Mina Turunç

Mina is a PhD student in the Transregional, International, and Global History track, focused on the intersected histories of the Ottoman and British empires in the nineteenth century. Interested in the history of archaeological excavations in Ottoman lands, she explores how both states utilized archaeology to exert imperial hegemony over lands and heritage. She studies the politics of display in British and Ottoman museums, debates surrounding object provenance, and how ownership of cultural heritage impacted imperial perceptions of identity and ancestry.

Prior to Stanford, Mina completed a BA in History at Vassar College, an MPhil in World History at the University of Cambridge, and an Advanced Certificate in Museum Studies at New York University. Her MPhil dissertation focused on the interference of British, Ottoman, and French empires on Druze communities in nineteenth-century Ottoman Syria. Before starting her PhD, she worked in several museums and cultural heritage institutions, most recently the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. She also wrote for Cornucopia Magazine, reviewing museum exhibitions in London, Istanbul, and New York.