Spotlight On: Visiting Research Scholar Sarah Laursen

By kel306
10/13/2011

Sarah Laursen is one of two 2-year scholars at ISAW for 2011-13. She holds a BA in East Asian Studies and Art History from New York University and an MA and PhD in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from the University of Pennsylvania.  Her research focuses primarily on gold personal adornments from Eastern Han to Sui dynasty (26 – 618 CE) tombs and explores how this facet of material culture reflects Chinese interactions with the nomadic populations of the northern steppe. In addition to working on her research project, "Unearthing the Ancient Craft: The Art of Goldsmithing in Early Medieval China,” which will investigate gold objects excavated throughout China and their relationship to the metalworking traditions of Inner Asia, the Mediterranean, and Mesopotamia, she will also be teaching an ISAW graduate seminar and undergraduate NYU courses.

For more information on Dr. Laursen and her upcoming lecture on October 18th, visit http://isaw.nyu.edu/events/visiting-research-scholar-lecture-1.