Call Number:

2051

Repository:

University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives

Extent:

1.0 linear feet

Language:

English

Date:

1939-1964 (inclusive)

Creator:

Frantz, Alison, b. 1903-d.1995

Form:

Photographic prints

Abstract:

Alison Frantz, born in 1903, was a classicist and photographer. She attended Smith College and Columbia University. She first went to Greece in 1929 as a member of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. In 1934 she joined the staff of the newly begun excavations of the Athenian agora. Frantz became the official photographer for the excavations there in 1939 and remained in that position until 1964. During her time as official photographer, Frantz also served as a Cultural Attaché for the U.S. Embassy in Athens from 1946 to 1949.

Alison Frantz, born in 1903, was a classicist and photographer. She attended Smith College and received an undergraduate degree in Classics, graduating in 1924. Frantz later received a Ph. D. in the same area from Columbia University. She first went to Greece in 1929 as a fellowship student of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. In 1934 she joined the staff of the newly begun excavations of the Athenian agora. Frantz became the official photographer for the excavations of the agora in 1939 and remained in that position until 1964. Her service was interrupted during WWII when she worked for the OSS as an advisor on Greece. Frantz also served as a Cultural Attaché for the U.S. Embassy in Athens from 1946 to 1949. In 1967, Frantz received the medal for the most outstanding product of the Smith College program in humanistic studies. In that same year, she received a grant from the American Philosophical Society to study, draw, and photograph the temple ruins on the island of Silinos in the Aegean Sea. In 1973 she was elected into the American Philosophical Society. Frantz's photographs appear in many books by other authors. Her own books include

Church of the Holy Apostles and The Athenian Agora, vol. XXIV, Late Antiquity, A.D. 267-700 both published by the American School of Classical Studies. Alison Frantz died on February 1st, 1995 from injuries sustained after a traffic accident. She was ninety-one.

The Alison Frantz papers are held by the Firestone Library, Manuscript Division, Princeton University.