The Archaeology Laboratory (LARQ) of the Department of Humanities at UPF, directed by professor Maria Eugènia Aubet, has received the support of Fundación Palarq to develop its research projects. The agreement is reflected in two agreements signed on 29 November, with the presence of Antonio Gallardo, president of the Foundation, and Jaume Casals, UPF rector. The donation is part of the activities of the  UPFund – Sponsorship and Patronage programme.

On the one hand, the general running of the LARQ will be funded with 45,000 euros during the next three years (15,000 per year). The donation will help to develop its priorities, such as field work, methodological developments and analytical procedures applied to Mediterranean archaeology. The colonial systems in the ancient Mediterranean, social and environmental repercussions, Phoenician archaeology, landscape archaeology, the historiography of archaeology and bioarchaeology are its main lines of research.

Among the LARQ’s star projects is the ambitious archaeological excavation in the ancient city of Tyre, Lebanon, the metropolis responsible for the founding of the western colonies of Carthage, Cádiz and Ibiza, and which during the 9^th-7^th centuries BC became an important commercial empire. Since 2012, UPF researchers have been working on the acropolis, in the area where biblical and oriental texts situate the location of the royal palace and the city’s main temple, dedicated to the God Melgart (the Roman Hercules).

In addition, Fundación Palarq is also supporting the project “Archaeology of cultural contact and of colonialism on the Mariana Islands (Western Pacific)” with 15,000 euros, led by ICREA researcher of the LARQ, Sandra Montón.

This archaeological project will study two archaeological sites related to the expansion of the modern Spanish Empire on the island of Guam. The initiative involves an international interdisciplinary work team of archaeologists, anthropologists and historians of Spanish, Australian, American universities and the University of Guam.

In 2014 archaeological prospections had already begun to identify strategic locations for the development of the archaeology of Spanish colonialism on the island and to choose the most suitable places to start digging. Excavations began in May 2015.

Support for archaeological missions

Fundación Palarq (Paleonotlogy and Archaeology) was set up last February with the purpose of helping Spanish archaeological missions abroad, within a perspective spanning the palaeontological up to prehistoric periods and historical eras of monumental interest.

The UPF fundraising programme

For UPF, a university that is highly specialized in research, with a strong international profile and a clear desire to serve the public, economic contributions by donors who believe in its model are essential (alumni, businesses and individuals, gathered under the name of “Friends of UPF”). Hence, the University aims to honour its commitment to excellence in teaching, promoting new research projects or funding new scholarship programmes.