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Biography
I studied BA Archaeology at the University of Bristol. I decided that I needed find my own path alongside my studies in my second year, otherwise I was going to get lost in the herd, so I organized my own fieldwork placement in Southwest Asis and have not looked back.
I studied the archaeology of Southwest Asia for Masters and PhD at the University of Liverpool, working with material culture and isotope analysis to answer zooarchaeological questions, an interdisciplinary approach that has become a feature of my research. After graduation I took on several post-doctoral research projects at the Universities of Cambridge, Exeter and Nottingham. I have been at the 海角黑料 since 2012.
My research has two primary strands (1) human-animal-landscape relationships, and what they can reveal about past societies and (2) object biographies, and the expression of human culture and identity in prehistory. These two strands are increasingly linked by shared concerns of health and wellbeing, and that human, (non-human)animal and environmental experiences must be considered together to be meaningful. Both have resonance for contemporary issues.
Expertise Summary
My key area of archaeological interest is the Epi-Palaeolithic - Iron Age of Southwest Asia, but I have experience of archaeological fieldwork in the UK, France, Kenya and Ethiopia as well as Jordan, Syria and T眉rkiye. As the methodologies that I use are applicable to many archaeological regions, time periods and contexts, I have been involved in research across the international archaeological field.
As a zooarchaeologist I work with bones, teeth and other evidence of animals in the archaeological record. I have expertise in stable and radiogenic isotope geochemistry, in particular dietary (C, N, S) and mobility (O and Sr) isotopes and use these to further study human-non-human animal-environment interactions with colleagues from the British Geological Survey.
I am also a lithic analyst, with particular focus and more than 25 years experience in examining flint, obsidian and other chipped stone materials from Southwest Asia.
Much of my research is interdisciplinary, often involving other specialists who work in other areas of archaeology, archives, museums, inscriptions, art history, palaeoproteomics, metrology, architecture, ancient DNA, and radiocarbon dating, etc.
I am the Director of the Nottingham Materials and Environment Science and Heritage network (N-MESH), part of the program. If you are interested in knowing about or accessing our Heritage Science capabilities, please use these links to find out more.
My current research interests are:
- Evidencing past human-non-human animal interactions (SDG 4: Quality Education; SDG 15: Life on Land)
- The use of non-human animals in human wellbeing practices (zootheraphy) (SDG3: Good Health and Wellbeing; SDG12: Responsible Consumption and Production)
- The development of caprine herding in the eastern Jordanian Badia (SDG 15: Life on Land; SDG12: Responsible Consumption and Production)
- Developing access to, and critical evaluation of, heritage science approaches (SDG 4: Quality Education; SDG 15: Life on Land; SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure; SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities)
My current fieldwork project is:
- Can Hasan, T眉rkiye - an early Neolithic Village site on the Konya Plain, under the direction of Dr Adnan Baysal of the University of Ankara. I am leading the lithic analysis and part of the zooarchaeology team.
If you're interested in studying for a PhD on any of these topics, have a look at my research pages and publications list and then contact me to have a chat.
Teaching Summary
I am on Research Leave for the 2025-2026 Academic Year.
In 2026-27, I will be contributing to the following modules:
Year 1
- Introduction to Practical Archaeology (full year, convener)
- Comparative World Prehistory (autumn, convener)
Year 2
- Archaeological Finds: from field to publication (spring, convener)
Years 2 and 3 options
- Osteology (autumn, teaching zooarchaeology component)
- Heritage and the Media (spring, teaching)
Year 3
- Isotopes and Environmental Archaeology (spring, convener)
In addition to this, I am happy to talk about undergraduate and MRes dissertation projects in:
- zooarchaeology;
- stable isotope bioarchaeology;
- material culture, particularly stone tool and personal adornment analysis;
- Southwest Asian (Near Eastern) archaeology;
- archaeological theory;
- later prehistory.
Research Summary
The human-(non-human)animal-landscape relationships that are central to my research are reflections of culture and identity in the past, together they offer a greater understanding of the structure,… read more
Current Research
The human-(non-human)animal-landscape relationships that are central to my research are reflections of culture and identity in the past, together they offer a greater understanding of the structure, economy and ideology of society. I use zooarchaeology and isotope (C, N, S, O, Sr) analysis to investigate human-instigated management, movement and ecology of animals. Alongside building and interpreting zooarchaeology and isotope data to examine these themes, I integrate evidence from anthropology, ecology, archaeobotany, genetics, visual and material culture, and historical texts in my research. My long history of interdisciplinary research shows that combining these data sets makes them greater than the sum of their parts.
I have contributed to several key archaeological debates, notably identifying the incipient development of nomadic pastoralism in the Southern Levant, the hidden archaeology of zootherapy and, the interpretative potential of humoral theory in archaeology. My work on fallow deer, domestic caprines, and chickens has resulted in important considerations of the place of animals in a range of societies, and has particularly reflected on the role of environmental, ecological and economic factors. This tallies with my work on adornments, including those on animals, which challenges current methodologies and a lack of theory in analysing bead/amulet manufacture and use, particularly in Prehistoric - Medieval societies, and assessed through integrated evidence to produce object biographies.
Past Research
My PhD research, undertaken at the University of Liverpool, focused on an assessments of prehistoric human-animal-landscape relationships (dietary and environmental change, developing human-animal relationships, early animal management practices, movement patterns and associated societal change) to investigate the origins of nomadic pastoralism in the steppe and desert of the Southern Levant.
Future Research
My future research plans include developing interdisciplinary research in magic, medicine and belief, specifically: (1) through object biographies and; (2) establishing a new field of archaeological scholarship - medicine as culture in prehistory.