Professional Summary
Rebecca Kerns is a PhD candidate specializing in Roman archaeology. Her dissertation, "Roman Fire Prevention and the Development of the Urbs Nova" employs architectural fire prevention as a lens to track the major changes in Roman urbanism between the 1st century BCE and 2nd century CE, with an emphasis on the creation of the urbs nova in the aftermath of the Great Fire of 64 CE.
She received her MA from the University of Cincinnati in 2021 for her thesis titled "Priorities and Practicality of Etruscan Temple Orientation." She graduated magna cum laude from DePauw University with a BA in Classics.
Rebecca's research interests include urban disaster and development, Roman law and building codes, spatial technology applications in archaeology, digital approaches to conservation and archaeological accessibility, agrarian economies and knowledge networks, and Roman-period cultural transitions. In the past, she has done fieldwork with the Tharros Regional Archaeological Project; the Palace of Nestor Excavations, for which she ran the geospatial operations; and with the Trasimeno Regional Archaeology Project, for which she created the original digital site museum.