Chris Begley

Chris Begley, a Transylvania University anthropology professor, has been selected to serve on a team of maritime archaeologists who will explore the Fourni archipelago in Greece, where 22 shipwrecks were found in a small area last year. This was touted as one of the top archaeological finds of 2015. The findings of the joint Greek-American archaeological expedition bring to light ancient trade networks that once connected the entire Mediterranean. Fourni, which is a collection of 13 islands and islets, lies along a major east-west crossing route as well as the primary north-south route that connected the Aegean to the Levant. Last year’s initial work was the the first underwater archaeological expedition to the islands. The project’s success came through working with local sponge divers, fishermen and free divers together with technology and archaeological methods.  “I am honored to be asked to be part of this important project,” Begley said. “I have worked closely with RPM Nautical Foundation and project co-director Peter Campbell in Albania, Montenegro and Croatia, and I am excited to participate in this project, which relies not only on our archaeological methods but also on the extensive knowledge of the area that local residents possess.” The shipwrecks date from the Archaic Period (700-480 BC) though the Late Medieval Period (16th century). The ships’ cargos point to the importance of long-distance trade between the Black Sea, Aegean Sea, Cyprus, the Levant and Egypt. The discovery adds 12 percent to the total number of known ancient shipwrecks in Greece. And the findings suggest a great quantity of the shipwrecks await

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—In the May 6, 2013, issue of The New Yorker magazine, author Douglas Preston writes about the use of a new technology called lidar (light detection and ranging) that allows aerial mapping of both man-made objects and natural land forms that lie beneath dense vegetation. In the article, titled “The El Dorado machine: A new scanner’s rain-forest discoveries,” Preston first allows Transylvania anthropology professor Chris Begley to describe the rigors of the more traditional methods of mapping archaeological sites in the Honduran jungle. “It’s mountainous. There’s white water. There are jumping vipers, coral snakes, fer-de-lance, stinging plants, and biting insects. And then there are the illnesses—malaria, dengue fever, leishmaniasis, Chagas’ disease.” As one of the foremost experts on the region’s archaeological sites, Begley has bushwhacked a good bit of this formidable territory. And he understands that the introduction of this new technology could possibly save years of on-ground exploration amid punishing human hardship. “This data will certainly make it much easier for archaeologists to target their efforts, and the kinds of month-long jungle treks that I undertook over two decades can be reduced to much shorter trips targeting particular sites. This will make research in the area accessible to many more people who would not have been able to withstand the rigors of work in the area previously.” Begley has conducted ongoing research in the region, beginning in the 1990s while he was completing graduate studies at the University

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LEXINGTON, KY.—To tackle one of his most grueling projects yet, journalist Christopher S. Stewart needed someone who could guide him through dangerous jungles and nearly impassable terrains to discover the legend of a city lost to time—the White City in the Mosquito Coast of Honduras. So he turned to archaeologist and Transylvania University professor Chris Begley and chronicled their adventures in his book “Jungleland: A Mysterious Lost City, a WWII Spy, and a True Story of Deadly Adventure,” which was released in January by Harper Collins. In 2008, Begley and Stewart retraced the steps of World War II spy and explorer Theodore Morde, who claimed to have found the ancient city but died unexpectedly before disclosing its whereabouts. Some believe it was the spirits of the lost city—Ciudad Blanca—that killed him. Through entries in Morde’s secret journal, Stewart recreates the explorer’s journey to the Mosquito Coast in “Jungleland” and tells his own story of superstition and fear while traveling with Begley—one of the world’s leading experts on the legend—hundreds of miles through one of the most treacherous regions in the world. Along the way they encountered threats including deadly snakes, pirates, and viruses. “Chris Begley led me through the Honduran jungle, picked me up when I fell down, and generally kept me alive as we hunted down the mystery of the great White City,” explained Stewart. “I get why people refer to him by his other name: Indiana Jones.”  

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