Nancy Serwint
Serwint teaches ancient art and archaeology with a focus on the cultures of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. She received her doctorate in classical archaeology from Princeton University in 1987 and a master's from the same institution in 1983. Prior to that she received a master's in art history (ancient) from the University of Chicago in 1977, and her bachelor's in classics (ancient Greek) was awarded in 1973 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
As a classical archaeologist, Serwint has worked on excavations in Sicily (Morgantina), in the Athenian Agora, at ancient Corinth, and since 1983 at ancient Marion/Arsinoe in Cyprus. Her research focus has been varied, with investigation and publications dealing with ancient athleticism and athletic representations in the Greek sculptural repertoire and gender issues in Cyprus and the ancient Near East. Her recent work is devoted to the study of the coroplastic arts of Cyprus and ancient Israel, focusing on production and manufacturing strategies, cross-cultural stylistic influences, and the role played by terracotta votive sculpture in cult ritual and religious worship. She currently serves as the co-director of the Princeton University Cyprus Expedition. Publication projects involve the study and publication of the Persian Period figurines from the site of Tell Halif, Israel (Lahav Research Project, Phase IV), the terracotta figurines from the area of the hippocrome in ancient Carthage (Tunisia), and the corpus of terracotta sculpture from the ancient sites of Marion and Arsinoe (Cyprus). She is the co-president of the board of trustees of the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (Nicosia, Cyprus) and is a board member of the American Schools of Overseas Research.
Education
PhD, Classical Archaeology, Princeton University, 1987
MA, Princeton University, 1983
MA, Art History (Ancient), University of Chicago, 1977
BA, Classics (Ancient Greek), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1973
Expertise Areas
Area of study
Research Interests
- Greek, Roman and Egyptian Art and Archaeology
- Inter-cultural Connections in the Eastern Mediterranean
- Coroplastic Arts in the Ancient World
Publications
“The Coroplastic Art of Ancient Marion.” In Proceedings of the International Conference Terracotta Figurines in the Greek and Roman Eastern Mediterranean: Production, Diffusion, Iconography and Function, 2-6 June 2007, Izmir, Turkey. (2011, forthcoming)
“In the Shadow of the Swedish Cyprus Expedition at Ancient Marion: The Issue of Ethnicity and Cross-Cultural Exchange.” Pp. 229-245 in Medelhavsmuseet. Focus on the Mediterranean. Finds and Results from the Swedish Cyprus Expedition 1927-1931: A Gender Perspective. Stockholm: Medelhavsmuseet, 2009.
Gender in the Sanctuary: Votive Offerings and Deity at Ancient Marion.” Pp. 313-334 In Gender through Time in the Ancient Near East, ed. D. Bolger. Lanham, MD: AltaMira Press, 2008.
Maliszewski, Dariusz; Serwint, Nancy; Smith, Joanna S.; and Walker, Bethany J. "Polis-Pyrgos Archaeological Project: Fifth Preliminary Report on the 1999-2001 Research Seasons in Northwestern Cyprus.” Thetis: Mannheimer Beiträge zur Klassischen Archäologie undGeschichte Griechenlands und Zyperns 10 (2003) 7-40.
Jacobs, Paul and Serwint, Nancy. “Archive as Artifact: The Archaeological Report in the Digital Age.” Pp. 329-334 in Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology. Proceedings of the 30th Conference Computer Applications and Archaeology, Heraklion, Crete, April 2002., eds. M. Doerr and A. Sarris. Heraklion: Archive of Monuments and Publicatiions, Hellenic Ministry of Culture, 2003.
Co-editor, with Bolger, Diane, Engendering Aphrodite. Women and Society in Ancient Cyprus. CAARI Monograph Series 3. ASOR Archaeological Reports. American Schools of Oriental Research: Boston, 2002.
“Aphrodite and Her Near Eastern Sisters: Spheres of Influence.” Pp. 325-350 in Engendering Aphrodite. Women and Society in Ancient Cyprus, eds. D. Bolger and N. Serwint. CAARI Monograph Series 3. ASOR Archaeological Reports 7. American Schools of Oriental Research: Boston, 2002.
“The Iconography of the Female Athletic Costume at the Heraia and Its Relationship to Female Initiation Rites.” American Journal of Archaeology 97 (1993) 403-422.