Analyzing Tophets: Did the Phoenicians Practice Child Sacrifice?

This paper examines the controversies surrounding Phoenician religious practices and in particular, the Phoenician Tophet, a cemetery containing the cremated remains of infants and young children in clay jars. According to ancient Hebrew and Greek sources, in the ceremony known as mulk, the oldest son was placed on the arms of a bronze statue and dropped into a brazier below. Though these ancient authors were unanimous in criticizing Phoenician religious practices as cruel and savage, the use of these biased sources to conclude that child sacrifice did occur remains controversial. Both the Hebrew and Greek sources were xenophobic and furthermore, there are no Phoenician texts preserved that describe this religious practice. Hence, it is difficult to judge these rituals from a Phoenician viewpoint. Partly because of this, the interpretation of mulk and the Phoenician Tophets remains highly controversial within the academic world. The purpose of my research is to weigh the evidence in light of recent discoveries in North Africa (Carthage), Phoenicia (Tyre), the Greek island of Astypalaia (Kylindra Cemetery), Israel (Ashkelon), and Cyprus (Amathus) in an attempt to reach a balanced conclusion based on the evidence. In this paper, the Tophet at Carthage is first discussed, in particular the skeletal remains, the grave goods, and the stelae. In addition, other burial practices on mainland Phoenicia, Greece, Israel, and Cyprus are examined and then compared to the Tophet at Carthage in order to determine if the latter had distinct practices associated with it. The examination of the skeletal remains, the associated grave goods, and the stelae in the Tophet at Carthage and the comparisons of the burial practices suggest that the Phoenicians did indeed practice child sacrifice

Watercraft, People, and Animals: Setting the Stage for the Neolithic Colonization of the Mediterranean Islands of Cyprus and Crete

One of the most significant developments in human history was the “Neolithic Revolution,” which first began around 11,000 years ago in mainland Southwest Asia. It resulted in not only the economic reorientation from hunting and foraging to herding and farming based on domesticate resources, but also significant changes in human technology, demography, society, political organization, ideology and human relationships to the environment. In order to understand this momentous process, however, it is important to understand the events that set it in motion. This is particularly the case when dealing with oceanic Mediterranean islands, specifically Cyprus and Crete, where there is a known Pre-Neolithic presence. The purpose of this literature-based thesis research will be to address both the Pre-Neolithic and Early Neolithic on these two islands. Four main questions will be examined: 1) What were the climatic conditions faced by the earliest seafarers/ explorers?; 2) What were the earliest types of watercraft used?; 3) What is the evidence for an early human presence?; 4) Is there ethnographic evidence cross-culturally that documents how wild and domesticated plants and animals, but animals in particular, were transported between landmasses using watercraft technology? The purpose of this thesis is to provide the necessary framework for my subsequent dissertation, which will examine more specifically the zooarchaeological remains at the site of Ais Giorkis. Furthermore, it will also allow these two islands (but particularly Cyprus) to be placed within the broader Neolithic context of both mainland Southwest Asia and the Mediterranean Basin

Equitable Value: Promoting Economic Mobility and Social Justice through Postsecondary Education

While structural racism has been part of the United States since before its founding, continued racial and gender violence alongside the coronavirus pandemic have exacerbated racial inequities across the country. The disproportionate impact of these events on people of color has catalyzed nationwide activism leading to renewed conversations about who has true access to opportunity in this country. Against this backdrop, the Postsecondary Value Commission leveraged diverse voices and experiences to interrogate the role that postsecondary education can—and should—play in promoting opportunity, paving an equitable path to economic mobility, and dismantling centuries of racist, classist, and sexist attitudes and policies. To be clear: overall, postsecondary education offers individuals the opportunity to earn a better living and build a better life for themselves and their families, while also fostering a healthier, more democratic society. Yet, troubling disparities in access to these opportunities exist by race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender

Investigating Land Use by the Inhabitants of Western Cyprus During the Early Neolithic

This study presents the first of its kind in Cyprus that combines the use of ancient crop (two-grained einkorn wheat, hulled barley, and lentils) and animal (domestic sheep, goat, cattle, pig, and wild deer) stable isotopes (carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen) for reconstructing land use by the Kritou Marottou Ais Giorkis (Cypro-PPNB, 7956-7058 cal BC) inhabitants in western Cyprus. Current definitions of this time period employ the strict forager/farmer dichotomy, even though archaeological evidence suggests otherwise. In addition, it is still assumed that Cyprus was a barren landscape whose inhabitants were isolated from one another and the mainland. An integrated stable isotope approach provides the opportunity to examine plant (crop water management and soil nitrogen composition) and animal (diet and seasonal movement) management strategies, allowing us to then infer land use. The isotopic data also provide information on the environment, which appears to be wetter than today. The results of this study do not support seasonal movement of herd animals between the lowlands and uplands. Pig were consuming a primarily herbivorous diet, raising the possibility that these animals were actually feral/wild or part of a free-range husbandry regime. Both the two-grained einkorn and hulled barley fall within the ‘moderately watered category.’ The barley samples also had an enriched nitrogen signal. The plant data suggest that barely was possibly given preferential treatment towards its growth. The isotopic data, in combination with the macrobotanical and zooarchaeological analyses, indicate that the inhabitants were not focusing resources and labor on agricultural practices. I argue that they were instead focused on craft production, which was also embedded in hunting activities, for inter-island and perhaps island-mainland exchange. This study helps to reframe our understanding of the Cypro-PPNB by providing new evidence of human activity during this important period in human history