Education
PhD, Geology, University of Georgia
BA, Anthropology, Oberlin College
Professional Interests
As both a trained both geologist and archaeologist, my research uses geological theories and methodologies to tackle archaeological and art historical problems. Currently, I am pursuing two major research trajectories. The first is the development and application of portable instrumentation to study the synergistic relationships between societies and their changing landscapes. These projects use geologic principals and methods to understand how the landscape influences the development of human cultures and, in turn, how dynamic landscapes influence social and cultural stability and change. Research along this trajectory includes a systematic geochemical study of floor samples collected from multiple monumental structures at the Neolithic site of the Ness of Brodgar in Orkney, Scotland. My second line of research focuses on the procurement, use, trade and aesthetics of white marble used in the ancient Mediterranean basin. Current marble research in this area includes analysis of marble samples from the Parthenon and Propylaea on the Athenian acropolis as well as the development of using aerial photography and other emerging technologies to record and study ancient marble quarries.
Courses
Earth System Science
Research Methods in Archaeological Geology
Environmental Geology
Principles of Hydrology
Research Methods in the Anthropocene
Environmental Science Senior Capstone
Archaeology Field School at the Ness of Brodgar
Advanced Archaeology Field School at the Ness of Brodgar
Recent Publications
- Pike, S. From the Acropolis to Pentelikon: Deconstructing the Parthenon. In The Parthenon: Color, Materiality and Aesthetics, M. Abbe and N. Norman, eds., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK (forthcoming).
- Shillito, L.M., McKenzie, J., Card, N., Pike, S. and Chan, B., 2015. Subsistence, technology and resource use in Neolithic Orkney at the Ness of Brodgar. Antiquity Project Gallery, 348.
- Bianchi, F., Bruno, M., and Pike, S., 2015. Pentelic marble in the Severan Complex in Leptis Magna (Tripolitania, Libya). In Interdisciplinary Studies on Ancient Rome: Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference of ASMOSIA, Rome, Italy, 23-34.
- Bernard, S. and Pike, S., 2015. Isotopic analysis of marble from the Stoa of Attalos in the Athenian Agora and the Hellenistic quarries of Mount Pentelikon. In Interdisciplinary Studies on Ancient Rome: Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference of ASMOSIA, Rome, Italy, 451-460.
- Palagia, O. and Pike, S., 2015. Art historical and scientific perspectives on the nature of the orange-red patina of the Parthenon. In Interdisciplinary Studies on Ancient Rome: Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference of ASMOSIA, Rome, Italy, 881-890.
- Aylward, W., Carlson, D., Laroche, D., Meretti, J.C. and S. Pike, 2012. The Temple of Apollo at Claros and the Kızılburun shipwreck: preliminary analysis of isotopic data. In Interdisciplinary Studies on Ancient Stones: IX International Conference of the Association of Marbles and Other Stones Used in Antiquity (ASMOSIA), Tarragona, Spain, 540-548.
- Romano, I. B., Pike, S. and Gazda, E., 2012. The use of symbolism of Pentelic marble in Domitianic Rome. Interdisciplinary Studies on Ancient Stones: IX International Conference of the Association of Marbles and Other Stones Used in Antiquity (ASMOSIA), Tarragona, Spain, 772-779.*
- Pike, S., 2009. A stable isotope database for the ancient white marble quarries of Mount Pentelikon, Greece. In BCH Supp, 51, ASMOSIA VII, The French School of Athens, 699-708.
- Sheedy, K. and Pike, S., 2008. The Delos Colossus Project. In La sculpture des Cyclades à l’Epoque Archaïque: Histoire des Ateliers, Rayonnement des Styles. Fr. Prost and Y. Kourayios eds., BCH Suppl. 48.
- Pike, S., 2004. Intra-quarry sourcing of the Parthenon marbles: applications of the Pentelic Marble Stable Isotope Database. In The Sculptures of the Parthenon, M. Cosmopoulos ed., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, pp. 196-206.
- Pike, S., Herrmann, Jr. J., and Herz, N., 2002. A provenance study of calcitic marble from the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki. In ASMOSIA V: Interdisciplinary Studies on Ancient Stone, J. Hermann, Jr., N. Herz and R. Newman eds., Archetype Publications Ltd., London.