Preserving the stories of Holocaust survivors is vital to remembering the inhumane and harrowing events that transpired during the Nazi Era as well as preventing them from ever occurring again. This project aimed to translate a collection of narratives from Holocaust survivors from Mizoch, a village in Ukraine. These stories consisted of personal memories, folklore, short tales about cultures and customs, written accounts of the genocide, images, and more. These Hebrew texts were published in 1961 and needed to be translated into English to increase access to these stories. One of the greatest challenges we faced was finding a balance between maintaining the literal integrity of the text and preserving the poetic and stylistic nature of the writing(s). Cultural, religious, and generational differences in language prevented direct verbatim equivalences. Was a literal translation with choppy flow better or worse than an English version that lost some of the original interpretation? In working together, we were able to combine our varying linguistic skills and understandings to solidify our writing. We found that the most powerful and complete translations both retained the tone of the original text and allowed for relatively easy reading. Our work has been published online and is accessible to all for free. This aligns with our goal to help disseminate these Mizoch narratives. Additionally, our translations have been used by a Ukrainian university scholar to create Ukrainian versions that have also been published online. As these English texts continue to serve as sources for future translations, protecting the authenticity of these stories is critical.

In the past few decades, the colonial roots of Egyptology and the effects of European influence over the development of archaeology in Egypt have become an increasingly popular topic within the field. The works of authors such as Donald M. Reid, Stephen Quirke, and Christian Langer highlight the problematic origins of Egyptology as a discipline, examining the ways in which European states exploited and suppressed native Egyptian archaeologists. Utilizing the frameworks that these authors have created, my research aims to provide a more comprehensive context to the politics and drama within Egyptology and its colonial motivations. In my presentation, I highlight the interpersonal relationships among Egyptologists, archaeologists, and politicians in 19th-20th century Egypt by analyzing first-hand accounts of notable figures in Egyptology. In particular, I look at four individuals whose reputations have been characterized by their racist and colonialist approaches to Egyptology: Victor Loret, Jacques de Morgan, Auguste Mariette, and Flinders Petrie. The main sources I use in my research include the diaries of Emma B. Andrews, mistress of millionaire lawyer-turned-excavator Theodore M. Davis, and a collection of correspondence letters by Arthur Weigall, a British Egyptologist. I also rely on other direct accounts from Egyptologists Archibald Sayce and Heinrich Brugsch to provide additional insights into the relationships of the above figures in Egyptology. My research showcases the often-contradictory perceptions of these individuals in public and private settings and how their reputations influenced their standing in Egyptology. Although the individuals I highlight in my presentation were highly respected in their academic fields and wielded considerable influence and power in Egypt, by compiling reports that inform how these controversial figures were perceived by their colleagues, I attempt to add another dimension to the growing conversation of problematic histories in Egyptology.