Sandra A Scham
Biographic Data
| ID | 3618458 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Sandra A Scham |
| GIVEN NAMES | Sandra A |
| FAMILY NAME | Scham |
| SIGNATURE | SCHAM S A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Catholic University of America |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 21 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 17 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 21 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1998 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
In Memoriam
Levantine Entanglements
Two Travelers from an Antique Land
The pasts and presents of Greece and Israel have been intertwined in diverse ways for several millennia. Some events in these countries have paralleled each other, some have placed the two cultures in conflict, and some, like Ottoman and British colonialism, have made an indelible mark on them in the modern world. This thought-provoking and intense dialogue between two archaeologists, whose careers have involved frequent encounters with some of t…
In Memoriam
Ken Holum, esteemed historian, beloved teacher, and valued friend and colleague, lost his battle with pancreatic cancer on September 20, 2017. He was best known to archaeologists as the dedicated director of the University of Maryland's archaeological program at Caesarea in Israel and, under Ken's expert hand, invaluable research was conducted at that important site. The discoveries of the palace of Herod the Great, the temple built by Herod and …
Archaeology, Shared Heritage, and Community at Akko, Israel
The international significance of Akko's heritage is best illustrated by the inscription of two UNESCO World Heritage sites in this town of just over 55,000 people. This article describes three projects that focus on the concept of a shared heritage at a World Heritage site in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, diverse town situated in a region that continues to experience ongoing religious and ethnic conflict. The most recent, and still ongoing, e…
Power and Pathos
The Hellenistic period (323 to 31 BCE) was the culmination of the steady advance of Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean, reaching as far to the east as Pakistan. Greek mystery religions became increasingly popular during this time and paved the way for the spread of Christianity during the later Roman period. This was also a time in which Greek art underwent a metamorphosis from a relatively formal mode of expression into an impassioned in…
The Legacy of Fakhreddine II—Renaissance Prince of Mount Lebanon
The Druze Prince Fakhreddine el Maani II is acknowledged by some historians as one of Lebanon's greatest historical figures. He was also a master builder who, inspired by a sojourn in Renaissance Italy, introduced a new architectural style to the region combining both traditional Levantine and European design elements. Today, only a few of these structures have survived to attest to his life and his leadership
The Stranger at Emmaus
Remembering is a crucial undertaking of modern cultural heritage studies. Preserving, restoring, respecting, recognizing — however we frame our activities, all of these infer that our major responsibility to communities both living and dead as heritage professionals is to assure that some aspect of their lives survive them to attest to their presence on the globe. In recent years this obligation has been translated into archaeological activism — …
Byzantium on the Potomac
While it is not unusual for writers to make use of the term “byzantine” when describing Washington, DC, politics, it appears less often in discussions about the city's cultural resources. Nevertheless, the nation's capital has always had more than its share of art works from the fourth to fifteenth centuries. The venerable Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection (Fig. 1) permanently houses more than 1,200 objects from those periods and its…
The Making and Unmaking of European Cairo
The Political Theater of the Past
As archaeologists, we have an interest in the signals being sent by politicians when they elect to appear with the Parthenon or the Pyramids as backdrops. It makes a difference as to how our work is received and interpreted by the public, but it may also determine how the site will fare afterward. In this article, the idea of the state visit as theatre is explored and archaeological and historical sites are discussed as backdrops against which te…
Diplomacy and desired pasts
The following article addresses the question of how desired pasts function in cultural diplomatic relations, why they constitute a largely unacknowledged barrier in achieving cultural understanding and why they persist in both scholarly literature and in the popular imagination. Four desired pasts are considered in this context as represented by the institutions that sustain them. The Israeli desired past is represented primarily by the Israeli G…
From dialogue to polylogue
The Reopened Museum of the Ancient Orient in Istanbul
Trial by Statistics
Colony or conflict zone
Audrey Horning has a lot to say about the abuses of overarching theory in archaeology. Her most cogent critiques, directed at the rather careless application of postcolonial theory to the archaeology of Northern Ireland and the failure of that theoretical model to deal effectively with the complex and fragmented identities of this continually embattled society, spoke powerfully to my own experience. The intellectual currency of colonialism and po…
High Place
Jerusalem's Temple Mount, the Haram al-Sharif, is one of the most iconic archaeological sites in the world. The author relates its functions to that of other local prehistoric high places, and in tracing its history up to the present day draws a distinction between state-sponsored and popular shrines
"The Archaeology of "The Passion
Sacred Geography
Perforated Rods
A new type of luxury object of the Chalcolithic period, the perforated rod, is presented. Such items have been found in both the southern Levant (at Nahal Qanah in western Samaria and Teleilat Ghassul in the Lower Jordan Valley) and in Upper Egypt (at Mostagedda). The items from Teleilat Ghassul are published here for the first time. After a detailed description of these artifacts, the parallels from the other sites are briefly characterized. The…
Mediating Nationalism and Archaeology
Recognizing that the past is a property of value, archaeologists have traditionally presented themselves as "trustees" of that property. Yet they have in fact become contractors who try to divorce themselves from the consequences of their work. The two roles are very different, and there is much to be gained from re-creating the idea of archaeological trusteeship. A trustee is a disinterested protector of property for the beneficiaries; a contrac…
Mediating Nationalism and Archaeology
Recognizing that the past is a property of value, archaeologists have traditionally presented themselves as "trustees" of that property. Yet they have in fact become contractors who try to divorce themselves from the consequences of their work. The two roles are very different, and there is much to be gained from re-creating the idea of archaeological trusteeship. A trustee is a disinterested protector of property for the beneficiaries; a contrac…
Diplomacy and desired pasts
The following article addresses the question of how desired pasts function in cultural diplomatic relations, why they constitute a largely unacknowledged barrier in achieving cultural understanding and why they persist in both scholarly literature and in the popular imagination. Four desired pasts are considered in this context as represented by the institutions that sustain them. The Israeli desired past is represented primarily by the Israeli G…
Archaeology, Shared Heritage, and Community at Akko, Israel
The international significance of Akko's heritage is best illustrated by the inscription of two UNESCO World Heritage sites in this town of just over 55,000 people. This article describes three projects that focus on the concept of a shared heritage at a World Heritage site in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, diverse town situated in a region that continues to experience ongoing religious and ethnic conflict. The most recent, and still ongoing, e…
The Stranger at Emmaus
Remembering is a crucial undertaking of modern cultural heritage studies. Preserving, restoring, respecting, recognizing — however we frame our activities, all of these infer that our major responsibility to communities both living and dead as heritage professionals is to assure that some aspect of their lives survive them to attest to their presence on the globe. In recent years this obligation has been translated into archaeological activism — …
High Place
Jerusalem's Temple Mount, the Haram al-Sharif, is one of the most iconic archaeological sites in the world. The author relates its functions to that of other local prehistoric high places, and in tracing its history up to the present day draws a distinction between state-sponsored and popular shrines
Mediating Nationalism and Archaeology
Recognizing that the past is a property of value, archaeologists have traditionally presented themselves as "trustees" of that property. Yet they have in fact become contractors who try to divorce themselves from the consequences of their work. The two roles are very different, and there is much to be gained from re-creating the idea of archaeological trusteeship. A trustee is a disinterested protector of property for the beneficiaries; a contrac…
Perforated Rods
A new type of luxury object of the Chalcolithic period, the perforated rod, is presented. Such items have been found in both the southern Levant (at Nahal Qanah in western Samaria and Teleilat Ghassul in the Lower Jordan Valley) and in Upper Egypt (at Mostagedda). The items from Teleilat Ghassul are published here for the first time. After a detailed description of these artifacts, the parallels from the other sites are briefly characterized. The…
Sacred Geography
"The Archaeology of "The Passion
High Place
Jerusalem's Temple Mount, the Haram al-Sharif, is one of the most iconic archaeological sites in the world. The author relates its functions to that of other local prehistoric high places, and in tracing its history up to the present day draws a distinction between state-sponsored and popular shrines
From dialogue to polylogue
The Reopened Museum of the Ancient Orient in Istanbul
Trial by Statistics
Colony or conflict zone
Audrey Horning has a lot to say about the abuses of overarching theory in archaeology. Her most cogent critiques, directed at the rather careless application of postcolonial theory to the archaeology of Northern Ireland and the failure of that theoretical model to deal effectively with the complex and fragmented identities of this continually embattled society, spoke powerfully to my own experience. The intellectual currency of colonialism and po…
Diplomacy and desired pasts
The following article addresses the question of how desired pasts function in cultural diplomatic relations, why they constitute a largely unacknowledged barrier in achieving cultural understanding and why they persist in both scholarly literature and in the popular imagination. Four desired pasts are considered in this context as represented by the institutions that sustain them. The Israeli desired past is represented primarily by the Israeli G…
The Making and Unmaking of European Cairo
The Political Theater of the Past
As archaeologists, we have an interest in the signals being sent by politicians when they elect to appear with the Parthenon or the Pyramids as backdrops. It makes a difference as to how our work is received and interpreted by the public, but it may also determine how the site will fare afterward. In this article, the idea of the state visit as theatre is explored and archaeological and historical sites are discussed as backdrops against which te…
Byzantium on the Potomac
While it is not unusual for writers to make use of the term “byzantine” when describing Washington, DC, politics, it appears less often in discussions about the city's cultural resources. Nevertheless, the nation's capital has always had more than its share of art works from the fourth to fifteenth centuries. The venerable Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection (Fig. 1) permanently houses more than 1,200 objects from those periods and its…
The Legacy of Fakhreddine II—Renaissance Prince of Mount Lebanon
The Druze Prince Fakhreddine el Maani II is acknowledged by some historians as one of Lebanon's greatest historical figures. He was also a master builder who, inspired by a sojourn in Renaissance Italy, introduced a new architectural style to the region combining both traditional Levantine and European design elements. Today, only a few of these structures have survived to attest to his life and his leadership
The Stranger at Emmaus
Remembering is a crucial undertaking of modern cultural heritage studies. Preserving, restoring, respecting, recognizing — however we frame our activities, all of these infer that our major responsibility to communities both living and dead as heritage professionals is to assure that some aspect of their lives survive them to attest to their presence on the globe. In recent years this obligation has been translated into archaeological activism — …
Power and Pathos
The Hellenistic period (323 to 31 BCE) was the culmination of the steady advance of Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean, reaching as far to the east as Pakistan. Greek mystery religions became increasingly popular during this time and paved the way for the spread of Christianity during the later Roman period. This was also a time in which Greek art underwent a metamorphosis from a relatively formal mode of expression into an impassioned in…
Archaeology, Shared Heritage, and Community at Akko, Israel
The international significance of Akko's heritage is best illustrated by the inscription of two UNESCO World Heritage sites in this town of just over 55,000 people. This article describes three projects that focus on the concept of a shared heritage at a World Heritage site in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, diverse town situated in a region that continues to experience ongoing religious and ethnic conflict. The most recent, and still ongoing, e…
In Memoriam
Ken Holum, esteemed historian, beloved teacher, and valued friend and colleague, lost his battle with pancreatic cancer on September 20, 2017. He was best known to archaeologists as the dedicated director of the University of Maryland's archaeological program at Caesarea in Israel and, under Ken's expert hand, invaluable research was conducted at that important site. The discoveries of the palace of Herod the Great, the temple built by Herod and …
Two Travelers from an Antique Land
The pasts and presents of Greece and Israel have been intertwined in diverse ways for several millennia. Some events in these countries have paralleled each other, some have placed the two cultures in conflict, and some, like Ottoman and British colonialism, have made an indelible mark on them in the modern world. This thought-provoking and intense dialogue between two archaeologists, whose careers have involved frequent encounters with some of t…
In Memoriam
Levantine Entanglements
History (19 works) · Archaeology (17 works) · History (12 works) · Archaeological Research and Protection (8 works) · Archaeology and Historical Studies (8 works) · Computer Science (7 works) · Sociology (7 works) · Ancient history (6 works) · Art (6 works) · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation (6 works)