Shipwrecks of Lake Erie: Fire, Storms, Collision
Wednesday, September 20, 2006, 7:30 pm
Georgann and Mike Wachter

Lake Erie has perhaps the largest concentration of shipwrecks per square mile of any body of water in the world. From the 1700s to the present, military and commercial vessels of all sorts have been lost on her waters. Through slides, video and stories, veteran shipwreck divers Georgann and Mike Wachter explore infamous disasters, such as the burning of the side-wheel steamer G.P. Griffith, as well as some lesser-known shipwrecks. They recount stories of thrilling rescue and heartbreaking tragedy.

 

An Archaeological View of Prisoners’ Confinement During the American Civil War: Experiences at Johnson’s Island Civil War Prison
Wednesday, October 11, 2006, 7:30 pm
Dr. David Bush, Heidelberg College

Since the spring of 1989, Dr. David Bush has been conducting archaeological excavations at the Johnson’s Island Civil War Prison. This site, located on a small island in Sandusky Bay (just north of Cedar Point) held more than 10,000 Confederate officers captured at hundreds of battles during the Civil War. Bush highlights some of the important discoveries made concerning prison life.

 

It Takes a Polis: The Art of Adolescence in Early Greece 
Wednesday, November 8, 2006, 7:30 pm
Dr. Susan Langdon, University of Missouri-Columbia

The return of figural images to objects of ceremonial and everyday use was one of the most important developments in Greek art during the Late Geometric period (circa 750-700 B.C.). Figural art was employed for social rituals in the emerging polis (or “city-state”). Dr. Susan Langdon surveys the spectrum of Geometric material culture to reconstruct the strategies used to transform boys and girls into properly gendered men and women. She explains why it’s clear that it took not only a family, but the entire community, to raise a child.

 

Etruscan Gold
Wednesday, March 14, 2007, 7:30 pm
Dr. Richard De Puma, University of Iowa

Dr. Richard De Puma addresses the three major techniques used in the creation of Etruscan gold jewelry between 750 and 300 B.C.: repoussé, filigree and granulation. He briefly discusses the unusual physical properties of gold, the early 19th-century discoveries that prompted an interest in Etruscan jewelry and the ancient sources of Etruscan gold. He also presents slides and microphotographs that illustrate some spectacular examples of Etruscan gold jewelry.

 

Living It Up in the Late Roman World: The Country Mansions of the Mega-Rich 
Wednesday, April 11, 2007, 7:30 pm
Dr. Roger J.A. Wilson, University of British Columbia

Dr. Roger Wilson reviews some of the characteristics of Roman imperial country retreats at the beginning of the fourth century. He explores the architectural links between these places and grand fourth-century mansions in the Roman countryside likely to have belonged to wealthy private individuals. He also analyzes the use of architectural space and choice of subject matter for the principal mosaic floors in light of the ways in which each owner chose to show off his wealth, status and learning and attempted to outdo his rivals in lavishness and ostentation.

 

An Archaeological History of Cyrene (Libya)
Wednesday, May 9, at 7:30 p.m. – AIA lecture – Prof. Susan Kane (Oberlin)
Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Murch Auditorium