UMSL archaeologist Michael Cosmopoulos has worked with students and volunteers for more than 10 years at an excavation site near the small town of Iklaina, Greece. (Photo courtesy of the Iklaina Project)

Each summer for more than a decade, University of Missouri–St. Louis archaeologist Michael Cosmopoulos has led an expedition of students and volunteers to an area in the middle of an olive grove in southwest Greece for hands-on experience they’re likely to never forget.

And this summer was no different. Cosmopoulos, the Hellenic Government Karakas Family Endowed Professor of Greek Studies at UMSL, and his team returned to the the site of Iklaina to conduct fieldwork. Archaeology magazine has written an extensive article about Cosmopoulos’ dig in its July/August issue. Visit the Archaeology website for a preview of the article, titled “The Birth of Bureaucracy” (click on “PREVIEW”).

One discovery made by Cosmpoulous and his team was named one of the top 10 discoveries of 2011 by the Greek press. The tablet is considered the oldest written record in Europe. His discovery of the tablet has been recognized among the top finds of the year.

Cosmopoulos’ article in Archaeology Magazine also merited a mention in Greek Reporter, which reports on Greek news from around the globe.

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Myra Lopez

Myra Lopez