Sydnie Chavez, M.A.
- PhD Candidate‚ IAKA Fellow
Summary
Sydnie Chavez is a PhD Candidate in Classical Philology at Yale and currently holds the first IAKA Fellowship at the University of Zurich (September – December 2026).
Her dissertation project is titled “Textile Realities in Homer” and explores the language of textiles and textile production in the epics. She argues that understanding the physical realities of textile production is critical to understanding the significance of literal and metaphorical references to textiles. She is particularly interested in exploring how the sensory and technical experience of textile production is reflected in epic language by integrating material culture and experimental archaeology into her literary study. In addition to Homer and textiles, Sydnie is interested in Greek and Latin poetry more broadly, ancient magical practices, and women in the ancient world.
Originally from Los Angeles, California, she received her BA in Classics from Cornell University where she wrote her Honors Thesis on the relationship between female persuasion and agency in the Iliad and Odyssey. She has spent time abroad in Germany at the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg and in the UK at the University of Cambridge, Pembroke College. She has also conducted summer study at the University of Copenhagen’s Centre for Textile Research, the Textile Research Centre in Leiden, and College Year in Athens.
Education & Research Abroad
Education
| 2020 – (expected) 2028 |
Yale University; Ph.D. Candidate in Classical Philology Dissertation Title: “Textile Realities in Homer,” advised by Egbert Bakker |
| 2025 |
Yale University; M.Phil. in Classical Philology |
| 2016 – 2020 |
Cornell University; Bachelor of Arts with Distinction in All Subjects, Magna Cum Laude Classics; Merrill Presidential Scholar; Phi Beta Kappa |
Education and Research Abroad
| Spring 2027 (expected) |
Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa Yale – Pisa Exchange, supervised by Luigi Battezzato |
| Fall 2026 |
University of Zurich Fellow at the Institut für Archäologie, Klassische Philologie und Altertumswissenschaften (IAKA), advised by Corinna Reinhardt |
| Fall 2025 |
Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg Baden-Württemberg Exchange, supervised by Jonas Grethlein |
| July 2025 |
University of Copenhagen, Centre for Textile Research Course: “Textiles and Dress in Ancient Times: Exploring sources, theories, methods and hands-on approaches” |
| April 2025 |
Textile Research Centre, Leiden Course: “Intensive Textile Course” |
| Spring 2019 |
University of Cambridge, Pembroke College Spring Semester Programme Exchange |
| Summer 2019 |
College Year in Athens Course: “When Egypt meets the Aegean: Interconnections in the Bronze Age Eastern Mediterranean” |
Fellowships and Awards
| 2026 |
Institut für Archäologie, Klassische Philologie und Altertumswissenschaften (IAKA) Fellowship; University of Zurich |
| 2026 |
Michael and Sophie Rostovtzeff Travel Fellowship in Archaeology, Yale University |
| 2026 |
MacMillan International Dissertation Research Fellowship, Yale University |
| 2026 |
Yale’s 3-Minute Thesis Competition, 1st Place Winner – Humanities and Social Sciences Preliminary Round |
| 2025 |
Baden-Württemberg Stipendium (Baden-Württemberg Stiftung) |
| 2025 |
Michael and Sophie Rostovtzeff Travel Fellowship in Archaeology, Yale University |
| 2025 | MacMillan Center Director’s Discretionary Funds, Yale University |
| 2020 | Dean’s Emerging Scholars Fellowship, Yale University |
| 2020 | Merrill Presidential Scholar, Cornell University |
| 2020 | Phi Beta Kappa Scholarship Prize, Cornell University |
| 2018 | Harry Caplan Fellowship, Cornell University |
| 2018 |
Beatrice R. Kanders Scholarship, Cornell University |
Conferences and Workshops
| January 7 – 10, 2027 |
Society for Classical Studies 2027 Annual Meeting Accepted Paper: “Weaving the Plot: Textile Language in Odyssey 9” |
| November 18 – 19, 2026 |
Narrations and Metaphors of Making, Workshop at the University of Zurich, Organizer and Presenter |
| September 14 – 15, 2026 |
Making Matters. Processes and Meaning of Crafting in Graeco-Roman Antiquity, International Conference at the University of Zurich Paper: “Weaving the Plot: Textile Metaphor in Odyssey 9” |
| April 14, 2026 |
Yale Textile Working Group Paper: “Ancient Greek Textile Techniques: a demonstration of the drop spindle and warp-weighted loom,” |
| November 3, 2025 |
Yale Classics Department Works in Progress Paper: “Chapter 3: Textile Metaphors,” |
| October 13-16, 2025 |
Homeric Days at the University of Copenhagen, Centre for Textile Research Paper: “Spinning Odysseus: Crafting Identity with Female Work” |