Click the picture for the Park Brochure
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The Voices of Omrit
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“This experience will change your life; words cannot articulate how meaningful this trip was to me. It immersed me in an ancient, rich world that wasn’t just limited to a dig site, but rather Israel in its entirety. I was exposed to cultures, religions, politics, and people that can never be explained or defined in a Wikipedia article or book. It opened my eyes to the real grittiness and glory of the convergence of Judaism and Islam and Christianity and also of Israelis and Palestinians and Arabs by digging up their past, observing their present, and communing about their future.”
Jonathan Welser
Carthage College ’13
Siebert Chapel Employee
Delta Upsilon Member
Pi Sigma Epsilon Member
Alpha Lambda Delta Member
Students In Free Enterprise Member
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“If you want an practical introduction to archaeology, if the Roman Empire gives you tingles, if a trip to one of the most interesting parts of the world sounds like fun, and if you want to get down and dirty with some very stimulating people, then come to Omrit!”
Bill Loughner
Athens, Georgia
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“I can honestly say going to Omrit changed my life. The hands-on experience confirmed archeology was what I wanted to do with my life and I learned more from the hands-on training than I ever could in a desk. Traveling to the other sites -ancient and modern- broadened my perspective of the world and made me a more global person.”
Maggie Knowles
Political Science and Classics with emphasis in Archeology major
Alpha Chi Omega — Iota Omega Chapter, Cultural Chair
Alpha Lambda Delta
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“My summer at Omrit was one of the best experiences I have ever had. Not only did I meet great people and see amazing sites, but the experience further made up my mind that archeology is truly what I want to do. I learned so much not only about archeology, but also about people and a culture that I would have not have had a chance to know anywhere else. I had a truly amazing time and I hope to go back very soon.”
Arianna Stimpfl
Anthropology Major & Art History Major
CUNY QC
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“What’s really cool about Omrit is that you can go on the dig even if you aren’t majoring in Archaeology or Classics. It’s an experience many archaeologists wouldn’t be able to get until graduate school, and here we can have undergraduates doing the same thing when their only tie to archaeology is an interest in the subject.”
John Robinson
Physics and Math double major
SPS Treasurer
Math Club Treasurer
SPS Treasurer
Math Club Treasurer
Delta Upsilon
History of the Omrit Excavations
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In 1998, brush fires in the Hula Valley region of northern israel revealed the remains of an impressive Roman building. The Macalester College Excavation at Omrit began in 1999, and since 2006, Carthage College has been a co-sponsor.
The project has uncovered a major Roman period site with later developments in the Byzantine and Islamic periods. The most prominentfeature is a Roman temple complex constructed between 50 BCE and 100 CE.
Additional reports on the dig at Omrit can be found at the Macalester News site and the Archaeological Institute of America, Minnesota Society blog. To learn more about joining the dig at Omrit please contact Dr. Schowalter.