Carl Blegen

Carl William Blegen (January 27, 1887 – August 24, 1971) was an American archaeologist who worked on the site of Pylos in Greece and Troy in modern-day Turkey. He directed the University of Cincinnati excavations of the mound of Hisarlik, the site of Troy, from 1932 to 1938.

Background

Blegen was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the eldest of six children born to Anna Regine (1854–1925) and John H. Blegen (1851–1928), both of whom had emigrated from Lillehammer, Norway. His younger brother was noted historian Theodore C. Blegen. His father was a professor at Augsburg College in Minneapolis for more than 30 years and played a central role in the Norwegian Lutheran Church in America. Blegen earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota in 1904 and started graduate studies at Yale University in 1907.

Career

In Greece, he was a fellow at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens (1911–1913), during which time he worked on excavations at Locris, Corinth and Korakou. During World War I Blegen was involved in relief work in Bulgaria and Macedonia, receiving the Saviors Order from Greece in 1919. Following the war he completed his Ph.D. at Yale (1920). He was then assistant director of the American School (1920–26); during his tenure he excavated at Zygouries, Phlius, Prosymna, and Hymettos. In 1927, Blegen joined the faculty of the University of Cincinnati. Blegen was professor of classical archaeology at the University of Cincinnati from 1927–1957. His excavations at Troy were carried out between 1932 and 1938, followed by those at the palace of Nestor in Pylos, Greece in 1939 (the dig resumed 1952-1966). Blegen retired in 1957.