Members of the excavation team take a break from the trenches in the early hours of the morning. Excavation begins at 7 AM each day, and concludes at 5 PM.
The Ride Home
A conservator secures a skull during the drive from the dig site to the depot, where it will be stored along with the rest of the skeleton.
Sardes Scape
The skyline of the modern village of Sart, located sixty miles from the west coast of Turkey. In antiquity, Sart was Sardis, the capital of the Lydian civilization and an important city in Persian, early Roman, and Byzantine times.
From Antiquity
A Land Rover sits parked at the edge of the excavation site. This antique vehicle, which used to be pink, has remained in use since 1958, the first year of the Sardis Expedition.
Leading the Flock
A shepherd leads his flock across Sart's old highway, which has lost traffic since the construction of a larger highway to the north. Shepherds and goatherds are common sights in Sart, as dairy products are one of its most important industries.
Columns
Columns from the Sardis synagogue, constructed in the settlement's early Roman period, rise above the structure's forecourt. The Sardis synagogue, thought to be the largest ancient synagogue to be excavated, challenged existing notions about the presence of Jewish communities in Asia Minor.
