Philip N. Sapirstein

Assistant Professor (he/him)
phil.sapirstein@utoronto.ca

Campus

  • Downtown Toronto (St. George)

Cross-Appointments

Department of Anthropology

Fields of Study

  • Ancient
  • European
  • Mediterranean
  • Archaeology
  • Architecture

Areas of Interest

  • Greek, Roman, and Near Eastern art and architecture
  • Digital humanities
  • Ceramics
  • Greeks and the East

Biography

Dr. Philip Sapirstein received his doctorate in Art History and Archaeology from Cornell University (2008), and from 2013–19 he was an Assistant Professor in the School of Art, Art History & Design at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His primary interests are the history of art and architecture of the Mediterranean, in particular that of ancient Greece, Rome, and the Near East. Digital techniques for the 3D recording and analysis of ancient art and architecture, including photogrammetry, comprise another important area of research.

Dr. Sapirstein has held numerous prestigious fellowships (e.g., from the NEH, ACLS, Mellon, Fulbright Foundation, and the American School of Classical Studies in Athens) and has published widely on both the history and technology of Greek architecture and digital methodologies.

Selected Publications

  • Sapirstein, P. 2021. “The First Doric Temple in Sicily, its Builder, and IG XIV 1” Hesperia 90: 411–77.
  • Sapirstein, P. 2021. “Hand drawing versus computer vision in archaeological recording,” Studies in Digital Heritage 4.2: 134–59.
  • Sapirstein, P. and D. Scahill, eds. 2020. New directions and paradigms for the study of Greek architecture: interdisciplinary dialogues in the field, Brill.
  • Sapirstein, P. 2019. “Segmentation, Reconstruction, and Visualization of Ancient Inscriptions in 2.5D” ACM Journal on Computing and Cultural Heritage 12.2.15: 1–30
  • Sapirstein, P. and S. Murray. 2017. “Establishing best practices for photogrammetry in archaeology,” Journal of Field Archaeology 42.4: 337–50.
  • Sapirstein, P. 2016. “The columns of the Heraion at Olympia: Dörpfeld and early Doric architecture,” American Journal of Archaeology 120.4: 565–601.

Recent Awards

  • 2021–23 SSHRC Insight Development Grant(Archaeological Frontiers in the Southwestern Mani)
  • 2021–22 AIA-NEH Grant for Archaeological Research(Lydian Architectural Terracottas at Didyma)
  • 2018–19 NEH-Mellon Fellowship for Digital Publication(Digital Architecture at Olympia)

Education

PhD, Cornell University, History of Art and Architecture

Administrative Service

Associate Chair, Undergraduate Studies, Jan 2021-Jul 2022