Saturday, April 4, 2018: Mr. Jim R. Jansson, Trustee, National AIA Governing Board, Member Executive Committee, Member Finance Committee, Member Society Committee, Subcommittee Chairman Society Outreach Grant Program

‘Finding the Ancient River Called Sagra: How Archaeology Spoke When History Was Silent’

Abstract: 

Around 560 B.C., a legendary battle was fought on the banks of the Sagra River in Magna Greacia between a greatly outnumbered Locrian army and the invading forces of their belligerent neighbor Kroton. The resulting Locrian victory was so unlikely that it became an item of Greek folklore. Sadly both the location of the Sagra and the battlefield were lost over time. This is the story of how archaeological detective work beginning in 2010 led not only to the identification of the river and the battlefield, but also allowed the construction of a reasonable hypothesis as to how the Locrians managed to win the Battle of the Sagra.

Bio:

Jim Jansson has over 18 of experience in excavation, survey, lab work and research in Calabria, Italy involving both Hellenized Italics and Locrian Greeks under the auspices of the Foundation for Calabrian Archaeology and the University of Kentucky. Mr. Jansson is a 1967 graduate of the University of New Mexico and 1981 graduate of the College for Financial Planning. He served 5 years in the United States Navy as an Intelligence Officer and has 47 years of experience in the securities industry. He is a past branch manager, department head, and general partner of a New York Stock Exchange Firm. Currently, Mr. Jansson is a senior vice president & financial adviser of RBC (Royal Bank of Canada) Wealth Management, Inc. His current positions in archaeology include the following: Trustee, National AIA Governing Board, Member Executive Committee, Member Finance Committee, Member Society Committee, Subcommittee Chairman Society Outreach Grant Program Founding Director and a senior excavator of the Foundation for Calabrian Archaeology and Honorary President and Board Member Denver AIA Society.

Publications: 

“A Greek battlefield in southern Italy: new light on the ancient Sagra” Paolo Visona and James R. Jansson, October 2017 volume of the Journal of Greek Archaeology, Cambridge, UK