The Intangible

Donald L. Horowitz is a leading scholar on ethnic conflict, constitutional design, and democratization, serving as James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of Law and Political Science at Duke University. Renowned for his influential works, including Ethnic Groups in Conflict , his research focuses on how institutions shape outcomes in divided societies. Horowitz has advised constitutional processes in co...

Erika Angliker is a classical archaeologist, specialist in island studies, and author, with a Ph. D. from Zurich University and an M.A. from Columbia and Unicamp. Importantly, Dr. Angliker is an expert in the Cyclades, specifically Despotiko and other cultural heritage around Paros island. In this interview, Dr. Angilker specifically talks about her work in cultural preservation in the Cyclades an...

Benetos Skiadas is a fisherman, Paros resident, and the single creator of the Museum of Cycladic Folklore in Paros, Greece. Having made every replica of Cycladic monuments by hand, Benetos Skiadas has created a place that represents the tangible culture of the Cyclades. In this interview, he talks about the museum and how he made all the replicas, the meaning of the Cycladic culture, and his own l...

Claire Smith is a Professor at Flinders University and an anthropological archaeologist working with Indigenous communities in Australia. Professor Smith has also served as President of the World Archaeological Congress. Tune in to the episode to see Professor Smith and Nicholas discuss the preservation of aboriginal cultural heritage!

Professor Jodi Magness is the Kenan Distinguished Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, focusing on Biblical and Classical Archaeology. She has been involved in many key archaeological excavations in Israel, including Masada and Huqoq, which are discussed in the podcast episode. In this episode, Professor Magness discusses the preservation practices she has employed through...

Having received her PhD from the University of California, Santa Barbara, Dr. Monroe is an expert in zooarchaeology—specifically in Sudan and Egypt. Starting in 2024, Dr. Monroe will be an assistant professor at Harvard University. In this episode, she discusses the very inspiration story of how she become an anthropologist and archaeologist. Dr. Monroe also provides specific examples of the diffi...

Eckart Frahm is a professor of Assyriology at Yale University. An expert in cuneiform tablets, Professor Frahm has been present as a witness in many repatriation cases, which he talks about in this episode. His thorough explanation of a relatively new topic on the podcast—cuneiform tablets— is thought provoking and extremely interesting. Based in his knowledge and experience, Professor Frahm provi...

Professor Liebmann is the Peabody Professor of American Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University. He has collaborated significantly with the Pueblo of Jemez. In this episode, Professor Liebmann talks about his vast fieldwork and the importance of preservation. Be sure to check out his book: https://www.amazon.com/Revolt-Archaeological-Revitalization-Indigenous-Colonial-Interactions/dp/08165...

Professor Thompson is a professor anthropology at Yale University, with a specific focus in human evolution. She leads the Malawi Ancient Lifeways and People's Project in Malawi. In this episode, Professor Thompson talks about long term investment in local communities as a key factor for stable cultural preservation. Check out her full bio here: https://anthropology.yale.edu/people/jessica-thompso...

In the first in-person episode of The Intangible podcast, Nicholas talks with Professor Gil J. Stein at the University of Chicago's Institute for the Study of Ancient Culture (ISAC). Professor Stein is the Rowe Professor in Ancient Near Eastern Studies, as well as the Director of the Chicago Center for Cultural Heritage Preservation. In this episode, Professor Stein discusses some of his work with...

Happy Preservation Week! In this week’s episode premiering Tuesday morning, 7am, Nicholas talks with MIT Libraries’ conservators Jana Dambrogio and Terra Huber. In this episode, Jana and Terra discuss the work of the Wunsch Conservation Lab ( https://libraries.mit.edu/distinctive-collections/wunsch-conservation-lab/ ) and they check out different conservation materials they sent to Nicholas in adv...

Historic Preservationist Deqah Hussein-Wetzel is the founder of the nonprofit Urbanist Media ( urbanistmedia.org ) and the co-host of the Urban Roots Podcast, along with cities journalist Vanessa Quirk. In this episode, they discuss the importance of cultural preservation as well as the importance of preserving African American culture. I would highly recommend listening to the Urban Roots Podcast...

Susan West Montgomery is a preservation consultant focused on educating companies and communities on the importance of historic preservation. On this episode of the podcast, Ms. Montgomery discusses her work as well as why historical preservation is so important.

In this repost of an interview conducted for the Cycladic Preservation Group, Nicholas talked with Becky Martin about her fieldwork in Greece and Israel. Professor Martin is an Associate Professor of History of Art & Architecture and Archaeology at Boston University, while she is also a lecturer at the Archaeological Institute of America. In this episode, Becky Martin explores some very specif...

In this repost of an interview conducted for the Cycladic Preservation Group, Nicholas talked with Jeremy Bucher about cultural preservation in a museum setting, including the challenges in preserving oral culture. Jeremy Bucher is the Collections & Archives Manager at the National Hellenic Museum in Chicago.

In this repost of an interview conducted for the Cycladic Preservation Group, Nicholas talked with Brian Rose about the difference between cultural preservation in the field and in a museum. Professor Brian Rose is the James B. Pritchard Professor of Archaeology at the University of Pennsylvania and he is also the curator-in-charge of the Mediterranean Section at the UPenn Museum of Archaeology an...

In this episode, Kacey Hadick, the Director of Conservation Programs at CyArk, talks with Nicholas about digital cultural preservation. Mr. Hadick discusses the advantages of digital cultural preservation, which is a rapidly growing field. The organization he works for- CyArk- is a non profit organization based in the San Francisco Bay Area that leverages the 3D documentation of cultural heritage...

In the first episode of The Intangible, Rob Cope talks with Nicholas about jazz music and its preservation. Mr. Cope is a teacher and performer in the British jazz scene, performing with many bands, including Matt Robert's Bigish Band, Andy Scott’s Group S and contemporary classical ensemble, SoundSPARK. He has appeared with the Halle and the English Symphony Orchestras as well as with the Matthew...