their other Etruscan holdings.

My dissertation is entitled "Eternal Personae: Chiusine Cinerary Urns and the Construction of Etruscan Identity." My project is a cross-collection study of Hellenistic period Etruscan cinerary urns produced at the site of Chiusi. The urns are made of terracotta or stone and are composed of a cask, usually decorated with mythological relief scenes, as well as the name of the deceased, and the lid which bears a three-dimensional effigy of the deceased either in a banqueting posture or a fully recumbent pose. There has yet to be a systematic study of the sculpted, figural lids, and I also seek to redefine the Etruscan conception of portraiture and identity as it has been discussed in previous scholarship. Rather than a simple reflection of physical appearance, I argue that the Etruscan mortuary “portrait” was performative, a collection of mutually affirming social indicators that reflected familial relationships, prestige derived from participation in elite banqueting customs, and the need for the deceased to maintain agency in the afterlife through the lid figure, an animated funerary effigy.

An urn at the British Museum.

Alumnus Profile: Scott G. ('00) in Hawaii

Scott Glenn graduated from the University of Evansville in 2000 with a double major in archaeology and philosophy. After graduating, he volunteered at the Murlo excavation for three summers with Dr. Anthony Tuck. From 2003 to 2007, Scott worked in Japan as an English teacher on the JET (Japan Exchange Teaching) Program. While there, he became aware of climate change issues and decided to pursue a career in urban and regional planning with a focus on climate change adaptation.

Scott moved to Hawaii in 2007, where he still lives, and obtained his Master's in 2009. He currently works for a private planning firm, TEC Inc., doing planning and climate change adaptation for the U.S. military, private companies, and Hawaii state and local governments. He specializes in environmental impact assessments and spatial planning.  He has been appointed to the State Environmental Council by the Governor of Hawaii, where he is responsible for updating and amending the state environmental impact assessment administrative rules. He also volunteers with the Hawaii Chapter of the Sierra Club as a policy expert on environmental planning.

Scott still retains a love for archaeology and uses it regularly in his planning work. He has written archaeological and historical assessments for projects around the Hawaiian islands and reviewed archaeological work throughout the Pacific Islands for professional and technical accuracy.

Student Elizabeth Frost at Poggio Civitate, Italy

This summer was one of the best I’ve ever had: I participated in the excavation at Poggio Civitate in Italy with the University of Massachusetts Amherst. When I first signed up I was incredibly excited, but as time grew closer, I began to feel more and more nervous. I had never been out of the country before, and this was a pretty big step. Luckily, everyone who was going could get in touch with one another through Facebook and I had plans to meet up with some of my fellow student volunteers in Rome before the dig. When I got there I knew no one, but by the time the six weeks were over we were family.

I expected that when you participate in an archaeological dig, you dig the entire time you are there. As it turned out, this was usually the case except that due some recent changes to the laws in Italy our permit to dig did not start until two weeks after we were due to start. This change in plan didn’t faze the staff, and for the first week they gave us tours of the site and the magazzino, the sort of laboratory we shared with the public cars of Murlo. We listened to lectures, played a few name games, and learned where everyone was from, what their major was, and why they were here. The next week we were split into teams and worked on different projects that needed to be done. I was put on the team that was working with Roman materials. The town had recently put in a new playground and many Roman materials surfaced during construction; they were collected and given to us. My team cleaned, measured, muncelled, and catalogued all one hundred and eighty-odd items in only in four days.

The next week we were finally able to dig. We started out with five trenches, two of which had been started the year before. I ended up in one of these, so my first week was spent digging out the backfill of a rather large, wet, smelly trench. Still, I had a great time working with everyone. Every week we changed trenches. During the next week I was in a trench that was full of material like broken pieces of terra cotta, pottery, bone, and even statue fragments. This week was much more tedious than the first where I got to use a shovel and haul dirt. Now I had to use my trowel, being careful not to pop anything out of the ground, and define rocks like nobody’s business. By the end of the second week at least six new trenches were opened and a few more had extensions added. With our limited time this seemed pretty daunting, but the staff was great at keeping up morale and also the flow of chatter so we were never bored.

Elizabeth (center right) on a day trip in Italy.

Every weekend was free time. We were on our own and could do whatever we wanted, so we traveled a lot. I went to Florence, Siena, Orvieto, San Gimignano, Tarquinia, and many other places. It was great to experience all of these places, each with its own long history.

My trip to Italy was an experience of a lifetime and something I will never forget. I traveled, I dug, and I even discovered what I might want to do for the rest of my life. This summer was one that changed me completely and gave me a new reason to keep going after my dreams.

Student Summer Plans 2011

The Department of Archaeology and Art History is pleased to announce the summer plans of its majors, which include internships and employment at a variety of institutions and participation in archaeological projects in the US and in Italy, Egypt, Turkey, Hungary, Romania and Cyprus.

Lizzie B., PAST Foundation's Slobodna Underwater Field School, Key West, FL
Elizabeth B., Internship with the History of Prince William Forest Park’s 45 Cemeteries and Homesteads, National Park Service, VA
Josephine C., Internship with Palm Beach County archaeologist, FL
Elizabeth F., Excavations at Poggio Civitate (Murlo), Italy
Amber F., Excavation and Internship at James Madison’s Montpelier, VA
Chris G., Summer Program Coordinator, Fort Collins Museum and Discovery Science Center, Fort Collins, CO
Kevin K., Rough Cilicia Archaeological Survey Project, Turkey
Kaman L., Internship in the Department of Membership and Development and paid position in the museum, Evansville Museum of Art, History and Science, IN
Rachel L., Excavations at the Porolissum Forum Project, Romania
Stephanie L., Education Programs Assistant, Angel Mounds State Historic Site, IN
Samantha M., Excavations at Poggio Civitate (Murlo), Italy
Ben O., Internship at the Glenn Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Indiana University, IN
Marley R., Excavations with Courson Archaeological Research near Perryton, TX
Alyssa R., Internship at Evelyn Lehman Culp Heritage Collection, IN
Anna S., Totah Archaeological Project Field School, NM
Katy S., SHUMLA Field Methods in Rock Art Field School and Internship, TX
Sara S., National Science Foundation – Research Experience for Undergraduates funded Koros Regional Archaeological Project, Hungary and Cyprus
Leah T., Internship at George Washington’s Mt. Vernon, VA
Lauren W., National Science Foundation – Research Experience for Undergraduates funded Fellowship in Bioarchaeology, University of Notre Dame, IN
Colleen W., Excavations at Tell Timai, Egypt
Porsche W., Facilitator at the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago, IL

In addition, five Archaeology majors will participate in the Summer Session I trip to Jordan in May-June led by Professors Byrne, Ebeling and Milner: Nate B., Emma D., Emily M., Ashley M., and Marie M.

Dig Poggio Civitate, Italy, in Summer 2011!

The Poggio Civitate Archaeological Project is among the oldest and best known field schools in the world and is co-directed by UE Archaeology alumna, Theresa Huntsman ('02). Our program provides students the opportunity to excavate at the site under the direction of a staff of professional archaeologists, conservators, illustrators, and photographers. Participants receive training in all aspects of field work, including excavation and data collection, archaeological survey and drawing, objects conservation, illustration, photography, and cataloguing.

At Poggio Civitate, we believe that the best field experience is comprehensive. Students are encouraged to work directly with directors of excavation units, follow artifacts from discovery through conservation and into cataloguing. Most of our Participants come with no field work experience – many have never even taken an archaeology or classics course –and by the end of the season, we believe, each comes away with a foundation in Etruscan Archaeology and field methods, as well as an appreciation for Italy and rural Italian culture.

The 2011 field season will focus excavation on an area of the hill recently discovered to preserve remains of the sixth century B.C. archaic complex, as well as to explore other areas for traces of non-elite architecture. Work is conducted Monday - Friday, with the weekends free to explore Tuscany and further afield in Italy.

The 2011 Season runs June 28-August 2 at a cost of $4200 (excluding airfare). Program costs include up to 6 academic credits through UMass-Amherst, and participants are housed in a building of the Albergo di Murlo, a local hotel, in double to quad rooms. All meals are provided Monday - Friday, and are prepared by the excavation chef.

For an application, contact Assistant Director Jason Bauer at digmurlo@gmail.com

Theresa Huntsman lecture on February 14

On Monday February 14, 7:00-8:00 pm in SOBA 73, Theresa Huntsman ('02) will give a presentation entitled "Poggio Civitate: 45 Years on the Piano del Tesoro."  The 2011 field season marks the 45th successive year of archaeological exploration at Poggio Civitate (Murlo) located in central inland Tuscany.  The excavations have brought to light a massive complex, the largest in the region during the seventh and sixth centuries BCE.  During two phases of occupation the inhabitants constructed monumental buildings including an elite residence, a religious building, and a workshop, all elaborately decorated with sculptures.  For reasons still unknown, the site was burned to the ground in the third quarter of the sixth century BCE, never to be inhabited again.

Students at UE have the opportunity to participate in the 2011 summer archaeological field season.  Participants will experience all aspects of archaeological work, including excavation, conservation, survey, illustration, and photography.

Theresa Huntsman is a PhD candidate at Washington University in St. Louis, where she also earned her MA in 2005.  She received her BA in Archaeology at UE in 2002 and has participated in the excavations at Poggio Civitate since her first trip as a field school student in 2001.  Currently, she serves as cataloguer, collections manager, and field school instructor for the project.