Andean Archaeology
The joint PhD program at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the Field Museum offers a unique concentration of Andean researchers. We have three faculty members conducting archaeological research in Peru and Bolivia, making ours one of the largest concentrations of Andean archaeologists in the United States. Together we cover a wide range of periods as well as various levels of cultural complexity. We also offer a range of technical skills including: survey, excavation, remote sensing, GIS, archaeometry, ancient DNA and archival research.
Andean Anthropology Faculty and Graduate Students Heading link
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Brian S. Bauer
Brian Bauer
Professor of Anthropology
University of Illinois at Chicago
bsb@uic.eduBrian S. Bauer is a leading researcher on the Incas, the largest indigenous empire of the Americas. His primary research focus is the development of the Inca state in the Cuzco Valley. His current research includes an NSF-supported research project in the Vilcabamba region, the final stronghold of the Inca Empire.
Patrick Ryan Williams
Patrick Ryan Williams
Assistant Curator and
Chair of the Department of Anthropology
Field Museum
rwilliams@fieldmuseum.orgRyan Williams investigates the interaction between two pre-Inca states: the Wari of the central Peruvian highlands and the Tiwanaku from the Titicaca Basin in Bolivia. Williams is currently researching imperialism, colonialism, and political economy through archaeometry, GIS and remote sensing. His current NSF & NEH-supported research examines the Wari and Tiwanaku occupations of the Moquegua Valley in Peru.
Sloan R. Williams
Sloan Williams
Associate Professor and Department Head
University of Illinois at Chicago
sloanw@uic.eduSloan Williams, an expert in ancient DNA, is working with a number of different skeletal collections from both the highlands and the coast, examining the genetic relationship between various groups throughout prehistory.
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Corey Brown
Corey Bowen
Topic of Interest: development and production of powerAshley Vance
Ashley Vance
Topics of Interest: Trade and Exchange, MortuaryCaitlin Monesmith
Caitlin Monesmith
Dissertation topic: Ancon and the advent of corn to the pre-hispanic diet -
Douglas K. Smit (PhD 2018)
Dissertation Topic: “Mercury and the Making of the Andean Market: An Archaeological Study of Indigenous Labor in Colonial Peru”
Currently at: Visiting Scholar at University of PennsylvaniaDr. Sofia Chacaltana Cortez (PhD 2015)
Dissertation Topic: Tambos of the Inca Empire
Currently at: The Ministry of Culture (Lima, Peru)Matthew Piscitelli (PhD 2014)
Dissertation Topic: Ritual and Domestic Architecture during the Late Archaic (3,000-1,800 BC)
Currently at: National Geographic SocietyNicola Sharratt (PhD 2011)
Dissertation Topic: Social identity and the disintergration of the Tiwanaku state.
Currently: Associate Professor at Georgia State University