Department of Art and Art History News + Announcements

 

Dr. David Stuart has been awarded a UNESCO medal for his lifetime contributions to the study of ancient Maya culture and archaeological sites, including those categorized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This is the first time UNESCO World Heritage Centre has awarded this honor in Latin America. Other recipients honored at the ceremony were the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Archeology and History of Mexico), archeologist Enrique Nalda (inmemoriam), and the magazine Arqueología Mexicana. The medal recognition was instituted by the United Nations in 1948, and is awarded to recipients for their important work in cultural and historical conservation.

Francesco Bandarin (Italy), Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre and UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Culture, stated in his presentation of the award that “Dr. Stuart’s research has contributed to the study of Maya culture in its archeological and anthropological dimensions, and Maya culture is now highest in the UNESCO list of world heritage conservation. Therefore UNESCO recognizes the importance of Dr. Stuart’s work in the field”

“This is a special time for Maya archaeology and epigraphy. Until recently we were never in a position to talk about the history of Maya civilization; now we have identified their dynasties and studied their politics and societies; but there is yet a lot of work ahead of us,” said Dr. Stuart.

For more information on the award visit the  INAH website.

Dr. Astrid Runggaldier joins the Department of Art and Art History this fall as a Senior Lecturer with a teaching focus on Mesoamerican cultures. Through the Mesoamerica Center, she will lead the courses of UT’s semester-long Study Abroad program at Casa Herrera in Antigua, Guatemala.

Originally from Italy, Runggaldier is an anthropological archaeologist interested in ancient Mesoamerican cultures and in particular in Maya architecture, households, and built environments. In 2009 she received her Ph.D in Archaeology from Boston University with a dissertation entitled “Memory and Materiality in Monumental Architecture: Construction and Reuse of a Late Preclassic Maya Palace at San Bartolo, Guatemala.” She has been in excavations in Guatemala and Belize, as well as in the northeastern US, Cyprus, and Turkey. Runggaldier has worked at San Bartolo, Guatemala since 2003, where her research has explored palaces, elite and ordinary residences from the Preclassic to Late Classic periods. Currently she is also involved in the Brea Project in the middle Belize River valley, where she directs an archaeological laboratory and pursues the investigation of Preclassic settlement.