Ruth E. Tringham appointed first Alice S. Davis Endowed Chair in Anthropology

Ruth E. Tringham has been named as the first recipient of the Alice S. Davis Endowed Chair in Anthropology. An internationally renowned archaeologist, a pioneer in digital media and archaeology, Professor Tringham is also a member of the Grammy-Award winning San Francisco Symphony Chorus, who brings to her work in archaeology the sensibilities of an artist.

Professor Tringham is internationally recognized for her expertise in the archaeology of the earliest towns in Europe, culminating in her most recent field project at Çatalhöyük, Turkey. She has blazed a trail in the fields of archaeology of architecture, household archaeology, and feminist archaeology. Her research has been supported by multiple grants, including National Science Foundation grants for research at Çatalhöyük (1997-2000), Pogoritsa, Bulgaria (1994-1997), and Selevac, Yugoslavia (1978-1981).

Professor Tringham is a leading practitioner of, and authority in, digital archaeology. In 2007, she received a first prize in the ASOR Open Archaeology Competition for one of her recent digital productions, “Remixing Çatalhöyük” http://okapi.dreamhosters.com/remixing/mainpage.html.

In 2008, Professor Tringham was a recipient of the Chancellor's Award for Public Service, in recognition of her ten years of service learning work with the Oakland Public School District.

Ruth Tringam received the Ph.D. in Archaeology from the University of Edinburgh and joined the faculty of the University of California at Berkeley in 1988.

Alice S. Davis, a graduate of Berkeley, with a degree in Psychology, was for many years an employee of the Berkeley Anthropology department.

Published April 6, 2009