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In the last post about the Archaeological Conservation trip to Sardinia, the Mont’e Prama Project was explained. You were introduced to what conservation is exactly, and the people involved. That post was only a snapshot into all that the Grove City students did while there. This post will give you a little bit more detail.

Our Little Town of Cabras

We did our work in the local Cabras museum, or Museo, as it is in Italian. In the United States, we are used to walking around museums that are huge, that could take literally days to fully explore and appreciate. The Museo in Cabras is minuscule when compared to our museums here in America. The entire Museo was built around a central courtyard, which is where we worked on the fragments. Visitors to the museum would walk through and watch us work. It was exciting and fun to get to see their fascination.

Our average day in Cabras contained a lot of walking, which was a good thing. Maria, our personal chef, kept us well fed on pasta. So none of us had an issue with walking some of it off. We would wake up in a little apartment, which we shared with our fellow students, put on our CCA work shirt, and walked 25 minutes to the Museo through town. Some days we would walk through the little town, but most days we would enjoy the sight of the lake as we walked along dirt roads to work. Once at the Museo, Francesca and Gian Mario – two young, funny, and friendly conservationists – would go over our tasks for the day.

The Daily Work

At the beginning, there was a lot of instruction with the dusting of fragments and their categorization. Later, our tasks included piecing fragments back together, and doing a detailed cleaning of the fragments with mild soap, mist, and scalpels. Most of the dirty work, dusting fragments and chiseling dirt chucks off of them with wooden sticks, was done outside under a white tent. While the sun could get extremely hot, the temperatures we had were just right,

We would work from 9 to about 10:45 a.m., and then get a 20-minute break to go across the street to get a coffee. This was also a great chance to use what little WiFi we could manage to find while abroad. At 1 in the afternoon, Maria would come deliver our lunch. Some days it was as simple as a sandwich, and other days (the best days) she brought us dishes deliciously complex, like fried eggplant lasagna.

Our afternoon work was the most tiresome, but often the most rewarding. There are few words adequate enough to describe the peace that comes from diligently working on a project while having a warm breeze blow against your cheek. It was a soothing routine which allowed one to enjoy the fresh air, sunshine, and company of those around.

At 4:30 p.m. we would start cleaning up our projects and putting everything away, storing the fragments in the Museo’s basement to stay secure, and washing up. We walked back home to the very welcome arms of a hot shower, and then headed over to the apartment of Dr. Nardi and all the staff for dinner. Sometimes we would skip the shower and head down to one of Sardinia’s exquisite beaches. It will always be exciting to say that I have swam in the crystal clear waters of a Mediterranean Island.

Evenings in Sardinia

These relaxed outdoors dinners were the best opportunities to converse with Dr. Nardi, Andreana, Francesca, and Gian Mario. Maria treated us to some delicious food, which usually came in three or four courses. After we were satisfied, and had enjoyed the fresh peaches, apples, and apricots, Dr. Nardi would tell us stories about all his different conservation projects. He spoke of how ISIS and Radical Islam were destroying art, statues, and architecture all over the Middle East. Dr. Nardi also talked about the work the he performed on art pieces. These pieces were in immediate threat of destruction. The students were given more detailed lectures on the finer points of this conservation.

After the discussions with Dr. Nardi, we walk back to our cozy little apartments to go to bed. Sometimes we would go out around town and enjoy all that Cabras had to offer. Our days contained so much more than I have written here. The moments spent working at the Cabras Museo were special, and they hold a very joyful place in my heart.

Grove City College offers its students many different, and unique opportunities to not only better themselves, but to experience unique adventures. Many of these adventures take place on United States soil, but several of them are abroad. Unique partnerships with international institutions offer GCC students exceptional opportunities to explore their vocational interests, obtain outstanding job experience, and gain appreciation for new professions. In this post, one of the more unique opportunities Grove City College offers will be explored — Welcome to archaeological conservation in Sardinia, Italy.

Now, I’m sure you have several questions probably rolling around in your head. They may include:

“Archaeological Conservation? Is that when they dig stuff up from the dirt?”

“Sardinia…I’ve never heard of that. Where in the world is that? Is it really part of Italy?” 

“Great, so you’re going to tell us about how you dug up rocks all summer? Sounds like so much fun.”

The subject might sound as dry as the rocks we worked with, but you might be surprised at how you are wrong. First, what is archaeological conservation? Archaeological conservation is the preservation of items which make up our history. Conservationists repair structures, art, pottery, sculptures, mosaics, and so much more.  Yet they also work with museums, governments, and private individuals to clean, categorize, reassemble, and display ancient pieces which were discovered in archaeological digs. Every statue that you see in a museum, every piece of pottery, has been preserved by a conservationist.

There are very few conservationists around the world, and opportunities to experience their work are few and far between. This makes the fact that Grove City College offers a month long archaeological conservation trip all the more exciting. The school sponsors students to go, in a group, to Sardinia to work on the Mont’e Prama Project. Dr. Nardi is a world renowned archaeological conservationist who not only is very good at what he does, but also is extremely kind and friendly. He loves meeting students, working with them, opening their eyes to a new world, and building community with them. We handled pieces of art which were thousands of years old, and were extremely delicate. If a paintbrush pressed too hard against a stone, there is a high possibility it would crumble away. Considering how fragile these artifacts are, the Italians never gave anything but patient, level-headed instruction.

The Project of Mont’e Prama

The research assignment we worked on was called the Mont’e Prama Project. We studied two different types of figures; the Giganti, and the Nuraghe. The Giganti, or the Giants, are eight-foot-tall warrior statues made out of sandstone. The Nuraghe are primitive castles figurines which vary in size. Some were small enough to hold in your hands, and others were big enough to need a truck to move. The Nuraghe models are believed to be based off of full size ‘castles’ which are scattered around the island.

While both are important groups of artifacts, the Nuraghe models have been found across the island while the Giganti have only been discovered in one small piece of land. A farmer found these artifacts while plowing on the archaeological site. The Giganti were in an ancient graveyard, but their purpose is unknown, as is the purpose of the Nuraghe models. The archaeological dig site itself unearthed the fragments we worked with in the 70’s. There were 27 crates of fragments that we students worked with. The crates contained anywhere from one large fragment to 80 small fragments. It is estimated that by the end of the month, we handled over 500 individual fragments — quite the number.

Conclusion

All in all, the experience was amazing. I developed an appreciation for how much work truly goes into, not only the archaeological process, but the curation and museum work that goes into preparing and presenting a piece. I was also astonished at how many fragments and pieces are not on display. For every piece you see in a museum there are hundreds of pieces not on display, and thousands of unidentified fragments sitting in the basement. I learned patience in the process, and I got to see first-hand how much passion for the subject is required from those who chose it as their profession.

This summer Lauren Bimber had an exciting opportunity with ReachAcross. Lauren is a senior Accounting major from Lombard, Illinois. She came to Grove City College because her brother previously attended the College and loved the people along with the godly atmosphere. She loves how the campus feels like a family, how wonderful the professors are, and how happy everyone seems to be here.

What did you do this past summer? Did you get connected to this opportunity through GCC?

This summer I was an intern for an organization called ReachAcross in the United Kingdom.  I went through the Red Box Missions program at Grove City, and I was connected with the organization through a friend who was in the program the previous summer.

What is ReachAcross? What do they do?

ReachAcross is “a network of Jesus-followers who are dedicated to sharing the Good News with Muslims and serve them in practical ways, no matter how difficult or inaccessible they may be.

What did you do specifically?

This summer I was able to experience different forms of outreach to immigrant communities, while learning about the religion and cultural aspects of Islam. I helped some with teaching English, working at Kids Clubs, helping out at community center for women, and spending time at prayer meetings with networks of people and churches who are dedicated to serving the immigrant communities. I was basically learning how people are reaching out in practical and simple ways through friendship to show the love of Jesus to their neighbors.

What was your favorite moment from this summer/what was most rewarding?

It’s hard to pick a favorite or most rewarding aspect of my summer.  There were a few days where I was able to spend time talking and coloring with a small group of elementary-aged girls from the community.  We talked about stories from the Bible and different aspects of being Christian or Muslim. There was no efforts in trying to convert one another. We wanted to learn about each other the same way that any set of friends would. We laughed a lot, there were some tears over ruined pictures (not on my end), and there was a lot of love that was shared with these girls. The time I was able to spend with them was unique and very special to me.

How has this opportunity prepared you for life after college?

After college, I am planning on doing work very similar to what I did this past summer, but to add some accounting to the mix. Refugee and immigrant communities are growing in this country, and there are needs within those communities that can easily be met by willing people. God has provided us, as a Christian community, with access to so many opportunities to serve Him by serving and sharing with the people around us. Are we/will we be willing to take those opportunities?

The Big Scary World of After College

There are plenty of reasons to attend Grove City College, but few things are more convincing than the words of an alumna. I spoke to Karolina Lagerquist, a 2016 graduate of Grove City, and an outstanding member of the Entrepreneurship Department. She played on the Grove City tennis team, and was certainly involved in mostly everything.

Why did you decide to attend Grove City, and why did you pick your particular major?

I chose to go to Grove City because I wanted to go to a school that would push me in all areas of life as a disciple of Christ. I also wanted to attend an institution where I could get to know my professors and classmates on a personal level – and that deep, challenging community was definitely what I found at GCC!

What was most rewarding about attending Grove City?

The most rewarding part about being a Grover was getting to join a community of driven, enthusiastic students, devoted to learning not only their academic discipline excellently, but also willing to engage and take ownership of their faith.  To be both vividly present in one place for four years is incredibly formative and is a great way to lay a foundation for the rest of life!

In what ways do you think Grove City has best prepared you for after-college life?

GCC prepared me very well, specifically in the comprehensiveness of the entrepreneurship program. Respectively, in the sense that everything that I have been asked to do at my job has been something that I have either done already for a class project or at least know how to wrap my head around.  Additionally, learning how to juggle way more than you think you can handle has been invaluable – and not just for life at the office!

How has your transition from college to the workplace been?

Transitioning to the working world has definitely been easier coming from a GCC education.  At Grove City, you have to develop a strong work ethic to survive – and coupled with the opportunity the receive a liberal arts education, you are set up well for flourishing.  It is not easy leaving the Grove, but prepared to succeed.

If you could give potential students some advice about college, what would that be?

Taking ownership has always been a really important concept to me (and seems to be to many GCC students) – but one thing I wish I would have done more as I got closer to graduating was recognize that God has a plan. No amount of angst-filled, wheel-spinning on my part was going to help me trust that fact.  One of God’s names is Jevhovah Jireh, which means ‘the Lord who provides’ and my advice to current Grovers – especially those heading out in the next few months – would be to really internalize this notion because it is something that I have drawn on countless times since graduation.

Hopeful Conclusion

Speaking to Karolina really eased my nerves and made me realize that I go to a great school that will prepare me for my professional and personal life. Not only will I “make it” after college, but I’ll thrive. Being a senior myself, it was a scary time to stare down and look at the real world. Freshmen and prospective students do not have to worry about it quite yet, but it is important to pick a school which will help you along that path (once its time to walk on it).