In Memoriam: Brunilde Sismondo Ridgway, 1929-2024

Brunilde Sismondo Ridgway, longtime professor at Bryn Mawr College, a liberal arts educational institution for women in suburban Philadelphia, passed away on October 19. She was 94 years old.

In 1957, Dr. Ridgway began her career as an instructor at Bryn Mawr College. She left in 1960 to teach in the department of classics at another women’s college, Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia. After one year, she returned to Bryn Mawr as an assistant professor. She became a full professor in 1970, and later earned the title of Rhys Carpenter Professor. From 1983 to 1991, she served as chair of the department of classics. She retired in 1993 after more than three decades on the faculty.

As a scholar, Dr. Ridgway studied Greek and Italian sculpture, art, architecture, and archaeology. Her expertise earned her appointments to distinguished visiting professorships at many institutions, including the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Michigan, and the American Academy in Rome. She was a member of several professional organizations such as the Archaeological Institute of America and the American Philosophical Society. She served as editor of the American Journal of Archaeology for nearly a decade.

A native of Italy, Dr. Ridgway earned her undergraduate degree in classics from the University of Messina. She earned her master’s degree and a Ph.D. in archaic sculpture from Bryn Mawr College, after conducting research with the American School of Classical Studies at Athens in Greece.