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| Gabii Project 2011 team photo |
The Gabii Project will offer a field program for students and volunteers in 2012; the program will run from June 24 until July 28, 2012. Applications will be accepted online via the project's website and the deadline for applying to the program is February 28, 2012; all qualified students are eligible to apply, not just those associated with the University of Michigan. Notifications of acceptance will be made by March 16, 2012, and accepted volunteers must submit their payment in full by April 2, 2012, in order to secure their spot. No volunteer may participate in the program if the program fee has not been settled in full. The cost for the 5-week program, inclusive of accommodation in Rome, Italy, insurance, equipment, and local transportation, will be $3,600 (USD) in 2012. At this time the possibility of receiving academic credit for participation in the field program is still being negotiated. A final decision will be reached before the application deadline. A credit option might involve an additional fee.
In order to apply
- Please complete the online application form. Please complete all required fields.
- Then, please be sure to ask two professional recommenders (who know you either from an academic setting or a prior fieldwork experience) to send letters on your behalf to Dr. Jeffrey Becker (gabiiproject-at-umich.edu - replace at with @) not later than February 28, 2012.
Travel
- Volunteers are responsible for covering their own travel costs to and from Italy.
- The point of arrival is Rome, Italy. Rome is served by two airports that handle international traffic. These are Leonardo da Vinci airport, also known as Fiumicino (FCO), and Ciampino airport (CIA) [also known as Aeroporto di Roma-Ciampino or Giovan Battista Pastine Airport]. Fiumicino handles long-haul international flights while Ciampino tends to receive short-haul, EU zone carriers.
- The arrival packet distributed to confirmed volunteers will include specific arrival information and information and logistical details.
Accommodation in Rome, Italy
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| Accent International residence |
- The team will be accommodated in Rome’s Trastevere neighborhood in dormitory/apartments provided and administered by the study abroad firm Accent International.
- Student accommodations have two to four bedrooms with one to two bathrooms per residence.
- All accommodations have been renovated recently and include common area, kitchen facilities, refrigerator, washing machine, television, and wireless internet. On-site 24-hour/7-days-a-week logistical support is also included.
- Team members will also have access to a study center / business center operated by Accent International.
- The program fee covers the cost of lunch (Monday-Friday), but not other meals which are self-catering.
Work and instruction on-site at Gabii
- Volunteers will work on-site Monday through Friday, usually arriving on-site by 7.30am. Prospective applicants should note that this is a labor-intensive program and be aware that working long hours in the hot sun is to be expected. Average daytime temperatures will be in the range of 90˚ F or higher.
- Applicants must be in good health, have passed a recent physical examination, and provide up-to-date records of current inoculations.
- Volunteers will work in small teams supervised by experienced excavators. Additionally, the field program will expose participants to all facets of fieldwork, including working with ceramics and other archaeological materials, environmental sampling, flotation, topography, conservation, and documentation. A regular rotation will be established for field program participants.
- Regular site tours (usually once every 7 to 10 days) will help keep all team members up to speed on the progress of excavation work in the various areas of the site.
- Several optional weekend outings will be arranged where guided tours will be offered by staff members. In past years weekend trips have included the Forum Romanum and Palatine Hill as well as Ostia Antica.
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| 2011 volunteers at Ostia Antica |
Atmosphere and Experience
- The Gabii Project is a large team (50+ people) effort. Teamwork is the key to our success, but the working conditions can be intense. The successful applicant will be ready to work as part of a large team and welcome the opportunity to work and learn cooperatively.
- The combined experience of the Gabii Project’s multi-national staff offers volunteers the opportunities to learn and practice some of the latest and most cutting edge techniques of field archaeology. Additionally, an excellent staff to student ratio guarantees close instruction in field methodology.
For University of Michigan Students
- You may be eligible for financial aid via the University of Michigan.
- You may be eligible for University of Michigan credit by enrolling for a fall 2012 independent study with Professor Nicola Terrenato. Contact Marcello Mogetta with your questions.
A note on funding
Students accepted for the field program are encouraged to seek outside funding sources to support their participation as the Gabii Project does not offer need-based financial support. Possible sources include one's home department or institution, as well as various competitive fieldwork fellowships like those administered by the Archaeological Institute of America and the Etruscan Foundation.
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| Trench tours on-site in 2011 |
Need more information?
Please contact Dr. Jeffrey Becker via email.
Download the .pdf version of the field program flyer.
The second week of the 2012 field campaign has come to a close - and it was an intense week of work and activity at Gabii. Not only were normal excavation operations in full swing - with the team accomplishing an amazing amount of work - but a steady stream of colleagues and consultants came by the site to see what the Gabii Project has been up to recently. 
In the excavation sectors, progress continues in two main areas of excavation for 2012. one sector (Area F), located on the extreme western edge of the excavation area, gives us a look at yet another city block of the ancient grid and the remains of structures therein. Area F diggers have also been learning at first hand about the site formation process at Gabii, wherein the accumulation of huge natural layers of colluvial soil have played a leading role in the post-occupation phases of the city. Digging the colluvium can be frustrating, but the chance appearance of sporadic finds carried along in these erosional events has made for some interesting discoveries. Cutting through the silt at warp speed, area F should see more structural remains in week three. In a more centrally located sector (Area D), another part of the team continues to investigate a late archaic complex that came to light in a significant way in 2011. This area, too, is working its way through the remains of abandonment, robbing, and collapse of ancient structures, hopefully in search of well-stratified layers relating to the habitation of the complex. 
