The research of Clare Rasmussen, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology, was featured in the August 6 edition of The Jordan Times.
Rasmussen is writing her dissertation, “Water Consumption in the Decapolis: Examining Water Use in Jerash, Umm Qais, and Amman during the Roman Period.”
She was approached about the article following a pre-doctoral fellowship at the American Center of Research (ACOR) in Jordan in fall 2022. The Bryne Rubel Travel Fellowship from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology also provided funding for her to engage in field research.
Rasmussen is primarily interested in Roman archaeology, focusing on water studies, city planning, architecture, landscape, and cultural identity. She will be presenting some of her research at the 2023 ASOR Annual Meeting this November and presented at the Harvard University Graduate Student Conference last April.
"My experience at Bryn Mawr as a Ph.D. student has been a rewarding one overall and I would recommend it to others," says Rasmussen. "The best part about our department is the diversity of research among both students and faculty. And all of them are very passionate about what they are doing."
The Department of Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology traces its origins to the founding of the College in 1885 and assumed its status as an independent department in 1914 with the appointment of Rhys Carpenter (1913-1955), after whom the award-winning art and archaeology library is named.
The department is part of The Graduate Group in Archaeology, Classics and, History of Art, which brings together faculty and students to encourage interdisciplinary study. While each department awards its own degrees, the Graduate Group creates a collaborative research environment and promotes a strong scholarly community among all of its graduate students.