Wes Cowan


C. Wesley Cowan is an American anthropologist, auctioneer, and appraiser of antiques. He is an owner of Cowan's Auctions, Inc. in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Education and career

Cowan is a licensed auctioneer in Ohio and received a B.A. and M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Kentucky,
and a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Michigan.
After receiving his Ph.D., he taught at the Anthropology Department of Ohio State University.
In 1984, Cowan moved to Cincinnati, Ohio to be the Curator of Archaeology at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History & Science. He has published in the fields of American archaeology and paleoethnobotany.
In 1995, he left academia and founded his antiques business, Cowan's Auctions, Inc. in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Cowan has been a regular in the PBS series Antiques Roadshow and History Detectives.

Selected publications

Books