Second Announcement

Welcome to the EAA 9th annual meeting

With great pleasure I invite you to participate in the 9th Annual Meeting of the EAA in St. Petersburg. Preparations are well under way and the local team is doing a great job organising this Meeting, which will surely become one of the most memorable in EAA history! The Opening Ceremony will be in the Main Hall of St. Petersburg State University, which you have seen on TV (president Putin receives foreign guests). As for our Annual Business Meeting - we will have it in the Theatre of the State Hermitage Museum and those of you who were there will agree with me that this leaflet is too small for an appropriate description.

You will have an opportunity to feel the colour of local medieval history through the pre-meeting excursions to the old towns of the Russian North-West from 8th-9th of September. A tour to the first capital of Russia - Staraya Ladoga - is included among the post-meeting Sunday excursions.

But most important is, of course, the meeting itself. As usual our main thematic blocks will cover a broad range of subjects and everyone will surely find there more than enough interesting topics: even now, a number of proposals has already been received.

I would like to use this opportunity to thank our Russian colleagues for all their help in the organisation of the 9th EAA Annual Meeting: the members of the National Advisory Board (Chair: Prof. Mikhail Piotrovsky) and the Local Organising Committee (Chair: Prof. Andrey Dvornichenko) as well as all local co-organisers of the meeting listed in this leaflet. They are also to be thanked for providing free access to a number of the most important museums at St. Petersburg, most notably - the State Hermitage Museum and the Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera).

To my great satisfaction the Wenner Gren Foundation and the Association for Cultural Exchange have already indicated their intention to support the meeting so that we are sure we will be able to support a number of delegates from Central and Eastern Europe. You are invited to send in your pre-registrations and we are waiting for your session, round table, paper or poster proposal. I would like to encourage you to register as soon as you can (and make friends and colleagues do the same), because we had to set rather early deadlines for registration for two main reasons.

The first one is that 2003 will be the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg's foundation. The celebrations will attract a lot of tourists so all hotel arrangements have to be made well in advance. Second - most foreign citizens need entry visa to travel to Russia. It is quite easy to obtain one - all details can be found in this leaflet - but please take into consideration that your preparations for this Annual Meeting will have to start earlier than in previous years. Some members are used to taking last-minute decisions to come to a meeting. If you do that this time, you will most likely not be able to attend! You simply cannot risk to miss this meeting, so act now and do not let this leaflet get lost on your desk.

I look forward to meet you in St. Petersburg in September!

Willem J. H. Willems,
President of the EAA

Introduction to the EAA

There is a long tradition of collaboration and exchange of information between archaeologists in Europe, but until the last few years this has been largely uncoordinated. Now, with the disappearance of many of the political obstacles of the past fifty years, archaeologists can move and work freely, all over Europe. At the same time, the increasing threats to Europe's rich archaeological heritage, the growth and diversification of the subject, and recent political changes combine to present a unique opportunity for the profession to develop a new, integrated European archaeology, based upon existing national and regional traditions.

The European Association of Archaeologists (EAA) is a membership-based association open to all archaeologists and other related or interested individuals or bodies. The EAA currently has over 1100 members on its database from 41 countries world-wide working in prehistory, classical, medieval and later archaeology. They include academics, aerial archae-ologists, environmental archaeologists, field archaeologists, heritage managers, historians, museum curators, researchers, scientists, teachers, conservators, underwater archaeologists and students of archaeology.

In 1994 at the Inaugural Meeting of the (EAA) held in Ljubljana, Slovenia, the EAA Statutes were formally approved. They stipulate that the EAA was created:

to promote the development of archaeological research and the exchange of archaeological information;
to promote the management and interpretation of the European archaeological heritage;
to promote proper ethical and scientific standards for archaeological work;
to promote the interests of professional archaeologists in Europe;
to promote co-operation with other organisations with similar aims.

Call for proposals

The academic sessions of the 9th EAA Annual Meeting will take place on the 11th-13th of September (Thursday-Saturday) and they will run through three main thematic blocks - (1) Theory and Interpretation of Material Culture, (2) Cultural Heritage and the Management of the Archaeological Record, (3) Archaeology in the Modern World. You are welcome to propose sessions, round tables, papers and posters!

The academic programme will be updated on the Web according to the accepted proposals.

Exhibition

Universities, museums, publishers, government institutions and other companies are welcome to apply for a space at the Exhibition. Detailed information on space reservation will be sent to those who request it.

St. Petersburg

Saint Petersburg is the so-called northern capital of Russia. It was founded by the Russian Tzar Peter the Great in 1703 as a new state capital and as "a window to Europe". But today the appearance of St. Petersburg reflects the creative activity of many famous European architects and combines various architectural styles. The very first Russian University and Academy were established in this new city during the 1720s (today's St. Petersburg State University and Russian Academy of Sciences).

In spite of the city's relatively young age, its foundation can be seen to be a direct result of the very dynamic medieval history of this region - the Russian North-West, where the first traces of occupation can be dated back to the Mesolithic. The region has many archaeological sites that reflect the continued contacts between various ethnic groups and cultures through the ages. Some of the oldest Russian towns - Staraya Ladoga, Novgorod, Pskov, Izborsk - are located not far from St. Petersburg.

Nowadays the city is one of the main cultural, research and economic centres of Russia and one of the most important ports on the Baltic Sea.

In the year of the three-hundredth anniversary of St. Petersburg's foundation the organisers of the 9th EAA Annual Meeting are happy to welcome you to the cradle of Russian science and humanities. The Meeting is included in the programme of the city's celebrations "St. Petersburg's Tercentenary", which also creates special opportunities for the conference. Over the past years the historic city centre has been beautifully restored and is immediately adjacent to the main conference venue in the university buildings along the Neva river.
St. Petersburg on the Web

Language

The language of the Meeting will be English. All forms, proposals, abstracts, etc. are accepted in English only. Papers may be presented in other languages, provided they are announced as such and the author provides an abstract in English. The organisers of the Meeting will not provide simultaneous translation.

Registration fee

The table with registration fees can be found in the pre-registration form. In this table and further you will find that fees and prices for this Meeting have been set in US dollars and not in Roubles (or Euros). The reason is that in Russia all long-term prices are set in USD.

The fee covers the Meeting Programme, your delegate pack (including abstracts and other publications), refreshments during the meeting days, admission to the Welcome Reception and Annual Party, as well as transportation from the airport (for those arriving before noon on Wednesday 10 September). The fee for EAA non-members also provides one year's membership (2003) of the EAA.

EAA student award. Terms of reference

The European Association of Archaeologists instituted the EAA Student Award in 2002. The prize is awarded annually for the best paper presented by a student or archaeologist, working on a dissertation, at the EAA conference. The papers are evaluated for their academic merit and innovative ideas by the Award Selection Committee. The Committee in 2003 consists of representatives of the EAA Executive Board and the Scientific Committee of the St. Petersburg conference.

The Award shall consist of a diploma. The winner of the award will be announced at the Annual Business Meeting on the 13th of September, 2003.

All MA and Ph.D. students as well as archaeologists working on a dissertation, who present a paper at the conference are eligible to apply, and are urged to submit their papers to the Award Selection Committee for consideration by 1th September 2003 at the latest. The entries should be mailed to the EAA Secretariat's address or e-mailed to Arkadiusz Marciniak, the EAA Secretary at arekmar@amu.edu.pl

Pre-registrations & payments

The pre-registration forms and all payments (registration fee, accommodation, pre-meeting excursions and visa - if accommodation is arranged independently) will be sent to the EAA Secretariat in Kungsbacka, except those from the delegates living in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS, i.e. - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kirghizia, Moldova, Russia, Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan). Forms of payment to the EAA Secretariat:
by credit card (a prefered method of payment),
by bank transfer.

If your country belongs to the CIS, you must send your pre-registration form and make all payments to the Non-Profit-Making Partnership "Center of Assistance for the International Archaeological and Historical Researches" (NPMP "CAIAHR") in St. Petersburg, which serves the Meeting as its Secretariat. Form of payments is bank transfer only.

Please remember that all prices are in the US dollars and note that all bank charges must be borne by the participant and may not be deducted from the amount remitted!

Detailed information for payments will be available in final registration form.

All other relevant information included in the 2nd announcement is available in the appropriate parts of this web-site. Also you can download full version of the 2nd announcement as DOC-file. Pre-registration forms are available in the department Deadlines & Forms on-line and as DOC-files.

First Announcement

The 9th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists will take place in Saint Petersburg - the so-called northern capital of Russia. The Russian Tzar Peter the Great founded it in 1703 as a new state capital and as "a window to Europe". And actually - the appearance of St. Petersburg reflects the creative activity of many famous European architects and joins the various architectural styles. In addition, the very first Russian University and Academy were established in this new city during the 1720s (today's St. Petersburg State University and Russian Academy of Sciences).

In spite of the city's relatively young age, its foundation can be seen to be a direct result of the very dynamic medieval history of this region - the Russian North-West, where the first traces of occupation can be dated back to the Mesolithic. The region has many archaeological sites that reflect the continued contacts between various ethnic groups and cultures through the ages. Some of the oldest Russian towns - Staraya Ladoga, Novgorod, Pskov, Izborsk - are located not far from St. Petersburg and will of course be included in the excursions.

Nowadays the city is one of the main cultural, research and economic centers of Russia and the most important Russian port on the Baltic Sea.

In the year of the three-hundredth anniversary of St. Petersburg's foundation the organizers of the 9th EAA Annual Meeting are happy to welcome you to the cradle of Russian science and humanities. The Meeting is included in the programme of the city's "St. Petersburg's Tercentenary" celebrations, which also creates special opportunities for the conference. Over the past years the town center has been beautifully restored and is immediately adjacent to the main conference venue in the university buildings along the Neva River.

A unique opportunity!

The EAA board is very pleased by the invitation of our Russian colleagues, so take your chance to visit St. Petersburg in its jubilee year! How about a visit to the State Hermitage Museum (where we shall have our Annual Business Meeting!), a shopping spree on bustling Nevsky Prospect, or visits to some of the other world-famous monuments in town. You really should not miss the 9th Annual Meeting!!

Important to plan early

Travel to Russia is quite easy these days, and St. Petersburg is a safe and beautiful town where it is easy to get around. However, while there is no difference from visiting any other major European town, there is a crucial difference in preparing your visit. Some members are used to taking last-minute decisions to come to a meeting. If you do that this time, you will most likely not be able to attend!

Most foreign citizens need entry visas to travel to Russia. You can obtain one at a local Russian embassy or consulate (find its location in your country at www.russianembassy.net). But in order to get a visa (the fee depends on your country), you will need an invitation. This will be provided after your final registration has been received. So, please take into consideration, that your preparations for this EAA Annual Meeting will have to start earlier than in previous years.