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Marquis Scholar Heather Badamo ’03 (Dubois, Pa.) is conducting research this semester on the changing role of the Virgin Mary in Byzantine art over the course of several centuries. Badamo is collaborating as an EXCEL Scholar with Ida Sinkevic, associate professor of art.
“Heather is trying to determine the shifting meaning of the Virgin by researching a variety of sources, particularly monastic charters,” says Sinkevic. “She’s getting the opportunity to do some wonderful work with these primary documents.”
Monastic charters are legal documents that detail the rules and regulations of a religious order. They are important research tools in social history, as they provide insights into the routines and traditions of a particular monastic community.
“It’s interesting to see what is mentioned in these charters, such as if the Virgin is named as a protectress or intercessor. I’ve also been able to arrive at some conclusions on her importance based on the number of holidays or days of fasting, or how elaborate the instructions are for these rituals,” says Badamo, an anthropology and sociology major with a minor in art. “Through the study of these documents, I hope to determine whether there is a difference between the role of the Virgin Mary in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and the twelfth.”
Badamo was drawn to EXCEL for the opportunity to do more in-depth research on a topic in the humanities.
“I’m considering graduate school in art history or museum studies, so this work will definitely benefit my future plans,” she says. “In the humanities, it’s rare to be able to do research at this level as an undergraduate, and I appreciate this chance to work with Professor Sinkevic. She’s a great mentor.”
She adds, “I’m pleased with Lafayette. It’s a good school with a lot of opportunities.”
A graduate of Dubois Central Christian High School, Badamo participates in the McKelvy Scholars program, which brings together students of high academic achievement and promise to reside in an historic off-campus house and share in intellectual and social activities. She is president of the Emile Durkheim Society, the anthropology and sociology club. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest and most respected honors organization, and plays piano.
Heather Badamo ’03, a double major in anthropology and sociology and art, and Ida Sinkevic, associate professor of art, view slides of Byzantine representations of the Virgin Mary in an EXCEL Scholars project.