CSUSB hosted two tables showcasing two of its programs at the Archaeology Expo at Riverside’s Hidden Valley Nature Center for the Archaeological Institute of America’s International Archaeology Day held recently. Guy Hepp and Nicholas Jew, both assistant professors of anthropology, along with their students, promoted the Department of Anthropology’s Master of Arts in Applied Archaeology program at the Oct. 20 event. They displayed some of the teaching collections used in the department and discussed Hepp’s research on ancient musical instruments from Mesoamerica. Kate Liszka, assistant professor of history, and her students promoted the Wadi el-Hudi Expedition to the Egyptian Eastern Desert. Wadi el-Hudi is where the ancient Egyptians mined amethyst for jewelry. The Wadi el-Hudi team demonstrated its latest 3D modeling and mapping techniques of inscriptions and the sites.  Liszka, who is the Benson and Pamela Harer Fellow in Egyptology at CSUSB, and her students also organized several fun archaeological activities for children related to the dig including a mock archaeological excavation where they could find bits of amethyst, broken pottery or imitation Egyptian seal impressions.  There was also a story time about the Ancient Egyptians mining amethyst after which kids could make their own purple bracelets. Kids could also color images of amethyst or some of the inscriptions found in Wadi el-Hudi.  The anthropology department also hosted two tables at the San Bernardino County Museum in Redlands, where kids were able to learn about 3D printing and stone tools, as well as play with a microscope. Both the history and anthropology departments at CSUSB inspired people of all generations to learn more about archaeology.

 

CSUSB’s graduate program in applied archaeology (pictured) and the Wadi el-Hudi Expedition to the Egyptian Eastern Desert featured their work at the event that celebrated International Archaeology Day on Oct. 20. Photo courtesy of Kate Liszka/CSUSB Department of History