Jan 23 2012 11:00AM
Professor David Gill|, recently appointed Head of the Division of Humanities and Professor of Archaeological Heritage at UCS, has been honoured with two highly prestigious awards for his contribution to raising public awareness and understanding of archaeology.
Professor Gill has been awarded The Outstanding Public Service Award from the
Archaeological Institute of America| for his exceptional contributions that promote public understanding of, interest in, and support for archaeology and the preservation of the archaeological record. Previous award winners include He Shuzhong, founder of the Beijing Cultural Heritage Protection Center (CHP), and Walter V. Robinson, American journalist and journalism professor.
Saving Antiquities For Everyone (SAFE)| have also honored Professor Gill with the 2012 SAFE Beacon Award. The award was given to Professor Gill for doing arguably more than any other single individual to offer scholars, students, and members of the public a more complete picture of the devastating effects of the illicit antiquities trade.
Professor Gill, who has researched the impact of looted antiquities for the last 25 years, has been described as the ‘Indiana Jones in reverse’ for his work in returning antiques to their origins worldwide. He is former Rome Scholar at the British School at Rome, and was previously a member of the Department of Antiquities at the Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge, and Reader in Mediterranean Archaeology at Swansea University.
His blog,
Looting Matters|, is universally regarded as essential reading for up-to-the-minute news and nuanced discussion on archaeological ethics and the collecting of antiquities.
Professor Gill, who joined the School of Arts and Humanities at UCS in October 2011, said of receiving these awards: “I am honored to receive these awards for my research. The last twenty years have seen a major shift in attitude relating to the way that archaeological objects are acquired and displayed in public and private collections. My work has demonstrated that looting not only has material consequences, sites are destroyed and contexts lost, but there are also intellectual ones as vital information that helps us to interpret the past is removed for good.”
Professor Gill was presented with both awards at separate ceremonies in New York and Philadelphia in the USA, where he was honored for his work among his internationally renowned colleagues.