John W. Hessler is the curator of the Jay I. Kislak Collection of the Archaeology and History of the Early Americas at the Library of Congress and a lecturer at the Johns Hopkins University. He is the author of Collecting for a New World: Treasures of the Early Americas and many other books.
Katia Sainson is a professor of French in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at Towson University. She is the author and translator of The Manuscript Hunter: Brasseur de Bourbourg’s Travels Through Central America and Mexico, 1854–1859.
When not searching through Maya ruins in Central America, climbing in the Alps or mountain biking through some jungle, John Hessler is the Curator of the Jay I. Kislak Collection of the Archaeology and History of the Early Americas at the Library of Congress and a Lecturer in Quantum Materials, Mechanics and Computing, in the Graduate School of Advanced Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Founder of the Archeo/LAB, his current teaching and research focuses on the theoretical materials science of archaeological remains, the topological structure of ancient DNA, and the quantum properties of ancient nano-materials like Maya Blue. A Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in London, he is the co-director of the Mesoamerican Language, Theory and Decipherment Seminars, and is also on the faculty of the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia where he teaches a seminar called the History & Construction of the Mesoamerican Codex. The author of more than 100 books and articles, including MAP: Exploring the World, his research and writing has been featured in many national media outlets including Discover, Wired, CBS News, The New York Times, The Washington Post and most recently on NPRs All Things Considered.
