Dimitri Papavasiliou
Ph.D. Student, Rutgers University
- Title Ph.D. Student, Rutgers University
- Email dpapa@bu.edu
- Education BA summa cum laude, Boston University, 2020
MA, Boston University, 2020
Areas of Interest
Paleoethnobotany/archaeobotany; Mesoamerican/Amazonian archaeology; Epigraphy; GIS; Archaeological Reconnaissance; Remote sensing; Regional settlement demography
Research Interests & Fieldwork
My research focuses on the transition from foraging to sedentary agricultural economies in the Belize River Valley. Working with the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance program during their 2019 field season, I was able to collect paleobotanical samples from the Preclassic Maya site of Cahal Pech. Macrobotanical samples were collected using a manual bilge pump flotation machine and microbotanical soil samples were collected for phytolith analysis. The flotation machine, Artemis VI, was designed using modified parts from a Boston University model. Throughout the field season I was able to adjust the machine in order to operate efficiently in a tropical environment. I am currently in the process of designing standardized flotation parts that can be transported, installed, and managed effortlessly in remote locations. After successful shipment of my samples to the Boston University Environmental Archaeology Laboratory, I have begun processing my microbotanical soil samples for phytolith analysis.
Projects
Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project