When students went home, Augustana's Calling Club went to work
Soon after leaving campus in late March as a precaution against COVID-19, Augustana students started receiving calls and emails of support from college employees.
New Evidence for the Life of an Etruscan Soldier
A scholar of classical art and archaeology will talk about what the helmets of Etruscan soldiers may reveal about their lives and culture.
Dr. Hilary Becker, from Binghamton University in New York, will give a lecture on “The Etruscan Helmets from Vetulonia: New Evidence for the Life of an Etruscan Soldier.”
"Greek and Roman sources help us to visualize Etruscan armies fighting against the Romans, but since no Etruscan literary testimony or histories has survived, little is known about the Etruscan military. A group of approximately 125 bronze helmets of Negau type was buried in a votive deposit outside of the city wall of Vetulonia in the 5th century B.C. This unique deposit makes it possible to learn about dedicatory practices, the expectation for the soldiers purchasing arms, and even what do with one’s armor in the off-season.
"We will start by considering the implications of dedicating helmets to the gods. The Etruscans gave gifts to the gods but how often was this a practice with their armor? Further, would an Etruscan soldier be more likely to dedicate his armor to the gods or take it with him to his tomb? Many of the helmets from Vetulonia have inscriptions, which will be examined for what they can tell us about both Etruscan society and the Etruscan army."
Dr. Becker is an assistant professor of classics. She has published articles dealing with Etruscan economy and settlement patterns and co-edited "Votives, Places and Rituals in Etruscan Religion." She is writing a book about the trade in Roman pigments, an investigation that started with her research on the only surviving pigment shop from ancient Rome.
Archaeology and Social Change on the Plains
An archaeologist who studies the Great Plains will talk about social changes in the 1300-1400s that led to the appearance of modern Native American nations.
Dr. Douglas Bamforth, professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado, Boulder, will speak on "The Lynch Site and 13th and 14th Century Ethnogenesis on the Central Plains." His talk is part of a yearly series by the Archaeological Institute of America.
Plains farmers settled at the Lynch site in northeastern Nebraska during the latter decades of the 13th century, in the midst of a wave of social change and dislocation across the mid-continent as the Native American city of Cahokia collapsed and drought spread widely.
In contrast to the small homesteads on the central Plains before this time, Lynch covers nearly 200 acres, suggesting a community bigger than anything that had existed in the region before. Potters at the site made Plains vessels and Midwestern Oneota vessels in households that were nearly side-by-side and mixed these styles together on other pots.
This lecture addresses the social changes at work in the mid-continent at this time along with the history of work at Lynch from the 1930s to the present, including geophysical prospecting and excavation in the last two years. Viewed in the context of the Plains as a whole, the changes at Lynch and nearby sites represent a sea-change in social formations and likely mark the appearance of the modern Pawnee and Arikara nations.
Dr. Bamforth is interested in the study of how ancient people made and used stone tools. His has focused on how human use of the Plains landscape responded to long-term environmental change during the Paleoindian period (from roughly 11,000 to 8,000 BC).
He also studies the archaeology of farmers on the central and northern Plains during the last 1,000 years. He is working in a long-term field project that examines the archaeology of the Ceramic Period along the Pine Ridge in northwestern Nebraska.
Augustana chooses Schafer '01 as basketball coach
Steve Schafer, a 2001 graduate of Augustana, has been selected to become the 16th head men’s basketball coach in Viking history.
Considering grad school? Faculty offer advice
Three humanities professors—Drs. Lauren Hammond, Margaret Morse and Heidi Storl—offer tips and a timeline for successful grad school applications, starting junior year.
Seriously good work by seniors shows they’re ready
Proud professors share examples of excellent Senior Inquiry projects, from computer science to art to public health.
Alumni write letters to support, inspire students
When campus closed this spring, Augustana alumni wrote letters that reminded students of their "forever connection" to the college.
Curbside Concert: Brett Dale
Brett Dale will perform a Curbside Concert, sponsored by the River Music Experience and Russell Construction.
Members of the community are invited to come out to the Anderson Outdoor Pavilion (on the south side of the Brunner Theatre Center).
All those attending should bring a lawn chair or blanket and plan to practice social distancing.
Since 2003, Dale has performed and traveled with the Chicago-based Lonnie Brooks Blues Band, and locally with The Candymakers.
How do you teach a jazz dance move via iPhone?
Teaching at a distance, instead of in the studio or rehearsal space, Augustana arts professors get creative.
Alumni make a difference in tough times
An occupational therapist, a law student, a businessowner and a 3rd-grade teacher are just four of the thousands of alumni making a difference during the coronavirus crisis.