Saturday, April 20, 2013 at 11am in
the Pillsbury Auditorium at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts
In 1872, Sir Charles Lyell noted that it was
“probable that a greater number of monuments of
the skill and industry of man will, in the course of
the ages, be collected together in the bed of the
ocean than will exist at any other time on the
surface of the continents.” In the early
twentieth century a number of astonishing
underwater discoveries at Antikythera, Mahdia,
Marathon, and Artemision came to illustrate this
insightful statement. The field of maritime
archaeology, however, only truly developed as a
consequence of advances in marine technology
during the middle of the last century which
allowed archaeologists to bring the profession’s
scientific standards to the underwater environment.
Now a mature, dynamic discipline, this area of
study has maintained its strong association with
cutting-edge advances in science and technology.
Nowhere is this more visible than in one of the field’s most exciting frontiers – deep-submergence
archaeology.
This lecture will trace the evolution of
methodologies first utilized by the pioneer of
underwater archaeology, Dr. George Bass, as they
are applied today in some of the most challenging
environments in the Mediterranean Sea, the Black
Sea and elsewhere. It will concentrate on case
studies tied directly to the lecturer’s research,
illustrating both recent discoveries, as well as the
unique parameters that apply to deep-water sites.
As will be demonstrated, with our ever-increasing
abilities to locate and study the monuments of the
skill and industry of humankind located on the
ocean floor, Charles Lyell’s words echo all the
more true today.
About the Speaker: Alexis Catsambis is a maritime archaeologist who holds his degrees from the Nautical Archaeology Program of Texas A&M University (Ph.D., M.A.) and the Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity of the University of Birmingham, U.K. In his professional capacity, Dr. Catsambis serves the Naval History & Heritage Command as an archaeologist and cultural resource manager, providing for the stewardship, research conservation, and curation of the U.S. Navy’s sunken craft and associated artifacts. Through his academic research, Dr. Catsambis has directed and participated in a breadth of archaeological investigations. While focusing on the Mediterranean and Black Seas in antiquity, his practical experience spans to the North American continent and includes underwater visual surveys and site assessments, remote-sensing surveys, terrestrial excavations, as well as shallow- and deep-water excavations. He has also been involved with the conservation and digital reconstruction of sites and artifacts, having spent time at the Warren Lasch Conservation Center of Clemson University and the NATO Undersea Research Centre in La Spezia, Italy. His recent publications include the Oxford Handbook of Maritime Archaeology, which he co-edited with Dr. Donny Hamilton and Dr. Ben Ford. He is the AIA’s Bass Lecturer for 2012/2013.
About the Speaker: Alexis Catsambis is a maritime archaeologist who holds his degrees from the Nautical Archaeology Program of Texas A&M University (Ph.D., M.A.) and the Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity of the University of Birmingham, U.K. In his professional capacity, Dr. Catsambis serves the Naval History & Heritage Command as an archaeologist and cultural resource manager, providing for the stewardship, research conservation, and curation of the U.S. Navy’s sunken craft and associated artifacts. Through his academic research, Dr. Catsambis has directed and participated in a breadth of archaeological investigations. While focusing on the Mediterranean and Black Seas in antiquity, his practical experience spans to the North American continent and includes underwater visual surveys and site assessments, remote-sensing surveys, terrestrial excavations, as well as shallow- and deep-water excavations. He has also been involved with the conservation and digital reconstruction of sites and artifacts, having spent time at the Warren Lasch Conservation Center of Clemson University and the NATO Undersea Research Centre in La Spezia, Italy. His recent publications include the Oxford Handbook of Maritime Archaeology, which he co-edited with Dr. Donny Hamilton and Dr. Ben Ford. He is the AIA’s Bass Lecturer for 2012/2013.
A no-host lunch open to AIA members with the speaker will follow the lecture at
Christos Greek Restaurant, 2632 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis.
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