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Archaeology is a subject that spans the entirety of the human past all across the globe.  Oxford’s School of Archaeology is one of the few departments in the world where so many diverse aspects of archaeological teaching and research are brought together to address critical questions about our past.  We offer a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees (we were ranked joint first place in the Complete University Guide 2013 for Student Satisfaction and Research) and have research projects on all the inhabited continents. As a result, we have the depth and breadth of expertise to help students tackle complex issues ranging from human origins and early hunter-gatherers, to the ancient environment, classical and historical archaeology, and chronology.  We are also particularly fortunate that the legacies of eminent archaeologists who have called Oxford home, including Sir Arthur Evans and Lawrence of Arabia, continue to provide inspiration to both students and staff.

News and Announcements

01-03-2013 09:02

Dr Dan Hicks on Melvyn Bragg's "In Our Time"

Dr Dan Hicks, University Lecturer and Curator of Archaeology in the School of Archaeology and Pitt Rivers Museum, appeared on Melvyn Bragg's "In Our Time" on 28 February 2013, talking about the Victorian archaeologist General Augustus Pitt-Rivers. For further reading, links, and to listen again, see http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01qwgxx

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05-02-2013 14:48

Neanderthals 'died out earlier than previously thought'

Since the 1990s, scholars have believed that around 35,000 years ago the last of the Neanderthals sought refuge in southern Iberia, in an area known as Spain today. However, new dating evidence on fossilised bones from sites in the region (based on work undertaken by Dr Rachel Wood and Professor Thomas Higham at the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit) suggests that the fossils could be 15,000 years older than previously thought.

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19-10-2012 23:55

Lake yields new benchmark for dating much older objects

A new series of radiocarbon measurements from Japan's Lake Suigetsu will give scientists a more accurate benchmark for dating materials, especially for older objects, according to a research team that included Oxford University's Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit.

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10-10-2012 14:04

Dan Hicks leads Arts Council England funded project 'Excavating Pitt-Rivers'

The Victorian archaeologist General Pitt-Rivers is world-famous for his development of modern scientific archaeology, but the earliest archaeological collections that he made have never been studied. The Pitt Rivers Museum, where these artefacts are held, has been awarded £76,654 by Arts Council England’s Designation Development Fund to document this important early material. 

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19-06-2012 13:45

Mammoth Flute

Earliest musical instruments were first produced in Europe 40,000 years ago

The first modern humans in Europe were playing musical instruments and showing artistic creativity as early as 40,000 years ago, according to new research from Oxford and Tübingen Universities.

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18-06-2012 00:00

Island of Sveti Ivan

New evidence supports claims that relics could be of John the Baptist

New dating evidence supports claims that bones found under a church floor in Bulgaria may be of John the Baptist, who is described in the Bible as a leading prophet and relative of Jesus Christ.

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01-05-2012 09:59

Ancient network of rivers and lakes found in Arabian Desert

Satellite images have revealed that a network of ancient rivers once coursed their way through the sand of the Arabian Desert, leading scientists to believe that the region experienced wetter periods in the past.

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27-04-2012 14:15

The Atlas of Hillforts in Britain and Ireland

A collaborative four year project between the Universities of Oxford and Edinburgh directed by Professors Gary Lock (Oxford) and Ian Ralston (Edinburgh) and funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council has just been announced.

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13-04-2012 13:24

Ancient humans brought red deer to Ireland

Scientists have discovered that the red deer population from County Kerry is directly descended from deer that were introduced into Ireland by Neolithic people from Britain around 5,000 years ago.

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11-12-2011 17:51

Institute of Archaeology - 50th Anniversary Celebrations

Catch-up with the celebrations during the Institute's golden anniversary year by visiting our 50th anniversary page. Please fill out the form on the page if you would like to keep in touch with the department. We would like to hear from both alumni and friends alike and we plan to produce an anniversary booklet in 2012.

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01-12-2011 09:00

Sealinks Project Recognised

On 8th December, Dr. Nicky Boivin attended a reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh. The event was in recognition of the role of adventurers and explorers and coincided with an exhibition at the Palace showing items related to exploration and adventure from the royal archives.

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12-07-2011 09:42

Hazel Down Lynchets. Credit: Ian R. Cartwright.

The English Landscapes and Identities Project

A new five-year project has been announced looking at the history of the English landscape from the middle Bronze Age to the Norman period. It will use a mass of mapped data for the period to explore continuities and changes in the use of the land in different parts of England

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