Suzanne Frey-Kupper (born 1958) is a classical archaeologist and

numismatist A numismatist is a specialist, researcher, and/or well-informed collector of numismatics, numismatics/coins ("of coins"; from Late Latin , genitive of ). Numismatists can include collectors, specialist dealers, and scholar-researchers who use coi ...

from Switzerland, who is Professor of Classics and Ancient History at the

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded in 1965 as part of ...

. She specialises in the study of Greek, Roman and Punic coinage, in particular examining their role in historical processes and as social agents.

Biography

Frey-Kupper was born in

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

in 1958. She studied prehistory, archaeology and art history at the

University of Zurich The University of Zurich (UZH, ) is a public university, public research university in Zurich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 from the existing colleges of the ...

. She then studied for a PhD in Ancient History at the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; ) in Lausanne, Switzerland, was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second-oldest in Switzerland, and one of the oldest universities ...

. In 1985 she founded the Swiss Working Group on Coin Finds (SAF/GSETM), which she was the first chair of, and which subsequently led to the creation of the Inventory of Swiss Coin Finds (IFS/ITMS of the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences). She has worked on a number of numismatic and archaeological projects, including as a project manager for the archaeological service of the

Canton of Bern The canton of Bern, or Berne (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the c ...

, at the site and museum of

Aventicum Aventicum was the largest town and capital of Roman Switzerland (Helvetia or Civitas Helvetiorum). Its remains are beside the modern town of Avenches. The city was probably created ''ex nihilo'' in the early 1st century AD, as the capital of ...

, and from 2003 to work on the coinage of Monte Iato in Sicily, funded by the Swiss National Fund for the Promotion of Scientific Research. From 2007 to 2011 she lectured at the University of Lausanne, before joining the

, where, in addition to teaching and research, she is responsible for the department's teaching collection of ancient coins. She has held two Visiting Professorships: first in 2014, at the

American Numismatic Society The American Numismatic Society (ANS) is a New York City-based organization dedicated to the study of coins, money, medals, tokens, and related objects. Founded in 1858, it is the only American museum devoted exclusively to their preservation ...

; secondly in 2017, at the Università degli Studi. Her research interests include the study of Greek, Roman and Punic coinage, and, in particular, coins in archaeological contexts, as well as their role in historical processes and as social agents. According to

Carolina López-Ruiz Carolina López-Ruiz is a Spanish classicist specializing in comparative mythology, Ancient Mediterranean religions, Greek language and literature, North-West Semitic languages and literatures, and cultural exchange. She has authored several work ...

, Frey-Kupper's work on coinage at Punic sites emphasised the "importance of paying attention to local contexts", but these contexts do not "undermine the existence of a level of uniformity".

Awards

* Global Contribution Award - University of Warwick (2016) * Jeton de Vermeil - Société française de numismatique (2024)

Selected works

* Frey-Kupper, Suzanne, with I. Liggi Asperoni and N. Wolfe-Jacot, ''Aventicum I – Les monnaies de sept sanctuaires romains d’Avenches'' (''ITMS'' 16) (Berne: Académie suisse des sciences humaines et sociales, Inventaire des trouvailles monétaires suisses - 2018), 236 pp., 44 pl. and database. * Frey-Kupper, Suzanne, and Clive Stannard. "Evidence for the importation and monetary use of blocks of foreign and obsolete bronze coins in the ancient world." (2018): 283-354. * Frey-Kupper, S. (2014). Coins and their use in the Punic Mediterranean: Case studies from Carthage to Italy from the fourth to the first century bce. In J. Quinn & N. Vella (Eds.), ''The Punic Mediterranean: Identities and Identification from Phoenician Settlement to Roman Rule'' (British School at Rome Studies, pp. 76–110). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. * Stannard, Clive, and Suzanne Frey-Kupper. ""Pseudomints" and Small Change in Italy and Sicily in the Late Republic." ''American Journal of Numismatics'' (2008): 351-404.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frey-Kupper, Suzanne Living people 1958 births Women numismatists Women classical scholars Swiss numismatists People from Baden, Switzerland University of Lausanne alumni University of Zurich alumni Academics of the University of Warwick Phoenician and Punic studies Swiss women archaeologists