Info on excavation opportunities

[Lepidina]

Joint U.S.-Romanian archaeological excavations welcome students and<br>
interested avocational volunteers to 2 sites:<br>
<br>
1) Roman city of Tropaeum Traiani, near Black Sea (2nd-6th cents. AD)<br>
2) Neolithic settlement (Scanteia) in N. Moldavia (5th millennium BC)<br>
<br>
See comprehensive web site: www.terraeuropaea.org <br>
[Numerous photos, maps, information, application procedures]<br>
<br>
Contact: Prof. Linda Ellis, San Francisco State University<br>
[[email protected]]<br>
<br>
Descriptions of sites:<br>
<br>
TROPAEUM TRAIANI is a fortified Roman city near the Black Sea, SE Romania.<br>
Near the city is an immense triumphal monument, built by Roman veterans<br>
of the first war against the Dacians (101-102 AD) and an on-site museum<br>
which houses original sculpture from the monument. There are on-going<br>
excavations in the city center every summer. In addition, we will be<br>
conducting surveys of the surrounding territory to record archaeological<br>
sites in the vicinity of the city. Excursions available for participants<br>
to museums and all 3 ancient Greek and Roman cities on Romania's Black Sea<br>
coast: Histria, Tomis, and Callatis, as well as a boat excursion through<br>
the Danube Delta.<br>
<br>
SCANTEIA is a Late Neolithic village in northern Moldavia, near the city<br>
of Iasi. Carbon-14 dates: 4350-4200 BC. This site belongs to the<br>
"Cucuteni-Tripolye Culture" which is renowned for its superb tricolor<br>
pottery--the most technologically and artistically advanced ceramics of<br>
its time. The excavations consist of prehistoric houses rich in<br>
archaeological finds. Excursion to Moldvavia's 15th century painted<br>
monasteries (UNESCO World Art Heritage sites) is available for<br>
participants.<br>
<br>
We are committed to COMMUNITY ARCHAEOLOGY by providing assistance and<br>
outreach to local communities. Excavations are sponsored by Terra<br>
Europaea, a U.S. registered, non-profit organization supporting an aid<br>
program for rural Romanian schools and summer employment for local<br>
teenagers in rural villages near the excavations, and an educational book<br>
donation program to schools and museums.<br>
<br>
See our web site for more details: www.terraeuropaea.org <br>
<br>
Linda Ellis<br>
Professor & Director<br>
Museum Studies Program<br>
San Francisco State University<br>
<br>
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[Berbescu]

Many of the advertised excavations that take place in Romania are organised as a profit making business. If they are asking for more than 200 or 300 Euros per week, then they are blatently making a huge profit. If it is an excavation run for research and you are paying only to contribute your share to the costs to run the excavation, then it shouldn't cost more than about 200 Euros per week for a very good excavation with equipment and weekend excursions. (Some very basic excavations would only cost about 50 to 100 Euros per week for you to contibute your share of costs.)

I recommend that if someone wants to work on an excavation in Romania (and the same is true of many countries) that you contact the various museums and universities that have history departments. Ask them who is excavating at a site from the epoch that you like (ex. Roman epoch) and ask for his email address. Most researchers, in specific young researchers, are very happy to have new people on their research team, even if it's just for one excavation. The main university for Roman studies is Babes-Bolyai Univesity in Cluj-Napoca.
http://hiphi.ubbcluj.ro/hiphi/index.htm (in Romanian only)

Here is the list of faculty members. You can click on their name for a sort of CV. (Most pages are in Romanian but most youngs can speak English also. Many of the elderly can speak German.) Look at the names under "Catedra de Istorie antică şi arheologie" (Department of Ancient History and Archaeology)
http://hiphi.ubbcluj.ro/hiphi/publicatii/home.htm

http://hiphi.ubbcluj.ro/hiphi/studii_ro ... me_en.html (Roman project, in English)

The email of the faculty is [email protected]

I hope this is useful.


Ioan

[sitalkes]

Terrific, thanks! I tried a few months ago to email every academic at one of the Universities in Cluj-Napoca who had written about Roman or Dacian military history, and also their international studies department, and none of them answered me. One message I sent to Bucharest University which was titled "Thracian Research" bounced back with "99% Certain Junk Mail" in the message. I think maybe their junk email filter is too strong and the messages are not getting through.