From Fish Skin Bags to Coconut Fiber Armor: Revitalizing Anthropological Collections in an Era of Climate Change

The third presentation in the Archaeological Institute of America’s Dayton Society 2023-2024 Lecture Series presented by Dr. Amy Margaris, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Chair of the Archaeological Studies program at Oberlin College.

From Fish Skin Bags to Coconut Fiber Armor: Revitalizing Anthropological Collections in an Era of Climate Change

Specimen collecting was a cornerstone of 19th century science and anthropology. 150 years later anthropological collections can still be found at many colleges, lingering in closets or forgotten on storeroom shelves. Using cultural heritage items at Oberlin College as my starting point, I’ll explore the question: What use are they today, and for whom?

Dr. Margaris focuses on pre-contact Alaskan and her work has appeared in Museum Anthropology, the Alaska Journal of Anthropology, and the Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory. She is also de facto curator of the Oberlin College Ethnographic Collection, a legacy collection that she is working collaboratively to reunite with its originating communities, from North Slope Alaskan villages to the Pacific island of Kiribati. Dr. Margaris received her Ph.D. in 2006 from the University of Arizona.

This lecture is scheduled to take place in person in the Science Center Auditorium (SC 114) at The University of Dayton.

For those planning to attend in person please see UD’s COVID-19 Protocols page: https://udayton.edu/studev/ud-families/covid-19_protocols.php?fbclid=IwAR3v0CWid_X_ht37mjKItwIviUdVEL48hIeF_9cEfrb1BeS2uP9I7cjLiRY

For a campus map with building and parking information visit https://udayton.edu/map/

Thanks to the Archaeological Institute of America’s Lecture Program and its Dayton Society members this lecture is free and open to the public.