Department of Anthropology

Penn State University

Carrie HritZ

Assistant Professor of Archaeological Anthropology

Carrie Hritz Picture Office: 516 Carpenter Building
Telephone: (814) 865-7835 Fax: (814) 863-1474
Email: cah52@psu.edu
Curriculum Vitae

 
 

Education

Bachelor of Arts Anthropological Archaeology New York University, NY 1997
Master of Arts Public History (Museum Studies) St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minnesota  2001
Master of Arts Near Eastern Archaeology/Mesopotamia University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 2001
Ph.D. Near Eastern Archaeology University of Chicago, IL 2005 

Research Interests

I am interested in human-environment interactions in the ancient world as recorded in the archaeological record and the rise of complex societies in the ancient Near East. My research has focused on the creation of landscape models to better understand the physical and cultural transformations that guide the development of irrigation and impact the dynamic settlement pattern of southern Mesopotamia through time. The use of past archaeological survey and mapping has enabled re-analysis of traditional understandings of Mesopotamian settlement patterns. Incorporation of these regional surveys has allowed me to expand the existing database of surveyed archaeological sites by the identification of new archaeological sites through the technology of Remote Sensing and GIS (Geographical Information Systems). Key components of my research include a more comprehensive understanding of landscape features particular to Mesopotamia and the development and shifts of urban spheres through time by spatial analysis. Using landscape archaeology methods and with special emphasis on the geomorphology of the alluvial plain, I have reconstructed an alternative location of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers throughout Mesopotamian history, using remote sensing, soil data, and SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Missions) elevation data. One of the main results of my research has been the development of a working GIS for southern Iraq as a whole and the incorporation of satellite imagery into this type of archaeological research.

Fieldwork

My research focuses on the origins of urbanization in the Ancient Near East. My archaeological work at the University of Chicago excavations Tell Hamoukar in Northeast Syria explores the material from 4th Millennium BC levels.  New field work that I am conducting at and around the site of Tell Zaidan in the Balikh valley of Syria hope to reveal early agricultural practices and the impact of riverine shifts of the Euphrates in this area.

  • Tell Zedain Archaeological Mission to Syria
    Landscape survey director 2008-present
  • Belgian Mission to Khuzesta, Iran
     Remote sensing and survey field director 2009—present (pending visas)

  • Joint Syrian-American survey of the North Jazira.
    Director of Survey project 2009—present (pending permit)

  • Investigations of a Byzantine landscape: Tell Amorium survey project
    Co-director of survey project 2007-Present

Courses Taught

  • Introduction to GIS
  • The Archaeology of Warfare
  • The Archaeology of the Rise of Complex Societies in the Old World
  • Ancient Landscapes: Survey, Settlement Systems and Spatial Analysis

Recent Publications

  • Hritz, C Mapping Mesopotamian Landscapes. In review at the Journal of Field Archaeology

  • Hritz, C New Readings of Past Landscapes: Ancient Landscapes of Southern Mesopotamia. Book manuscript submitted to University of AZ Press.

  • Wright, R and Hritz C “Satellite Remote Sensing Imagery: New evidence for site distributions and ecologies in the Upper Indus” In Press.  Proceedings from the 2007 Conference of European Association of Southwest Asian Archaeologists. Rome

  • Hritz, C (2007) Remote Sensing of Sites in and Around The Hawr Al-Hammar and Hawr Al-Hawiza.
    Akkadica 128 Appendix III.

  • Co-authored with Wilkinson, T et al. (2007)  “Modeling Settlement Systems in a Dynamic Environment: Case studies from Mesopotamia”.  In Modeling Socioecological Systems. Eds. Kohler, T. and Sander van der Leeuw. Publications of the Sante Fe Institute.  Pp. 175-208

  • Hritz, C. and T. Wilkinson.  (2006) Using Shuttle Radar Topography to map ancient water channels in Mesopotamia. Antiquity80 : 415-424