The  M.A. PROGRAMME 

Since the department’s M.A. programme began in 1994, 16 students have successfully completed this course, and another nine are in either their first or final year of studies. A significant element of the programme is the production of a c. 70 page dissertation on a subject of the student’s choice, under the guidance of their supervisor. Copies of the completed dissertations are available for study in both the University Library and in the Department’s Reading Room, and as a means of drawing wider attention to this ‘store of knowledge’, here follows a brief summary of these works - and a note on what their authors are doing now!

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Ayşe Devrim Atauz

‘Asardibi (Casara): a Classical, Hellenistic and Early Roman Harbor in the Rhodian Peraea’

(June, 1997: M-H. Gates).

By combining the ceramic and epigraphic material from Casara, along with the results of underwater and field survey, Ayşe demonstrates the importance of this neglected site between the 4^th century BC and the 2^nd century AD, and its significant contribution to Rhodian sea power in the period. Ayşe is now completing a Ph.D. programme in Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University. 

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Filiz Songu

‘Wave-line Pottery from the Iron Age Levels of Kinet Höyük’

(June, 1997: M-H. Gates).

There is a desperate lack of detailed ceramic studies for most periods and regions of Turkey, a void which this dissertation helps fill, placing the 7^th-4^th century BC occupation levels at Kinet Höyük into their wider context. At present, Filiz is writing her Ph.D. thesis at Leiden University, the Netherlands.  

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Harun Kâya

‘The Byzantine Fortresses of Yoğuntaş, Keçikalesi and Pınarhisar in the Kırklareli Region’

(October, 1997: A. Ricci).

Although the historical evidence for the Late Roman and Byzantine defence systems of Thrace has been extensively reviewed, surprisingly little is known about its physical nature. Harun’s study helps restore this imbalance, with a detailed assessment based on field surveys of three sites of the 8^th-14^th century AD in the region. Harun now works with an agency helping Turkish students find study courses in the USA and the UK. 

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Günder Varinlioğlu

‘The Legacy of the Hippodrome at Constantinople’

(June, 1998: A. Ricci).

The Hippodrome is one of Istanbul’s most visible monuments from its Roman and Byzantine past, and also one of its least studied. In her dissertation, Günder provides a detailed account of its archaeology, and also its importance in the social fabric of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Istanbul. Günder is currently working on her Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, USA.  

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Susan D. Cooke

‘The Monuments of Roman Ancyra Reviewed’ (September, 1998: J. Bennett).

This thorough analysis of the numismatic, literary and archaeological evidence for Roman Ancyra is the first such study of the metropolis of Galatia. Susan is now a Ph.D. student at Exeter University, UK, with Roman Galatia as her research topic.  

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Ekin Kozal

‘The Cypro-Anatolian Connections in the Late Bronze Age’

 (January, 1999: M-H. Gates).

Literary sources indicate that the Late Bronze Age saw increasing contact between the Hittites and the island of Cyprus. In her dissertation, Ekin uses this material along with a variety of archaeological evidence from Cyprus, to reveal the extent and development of these connections. Now at Tübingen University, Germany, Ekin is hoping to complete her Ph.D. on the Aegean Iron Age within the next year.

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Sercan Yandım

 ‘A Historical and Iconographical Study of a Group of Twenty Post-Byzantine Icons in the Antalya Museum’

(January, 1999: C. Gates).

As is the case world-wide, many Turkish museums have large collections of material usually not on public view. Sercan’s study of a group of icons stored in Antalya Museum not only provides a catalogue of the more important material kept there, but also forms an important contribution of post-mediaeval iconographic tradition in southern Anatolia. Sercan is continuing with research in this field for a Ph.D. at Marburg University, Germany. 

-8-

Tuğba Tanyeri

‘The Nereid Monument Relief Sculptures in Review’

(May, 1999:  İ. Özgen).

The Nereid Monument at Xanthus is one of the most important examples of early indigenous classical architecture and sculpture, and Tuğba’s work provides a detailed account of its relief programme in its overall Hellenic and local context. Tuğba is currently a Ph.D. student at Boston University, USA. 

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Yasemin İlseven

‘Elmalı Plain: a review of its environmental setting and archaeological settlement’

(June, 1999: İ. Özgen).

Drawing on her long experience as a fieldworker in the Elmalı Plain, Yasemin - who is now studying for a Ph.D. in the USA – presents an detailed account of its environmental and settlement history from the Prehistoric to the Ottoman period. 

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Bülent Arıkan

‘The Neolithic of Central and North-western Anatolia and Thrace, and its Relations with South-eastern Europe’

(June, 2000: B. Helwing).

This dissertation evaluates the cultural material from 14 Turkish sites of the Neolithic period with regard to similar evidence from the Balkans and Central Anatolia, and establishes the inter-action between these areas at the time. Bülent is now following the Ph.D. programme in Bronze Age Archaeology at Arizona State University, USA. 

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Jason R. De’Block

‘The Archaeology and History of Selinus from its Origins to the Reign of Diocletian’

(June, 2000: J. Bennett).

Combining the results of field survey with literary and numismatic evidence, Jason has provided a explicit overview of a ‘typical’ small Cilician polis. Jason is now working in insurance in the USA, but hopes to register for a Ph.D. programme there in the near future. 

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Shannon M. Haley

‘Caveat Emptor: the Intellectual Consequences of Undocumented Excavation, with Special Reference to Roman Period Archaeological Material from Turkey’ (June 2000: J. Öztürk).

From detailed case studies of numismatic, mosaic and sculptural material found by looting, Shannon’s dissertation demonstrates how the method of their recovery makes subsequent interpretations and conclusions about their overall importance a highly precarious practice. Shannon is currently working for a media agency in the USA.

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Spencer H. Garrett

‘Wine Production in Classical Anatolia’ (January, 2001: J. Bennett).

While much is known about the nature and scale of wine production in the Western Mediterranean in classical times, this work offers the first in depth overview of the subject for the Eastern Mediterranean, using a variety of literary and archaeological sources. Spencer is now working as a professional wine consultant in the USA, and thinking of developing his thesis into a Ph.D. 

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Azer Keskin

‘Relating Architecture to Social Complexity in the Early Bronze Age: South-eastern Anatolia’

(July, 2001: M-H. Gates).

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Suna Çağaptay Arıkan

‘The Church at Choma (Hacımusalar, Elmalı-Antalya) and its Materials’ (August 2001: J. Öztürk).

Suna evaluates the current state of knowledge concerning the two phases of the church located during the excavations at Hacımusalar, along with an extensive discussion of parallels for its plan and decorative programme. Suna is now in her first year of a Ph.D. programme in Byzantine Art and Archaeology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA. 

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Sevil Çonka

‘Aspects of the Ancient Economy in West-Central Turkey in the First Millennium BC’

(January, 2002: A. Gürsan-Salzmann / J. Morin).

Through correlating environmental and subsistence data from Gordion and Kalehöyük, this study examines the economic and agricultural strategies of both sites. After completing her course, Sevil has returned to her former career as a qualified Tour Guide. 

Julian Bennett

Newsletter No. 1 - 2002, Pg. 34, 36

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