September 3, 2024
The AIA sent ten students to the field this summer with $2000 Jane C. Waldbaum Field School Scholarships! This year’s cohort brought a wide variety of archaeological interests and academic backgrounds. Please join us in welcoming Lucy Walaszek.
Name: Lucy Walaszek (she/her)
School: Columbia University
Field School: Hadrian’s Villa, Italy
Miles Traveled: 4286.67 miles (about 6898.73 km)
Bio: Lucy Walaszek is a third-year undergraduate in the Columbia University and Trinity College Dublin Dual BA program, where she is pursuing a degree in archaeology. She will be participating in Columbia University’s field school at Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli, Italy. She is excited to learn field techniques and to gain some speaking skills in Italian.
Project Description: Professor Francesco de Angelis (Dept of Art History and Archaeology) co-directs a program of field research and a summer field school at Hadrian’s Villa, a UNESCO World Heritage site near Rome, Italy. The Villa was built for the Roman Emperor Hadrian during his reign of AD 117-138.
The project investigates the ancient life of Hadrian’s villa and documents its reception in modern times. The very exceptionality of the site has often proved to be a hindrance to understanding it on the basis of a systematic comparison with similar cases, such as the imperial buildings on the Palatine in Rome, other imperially owned villas in central Italy, or Roman villas in general. The project aims to contextualize Hadrian’s villa within this broader reference network in order to research the dynamics of the Roman imperial court as it can be gleaned through a holistic approach to evidence, from material findings to literary and epigraphical sources.
One of the main issues the project is addressing is the day-to-day dimension of the villa—the “humble” artifacts found at the site having usually been neglected in favor of the more prestigious sculptures and mosaics—as well as the relationship of this everyday aspect to the ceremonial and official uses of the complex. The post-Hadrianic phases of the villa are also being systematically documented and analyzed for the first time. Finally, the project will focus on the relationship of the villa to its surroundings in the territory of Tivoli.
Since its inception in 2007, the Waldbaum Fund has supported undergraduate juniors, seniors, and first-year graduate students as they venture into the field for the first time. The fund helps make it possible for them to participate in this vital part of their archaeological training by contributing to travel costs, accommodations, and tuition. Your contribution can make a significant difference for these young scholars. Donate today to support the future of archaeology at archaeological.org/donatewaldbaum
