ASOR held its second hybrid meeting last month, November 20-23, at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza and online. More than 1,000 people were registered for the meeting with approximately 850 attending in Boston.

The hybrid format of the meeting offered a way for attendees in Boston and online to share their research on an international platform. There were more than 600 paper, poster, and workshop presentations given on the academic program. ASOR’s Annual Meeting Mobile App (powered by Guidebook) provided means for in-person and virtual attendees to connect and to build personalized schedules.

If you attended the 2024 Annual Meeting in Boston or online, please complete the 2024 Annual Meeting Evaluation to provide valuable feedback that will be considered as we plan for 2025 and beyond.

Read on for a summary of the 2024 Annual Meeting, including features from the academic program, the business schedule, special events, and the 2024 ASOR Honors & Awards.

The 2024 Hybrid ASOR Annual Meeting opened on Wednesday, November 20, with the Plenary Address by Dr. Fikri Kulakoğlu (Professor of Archaeology at Ankara University and director of the Kültepe excavations since 2006) titled, Transition from Early Bronze Age to Middle Bronze Age at Kültepe: Architecture, Figurines and Seals. The presentation generated a lot of discussion and enthusiasm which continued throughout the evening at the Welcome Reception. View the Opening Remarks from ASOR’s Executive Director and President, as well as the Plenary Address by Dr. Fikri Kulakoğlu here.

ASOR provided laptops for each meeting room so that presentations could be pre-loaded and tested and Zoom connections were set-up in advance.

The sessions, workshops, and posters on the academic program took place Thursday-Saturday, November 21-23, over 127 time-slots with presenters representing 32 countries. The Poster Session featured 30 projects shared in Boston, as well a virtual poster gallery. Online attendees could join sessions and workshops via Zoom from the 2024 ASOR Online Schedule. Session and workshop organizers were supported by assistants who were trained to facilitate the hybrid logistics of the meeting.

The recorded content of the Annual Meeting is being edited and will be available to registered attendees via the ASOR Online Portal / 2024 Online Schedule through July of 2025. Registration include access to past Annual Meeting content in the ASOR Online Library. Register for the 2025 ASOR Annual Meeting or purchase access to the ASOR Online Library in the ASOR Online Portal.

The Exhibit Hall at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza included publishers, book sellers, an antiquarian, and booths by 2024 Annual Meeting sponsors, Chicago University Press (Platinum Sponsor), ISD (Platinum Sponsor), and Kiosk (Silver Sponsor). Attendees browsed the exhibits on the centrally located Mezzanine foyer between sessions and during sponsored coffee breaks.

Attendees in Boston enjoyed several special events at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza, as well as complimentary access to the Museum of Fine Arts and the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East. Events at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza included the Early Career Scholars brown-bag lunch panel, Roundtable Discussions, and the Exhibit Raffle. Receptions were hosted during the event by ASOR, the W. F. Albright Institute for Archaeological Research (AIAR), and the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (CAARI). The Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East (HMANE)  hosted a private reception for ASOR attendees on Saturday evening after the meeting ended.

ASOR would like to thank everyone who participated and contributed to the success of the 2024 Annual Meeting. Please enjoy some of the memorable moments captured in the photo album below, and we hope you will continue to enjoy the recorded content from the meeting through June 2025.

Please mark your calendars for ASOR’s 2025 Annual Meeting at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza and online, November 19–22. The Call for Member-Organized Session & Workshop proposals will be open from December 15, 2024 – January 15, 2025.