Founded in 1948, the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) is a private, nonprofit membership organization comprised of educational and cultural institutions, professional scholars and private individuals. ARCE's mission is to support research on all aspects of Egyptian history and culture, foster a broader knowledge of Egypt among the general public, and strengthen American-Egyptian cultural ties.
Today, ARCE serves the academic community by providing critical logistical support to expeditions and research projects of American academic and cultural institutions. It provides a permanent base in Cairo for scholars studying Egypt from prehistory to the present day. More than a dozen archaeological teams sponsored by leading American universities are assisted annually by our Cairo Center, which also houses a library offering scholars 25,000 volumes on all periods of Egyptian history.
Additionally, ARCE offers training programs largely for the benefit of Egyptian colleagues in field archaeology, conservation techniques, salvage archaeology, site management, and museum registrar practices. ARCE has constructed a conservation facility for the use of our colleagues at the MOA. This is the first-ever sole-purpose conservation facility to be constructed on-site in the Luxor complex and is designed to blend with its environment.
From its inception in 1948 to today, ARCE has been steadfast in its belief in the value of cross-cultural exchange between Egypt and the United States and the shared objectives of promoting research into Egypt’s rich history and the conservation of all antiquities and historic sites.
SHORT TERM GRANT: Application Guidelines
ARCE’s Antiquities Endowment Fund sustains an ongoing grants program to support the conservation, excavation, investigation, preservation, and documentation of Egypt's cultural heritage and the dissemination of relevant knowledge. Projects conducted in Egypt are given a strong preference.
The Antiquities Endowment Fund Short Term Grant (for up to one year) is awarded for highly focused projects that:
- Serve the conservation, excavation, preservation, documentation, and cultural heritage needs of Egyptian antiquities that are more than 100 years old.
- Involve the following activities:
a) Conservation, examination, and technical study of artefacts.
b) Protection of sites, buildings, or objects.
c) Participation of conservators, archaeologists, or other appropriate specialists in antiquities projects.
d) Training of conservation and archaeology students.
e) Excavation only when necessary for conservation.
f) The production of publications, exhibitions, and presentations that disseminate knowledge about Egypt’s cultural heritage.
AEF grants only support direct project costs, such as salaries for project staff, supplies, and materials. Indirect costs such as general operating costs incurred within the project but not directly linked to the project tasks, are not allowable, for example home institution overhead costs. Please do not request indirect costs either in your proposal or in any resulting contract. Applications should be denominated in U.S. Dollars. ARCE is not responsible for currency fluctuations.
Review full guidelines here.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD RESEARCH SHORT TERM GRANT: Application Guidelines
ARCE’s Antiquities Endowment Fund sustains an ongoing grants program to support the conservation, excavation, investigation, preservation and documentation of Egypt's cultural heritage and the dissemination of relevant knowledge. The basis for funding came from United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Projects executed in Egypt are given a strong preference.
Funded through the Antiquities Endowment Fund, ARCE is accepting applications for The Archaeological Field Research Grant which is open only to current Research Supporting Members (RSM) of ARCE. The purpose of this program is to provide funding to conduct empirical, archaeological research in Egypt at sites that date from pre-history to 100 years old. While the dissemination of results through publications and other materials is the ultimate expectation of these awards, this program supports (for up to one year) field costs such as travel, accommodation, field staff, equipment, and salary for project directors and collaborating scholars.
Review full guidelines here.