Righting A Wrong Within Archaeology: Dr. Mary Ellingson

Dr. Mary Ellingson (Image Source: University of Evansville)

As previously discussed on this blog archaeology has been useful in shedding light on past injustices (e.g., the Tulsa Race Massacre, acknowledging the murder of George Tompkins, locating missing and murdered Residential School students, and cillini research).  The research skills, excavation methods, and interpretative lens required of archaeological work makes it well suited to correct the historical records, and more and more archaeologists are working toward those goals as necessary.  This has also led to introspection within the discipline itself, specifically in correcting and rectifying for previous past mistakes.  Today’s post addresses one such situation wherein past excavation work had been intentionally credited to the wrong person.  This post will share the story of Dr. Mary Ellingson.  

 

Dr. Mary Ross Ellingson was born in Canada.  She pursued her undergraduate studies in Classics through the University of Alberta, and she attended the prestigious John Hopkins University for her graduate work in 1931.  It was here that she came under the supervision of David Moore Robinson, who invited Ellingson to assist in excavations occurring at Olynthus in Greece.  These excavations were different from those previously completed.  Rather than focus on monumental religious architecture or cemeteries the team was going to excavate and analyze domestic structures, providing insights into how people lived and carried out their daily personal and family activities. 

 

It was a unique opportunity for Ellingson, a woman, to be able to do this work, and even more so when you realize that she was in charge of over 50 workers.  She supervised the excavations, photographed the site and artifacts, and wrote the site reports.  She also took meticulous notes that she drew upon for the completion of her Masters and Doctoral research.  For her Master’s research she focused on terracotta figurines, describing the types she discovered at the site, and in her Dissertation she expanded her work to include multiple other sites throughout Greece, as well as discussed the meanings and purposes of these figurines in domestic spaces.  This was monumental because prior to her work Classical scholars believed that terracotta figurines were purely functional in ritual contexts, expecting to find them only in temples and cemeteries.  Ellingson successfully demonstrated that within domestic contexts terracotta figurines were used not just for ritual purposes (in small home shrines) but also for decoration and even as toys.

 

While Ellingson published all of this information in her Master’s and Doctoral theses she was unable to publish to the wider academic community.  Her personal life and the disruptions of World War II kept her from doing so.  Then her graduate supervisor committed academic fraud.  He plagiarized her work by publishing both her Master’s and Doctoral theses under his name.  Robinson’s actions robbed Ellingson of recognition for her hard work, but it did additional damage to her, as well.  He received high accolades for “his publications” and was considered a pioneer in the field of Classical Archaeology, none of which he deserved since he did not do the work. 

 

Ellingson never disclosed the plagiarism, more than likely due to the strong sexist attitudes against women working in the field.  She ultimately took a position at the University of Evansville in the 1960s and worked there for over a decade before retiring.  She took the secret to her grave as she passed away in 1993, never receiving acknowledgement for her work during her lifetime. 

 

Several years later, however, Dr. Alan Kaiser, an archaeology professor at the University of Evansville, discovered some of Ellingson’s old records, which led him to realize Robinson’s transgressions against her.  He investigated further and published his research in a book titled, Archaeology, Sexism, and Scandal.  He did not just stop there, however.  He publicly denounced Robinson’s actions in various ways, bringing much needed attention to this scandalous act.  As support for Ellingson increased John Hopkins University petitioned the Library of Congress to change the authorship of the works credited to Robinson, which they did in the Fall of 2023.  Dr. Kaiser stated,

 

"Recognizing Dr. Mary Ellingson's long-suppressed contributions to the Excavations at Olynthus series is a significant step toward justice in the academic world. Her groundbreaking work has finally received the acknowledgment it deserves, and her story stands as an inspiration to all those who strive for truth and recognition in their respective fields."

 

Hopefully Ellingson’s contributions to the field and recognition of the injustice against her initiates greater scrutiny of women’s contributions to not only archaeology but other academic disciplines, as well as be a source of inspiration for others to not let this continue to happen to other women and other marginalized groups.

 

References

Archaeological Institute of America. (2023). Mary Ross Ellingson (1906-1993). Retrieved from Archaeological Institute of America: https://www.archaeological.org/archaeologists-you-should-know-ellingson/

Kaiser, A. (2015, March 27). Mary Ross Ellingson. Retrieved from Trowel Blazers: https://trowelblazers.com/2015/03/27/mary-ross-ellingson/

News & Public Relations. (2023, November 6). Library of Congress Recognizes Plagiarized University of Evansville Archaeologist After 90 Years. Retrieved from University of Evansville: https://www.evansville.edu/news/articleDetail.cfm?articleId=3126