FRIENDS OF ASOR WEBINARS
Life and Death along the Nile: Insights from the Bioarchaeology of Nubia Expedition
Friends of ASOR present the next webinar in our monthly series on September 29, 2022, at 6:00 pm EDT, featuring Prof. Brenda J. Baker and moderated by Prof. Geoff Emberling. The Bioarchaeology of Nubia Expedition (BONE) project area encompasses nearly 100 square meters on the north bank of the Nile River between the fourth and fifth cataracts in northern Sudan. More than 200 sites from the Earlier (more than 250,000 years ago) Stone Age through the Christian period (c. 550-1400 CE) have been documented. Sites include areas of habitation, rock art and gongs, a fort, and cemeteries. Excavated cemeteries consist of clusters of Kerma period graves (c. 2500-1500 BCE) and a large late Meroitic to Christian period cemetery (used c. 200-1400 CE) with burials of more than 100 individuals.
Recent research includes evaluation of evidence that graves were often re-entered within memory of a person鈥檚 death to retrieve heirlooms rather than looted without regard for the deceased. Inclusion of imported grave goods reveals integration into far-flung trade networks through time and biogeochemical analyses of tooth enamel show that people during the Kerma period were highly mobile. Spatial and social organization of cemeteries, and distinct characteristics marked during life (e.g., purposeful removal of teeth) or death (e.g., burial with particular items) illuminate aspects of ancient Nubian identity and mortuary behavior.
Join Dr. Baker as she examines the individuals buried in these cemeteries to reveal little known aspects of the lived experiences of the past people who inhabited this area of ancient Sudan. Please be aware that images of human remains will be shown during this lecture. The webinar聽will conclude with a live Q&A session moderated by Prof. Geoff Emberling (University of Michigan).
Brenda J. Baker is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Curator of Nubian Collections in the Center for Bioarchaeological Research, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, at Arizona State University. She is Director of the ASU Bioarchaeology of Nubia Expedition (BONE), conducting fieldwork in a project area west of Abu Hamed, Sudan. As a bioarchaeologist, her research integrates archaeology and biological anthropology to investigate the lifeways of past people, their funerary practices, and evidence of disease they experienced. She has worked extensively in the U.S. and at Abydos, Egypt. She is also the bioarchaeologist for Princeton University鈥檚 project in Polis, Cyprus, where she is analyzing remains of people who were interred in and around two Late Antique to medieval basilicas. Dr. Baker is a founding co-editor of Bioarchaeology International and serves on the advisory board of the American-Sudanese Archaeological Research Center (AmSARC). She is a co-organizer (with Geoff Emberling) of the ASOR/AmSARC workshop, 鈥淩eintegrating Africa in the Ancient World.鈥
This webinar will be recorded and all paid registrants will be sent a link to view the recording.
ASOR Sustaining Members: $0 | ASOR Members: $6 | Public: $12
Season Pass: ASOR Sustaining Members: $0 | ASOR Members: $75 | Public: $150
To receive your ASOR member discount, . If you are new to ASOR, please click on the “” link to register your e-mail address and choose a password for our online store. Once logged in, navigate to “Meeting and Event Registration” to register for the webinar and pay the fee. Each paid registrant will receive a confirmation e-mail when you pay for the webinar. If you do not receive this e-mail, then you are not registered. Please e-mail membership@asor.org with any questions or issues with registering.
You will be e-mailed the Zoom Webinar link in the week prior to the lecture on September 29, 2022. If you do not receive the link by the close of business on the Tuesday before the webinar, please e-mail membership@asor.org immediately. This webinar will be recorded and all paid registrants will be sent a link to view the recording.
All proceeds from this webinar are used to fund scholarships for members as well as increasing ASOR’s online resources, which are free to the public.