Dr. Philip Duke

Professor of Anthropology

Fort Lewis College

        Philip Duke received a B.A. and M.A. from Cambridge University, and a M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Calgary.  In 1990 he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London.  He has also received the Stephen H. Hart Award from the Colorado Historical Society (1998) and the Executive Secretary's Award from the Colorado Archaeological Society (1992).  In 2000 he was given one of Fort Lewis College's first two Featured Scholars Award.  He has taught at Fort Lewis College since 1980.

Personal Statement:  Archaeology is not just about the past, it is about the present.  So, I try to get my students to see how our understanding of the past helps frame our understanding of the present.  

My research interests for the past twenty five years have focused on North America, specifically the Plains, Southwest and Rocky Mountains.  Besides investigating the culture histories of these areas, I have been particularly interested in how archaeology's different theoretical paradigms can be combined to give a fuller picture of the past.  An important theme in much of my work is how best to engage the public in creating a dialogue on the archaeological past.  I have played this theme out in my work with groups such as Native American tribes in the Southwest and mining communities in southern Colorado.

Projects: 

Currently, I am involved in two projects.  Since 1996 I've been working with Dean Saitta, Randy McGuire and others on the Colorado Coalfield War Project.   Centered on Ludlow in southern Colorado, we are using archaeological and historical techniques to shed new light on one of the most infamous episodes in American labor history: the Ludlow Massacre of 1914, in which striking miners and their families were killed by the Colorado National Guard.  To view my work with Saitta, click here: http://www.shef.ac.uk/assem/4/4forum.html

         I am also involved in a new project, one that brings me back to my earliest interest in archaeology, the archaeology of Greece.  In the winter of 2002 I spent two months on Crete investigating the relationship between tourism and archaeology, specifically how the past is portrayed to tourists as part of their "package tour" visits to sites like Knossos and Phaistos.  I am currently writing up the results.

        Each summer I take a community/student group to Greece.  We visit many of the major archaeological and historical sites on the Greek mainland and the Aegean islands.  The picture to the left is of my son and me at the Parthenon in 1999.

          To get information on our 2004 trips to Greece, stay tuned!!

         Click here to see what last year's trip was like:  Greece

           I hope you can join us!

To visit the anthropology website at Fort Lewis College, click here http://anthro.fortlewis.edu

Contact Information: 

    Office: 280 Center of Southwest Studies

    Phone: (970) 247 7346  

    E-Mail: duke_p@fortlewis.edu