Historical Archaeology in the Ancient Mediterranean

Big Move

I apologize for my recent absence.  The combination of moving, have a new baby, the start of the new semester, and attempting to get back into my normal routine has wreaked havoc on my blogging practices.  Our new place in Rebersburg, PA will not have internet access until next Tuesday so I will be back early next week.

10th-Century BC Hebrew Ostracon?

Israeli archaeologists discovered an ostracon (an inscribed potsherd) from Elah in Khirbet Qeiyafa.  According to the archaeologists ceramic analysis and C14 dating suggest that it dates to the infamous 10th Century.  Near Eastern archaeologists and historians have rigorously debated the very existence of King David and a United Monarchy citing a lack of archaeological data to support a large kingdom dating to the 10th century B.C.  Supporters of the United Monarchy either refer to the Tel Dan Inscription, which contains text reading "house of David," or supporters attack the Iron Age chronology suggesting that scholars are inaccurately dating 10th-century material.  Israel Finkelstein is the big name questioning the chronology.  If indeed the Elah ostracon dates to the 10th century, a whole new set of may be asked about the Iron Age chronology and United Monarchy.  Click here for the CNN article.

UND Department of History on the Move?

Typically I try to keep this blog oriented to certain topics such as graduate studies in ancient history, archaeology of the Mediterranean, professional conferences concerning the ancient world, etc but I am going discuss a different topic today.  Dr. William Caraher a history professor at the University of North Dakota, a Mediterranean archaeologist, and my former adviser has discussed plans to move the department of history out of Merrifield Hall.  Since I spent two years in the building and thoroughly enjoyed the "nostalgia," I thought I would give my opinion on the matter.

For a description of why the move may happen see this article from the Grand Forks Herald.  As I understand it, one of the main reasons for the move is to place the faltering School of Communications to Merrifield Hall so that they may benefit from "adjacency" to the English department.  The History department although, "one of the university’s most productive and stable departments" will be moved across campus to O'Kelly.  What the UND bureaucracy does not understand is that "one of the most productive departments" has benefited from "adjacency" to the departments of Philosophy and Religion, Languages (which includes ancient Greek and Latin), and English.  This does not surprise me given the, at times, unhelpful and short-sighted tendencies of the UND bureaucracy.  As a former graduate student I found the easy contact with my Greek, Latin, and Philosophy and Religion professors a great benefit.  The history department has enjoyed Merrifield since 1929, the date of its construction.  Hopefully the history department and the UND bureaucracy can reach an agreement where history can put.      

Mopsos Survey Project 2009

The dates for the Mopsos Survey have been finalized (May 28-June 25th).  I have been asked to help with recruitment for next year.  For anyone who may be interested please visit either the Penn State study abroad website for Turkey at: http://www.outreach.psu.edu/summerabroad/study-turkey/ or the project's blog at: www.realtimearchaeology.blogspot.com  The project offers several courses including landscape archaeology, advanced landscape archaeology, GIS for archaeologists, and there are opportunities for independent studies.  Course and project fees will be finalized soon and posted on the study abroad website.  I recommend the project for anyone interested in archaeology (beginner or graduate student), GIS, or traveling.  Please email me at bro118@psu.edu for any and all questions.

PKAP in the NEA

The most recent issue of the Near Eastern Archaeologist is devoted to archaeology on Cyprus.  The issue includes articles on Idalion, the Kyrenia shipwreck, underwater archaeology, Byzantine Cyprus, and many more.  I highly suggest reading "Surveying Late Antique Cyprus: by William Caraher, R. Scott Moore, and David Pettegrew.  The article features a historiographic section chronicling archaeological survey in Cyprus, a section describing the Pyla-Koutsopetria Archaeological Project's survey methodology, and a discussion of the late Roman ceramic finds.  It's definitely worth a look.      

Penn State University: Call for Papers

I am taking a page out of my buddy Eric Welch's book by posting this call for papers for the Penn State Graduate History Conference.

CALL FOR PAPERS “Death and Dying: Human Experiences of the End of Life”

A Graduate Conference Saturday, October 25, 2008 Department of History and Religious Studies Program The Pennsylvania State University University Park, PA

Historical scholarship – even with its manifold interest in human activities – has sometimes overlooked the social and cultural relevance of the end of life. However, recent inquiries into the historical development of science, as well as the widespread popularity of Drew Gilpin Faust’s most recent work on death during the Civil War, perhaps indicate a turn toward more focused and multifaceted considerations of end of life issues. What function has the experience of death played in human societies, ranging from its role in social change to its impact on individual lives? How have human beliefs and cultural practices concerning death changed through time? How have people confronted, prepared for, or attempted to delay the end of life? What can we learn from human attempts to cultivate memory in the face of death, from efforts in historical preservation to social commemoration?

Interest in end of life issues transcends methodological and disciplinary boundaries, and we invite submissions from diverse perspectives relating to the subject of death and dying. Subjects may include but are by no means limited to: burial practices and rituals, cultural memory, political and legal ramifications of death, death and geography, wartime death, religious beliefs on death and the afterlife, death in literature, the killing of animals, medical and scientific explorations of death, and so forth. Studies of any geographic region or historical time period are welcome.

Guidelines for submission: Papers should be based on original research and offer a unique intervention. Accepted papers will be organized into thematic panels. Papers should be about 20 minutes in length. Some funding may be available to help defray travel costs for participants.

Deadlines: Please submit abstracts up to 500 words by September 1, 2008. Abstracts should include name, affiliation, and contact information. Notification of acceptance will be made by September 20, after which point full papers must be submitted. Submissions may be made by email to Kevin Lowe at kml293@psu.edu.

Varia and Quick Hits

This week I have feverishly balanced my regular coursework with preparations for my three upcoming conferences.  There is not much new to report so I will provide some varia and quick hits.

1.  On Sunday March 30th Penn State will hold the 23rd Annual Graduate Exhibition.  I will present my poster "The Historical and Archaeological Value of Inscribed Sling-Bullets."

2.  Dr. William Caraher continues to feature clips from PKAP's latest documentary Emerging Cypriot (see link).

3.  On Friday April 4th the University of North Dakota will host "The Red River Valley History Conference" where I will present my research of Roman religion, "The Dedication of Roman Arms and Armor in Water as a Religious Ritual."

Varia and Quick Hits

Since I spent most of this week researching the votive paper, taking an exam, giving an exam, or grading an exam, I do not have a school or research related post prepared for today.  I decided to take a page out of Bill Caraher's book and provide a post on varia and quick hits.

• Dr. R. Scott Moore has moved PKAP's website from www.chss.iup.edu/pkap to the much more efficient and fitting http://www.pkap.org/.
• Over the past few weeks both Dr. William Caraher and Dr. R. Scott Moore have provided weekly posts concerning PKAP's latest documentary Emerging Cypriot.  The series of shorts depict many aspects of an archaeological project including what happens to an artifact once it is discovered, geophysical analysis, and life on the project.  One can find the newest documentary here and the first documentary, Survey on Cyprus, here.  Please note that Dr. Caraher reveals one new short a week so some of the links have yet to be updated.
• Next week is Spring Break here at Penn State. During the break I will attempt to finish the votive paper and travel to Indiana, Pennsylvania to meet up with Dr. R. Scott Moore and Dr. David Pettegrew.  PKAP recently acquired a Trimble R8 GPS system.  At the get together we will familiarize ourselves with the unit and Scott promised to give us a good dose of the Indiana night life!