TIME SIFTERS ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY
We are a non-profit membership association of professional and amateur archaeologists, plus interested citizens of Sarasota and Manatee Counties in Southwest Florida.
April 15th - at 5:45 PM at the Selby Library in downtown Sarasota
Mapping the Sacred: LiDAR and the Digital Reconstruction of Mithraic Cult Spaces at Ostia Antica
Dr. Fred Pirone, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at New College and Director of the New College Public Archaeology
What happened inside a Roman mystery cult? That question has fascinated historians for centuries — and new technology may finally help answer it. This presentation shares an ongoing collaborative research project using LiDAR scanning to create precise digital twins of two ancient Mithraic temples, or Mithraea, preserved at Ostia Antica, the harbor city of ancient Rome. The team has captured these ritual chambers in three-dimensional detail. The vaulted ceilings, stone benches, altar niches, and narrow corridors, creating digital records that preserve these fragile spaces against the inevitable toll of time.
LEARN MORE BY READING OUR NEWSLETTER OR ATTENDING THIS PRESENTATION
Time Sifters Archaeology Society is pleased to announce winners of The Cornelia Futor Memorial Student Grant, made possible thanks to the support of Archaeological Consultants Inc., as well as many individual donors.
We had three stellar students apply for funding, and as often happens, the committee wished they could fund them all.
This year they will go to Layla Alvarado, USF, who will be attending Alabama Historical Commission (AHC) CRM Professional Training Program at Old Cahawba Archaeological Park in Alabama, and Luke Berna, UCF, who will be attending University of North Florida’s Archaeological Field School.
We continue to support the important work being done in the USF field schools in the Mediterranean; but this year we have had the opportunity to give both grants closer to home. We wish all the students the best luck for their summer projects and future studies.
The Research Grant, providing up to $2000 to eligible students to attend field school or do significant archival research. This grant is open to students currently enrolled at a Florida university or college who have begun their junior year of undergraduate studies at the time of application, MA students, and Ph.D. students who are pursuing a major in anthropology with a focus on archaeology. The 2026 grant cycle is funding participation in accredited field schools that include training in excavation techniques.
