Dr. Arthur J. Jelinek

Arthur J. Jelinek, beloved husband, father, colleague, friend, and world renowned archaeologist, died on January 10th 2022 from cancer at age 93. Arthur Julius Jelinek was born on July 19th 1928 in Chicago Illinois, the first of two children of Arthur and Frances (nee Pollock) Jelinek. He was raised in the western Chicago suburb of La Grange Park and attended Lyons Township High School, graduating in 1946. After serving for two years in the U.S. Marine Corps, he enrolled in the University of New Mexico in 1949, receiving a BA in Anthropology in 1952. He pursued graduate studies in Anthropology at the University of Michigan, earning his MA in 1955 and his PhD in 1960 with a dissertation based on his extensive survey of sites in the Mimbres Valley in southwestern New Mexico. While at Michigan, Art met Eloise Kerlin, a fellow Graduate Student in Anthropology. They were married in 1956, and son Tom was born in 1958. Art worked as a Teaching Fellow at Beloit College for one year and as an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Chicago for three years. In 1961 he returned to Michigan to take positions as the Curator of Archaeology at the Museum of Anthropology and as an Associate Professor of Anthropology. Art was hired as a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Arizona, Tucson, in 1967, held that position until his retirement in 1993, and continued to be active as Professor Emeritus until his death. A complete Professional Vita is on the Website for the School of Anthropology, University of Arizona. Beginning in 1967, Art directed a noteworthy excavation of Tabun Cave near Haifa, Israel, during the summer months over a span of five years, and brought graduate students with him each season to serve as assistants. A memorable experience for Art was his selection to be a member of the University of Arizona delegation to the People's Republic of China in 1976. During the summers from 1985 to 1994, Art directed the excavation of La Quina, a Paleolithic site near Laubertie in southwestern France, taking a field crew of graduate students with him each summer. His exhaustive and innovative research resulted in his monograph Neanderthal Lithic Industries at La Quina, published by the University of Arizona Press in 2013. Art received the Burlington-Northern Faculty Achievement Award for Teaching Excellence in 1985, a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1987, and was the first recipient of the Raymond H. Thompson Award for Contributions to Anthropology in 2005. As an archaeologist, Art was known for his thorough research, attention to detail, and innovative techniques of analysis. As a husband, father, grandfather, and uncle, Art was caring and attentive. As a colleague and mentor, he was valued with deep regard and affection; many of his students became lifelong friends. He was appreciated and enjoyed for his intelligent conversation, sense of humor, and knowledge of a vast variety of subjects - art, architecture, history, literature, music, photography, travel, and cuisine among them. He had an interest in surrealism and was a master in the use of Photoshop, often turning his own exquisite photos into mystical landscapes. Art's wife Eloise died in 2007. Art's son Tom, a Pastor, officiated at the marriage of his father to Carol Gifford, a colleague in the Anthropology Department, in 2011. Art is survived by his son Tom; his sister, Joan; his wife Carol, her daughter Sharon, son James (Taryn) and their two sons; and many beloved friends and family. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, October 15 in Tucson; please contact the University of Arizona School of Anthropology at anthro@arizona.edu for more information and/or to RSVP. Donations in Art's memory can be made to the Arthur J. Jelinek Student Fieldwork Fund at the School of Anthropology, at https://give.uafoundation.org/ArthurJelinek to fund Anthropology students' participation in fieldwork, which Art believed was essential early in their academic careers. Art's intellect, humor, insight, creativity, and friendship were treasured by those around him. He will be missed, and fondly remembered, by all who knew him.