Stephen Gaylord Miller ( el, Στέφανος Γ. Μίλλερ; June 22, 1942 – August 11, 2021) was a prominent American–Greek

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

and

philhellene Philhellenism ("the love of Greek culture") was an intellectual movement prominent mostly at the turn of the 19th century. It contributed to the sentiments that led Europeans such as Lord Byron and Charles Nicolas Fabvier to advocate for Greek i ...

who devoted over three decades of his career to the excavation and promotion of the archaeological site of Ancient

Nemea Nemea (; grc, Νεμέα; grc-x-ionic, Νεμέη) is an ancient site in the northeastern part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. Formerly part of the territory of Cleonae in ancient Argolis, it is today situated in the regional unit of Corinthia ...

in the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...

, Greece.Stephen G. Miller's CV
archive
here
/ref>Stephen Miller, archaeologist known for work at Nemea, dies
ekathimerini, 11.08.2021; archive
here
/ref>

Early life

Miller was born in

Goshen, Indiana Goshen ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. It is the smaller of the two principal cities of the Elkhart-Goshen Metropolitan Statistical Area, which in turn is part of the South Bend-Elkhart-Mishawaka ...

to a

methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

family. In 1960 he enrolled in

Wabash College Wabash College is a private liberal arts men's college in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Founded in 1832 by several Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders, it enrolls nearly 900 students. The college offers an undergraduate liberal arts cur ...

with the intent to study law. However, upon attending two lectures by the visiting Greek scholar George Mylonas, he changed his mind and decided to become an archaeologist.Stephen Gaylord Miller, in memoriam
UC Academic Senate, 2022; archive
here
/ref>

Career

Stephen Miller obtained a Bachelor's degree in Ancient Greek from

in 1964. He then pursued graduate studies, earning a Masters and a PhD in Classical Archaeology from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

in 1967 and 1970. Miller participated in excavations in

Morgantina Morgantina (Μοργάντιον / Μοργαντίνη in ancient greek) is an archaeological site in east central Sicily, southern Italy. It is sixty kilometres from the coast of the Ionian Sea, in the province of Enna. The closest modern ...

Olympia The name Olympia may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Olympia'' (1938 film), by Leni Riefenstahl, documenting the Berlin-hosted Olympic Games * ''Olympia'' (1998 film), about a Mexican soap opera star who pursues a career as an athlet ...

Athenian Agora The ancient Agora of Athens (also called the Classical Agora) is the best-known example of an ancient Greek agora, located to the northwest of the Acropolis and bounded on the south by the hill of the Areopagus and on the west by the hill ...

and

Amphipolis Amphipolis ( ell, Αμφίπολη, translit=Amfipoli; grc, Ἀμφίπολις, translit=Amphipolis) is a municipality in the Serres (regional unit), Serres regional unit, Macedonia (Greece), Macedonia, Greece. The seat of the municipality is ...

. In 1971, he was elected Assistant Professor at the Department of Classics,

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

and appointed director of excavations at

. There, he and his team unearthed the Sanctuary of

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

and the ancient stadium, constructed around 330 BC. This stadium hosted the

Nemean Games The Nemean Games ( grc-gre, Νέμεα or Νέμεια) were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were held at Nemea every two years (or every third). With the Isthmian Games, the Nemean Games were held both the year before ...

, athletic competitions like those at

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle ...

, and Isthmia. The games at the four sites constituted the

Panhellenic Games Panhellenic Games is the collective term for four separate sports festivals held in ancient Greece. The four Games were: Description The Olympiad was one of the ways the Greeks measured time. The Olympic Games were used as a starting point, year ...

and their victors were the most famous athletes of

classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

. In parallel with his field work in Nemea, Miller continued to teach at Berkeley, being promoted to Associate Professor in 1975 and full Professor in 1981. During 1982–87, he served as the Director of the

American School of Classical Studies at Athens , native_name_lang = Greek , image = American School of Classical Studies at Athens.jpg , image_size = , image_alt = , caption = The ASCSA main building as seen from Mount Lykavittos , latin_name = , other_name = , former_name = , mo ...

. Miller amassed donations for the construction of the Nemea museum, created an archaeological park, oversaw the restoration of the Temple of Zeus, founded the Society for the Revival of the Nemean Games and promoted Nemea and its heritage as a tourist destination. He published extensively on his archaeological discoveries, including "Nemea II: The Early Hellenistic Stadium” (University of California Press 2001). In 2005, Miller was bestowed the Greek title of Grand Commander ( el, Ταξιάρχης) of the

Order of Honor Order of Honor may refer to: *Order of Honour (Armenia) *Order of Honor (Belarus), established in 1995 * Order of Honor (Georgia) *Order of Honour (Greece), an award that replaced the abolished Royal Order of George I in 1975 *Order of Honour (Moldo ...

and was made an honorary Greek citizen by decree of the

President of the Hellenic Republic The president of Greece, officially the President of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), commonly referred to in Greek as the President of the Rep ...

. He was also awarded honorary doctorates by the

University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...

(1996) and

(2012).

Personal life

Stephen Miller was married to Greek-American Effie Davlantes. After his retirement from Berkeley in 2004, he settled permanently in Nemea.

References

External links

The Temple of Zeus in NemeaNemea Center for Classical Archaeology
*Stephen G. Miller, ed
''Nemea: A Guide to the Site and the Museum''
(Berkeley and Los Angeles 1989)
The Modern Nemean Games
{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Stephen G. 1942 births 2021 deaths American archaeologists Classical archaeologists American School of Classical Studies at Athens Commanders of the Order of Honour (Greece) University of California, Berkeley faculty Princeton University alumni Wabash College alumni People from Goshen, Indiana American expatriates in Greece

Early life

Career

Personal life

See also

References

External links