“Farmer–Excavators: Folk Archaeologies in Delos” programme update

During the summer, the first phase of the research programme took place in Mykonos and Delos, involving nine interviews with people connected to the island’s agricultural and excavation past. 

With the contribution of anthropologist Despoina Nazou, these narratives revealed rich memories of everyday life, agricultural work, and the coexistence between locals and archaeologists, with the material traces of its past, as a point of reference in people’s stories and a timeless element of the landscape of Delos, a valuable collective testimony to how communities both shaped and were shaped by the landscape. The stories also highlighted the formation of its modern identity and the differences between older and younger generations of workers at the excavations. At the same time, we explored the relationships between people and the landscape, as well as the interactions with animals, plants, and water management.

The research continues, and part of the testimonies will form a digital archive within the framework of the project “Farmer–Excavators: Folk Archaeologies in Delos” developed by The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Public Humanities Initiative (SNFPHI). The archive will enrich the broader project, which centers on the restoration of “Farmhouse of Markos”, in collaboration with the Ephorate of Antiquities of Cyclades and the French School of  Athens.

Boulouki organizes the “ADELOS” project in collaboration with the Ephorate of Antiquities of Cyclades and the French School of Athens. The J.M. Kaplan Fund is the primary supporter  of the project. The project aims to restore the traditional “Farmhouse of Markos” in Delos and study the rural heritage of the Delos, Mykonos, and Rineia island complex. Ethnographic research activities are carried out in collaboration with the anthropologist Despina Nazou and funded by the Initiative for Public Humanities of Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNFPHI) at Columbia University and the Museum of Cycladic Art Initiative, the Cycladic Identity. The project is the main focus of the Boulouki Design Studio Department of Architecture (D-ARCH) at ETH Zurich.