Research :: ARCHAEOLOGY LABORATORY :: Current Research :: Penelope Drooker

Penelope Drooker, Ph.D. - Anthropology Chair, Assistant Director of Research and Collections
My research has a strong focus on interaction and exchange, particularly among geographically separate regions and diverse peoples. In concert with this, I employ archaeological evidence to study individual social identities, community and regional socioeconomic organizations, and craft technology, production, and dissemination, while tracing the movements of people, objects, styles, technologies, and – by extension - ideas. I am particularly committed to making productive use of the vast and often untapped archaeological resources available in museum collections.

Educational Background
Ph.D., anthropology, 1996, The University at Albany, State University of New York
A.L.M., anthropology, 1989, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
M.S., hydrology, 1968, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH
B.A., geology, 1965, Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA

Protohistoric Interaction and Exchange in Eastern North America:
Investigations of late prehistoric, protohistoric, and early historical interaction patterns in eastern North America, particularly in connection with early European arrivals.

Socioeconomic Significance of Perishable Material Culture:
Obtaining and interpreting information about objects made from organic materials, which often do not survive in the archaeological record but which may represent up to 95% of items made and used by living peoples.