Third Circular

June 2016

We look forward to welcoming you in three weeks to Philadelphia for the 62nd Recontre Assyriologique Internationale. In the meantime, we would like to update you on the forthcoming meeting.

Conference registration will take place in the Dietrich Gallery of the Penn Museum on Sunday, July 10, between 5 and 7 pm, and in the Fox Art Gallery (ground floor) of Cohen Hall on Monday, July 11, beginning at 9:00 am. We kindly ask you to pay your registration in advance online, though we will accept payments in person at the registration desk.

You will find more information on venues at our website https://web.sas.upenn.edu/rai62/ and a preliminary program has been posted at https://web.sas.upenn.edu/rai62/program/.

Please note that this is a preliminary program and that the organizing committee may still make minor changes to it. Presently, it includes 159 papers, 10 workshops, and 8 posters. Our staff will be accepting PowerPoint presentations on flash drives/USB sticks in the conference rooms before the relevant sessions. We recommend that you have your presentation in pdf format also. For those using handouts, please send them to us by June 30 so that we can prepare copies.

Receptions will take place on:

  1. Monday 6:30–9:00 pm. Welcoming reception on the top floor of Huntsman Hall (3730 Walnut Street) at the University of Pennsylvania. This reception is co-sponsored by Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University.
  2. Wednesday 6:30–8:00 pm. Reception in the Cloisters of the Thomas Building (235 North Merion Avenue) at Bryn Mawr College.
  3. Thursday 6:30–9:00 pm. BBQ dinner in the Stoner Courtyard of the Penn Museum (3260 South Street). This event is co-sponsored by Penn’s Center for Ancient Studies.

There will also be a student-organized gathering for everybody on:
Tuesday 6:30–9:00 pm. Harvest Seasonal Grill and Wine Bar (40th and Walnut Streets).

In coordination with the RAI, A. Guinan and E. Hirshorn have organized a workshop on Thursday and Friday, July 14–15, for middle and high school teachers at the Penn Museum on teaching about ancient Mesopotamia. A number of participants in the RAI will be giving short presentations on various topics to the teachers. These will be listed on a separate page within the final RAI program.

IMPORTANT!
The US Department of State has recently placed new restrictions on travel to the United States that may affect several individuals desiring to participate in this year’s RAI in Philadelphia. In previous years, nationals of the 38 countries that belong to the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) could travel to the US for a short period of time (90 days) for business or holiday without a visa. However, conference participants should be aware of two new regulations:

  • Individuals who have traveled to Iraq, Iran, Syria, or Sudan since March 1, 2011 must apply for a visa, even if they are nationals of a VWP country.
  • Nationals of VWP countries who are also nationals of Iraq, Iran, Syria, or Sudan must apply for a visa.

Travelers in these two categories can still apply for visas through the standard application procedures, but the US State Department may require several months to process such applications.

For details on the Visa Waiver Program and eligibility, please see:

https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/visit/visa-waiver-program.html

Organizing Committee

Frame (chair), J. Jeffers, H. Pittman, L. Ristvet, S. Tinney, and R. Zettler

For any questions, please contact:

rai62@pennmuseum.org
or
gframe@sas.upenn.edu