Khaled al-Asaad Memorial Fellowship

A fellowship to honor the memory of Syrian archaeologist Khaled al-Assad who was executed by the Islamic State in 2015 while protecting the location of artifacts from the site of Palmyra, where he worked for over forty years. Al-Asaad was an esteemed scholar and a generous friend to generations of archaeologists from Syria and abroad. In January 2016, the Archaeological Institute of America posthumously awarded him an Award of Honor for the Highest Meritorious Service to Archaeology. Made possible through the gift of a generous donor, the AIA will award two annual fellowships to honor Khaled al-Asaad that provide a stipend of $4,000 to scholars working in Syria, Iraq, Turkey, or Egypt to attend the AIA Annual Meeting and present their work. Scholars are encouraged to make additional connections and visits in conjunction with their trip to further support their research and/or the development of their professional networks. Preference will be given to strong candidates from Syria, Iraq, or Turkey, although all foreign scholars studying or working with the ancient archaeology of Syria, Iraq, Turkey, or Egypt will be considered, especially those with projects in Syria.