In the summer of 2024, we traveled to Greece with Dr. Alex Knodell to conduct archaeological research as part of the Small Cycladic Islands Project (SCIP). SCIP, started in 2019, has been an ongoing collaboration between the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades, the Norwegian Institute at Athens, and Carleton College. The project consists of a comprehensive surface survey of small uninhabited islets in the Cycladic Archipelago of the Aegean Sea. While archaeological attention has been given to the main cycladic islands, little work has been done on these small islets. Despite this, historical and ethnographic evidence point to a long history of habitation in these places, ranging from prehistoric times to the modern day.
SCIP’s field survey is diachronic, meaning that it focuses on all time periods. As a result, this large-scale approach can give researchers insight into patterns of settlement and land use on these islets across a number of time periods. Moreover, by taking a broad view of all of the islets in the Aegean, the project can investigate the ways in which these islets were interconnected with each other, the main Cycladic islands, and the greater Mediterranean maritime world.
In 2024, SCIP’s fifth and final year of fieldwork, we focused on a series of 21 small islets around Santorini, Anafi, Folegandros, and Naxos. As student researchers, the majority of our work consisted of fieldwalking. This systematic process consists of teams of five evenly-spaced individuals walking 50m by 100m or 100m by 100m grids laid out on each islet. In each unit, we counted all remains of non-natural/human-made features, pottery sherds, and lithics. Additionally, we spent time working in the lab where we helped catalog and photograph the materials the team collected in the field.
Jesse: Working on SCIP was an incredibly rewarding experience. Being a part of this project gave me the ability to ask questions and explore a world of archaeology that I was not familiar with. Entering the project, I had taken a few archaeology classes and had become particularly interested in the applications of Geographic Information Science (GIS) to archaeological research. Working on SCIP provided me with the opportunity to see how these technologies can be applied directly in the field. Moreover, and most importantly, I was able to work alongside experts throughout the research process in a completely experiential way. Through the work we did both in the field and in the lab, I familiarized myself with the basics of pottery and lithic analysis as well as the identification of ancient architectural features. This type of work is a rare opportunity, particularly as an undergraduate student, and I’m incredibly grateful for the time I spent working on SCIP.
Bianca: This was my second year returning to SCIP, and my experiences both this year and last have been unparalleled. The ability to enter this summer with all of the basic procedures already learned allowed me to focus on truly expanding my knowledge and understanding. I was able to begin going beyond basic tasks of recording pottery chronology and reporting feature finds to attempting my own interpretations and assessments under the guidance of experts. I was also able to meet and further bond with so many incredible researchers and locals. This experience additionally gave me the opportunity to become more immersed in the culture, language, and history of a new region of the world. I am so grateful for this opportunity and to all of the amazing people who helped make it happen.