Kissonerga-Skalia: Denise L. Gold Grant Report 2022
2022 marked a return to excavation at Kissonerga-Skalia in western Cyprus after a hiatus of three years due to the pandemic. As you can see in the team photo (figure 1), we were all extremely excited to be back in the field. Many of our student excavators had gone through nearly their entire degrees without having the opportunity to gain practical experience in the field and were keen to learn and take part. We are very grateful to have received a 2022 Denise L. Gold Project Grant to assist with the expenses in the field and to put towards the costs of obtaining radiocarbon dates.
Figure 1: The end of season photo of the Kissonerga-Skalia team.
Kissonerga-Skalia is a Bronze Age settlement located near the coast 10km north of Paphos. It lies adjacent to the Neolithic–Chalcolithic settlement of Kissonerga-Mosphilia, excavated and published by Prof. Eddie Peltenburg in the 1980s–1990s. It appears that during a key period of social transformation between the Chalcolithic and Early Cypriot Bronze Age (c. 2500 BC) the people of Kissonerga abandoned their roundhouses and moved 500m down towards the sea, to establish their village in new fields, along with a new style of rectilinear architecture. The settlement prospered for around 800 years until around the end of the Middle Cypriot Bronze Age (c. 1750 BC) when the domestic structures were built over with a large industrial complex that comprises working areas for grinding, processing and heating materials (including the production of beer), along with wide open spaces with trampled mud plaster floors, partially enclosed by a large curvilinear wall. One area of these industrial facilities is shown in Figure 2, where you can see large grinding stones for processing material and circular pits for holding large storage vessels. This final phase was only in use for a short time before the site was completely abandoned, around 1650 BC, at another key period, the transition to the Late Bronze Age. At this time Cyprus saw another islandwide settlement shift connected to the rise of seaborne trade in the Mediterranean, with new sites established that would eventually become the Late Cypriot towns. This abandonment gives us the opportunity to examine the time during which Cypriot settlements begin to diversify and the first ‘monumental’ structures were created.
Figure 2: View of industrial area P/B2 with grinding installations in top right.
Figure 3: Project archaeobotanist Dr Leilani Lucas showing US Ambassador to Cyprus, Judith Garber, the flotation process during a visit to the site.
Cypriot archaeological sites are notoriously poor in archaeobotanical material, leading to the situation where the transition from the Middle–Late Cypriot Bronze Age is still dated only through relative chronologies. Therefore, one of our aims this season was to retrieve short-lived carbonised remains such as nuts and seeds from secure contexts for radiocarbon dating. We were fortunate that our archaeobotanist, Dr Leillani Lucas (shown in Figure 3), was able to retrieve a lentil and a grape seed! Part of the Denise L. Gold grant funds will be used to date these finds, along with samples retrieved in previous seasons, to help us to pin down the timing of this exciting and dynamic period.
The Committee on Membership and Outreach takes responsibility for discussing matters regarding ASOR institutional and individual memberships, including (but not limited to) strategies for membership growth, appropriate membership benefits, the most fitting way to categorize individual memberships (student, recent graduate, etc.), greater enfranchisement of ASOR’s international members, and resources that members might like ASOR to provide. The committee also oversees ASOR’s outreach efforts. These include, preeminently, the Friends of ASOR program (a program for individuals who share ASOR members’ interest in the archaeology and history of the Near East and wider Mediterranean but who are not themselves members). In addition, it advises the ASOR staff about the presentation and content of several of ASOR’s digital platforms, including the ASOR Facebook page, the ASOR Twitter account, ASORTv, and ASOR’s weekly bi-monthly e-newsletter News@ASOR.
Theodore (Teddy) Burgh, Chair (until December 31, 2025)
Class of 2023
Felix Höflmayer (1st term)
Kyle Keimer (2nd term)
Cynthia Shafer-Elliott (2nd term)
Ann Sahlman (1st term)
Class of 2024
Regine Hunziker-Rodewald (2nd term)
Class of 2025
Ian Cipin (2nd term)
Sarah Costello (2nd term)
Kara Larson (2nd term)
Carolyn Rivers (2nd term)
Sheldon Fox (ex officio)
Sharon Herbert (ex officio)
Felice C. F. Herman (ex officio, non-voting)
Andrew G. Vaughn (ex officio, non-voting)
Education Outreach Committee
Neal Bierling
Ellen Dailey Bedell
Stefanie P. Elkins
Pam Gaber
Friends of ASOR Committee
Stevan B. Dana
Susan Laden
Alex MacAllister
Carolyn Midkiff Strange
Jennie Ebeling (non-voting)
Felice C. F. Herman (non-voting)
Andrew G. Vaughn (non-voting)[/vc_column_text][mk_divider][vc_column_text]
The Chairs Coordinating Council takes responsibility for (a) monitoring the activities of ASOR’s eight other standing committees, by receiving monthly reports about the committees’ discussions and business; (b) discussing and coordinating programs and policies that cut across the purview of two or more of the CCC’s constituent committees (e.g., policies regarding ethical issues or professional standards) and also adjudicating, if need be, between competing claims regarding jurisdiction or resource allocation among the CCC’s constituent committees; (c) annually receiving, from the Program Committee, recommendations regarding the plenary speaker for the ASOR Annual Meeting and then recommending to the ASOR President the name of an individual to invite; and (d) transmitting, through its chair (the ASOR Vice-President) reports regarding the work of the CCC, and its constituent committees, to the Board of Trustees, at the Board’s biannual meetings.
Charles (Chuck) Jones, ASOR Vice President and Chair
Sharon Herbert, ASOR President
Theodore (Teddy) Burgh, Chair of the Membership and Outreach Committee
Erin Darby, Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Tiffany Earley-Spadoni, Co-Chair of the Early Career Scholars Committee
Jane DeRose Evans, Chair of the Cultural Heritage Committee
Steven Falconer, Chair of the Committee on Archaeological Research and Policy
Kevin McGeough, Chair of the Publications Committee
Kate Larson,Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Kiersten Neumann, Co-Chair of the Program Committee
Allison Thomason, Co-Chair of the Program Committee
Andy Vaughn, ASOR Executive Director (ex officio, non-voting)
Lynn Welton, Chair of the Honors and Awards Committee
Vanessa Workman, Co-Chair of the Early Career Scholars Committee
Archived webpage for the 2023 Executive Committee; This page has been replaced. The Executive Committee of the ASOR Board of Trustees acts on behalf of the Board to manage the business and affairs of ASOR between the regular Board meetings is composed of the Board Chair, Vice Chair(s) of the Board (if any), President, Past President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Chair of the Development Committee, and two (2) or three (3) other Trustees.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Sheldon Fox
Chair of the Board (until December 31, 2025)
Sheldon Fox graduated from Duke University in 1981 with an undergraduate degree in Management Science/Accounting. While at Duke, he worked with Carol and Eric Meyers at Nabratein.
Fox joined Peat, Marwick & Mitchell (now KPMG) in Raleigh in early 1982 and was admitted as a tax partner in 1993. During his 16 + year career at KPMG he served publicly-traded financial services corporations, privately-owned businesses in several industries and high net worth individuals.
In 1998, Fox joined CCB in Durham as chief financial officer and following CCB’s merger in 2000 with National Commerce Financial, he moved to Memphis, TN to become CFO of National Commerce (approximately $5 billion market cap). Sheldon left National Commerce in 2003, and he and his family returned to Raleigh in 2004.
In 2004, Fox joined Maynard Capital Partners (now KDI Capital Partners) and became a member of the firm in 2007. He served as the investment management firm’s Chief Operating Officer, responsible for client relations and administration until March 31, 2019. On the investment side, he managed KDI’s Value Preservation options strategy from its inception in 2009 through its termination in 2019 and was co-manager of the firm’s Core Equities strategy until March 31, 2019. From April 1, 2019 until December 31, 2021, Fox led KDI’s efforts to develop a financial planning practice focused on multi-generational high net worth families.
Since January 2022, Fox has continued his financial planning focus as Senior Director, Family Office Services, with Curi Capital, a Raleigh, NC Registered Investment Adviser, that acquired the assets of KDI’s advisory business.
Sheldon is 61, and has been married to his wife, Debbie for 38 years. They have two sons and two grandsons. He continues to hold an active CPA license, and is also a candidate for CFP® certification.
Fox has been very active in the community in the Triangle and has served on several nonprofit boards. He currently serves on the board and is chair of the Investment Committee at Triangle Community Foundation. He has previously chaired the boards of United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County and WakeMed Foundation.
Fox previously served as an ASOR trustee for nine years (2007-2015), and as treasurer for two terms (2007-2012). He took on the role of Board Chair in January 2023.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Sharon Herbert
President (until December 31, 2025)
Sharon Herbert is the Charles K. Williams II Distinguished University Professor of Classical Archaeology Emerita and Research Associate at the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology at the University of Michigan. Formerly, she served as the chair of the Department of Classical Studies and Director of the Interdepartmental Program in Classical Art and Archaeology at Michigan, where she has enjoyed a remarkable career as a field archaeologist, teacher, and academic administrator since she joined the Michigan faculty in 1973. She is also the former Curator of Greek and Hellenistic Collections and Director Emerita (1997-2013) of the University of Michigan’s Kelsey Museum.
Herbert’s research specialties include Hellenistic Egypt and the Near East and ancient ceramics. She is best known for her contributions to the archaeology of Israel, as director of the Tel Anafa excavations from 1978 to 1981 and as co-director of the Tel Kedesh excavations from 1997 to 2012. She has also conducted archaeological fieldwork in Greece, Italy, and Egypt.
Before assuming her position as ASOR’s President on January 1, 2020, Herbert served as ASOR Vice President from 2013-2019. Herbert also served as the President of the W. F. Albright Institute for Archaeological Research (AIAR) from 2013-2018. In November 2017, Herbert received ASOR’s W. F. Albright Service Award, in recognition of her work on behalf of the Albright.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Susan Ackerman
Past President (until December 31, 2025)
Susan Ackerman is the Preston H. Kelsey Professor of Religion and Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Dartmouth College, where she has been on the faculty since 1990. At Dartmouth, she served as the Chair of the Religion Department from 2004-2012 and as the Chair of the Program in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies from 2002-2004 and 2015-2019. Her research specialties include the religion of ancient Israel, women and gender in ancient Israel, myth and ritual studies in ancient Israel, and the Hebrew Bible.
Ackerman served as ASOR President from 2014-2019. Prior to that, Ackerman served as a member of the ASOR Board for seven years (2007-2013), during which time she was a member of the ASOR Capital Campaign Cabinet, the Task Force on the ASOR Strategic Plan for 2011-2015, and the Finance Committee. She has also served as President of the New England and Eastern Canada Region of the Society of Biblical Literature (2013-2014), as President of the Colloquium for Biblical Research (2008-2010), and as a member and then Secretary of the Board of Trustees of the W. F. Albright Institute for Archaeological Research (AIAR), from 2008-2013.
In November 2019, Ackerman received ASOR’s most prestigious award, the Richard J. Scheuer Medal, for lifetime achievement and professional service.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Andrew G. Vaughn
Executive Director (until June 30, 2025)
Andrew G. (Andy) Vaughn became ASOR’s Interim Executive Director on January 1, 2007, and he was appointed Executive Director on July 1, 2007. Prior to this appointment, Vaughn taught at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN. There, from 1997–2007, he was Assistant Professor and later Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible. He also served as Chair of Department of Religion. His teaching and research interests include cultural heritage, history, archaeology, Semitic languages, and Israelite religion. He is a past recipient of the Mitchell Dahood Prize for Biblical Scholarship, and he was a Fulbright Fellow at Tel Aviv University from 1993–94.
Prior to taking up his position as Executive Director of ASOR, Vaughn served on ASOR’s Publications Committee from 2001–2006, and he was elected as Chair of the Publications Committee in 2005. As Chair, he served on the ASOR Board and Executive Committee from 2005–2006, and he was on the ASOR Management Committee from 2006–2007. He was editor of the joint ASOR/SBL Archaeology and Biblical Studies Book Series from 2001–2007. He has also served as Vice President of the Upper Midwest Region of the Society of Biblical Literature (2006-2007) and on the SBL Development Committee (2004–2007).[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Charles Ellwood Jones
Vice President (until December 31, 2025)
Charles Ellwood (Chuck) Jones is the Tombros Librarian for Classics and Humanities at The Pennsylvania State University Library, a position he has held since August 2013. At Penn State, he also holds a faculty appointment in the Department of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies. Previously, Jones served as the Head of the Library for the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (ISAW), in New York, where he also held a position as Senior Fellow and was a faculty member of the Institute’s 2012-13 Linked Ancient World Institute. Prior to his time at ISAW, Jones was the Head Librarian for the Blegen Library at the American School of Classical Studies, in Athens, and was the Research Archivist-Bibliographer for the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago.
Jones is particularly known for developing online resources for ancient Near Eastern scholars, including AWOL (the Ancient World Online). In 2008, he won the ASOR Open Archaeology Award, for the Abzu website, and in 2015-2016, he won an award for Outstanding Work in Digital Archaeology from The Archaeological Institute of America.
Within ASOR, Jones has served as a session chair for programs on cyberinfrastructure and digital scholarship and as a member and then, from 2012-2018, as chair of the Publications Committee. In November 2018, Jones received ASOR’s Membership Service Award in recognition of his work as Publications Chair.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Ann-Marie Knoblauch
Secretary (until December 31, 2024)
Ann-Marie Knoblauch is Associate Professor of Art History and Associate Director of the School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech. Her research interests bridge east and west, especially Cyprus and Greece during the archaic and classical periods. She is especially concerned with articulating the voices of underrepresented groups in the ancient Mediterranean world — non-Athenian and non-male — through the material culture left behind. This approach to the ancient world manifests itself in two main research endeavors, investigations into the visual iconography of Athenian women and active fieldwork on the island of Cyprus. Knoblauch has been involved in the excavations of Idalion, Cyprus, since 1998, and on Cyprus, she has also excavated at Yeronisos Island. She has also excavated in Israel and Greece.
Knoblauch has chaired several ASOR sessions on Cyprus at the ASOR Annual Meeting, and she also served as guest co-editor for a special double issue of Near Eastern Archaeology (NEA 71/1-2) whose focus was “Ancient Cyprus: American Research.” In addition, she served as a member of the Near Eastern Archaeology editorial board from 2008 through 2016.
Knoblauch joined the ASOR Board in January 2013. While on the Board, she has been a member of the Executive Committee, the Finance Committee, the Officers Nominations Committee, and the Task Force for Implementing the ASOR 2011-2015 Strategic Plan, and she served as the chair of the Trustee Nominations Committee. She has also been a member of the Board of Trustees of the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (CAARI) since 2002.
Knoblauch has been ASOR Secretary since January 1, 2019. She received the ASOR Membership Service Award in recognition of her work as ASOR Secretary in 2022.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Emily Miller Bonney
Treasurer (until December 31, 2023)
Emily Miller Bonney is a professor of Liberal Studies at California State University Fullerton, where she currently serves as Dean of the Pollak University Library. She has also served as Interim Assistant Vice President for Academic Human Resources. Her research focuses on Bronze Age Crete and specifically on the application of extended mind and material agency theories to the relationship between the archaeological record and social/political/economic change. In addition, she examines the ways in which the specific disciplinary frameworks affect the conclusions scholars reach. Her recent work re-examines the mortuary evidence for social organization transitions in the Early Bronze Age on Crete, particularly the circular stone tombs, and for cross-crafting in pottery and other media.
Bonney began attending ASOR meetings in 1999, after fifteen years in the world of law school and legal practice. Since 2016, she has served as the session chair of “Career Options for ASOR Members: The Academy and Beyond.” She currently serves as a member of the Board’s Finance Committee and she is Chair of the ad hoc committee charged with developing a Code of Conduct for the ASOR Annual Meeting. She received the ASOR Membership Service Award in November 2020.
Bonney joined the ASOR Board in January 2019.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Lynn Swartz Dodd
(until December 31, 2024)
Lynn Swartz Dodd is Associate Professor of the Practice of Religion at the University of Southern California Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. There, she has served as the Director of the Interdisciplinary Archaeology Undergraduate Major and the Director of Undergraduate Studies in Religion. She was also designated a USC Dornsife Distinguished Faculty Fellow.
Dodd’s research centers on archaeology and politics and ancient innovation and social change, particularly the ways that beliefs about the world figure in social change. As Curator of USC’s Archaeology Research Center, she is also engaged in technical material studies, excavation publication projects, and research involving the use of lasers and new imaging techniques in archaeological research and conservation. She is a staff member of the Amuq Valley Research Project Survey (Turkey), the Kenan Tepe Excavations (Tigris River, Turkey), and the Tell al-Judaidah Publication Project (Turkey), as well as the Native American Sacred Landscapes Project (California). Dodd is in addition the co-organizer of the Israeli Palestinian Archaeology Working Group.
Dodd has served ASOR in many capacities: for example, as a member of the Publications Committee and of the Committee on Archaeological Research and Policy (and as Chair of that committee’s Fellowships Subcommittee). She was the Chair of the Ad Hoc Ethics Working Group that authored the Policy on Professional Conduct adopted by the ASOR Board in April 2015. She served as ASOR Secretary from 2013-2018 and currently serves as a member of the Board’s Finance Committee and as Chair of the Board’s Development Committee.
In November 2015, Dodd received the ASOR Membership Service Award, and in November 2018, she received the Charles U. Harris Service Award, which is given in recognition of long term and/or special service as an ASOR officer or Trustee.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Jane DeRose Evans
(until December 31, 2024)
Jane DeRose Evans is Professor and Chair of Art History at Temple University. She specializes in the archaeology of the Roman provinces and especially in ancient numismatics. She is a Fellow of the American Numismatic Society and a member of the Royal Numismatic Society. After excavating for many years in France, she is now project numismatist for the Harvard/Cornell Excavations in Sardis and the George Washington University excavations at Bir Madhkur (Jordan). Recently, she brought to publication The Mithraeum at Caesarea Maritima (ASOR Press) and is completing the final publication on the U-Shaped Building at Caesarea.
Evans has been a member of ASOR for many years, and from 2010-2015, she served on the Ad Hoc Ethics Working Group that authored the Policy on Professional Conduct adopted by the ASOR Board in April 2015. She currently serves on the Cultural Heritage Committee and has testified on behalf of the Memoranda of Understanding that allow intercepting illegally obtained antiquities from Cyprus and Egypt at the US border.
Evans served on the ASOR Board from 2011-2013 and then rejoined the Board again in January 2016. She is currently serving as the Chair of the Trustee Nominations Committee and as the Chair of the Cultural Heritage Committee.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Eric M. Meyers
(until December 31, 2024)
Eric Meyers is the Bernice and Morton Lerner Emeritus Professor in Judaic Studies and Archaeology in the Department of Religious Studies of Trinity College of Arts and Sciences, Duke University. He served as Director of the Graduate Program in Religion at Duke from 1979-1985 and as Associate Director in 2000-2001. He became Director again in academic year 2001-2002, a position he held until 2007.
Meyers’s research interests include the Bible, Jewish history, and archaeology. Meyers has directed digs in Israel for forty years, including the Meiron Excavation Project, whose work included excavations of the nearby synagogues of Gush Ḥalav and Nabatrein, and the Sepphoris Regional Project.
Within ASOR, Meyers held the position of First Vice-President for Publications from 1982-1990, and from 1982-1992 he served as the editor of Biblical Archaeologist (BA). He served as well the associate editor of the Bulletin of ASOR (BASOR) from 1976-1993. Most notably, Meyers served as ASOR’s President from January 1, 1990, through July 1, 1996, and then again from May 2006 through December 2008.
In 2009, Meyers became Project Director of a major two-and-a-half year grant for archiving the history of American archaeology in the Middle East through ASOR. In addition, from 1975-1976, he served as Director of the W. F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research (AIAR) in Jerusalem. Today, he is an Honorary Trustee of the Albright. He also currently serves as a member of the ASOR Board’s Development Committee.
In 1997, Meyers received ASOR’s G. Ernest Wright Publication Award, which is given to the editor/author of the most substantial volume(s) dealing with archaeological material, excavation reports, and material culture from the ancient Near East and eastern Mediterranean. A decade later, in November 2007, he received ASOR’s most prestigious award, the Richard J. Scheuer Medal, for lifetime achievement and professional service. The Eric and Carol Meyers Excavation Fellowships, established in 2014, also honor his long-standing service to ASOR.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][vc_column_text responsive_align=”left”]
Joe D. Seger
(until December 31, 2023)
Joe D. Seger is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures and Director Emeritus of the Cobb Institute of Archaeology at Mississippi State University, whose faculty he joined in 1982. His research interests include Near Eastern archaeology and field methods, Old Testament history and literature, ancient Semitic languages, and ancient Near Eastern religions and cultures. He is an expert in ceramic analysis and excavation techniques.
Seger’s career as a field archaeologist began with the Joint Expedition to Tell Balatah, biblical Shechem, in 1962. He returned for the 1964 season and became Field Director in 1969. Since 1975 he has been the Project Director of the Lahav Research Project excavations at Tell Halif in Israel.
Seger first joined the ASOR Board in 1986 and has served on the Board ever since. From 1996-2002, he served as the ASOR President. Seger also served as the President of the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research (AIAR) from 1988-1994 and now he serves as an Honorary Trustee of the Albright. He also currently serves the ASOR Board as the Chair of the Officers Nominations Committee and as a member of the Development Committee.
In 2006, Seger received ASOR’s most prestigious award, the Richard J. Scheuer Medal, for lifetime achievement and professional service. The recently established Joe D. Seger Excavation Fund also honors his long-standing service to ASOR.[/vc_column_text][mk_divider thickness=”1″ margin_top=”10″][/vc_column][vc_column border_color=”rgba(170,170,170,0.01)” width=”1/6″ css=”.vc_custom_1490571214409{margin-right: 10px !important;margin-bottom: 30px !important;border-right-width: 2px !important;border-bottom-width: 2px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;padding-right: 20px !important;padding-left: 20px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;border-right-color: rgba(227,228,228,0.75) !important;border-bottom-color: rgba(227,228,228,0.75) !important;}”][vc_wp_posts title=”BROWSE THE NEWS ARCHIVE” number=”4″][/vc_column][vc_column border_color=”rgba(170,170,170,0.01)” width=”1/6″ css=”.vc_custom_1490225688999{margin-right: 10px !important;margin-bottom: 30px !important;border-right-width: 2px !important;border-bottom-width: 2px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;padding-right: 30px !important;padding-left: 20px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;border-right-color: rgba(227,228,228,0.75) !important;border-bottom-color: rgba(227,228,228,0.75) !important;}”][vc_widget_sidebar sidebar_id=”ca-sidebar-99363″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
The Honors and Awards Committee takes responsibility for determining the awardees for the three book awards, the field archaeology award, the “best poster” award, and the multiple membership service awards that ASOR gives annually; conducting the awards ceremony during the Members’ Meeting at the ASOR Annual Meeting; and discussing and advising the ASOR Board of Trustees about ASOR’s awards, including recommending to the Board the creation of new awards as deemed appropriate.
Lynn Welton, Chair (until December 31, 2025)
Class of 2023
Ra’anan Boustan (1st term)
Jessie DeGrado (1st term)
Ian Jones (2nd term)
Class of 2024
Mahri Leonard-Fleckman (2nd term)
Class of 2025
Susan Ackerman (1st term)
J.P. Dessel (1st term)
Pinar Durgun (2nd term)
Robert Mullins (2nd term)
Sharon Herbert (ex officio)
Andy Vaughn (ex officio, non-voting)[/vc_column_text][mk_divider][vc_column_text]
The Committee on Archaeological Research and Policy takes responsibility for designating archaeological fieldwork projects and archaeological publication projects as “CAP-affiliated,” thereby indicating that these projects have agreed to conform to the ASOR Policy on Professional Conduct and the Statement of General Standards for Projects Affiliated with ASOR. CAP-affiliated projects are eligible to apply for ASOR grants that support projects (Dana, Gold, Harris, and Seger Archaeological Project Grants). Some ASOR scholarships that support students’ participation in archaeological fieldwork are also available only for work at CAP-affiliated excavations. The committee is also responsible for discussing and debating matters of archaeological research and policy, especially with the goal of developing guidelines and resources for ASOR members and others regarding the highest scholarly and ethical standards for archaeological fieldwork and publications. In addition, through a subcommittee, it awards ASOR project grants and scholarships for fieldwork participation, unless otherwise specified in donor agreements.
A Typical Day with the Vayots Dzor Fortress Landscapes Project
Sofia Kane, 2022 Strange-Midkiff Scholarship Recipient
Thanks to the support of the Strange-Midkiff Scholarship for Fieldwork Participation, I was able to travel to Vayots Dzor, Armenia, in July of 2022 to participate in archaeological fieldwork. I joined the Vayots Dzor Fortress Landscapes Project, directed by Dr. Tiffany Earley-Spadoni, Dr. Arthur Petrosyan, and Dr. Boris Gasparyan.
The Vayots Dzor Fortress Landscapes Project is a multi-period project consisting both of survey and excavation, with concentrations of material from the Late Bronze/Early Iron Age as well as the medieval period.
This was my first field season in Armenia. For four weeks in July, I lived in the town of Areni while surveying and excavating. I greatly enjoyed working on a multi-period excavation, since my own focus is the late medieval period. It was interesting to collaborate with students focusing on other time periods and to discover more about the landscape from a diachronic perspective.
So, what does a typical day with the Vayots Dzor Fortress Landscapes Project look like?
Sofia Kane participating on the Vayots Dzor Fortress Landscapes Project in Armenia.
In the morning, we would wake up and have a filling breakfast prepared by our host. This started with lavash (soft flatbread), cheese, and fresh herbs such as basil and chives, which were combined together into a rolled sandwich. This staple of Armenian cuisine was accompanied by eggs, tea, and honey.
Next, we would split into two teams: one for the excavation, and one for survey. I was usually excavating, although on some days, I stayed at the dig house to illustrate finds, and on other days, I joined the survey team. The drive to the excavation featured beautiful glimpses of the Armenian countryside and a winding final stretch up into the hills. At the end of the drive, we unloaded the van and carried picks, buckets, trowels, and other tools up to the trench.
Once we got to the site, my role was to record sketches of the trench and daily summaries on the record-keeping sheets, and to excavate with pick and trowel. The area we were excavating had already been excavated in a previous season; our goal was to expand the pre-existing trench and to reach bedrock, thereby documenting all layers of habitation of the site.
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We ate lunch in the field and ended fieldwork in the mid-afternoon. After returning to the dig house and having our daily break, lab work commenced. My lab job was to illustrate the artifacts, mostly ceramics. I illustrated new ceramic finds by pencil, and digitally inked scans of penciled drawings from a previous season. I also had the opportunity to teach other students how to illustrate archaeological artifacts.
One question I am often asked is, why illustrate artifacts at all, when photography is faster? One answer is that illustration makes it possible to show objects in section. If one were to slice a vessel from top to bottom, the section is what the slice would look like. The section makes it easier to compare vessels from multiple sites and publications to see whether they are similar. Trying to record a vessel’s section with a photograph would result in a distorted image, and it would require damaging the vessel.
Illustration also makes it possible to re-create what a complete, or nearly complete, vessel would look like from only a few sherds. If one were to simply photograph a sherd, it would not reveal much about what the vessel looked like as a whole.
Meanwhile, photography has complementary uses: it can show the colors of glazes and surface decorations, and close-up photographs are able to show the composition of the clay. Together, photography and illustration create a balanced visual record of an archaeological artifact.
Towards the end of the season, we took final photos of the trench in the early-morning light, and I drew a top-plan of the trench. Drawing the top plan required about five hours of carefully measuring and sketching, because every rock and other feature of the trench needed to be plotted accurately in relation to the rest of the trench.
After wrapping up fieldwork, we carefully packed the artifacts for storage, transported them to the storage facility, and left for the capital city of Yerevan. Although this was my first summer in Armenia, I certainly hope it will not be my last.
Sofia Kane is a master’s student at the University of Crete in Rethymno, Crete in the Department of History and Archaeology, supervised by Dr. Antonis Anastasopoulos. Her research interests include archaeological illustration, medieval through Ottoman material culture, and the Ottoman-European scientific and intellectual networks of the 16th century.
Want to help more students and early career archaeologists get into the field? Donate to the cause today by selecting “Student Support” as your gift purpose!
Hilton Chicago 720 South Michigan Avenue Chicago, IL 60605
The in-person component of ASOR’s 2023 Annual Meeting will take place at the Hilton Chicago located at 720 South Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago. Overlooking Grant Park and Lake Michigan, the Hilton Chicago is ideally situated within walking distance of many great restaurants, shopping, public transportation, and many of Chicago’s top attractions like the Museum Campus and Millennium Park. The Hilton Chicago is a contemporary environment to enjoy ASOR sessions during the day and explore Chicago during the evening.
Reservations: ASOR has negotiated the discounted rates of $159 single/double, $184 triple, and $209 quad for reservations at the Hilton Chicago. You are encouraged to make your reservation early as ASOR’s block of rooms usually sells out before the meeting. Cancellations may be made up to 72 hours prior to arrival.
Make your reservation online in ASOR’s group block or by calling the hotel at 1-877-865-5320 and request the group rate for ASOR Annual Meeting (code ASO).
Parking: The parking garage at the Hilton Chicago offers self and valet options starting at $65/night with in/out privileges.
Public Transportation: The Hilton Chicago is 1/2 mile from the Roosevelt stop on the CTA Orange Line, and just over 1/2 mile from the CTA Blue Line, Jackson stop.
Dining: At the Hilton Chicago you can enjoy farm-to-fork fare, tap-to-pint favorites, and live entertainment at Kitty O’Sheas pub, or sit down to a formal dinner at 720 South Bar + Grill to experience Midwest flavors with fresh ingredients from the rooftop garden. Light fare and “on the go” items are available at Herb N’ Kitchen. Within a short walk of the hotel you will find a variety of restaurants from casual to fine dining.
Childcare: Neither ASOR nor the Hilton Chicago are in the position to hire or recommend childcare providers.
Travel Information (Coming Soon): As part of ASOR’s commitment toward carbon neutrality, we encourage all attendees who can to consider traveling to Chicago by train or bus. Visit our travel page for more information and savings on travel to and around Chicago.
Chicago Highlights: Did you know that Chicago is home to 56 museums, 125 art galleries, and 20 neighborhood art centers? It boasts 26 miles of lakefront, 580 parks and 26 beaches. We will be updating this page regularly with fun facts about the Windy City and links to some of Chicago’s best attractions.
Sheldon Fox
Charles Ellwood Jones
