


Gygaia Projects is a group of activities concerned with scientific research and preservation in the areas of cultural and natural history.
GYGAIA PROJECTS
What's in a Name?
Culture and nature… These are our main foci and what our name, gygaia, represents. From Homer and Hittite archives we know that the word gygaia (we prefer to pronounce it gee-gay-uh with two hard Gs) was associated with ancestors and water birds in the Bronze Age dialects of Anatolia. Homer knew Lake Marmara as gygaia limne: “lake of ancestors” or “lake of water birds.” This is what Gygaia Projects is committed to: the exploration, sustainable use, and preservation of the ancestral cultures and natural environments of the Marmara Lake basin and beyond.
Projects
- All
- Archives
- Climate & Environment
- Digital
- Excavation
- Histories
- Lake
- Material Science
- Spaces
- Survey & Landscape
- Things
Gygaia Limne – Lake Marmara
Much of the research conducted by Gygaia Projects pivots around Lake Marmara. Afterall, it is the project namesake.... Read More
Survey in the Marmara Lake Basin
The Central Lydia Archaeological Survey (CLAS) was carried out between 2005 and 2014 with the main goal of... Read More
Excavations at Kaymakçı
The Kaymakçı Archaeological Project began in 2014 with aims of conducting excavations and related research activities at and... Read More
Archaeobotany
Our approach to archaeobotany, the study of ancient botanical remains, explores how communities engage with their surroundings. We... Read More
Ceramics
Pottery fragments represent the most conspicuous category of archaeological materials found both on the surface and within the... Read More
Conservation
Current conservation efforts at Kaymakçı focus on site-level support for excavations at Kaymakçı and the processing, stabilization, and... Read More
Digital Recording & Database
From the beginning of survey work in 2005 to present excavation work, we have always strived to remain... Read More
DNA: Ancient and Sediment DNA Studies
The scope of ancient DNA studies aims to study genetic characterizations of archaeobotanical material recovered from excavations at... Read More
Landscapes
When the Central Lydia Archaeological Survey (CLAS) began, the backbone of the research focused first and foremost on... Read More
Ottoman Studies
Intensive “digging” into the Presidential Ottoman Archives and Robert College-Boğaziçi University Archives in Istanbul has proved to be... Read More
Research Center Design
The research center, which among other activities hosts the archaeological mission working at the nearby site of Kaymakçı... Read More
Small Finds
“Small finds” refer to a variety of generally “small” artifacts in diverse materials. Often studied according to narrow... Read More
Volumetric (3D) Recording
A key innovation of the Kaymakçı Archaeological Project (KAP) in developing the KAP Recording System in 2014 was... Read More
Zooarchaeology
Our approach to zooarchaeology, the study of ancient faunal remains, investigates the intimate relationships among humans, animals, and... Read More
Publications
Made from Mud (Mokrišová et al. 2020)
Excavation, Material Science, ThingsFilling the Void in Archaeological Excavations (Nobles and Roosevelt 2021)
Digital, ExcavationBorn-Digital Logistics (Scott et al. 2021)
Digital, ExcavationAgropastoral Economies and Land Use (Marston et al. 2021)
Agricultural Practice at Bronze Age Kaymakçı (Shin et al. 2020)
Climate & Environment, ExcavationSampling Strategies for Archaeological Sediment Chemistry (Scott 2020)
Excavation, Material Science, Spaces, Survey & LandscapeKaymakçı Archaeological Project 2018 (Roosevelt, Kaner, and Luke 2020)
ExcavationPig Husbandries (Slim, Çakırlar, and Roosevelt 2020)
Climate & Environment, Excavation, HistoriesAncient DNA Extraction and Amplification (Ciftci et al. 2019)
Climate & Environment, Material ScienceA Pearl in Peril (Luke 2019)
Documents & Archives, Histories, LakeA Bronze Herringbone Knife (Pieniazek et al. 2019)
Excavation, ThingsInhabited Hellenistic Landscapes (Roosevelt 2019)
Histories, Survey & Landscape
Blog
Gygaia Voices
Voices From the Field (2021-08-20)
A New Publication on Earthen Materials from Kaymakçı
Voices From the Field (2021-08-03)
A Birdless Watching Tower
Voices From the Field (2021-07-27)
Another Season of Material Analyses…
Voices From the Field (2021-07-20)
That’s a Wrap!
Voices From the Field (2021-07-13)
Two New Publications on Digital Archaeology at Kaymakçı
Voices From the Field (2021-07-06)
Changing of the Guard
Voices From the Field (2021-06-29)
Lake Desiccation or an Anticipated, Annual Retreat?
Voices From the Field (2021-06-25)
Team members got their first jabs!
Voices From the Field (2021-06-23)
A Visit from the (Dust) Storm God
Voices From the Field (2021-06-22)
Auditory Heritage at the Trowel’s Edge
Contact Us
Hacıveliler Mahallesi, Hacıveliler Sokak: 101
Gölmarmara MANİSA
info@gygaia.org