Deborah Giannessi received her PhD in Near Eastern Archaeology from the University of Pisa. She was for many years a member of the Pisa Archaeological Project at Tell Afis (Syria), and has participated in other archaeological excavations in Syria, Oman, Iraq, and Italy. Her research includes museological projects in Italy, Denmark, and the Netherlands. Besides published studies related to her work in the Middle East, and mainly focussed on the IVth Millennium B.C., she has edited two monographs on the archaeology and history of her native Versilia (Tuscany).