We are two months into 2017 and our preparations for this summer's Mummy Studies Field School are well underway! We will be adding new activities to this year's course along with some new faces. Pre-trip meetings have already begun here in Lincoln and before long, we will be introducing our visiting scholars and future students in spotlight posts. You will also be seeing reflections posts from last year's students, so be sure to check back with us now and again!
Last summer's MSFS saw some exciting trips to Palermo, Milazzo, and Piraino. This year, we will be adding a trip to Savoca, where we will encounter mummies of the late 1700s to discuss how mummies can be safely displayed and preserved.
This year's MSFS will devote a day to discussions of Egyptian animal and human mummies. This day's classes will be led by experts in the field, Dr. Lidija McKnight and Dr. Raffaella Bianucci. Dr. McKnight from the Manchester Museum in the UK specializes in animal mummies. Dr. Bianucci is a paleopathologist from the University of Turin, Italy. We are all looking forward to learning more about Egyptian mummies and comparing them to those we will be seeing in Sicily!
We are also excited to announce that we will be integrating a few new class activities. Students will be recreating ancient mummification recipes using local herbs and vinegars, monitoring insect activity in crypts, and examining the abiotic conditions that impact mummy preservation and curation. The day of discussing dietary reconstructions will also now feature a pollen interactive developed by Dr. Deb Meier.
All of these new additions will enrich this year's program and provide broader contexts for mummy studies, but don't worry, we will still be learning about the ethics of mummy studies, facial reconstruction, paleopathology, taphonomy, conservation, and curation just like last year's class. You can also look forward to spending lots of time in the crypts and churches of Santa Lucia del Mela, Piraino, Milazzo, and Palermo.
For those still interested in joining us in Sicily, deadlines for the field school have been extended! Please contact Dr. Karl J. Reinhard at kreinhard1@mac.com if you would like to know more!
