David Wheeler

I specialize in the archaeology and social history of the Eastern Mediterranean, in particular Egypt and the Aegean, from the Late Bronze Age (LBA) to the Hellenistic period. My main interests revolve around performance in the ancient world, especially the mechanics of magical and ritual practices, the relationship between artistic representations and embodied performance, and the role of reperformance in ritual and mortuary traditions. My approach is deeply influenced by my engagement with performance theory, through which I also work with queer theory, feminist theory, critical theory, and new materialism. My interest in Greece and Egypt has also led me to explore cultural contact between these cultures, specifically material and cultural exchanges during the LBA and the presence of Greek diaspora communities in Egypt from the Archaic to Hellenistic periods. My research and teaching crosses traditional disciplinary boundaries of archaeology, epigraphy, Classics, Egyptology, Performance Studies, and art history to reconsider traditional narratives of the ancient world and foster interdisciplinary dialogues.