Venue: Australian Museum, 6 College St, Sydney, Search & Discover Gallery, Level 2 
Cost: Free with museum entry  A Surprising Find: Thomas Ball’s Pottery: Mon 21 May 2012, 5:30 for 6pm 

This talk investigates the pottery from waster pits associated with Thomas Ball’s pottery (c1801-1823) in the Haymarket. This is the earliest Pottery site investigated so far in Australia. Thomas Ball was a Staffordshire-trained potter operating a Pottery in the Brickfields (now the Haymarket) and produced a range of locally-made wares, a mixture of utilitarian items and decorated tablewares, as well as smoking pipes and marbles. The tablewares imitated Staffordshire ceramics while others were decorated with unusual green and brown floral hand painted patterns. Aspects of the kiln and manufacturing process are discussed.  Thomas Ball’s ceramics are also discussed within the context of other pottery imported into the colony at that time. 

Venue: Reception Rooms, History House, 133 Macquarie St, Sydney 
Cost: $10 RAHS members, $12 non-members 
For bookings, please contact (02) 9247 8001 or ad...@rahs.org.au 


The Archaeology of Ancient Greece: Tue 22 May 2012, 7pm 
Let archaeologist Craig Barker introduce you to the role of theatrical performance in ancient Greek culture in this illustrated talk for National Archaeology Week. 

Using the architectural remains of ancient theatres, such as the Theatre of Dionysos in Athens and the theatres at Epidauros and Ephesos, as well as the Australian excavations of a theatre at Paphos in Cyprus, he will examine the spaces used for performance. Then, using theatrical iconography in vase-painting and terracotta, he will describe the impact of theatrical performance on Greek life, particularly through its relationship with the god Dionysos. 

Doors open at 6.30pm for cheese and wine. The lecture will begin promptly at 7.00pm. 
Venue: Australian Museum, entry via William Street, Sydney 
Cost: Australian Members $20; Non-members $30 

For more information visit: http://www.australianmuseum.net.au 


Diving into Archaeology: Wed 23 May 2012, 5:30pm for 6pm start – 8:30pm 
Diving into Archaeology will be an entertaining evening designed to help you ‘dive into archaeology’ and explore the remarkable world of shipwreck history. Director Heritage Branch Petula Samios will welcome you to an evening hosted by the Office of Environment & Heritage, featuring talks by: 

~   Joanne Edney, avid diver and social researcher will talk about her research into why divers visit shipwrecks and the type of experiences wreck divers are seeking. 
~   Brad Duncan, Heritage Branch Maritime Archaeologist will talk about the history, discovery and photographic survey of the ex HMAS Australia, our country’s only battlecruiser and grandmother of the Australian Fleet. 
~   Kieran Hosty, a Maritime Archaeologist and about his recent fieldwork in the Coral Sea and the discovery of the Royal Charlotte shipwreck. 
~   Tim Smith, Heritage Branch Maritime Archaeologist will discuss recent fieldwork in the Wingecarribee River, searching for the remains of canoes made in the WWI Berrima Prisoner of War Internment Camp. 

Venue: Office of Environment and Planning, 2 Marist Place, Parramatta 
Cost: FREE; Drinks, nibbles and a shipwreck poster included; Bookings are essential.
Please contact Stephen Pinnington on 02 9873 8550 or stephen.pinning...@heritage.nsw.gov.au 


Big Dig Archaeology Weekend: Fri 25 - Sun 27 May 2012 
Following the success of The Big Dig Archaeology Weekend in 2011, Sydney Harbour YHA in collaboration with Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority is again running this exciting hands-on program in 2012. 

The Big Dig Archaeology Weekend is a residential weekend experience, giving you the chance to learn more about archaeology through immersing yourself in a hands-on excavation of a section of The Big Dig, and cleaning and sorting the many artefacts you unearth. 

The program costs $300 per person in a multi-share room to $520 per person in a private room with a harbour view. This includes: 

- Accommodation at Sydney Harbour YHA, The Rocks, for two nights 
- All meals 
- Welcome dinner, orientation session and movie night  - Two days of on-site excavation work (over 12 hours)  - Visits to The Rocks Discovery Museum, Sydney Observatory and Susannah Place Museum. 

This program is suitable for anyone 17 years and older and is a general interest course designed to appeal to anyone who is curious about archaeology, particularly Australian Historical Archaeology. 

For more information visit: http://www.thebigdig.com.au/visit/   

The China Studies Centre warmly invites you to partake in the 2012 CSC Annual Workshop from the 16-18 May 2012. 

The academic organizers are Associate Professor Alison Betts and Dr Peter Jia. The workshop participants will bring together a group of top academics from Australia, China and Europe, specializing in Chinese Central Asia.

For further information please visit http://sydney.edu.au/china_studies_centre/en/research/2012_workshop.shtml

If you would like to participate in the GDF in 2012 we need to know!

REGISTER TODAY!
 

Please send an email to newsletter@ancienthistory.com.au or telephone the event co-ordinator, Kylie, on 0418 218 151 if you require any further information.

Not to be missed! MAHA END-OF-YEAR-REVELATIONS

Professor Alanna Nobbs reveals ALL!

On Friday (THIS Friday, 9th December), the Macquarie Ancient History Association will hold its Annual General Meeting at 7.00pm, to be followed, at 7.30pm by Professor Alanna Nobbs talking about "The Ancient History of Ancient History @ Macquarie".

X5B Level 3, Museum of Ancient Cultures Seminar Room - ALL WELCOME 

So come along and say hi for the final time in 2011 we would love to see you there.

17th ICOMOS General Assembly and Scientific Symposium
‘Heritage, driver of development’
27 November to 2 December 2011, Paris, France

Register on-line at www.icomos-paris2011.com

Deadline - early bird registration: 27 August 2011
Deadline - post-tour reservations: 27 September 2011

The most important triennial gathering of ICOMOS will take place from 27 November to 2 December 2011 for the first time in Paris at UNESCO headquarters.

The General Assembly is accompanied by a Scientific Symposium on the theme “Heritage: Driver of Development”. Both events are open to ICOMOS members and non-members
alike.

Visit the special website www.icomos-paris2011.com to consult the full programme, register on-line and obtain information on negotiated hotel rates and the 9 post-tours to World Heritage cities in France on offer.

A conference in honour of Erich Gruen, Distinguished Professor Emeritus and Wood Professor Emeritus from the University of California at Berkeley, will be held at the Australian National University from Friday 23rd to Sunday 25th September. The theme of the conference is "Culture, Identity and Politics in the Ancient Mediterranean World" (CIPAMeW). In addition to Professor Gruen two other international guests will be speaking at the conference, Professor Art Eckstein from the University of Maryland and Professor Sarah Pearce from the University of Southampton, as well as a number of Australian and New Zealand scholars.

Professor Gruen will be delivering the keynote public lecture on the Friday evening (preceded by a reception) on the topic, "The Multi-Cultural World of Roman Ethnic Identities".

All people interested in ancient History are warmly invited to attend the conference. Details for online registration can be found at the following website:
http://culturalinquiry.anu.edu.au/events/conference-culture-identity-and-politics-ancient-mediterranean-world.

The registration fee is $90 ($60 for students), and this includes morning and afternoon teas each day and lunch on the Saturday. There will be a conference dinner on the Saturday evening (to be paid for separately). Registrations close on 31st August.

Prior to the conference, Professor Gruen will be the R.D. Milns Visiting Scholar at the University of Queensland, and that fund is paying for his international airfares. Two of the international visitors will also be appearing at Macquarie University: Professor Pearce two weeks before the ANU conference, and Professor Gruen in the week after the conference. Professor Gruen will deliver the Joel Oration on Tuesday evening, 27th September, on the topic, "The Jewish Appropriation of Greek Mythology", and will be giving advice on research techniques and posing for photo opportunities with postgraduate students from all over Australia and New Zealand who will be meeting for their annual Amphora(e) conference for three days at Macquarie University from Wednesday 28th September.

Further details will be provided - so keep your eye out for notices about these important events!

Doryanthes is an online magazine (for past editions, see: www.doryanthes.info/archive). Subscription (to the online version) is free and only requires persons to register their email address with us. We regularly publish articles of interest to all History syllabuses: History 7-10; Ancient and Modern History.

Our next edition, to be published on August 12, is in commemoration of the 2500th anniversary of the Battle of Marathon and will be of particular interests to students studying the various Greek options for the HSC. Articles in the August edition will cover: the Mound of the Athenians at Marathon; the first Marathon Race (490 BC); a survey of the Persian War period (490-479 BC); Hoplite Warfare as based on the evidence from the Nicholson Museum; and a translation and commentary of Cornelius Nepos’, Life of Miltiades.

For this edition, Doryanthes has received funding from the Classical Association of NSW for the production of an additional 100 print copies of the magazine to be distributed free of charge to schools presenting students in Greek History at the HSC.

For enquiries, contact the Editor, Les Bursill (les.bursill@gmail.com).