Adrian Chase
Institute Postdoctoral Fellow & Department of Anthropology Postdoctoral Scholar
Adrian S.Z. Chase is an anthropological archaeologist studying urbanism among the ancient Maya through the use of lidar data, excavated materials, and computational methods. He completed a postdoctoral appointment with the Mansueto Institute for Urban Innovation and the Department of Anthropology at the University of Chicago in July 2024 working with adviser Sarah Newman. His undergraduate degrees were in Archaeology and Computer Science from Harvard College and focused on the computer analysis of lidar data in combination with archaeological data to study reservoirs at the site of Caracol, Belize. His graduate research for both his MA and PhD at Arizona State University involved investigating ancient Maya urbanism and combining lidar and archaeological data to reconstruct and test neighborhoods, examine urban services and their provisioning, and analyze collective and autocratic governance at Caracol. In addition to archaeological investigations at Caracol, he has participated in field research at Hirbemerdon Tepe in Turkey and at both Chichén Itza and Teotihuacan in Mexico. His publications are available for download at the Caracol Archaeological Project. Adrian joins Boston University as a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Archaeology Program of the College of Arts & Sciences in fall 2024, where he will continue his work studying the history and settlement patterns of ancient cities, focusing on Caracol and comparative research between ancient and modern cities.