Dr. Elizabeth Barber, Professor Emerita of Archaeology and Linguistics at Occidental College, Los Angeles & Research Associate at The Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, UCLA
An Associate Members’ Event
Thursday, November 5, 2009
7:00 pm, Oriental Institute
Until very recently, women spent their lives in occupations that left almost nothing in the archaeological or literary record: cooking food, making cloth, raising children. So historians have largely ignored women and their work, concentrating instead on more durable monuments of stone and metal. Yet the basic textile arts are considerably older than those of metalwork, pottery, stone architecture, or even agriculture, and have absorbed far more labor hours. Fortunately, careful sleuthing and new scientific methods of retrieving perishable fibers have opened a new window onto this world of women’s work.
In tracing the origins and development of cloth production in western Eurasia, this lecture also presents the stories of ancient queens, housewives, businesswomen, and slave girls, all struggling to make the cloth and clothing required by their culture while running their households. Join us for this fascinating lecture by Dr. Barber, followed by a reception in the Edgar and Deborah Jannotta Mesopotamian Gallery exclusively for Associate Level Members and their guests.
Kindly RSVP by October 30, 2009 to Maeve Reed at 773-834-9777 or oi-membership@uchicago.edu
For more information on becoming an Associate Member, please visit: https://oi.uchicago.edu/getinvolved/, or contact Maeve Reed, Membership Coordinator at (773) 834-9777 or oi-membership@uchicago.edu.
