When I first took Bruni's Arch. 101 in 1961 and she started with the Egyptians, she was so enthusiastic that I thought surely that Egyptology must be her passion. But then we moved on to Mesopotamian archaeology and I wondered if, no, really, this was her main interest. Well, eventually I learned that Greek and Roman sculpture was her love. Which brings us to her sculpture class in 1964. She was pregnant with Christopher, but that did not stop her from a fully-body, side-view demonstration of the Artemision Zeus/Posiedon's pose — not quite the shape the sculptor had in mind, but it certainly got the point across.
A couple of years later (1966?) my parents had acquired a small black poodle in France. He was called Charles (after Charles de Gaulle). It soon became apparent that Charles was not cut out for the confines of a New York City apartment. Not sure how it ever came up in conversation with Bruni, but soon she and Pete came and collected Charles, bringing him to a new life at Bryn Mawr, where he followed her around to classes and meetings for many years afterwards.
Another memory is of Bruni leading a group of BMC alums on a wonderful trip through Sicily in 1994. It happened to be just at the time that O.J. Simpson's wife was murdered. What a great excuse to avoid all the TV coverage as we followed her from one beautiful site to another.
I greatly appreciate all Bruni's encouragement and support through the almost 60 years I have known her. Best wishes for on your milestone 90th birthday!
Brunilde Ridgway, Rhys Carpenter Professor Emeritus of Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology, is celebrating her 90th birthday. In honor of this milestone, her former students, colleagues, and friends have been invited to share memories of their beloved mentor, teacher, and friend. View the list of messages.