Ancient Merv Project. A Forgotten City on the Silk Roads
Merv, one of the largest cities in the world in the 10th century CE, was also one of the greatest cities on the Silk Roads. The project is currently exploring Sultan Kala, the vast Islamic city of the 8th-13th century sacked by Genghis Khan in 1221: excavating a central bazaar, the main canal, domestic houses and part of the street system. Working alongside colleagues and students from Turkmenistan, students will gain experience of a range of archaeological techniques and methods. The project also examines the management of this World Heritage Site, looking at issues of conservation, tourism and local communities.
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Room and Board Specifics
ACCOMMODATION
Students and staff will stay in a dig house on the Archaeological Park. This camp has good facilities with communal space, kitchen and shower/ablutions blocks, surrounded by a pleasant garden. Students will share large rooms (3 -4 per room). In addition, the facilities include an air-conditioned study room and a field lab.
MEALS
Food is provided Monday- Saturday (breakfast, lunch, dinner). On Sunday breakfast and lunch is provided, and we eat out in the evening (project covers this) to give the cook a day off. Please let us know when you apply for this program if you have special dietary needs, as well as any medical or physical conditions. We will advise you accordingly.
Students and staff will stay in a dig house on the Archaeological Park. This camp has good facilities with communal space, kitchen and shower/ablutions blocks, surrounded by a pleasant garden. Students will share large rooms (3 -4 per room). In addition, the facilities include an air-conditioned study room and a field lab.
MEALS
Food is provided Monday- Saturday (breakfast, lunch, dinner). On Sunday breakfast and lunch is provided, and we eat out in the evening (project covers this) to give the cook a day off. Please let us know when you apply for this program if you have special dietary needs, as well as any medical or physical conditions. We will advise you accordingly.
Tuition
Number of credits: 12 UCLA credit units
Offered by: UCLA
Tuition: $5,100 UC students; $5,550 all others
Offered by: UCLA
Tuition: $5,100 UC students; $5,550 all others
Personal Travel Restrictions
You are responsible for making your own travel arrangements to Ashgabat International Airport (ASB) in Turkmenistan. Please plan to arrive in Ashgabat by Sunday August 15th, 2010.
There are no direct flights from North America to Turkmenistan. The main carriers into Turkmenistan are Turkish Airlines from Istanbul (Turkey). There is also Turkmen Air, from London (UK) (Agents Cozy Avaiation, 494 Greatwest Road, Jersey Parade, Houndslow, Middlesex, TW5 0TE. Tel +44 20‐8577‐2211. Fax +44 20‐8577‐9900), Amritsar (India) and Bangkok (Thailand), and Lufthansa from Frankfurt (Germany). On arrival you must pay $12 (in dollars) registration fee at the airport.
Students not travelling with the London team should arrange pick‐ups from Ashgabat airport with the Director in advance.
Reaching Merv: After two days in the capital, Ashgabat, we fly to Mary. The costs of these flights are included in project tuition.
VISA REQUIREMENTS:
A passport with at least six months of validity remaining is required. Everyone has to have a visa and this is issued by INVITATION ONLY. The project Director will apply for the visa invitation letter three months before the field season. Once the invitation will be issued (it arrives as a pdf document) it will be forward to all enrolled students. Students will then had to apply for visa either at the Turkmen Embassy (preferred) or on arrival in Turkmenistan at the airport. The visa invitation letter will arrive approximately 4 weeks before fieldwork. To apply for visa via the Turkmen Embassy in Washington DC, see http://www.turkmenistanembassy.org/ (currently $85). Visas at the Ashgabat airport are currently $155. You will also require two passport sized photographs in either location.
DO NOT TRAVEL without a copy of the invitation letter.
Students who want to stay on in Turkmenistan after the end of the fieldwork must notify the project Director BEFORE the visa invitation letter is applied for. It is difficult and expensive to extend the visa subsequently.
For further information, please consult the U.S. State Department website at http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1047.html
Contact Info
Dr. Tim Williams
Contact Person:
Dr. Tim Williams
310.825.3050
Affiliates and Sponsors
Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA
Recommended Readings
All cheaply acquired via Amazon, etc (and available in the project library at Merv).
Brummell, Paul (2005) Turkmenistan (The Bradt Travel Guide). Chalfont St Peter: Bradt
Gilchrist, C & Mistry, N (1999) Stories from the Silk Road. Bath : Barefoot Books
Hopkirk, Peter (1984) Foreign devils on the Silk Road. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press
Hopkirk, Peter (1990) The Great Game. On Secret Service in High Asia. London: John Murray
Thubron, Colin 2007 Shadow of the Silk Road. Vintage
Whitfield, Susan (1999) Life along the Silk Road. London: John Murray
