Introducing the Mary Ellen Wyman Lecture Series

Mary Ellen Wyman was a woman who always supported the academic efforts of her granddaughter, Elizabeth "Betty" Banks, Professor in the KU Classics Department from 1966-2001 and Professor Emerita thereafter. Betty taught courses in archaeology, Latin, and Greek for the department and was an important voice on campus for gender equity. Betty was also the curator of the Wilcox Classical Museum from 1970-2001 and was instrumental in reinstalling the museum’s collection in its current location in Lippincott Hall. As an archaeologist, she excavated at Corinth and Lerna in Greece, publishing two volumes in the Lerna Series (American School of Classical Studies, Athens) about the site’s Neolithic architecture and ceramics. Upon her passing in 2020, Betty established an annual lecture in her grandmother's honor. The Mary Ellen Wyman Lecture in Ancient Art and Archaeology can include Aegean, Greek, Etruscan, and Roman topics. The Department of Classics is grateful to Betty, to her grandmother, and to all those who support and encourage our students.

The first lecture in the series will be given by Dr. Will Bruce of the Department of Classics on Dec. 1st, 4:30-6:00 pm, English Room, Kansas Union, and will be entitled: "When History and Archaeology Meet: The Palace of Croesus at Sardis and its Destruction by Cyrus the Great".