Ashley E. Vance
Graduate Student
Anthropology, Archaeology
Contact
Building & Room:
BSB 2102
Address:
1007 W. Harrison Street
Email:
CV Download:
About
Focusing on archaeomalachology within the Andes, my research explores the trade and exchange of Spondylus shells (principally S. crassiquama) within pre-Columbian cultures. Currently supported by the Star Fellowship, I am interested in applying archaeological and paleoecological approaches to learn more about how shell procurement, use, and trade structured coastal communities in Peru and Ecuador. Additionally, I am investigating the possibility of developing a sclerochronology for the pacific bivalve, which would aid Andean archaeologists in reconstructing past environmental conditions.
Selected Grants
University of Illinois at Chicago, Provost Graduate Internship Award (2018), Intern
The Field Museum, Chicago, Summer Fieldwork Grant (2017), Principal Investigator
Notable Honors
2017, Al and Judy Blitz Archaeology Scholarship, University of Illinois at Chicago
Education
2017 - present, Ph.D. Student in Anthropology, University of Illinois at Chicago
2016, B.A. in History, St. Edward's University in Austin TX
Research Currently in Progress
Andean Archaeology, Trade and Exchange, Mortuary Practices, the Inca and Wari