Modern Mediterranean Archaeological Regimes in a Global Context

Contrary to conventional narratives on the history of archaeology and official museum narratives, arguing that Mediterranean states and societies neglected antiquities, archaeological legislation was adopted for the first time in the European North and in the Mediterranean.

Modern Mediterranean Archaeological Regimes in a Global Context (MMARe) investigates the Mediterranean legal archaeological regimes from 1789 to 1945, individually and comparatively. It similarly traces their influence at the international level, through the League of Nations (LN).

MMARe contributes with novel approaches and substantive arguments to the debate on decolonizing the museum, and suggests concrete tools for provenance research and ways forward in the discussion on the restitution of antiquities.

It is hosted by Ca Foscari University (UNIVE) in Italy and Columbia University (CU) in the US, and includes a secondment at Brown University (BU), also in the US.

It is supervised by Dr Konstantina Zanou (CU) and Dr Yannis Hamilakis (BU), who are experts on the debates on Mediterranean heritage, as well as Dr Matteo Legrenzi (UNIVE), who specializes in international organizations and the modern Middle East.

It also benefits from the specialized courses, library resources, skills training and communications opportunities, as well as the vibrant academic communities, of these three institutions.