Valentina Tumolo

Valentina Tumolo has conducted research on glyptic and the phenomenon of seal impressions on pots in the Levant and Syria during the Early Bronze Age. Recent articles address the study of the corpora of vessels with seal impressions from diverse sites of the area, the petrographic investigation of the Early Bronze Age Levantine Combed Ware storage and transport jars from the Jordanian site of Khirbet ez-Zeraqon, and the development of olive production in southern and central Levant during the same period. Further research lines include the application of the Gini coefficients to house size and storage volume data to investigate trends in wealth inequality in the Ancient Near East. Valentina is currently investigating food storage practices in the Northern Fertile Crescent during the late fifth, fourth, and third millennia BC. Her activity at UC Berkeley focuses on the analysis of storage features from archaeological sites of Turkey and Kurdistan Region of Iraq through micromorphological methos, under the supervision of Professor Lisa Maher.