Breaking Trail in Academia: the Constanza Ceruti Chair on Sacred Mountains

MARÍA CONSTANZA CERUTI

Porto

Conferencia; First International Conference on Women (Women XXI); 2017

Departamento de Sociología de la Universidad de Lisboa / Eventqualia

Constanza Ceruti is an anthropologist and mountainclimber who lives in northwest Argentina. For many years she has been the onlyfemale Andean high-altitude archaeologist in the world. After her graduation asan anthropologist at University of Buenos Aires in 1996, she earned her Ph.D.at University of Cuyo (Mendoza) in 2001. She has become a specialist in the anthropologyof sacred mountains.  She is Scientific Investigator of the NationalCouncil for the Scientific Research (CONICET) in Argentina as well as thefounder and Director of the Institute of High Mountain Research at the CatholicUniversity of Salta. In 2016 the UCASAL has created the Constanza Ceruti HonoraryChair on Sacred Mountains.Ceruti has climbed over 100 mountains above 16,500feet (5000 meters) within the context of systematic archaeological research.She has been twice on top of Aconcagua (6962 m), the highest mountain in thewestern hemisphere, and she ascended to the summit of Mt. Pissis (6882 m) oneof the two highest volcanoes in the world. She has climbed high peaks inEcuador, Bolivia, Peru, Chile and Argentina, as well as in Mexico and Nepal.She is the author of more than one hundred scientific papers and twentybooks. On the summit of volcano Llullaillaco (22,100 feet),the site of the highest archaeological work ever undertaken, she co-discoveredthree of the best preserved mummies in the world, together with several goldand silver statues and sumptuary objects of typical Inca style. Aftercoordinating the scientific studies of the mummies and artifacts for six years,Ceruti co-authored a book on Inca Rituals and Sacred Mountains published by theCotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA. Her anthropological interest in sacred mountains andworld´s religions goes beyond the vast Andean range. She has been to the NepalHimalayas, India, Thailand, Australia, Polynesia, Egypt, Morocco, Turkey,Greece, Norway, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Greenland, Canada, Alaska,United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Brazil, Peru and Chile. She has lecturedextensively and participated in dozens of conferences worldwide.The University of Buenos Aires awarded her with theGold Medal. Her mountaineering achievements have been recognized with the GoldCondor, the most important award by the National Army of Argentina, for thefirst time given to a woman. In 2005 she became an Emerging Explorer of theNational Geographic Society. In 2006 she was among the few honorees at thePrince of Asturias Award Ceremony, when the Communication and Humanities Awardwas given to the National Geographic Society. In 2007 she received the CourageAward from the Wings Worldquest and she was honored as a Distinguished Lecturerin Anthropology at the University of West Georgia (USA). In 2008 she receivedan award for her Academic Vocation in Buenos Aires. In 2009 she was a TEDfellow and invited speaker at the TED global meeting in Oxford (England), aswell as a Rising Talent and invited speaker at the Women´s Forum for theEconomy and Society in Deauville (France). In 2010 she was honored among themost outstanding women in Salta. In 2011 she was honored by authorities in theBasque Country and she lectured at the University of Harvard. In 2014 shereceived an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities at the Moravian College in Pennsylvania.In 2017 she has been awarded the Gold Medal of the International Society ofWoman Geographers.