The Penelope Biggs Travel award, funded by John Biggs in memory of his wife Penelope Biggs, assists faculty from any department, and students from any department who have course work in Classics, Art History & Archaeology, or Philosophy, as they travel for research and study involving Greco-Roman antiquity. In its first year, the award has already funded 19 students and members of the WashU faculty.
Ana Maria Ribeiro, a PhD student in Classics, who is integrating her experience in musical instrument (flute), ethnomusicology, manuscript studies, and classics, received an award to attend Dumbarton Oaks Greek Summer School. Her reflection on the experience follows:
July felt like the quickest month of my life so far. It was four weeks of intense dedication to Byzantine Greek, Greek paleography, and networking with scholars in the field of Byzantine studies. I also had the opportunity to work with Professor Alexandros Alexakis for weekly private tutorials. During these sessions, we had insights into the use of scholia in Ptolemy’s Harmonics, particularly focusing on the thirteenth-century manuscript Vat.gr.191. This experience has inspired ideas for a potential thesis and even a dissertation. Additionally, connecting with various and different scholars has opened the door to future collaborations, which I am looking forward to pursuing. I thank the committee for having approved this funding and John Biggs for having created it. This support provided me with a much better experience in this summer school.
