Esther Unterweger – a short biography
Esther Unterweger, Karl-Franzen University Graz, Austria and University of Southampton, England
(BA Art History, MA Provincial Archaeology and Maritime Archaeology, Scientific Diver)
While studying Art History in Austria (Karl-Franzens University of Graz) and in Spain (University of Valencia) I developed an interest and later on passion for Archaeology. During my MA in Archaeology in Austria I focused on Provincial Archaeology especially in the provinces of North Africa and Asia Minor. My dissertation was on the Punic-Roman town of Gigthis, Tunisia and dealt with the transition and exchange of pre-Roman and Roman culture.
In the past years I was able to accumulate some experience in terrestrial archaeology. I participated in various projects and worked on prehistoric sites in Austria; pre-Roman excavations in South-Italy; ancient Greek city walls in Turkey; Mayan temples in Belize and many more.
Initially, diving was a leisure activity to me, but I soon discovered that the underwater world had more to offer. Exploring shipwrecks with their cargos and inundated settlements provides scientists with unique insights and information into past human activities. This realisation turned my former hobby into a further step in my education when I started my MA in Maritime Archaeology at the University of Southampton in 2013. Now I focus on Bronze Age maritime trade relations especially in the Eastern Mediterranean, piracy in the 16th and 17th century and contiguous Palaeo-Landscape reconstructions.
- Twitter account: @EstherUnterwege
- FutureLearn profile: https://www.futurelearn.com/profiles/284061