Scientific Archaeology
The School’s scientific archaeological research is largely focussed within the RLAHA. Here there are three long-established major research themes – dating, biomolecular archaeology and archaeological materials science. This research is primarily laboratory-focused, although many staff are also involved in international fieldwork programs, in places such as China, India, South-east Asia, Iran, east Africa, Anatolia, Russia and Europe. We have well-equipped laboratories for archaeological chemistry and materials science, with a particular strength in dating instrumentation, light isotopes and electron microscopy.
Dating
The Research Laboratory for Archaeology has been involved with the development and application of scientific techniques for dating since the work of Martin Aitken on magnetic dating in the 1960s. One of our main contributions to dating research over the years has been the development of accelerator mass spectrometry for radiocarbon dating in archaeology, and also of luminescence dating techniques (TL and OSL). Associated with this has been the development of OxCal – one of the world’s leading software packages for calibrating radiocarbon dates, and carrying out Bayesian modelling. We are now also developing tephrochronology as a dating tool for archaeology and Quaternary science
Biomolecular Archaeology
RLAHA began its interest in biomolecular archaeology with Robert Hedges’ work on bone diagenesis, and also the use of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios in collagen as an indicator of diet. Research continues to be focused on the isotopic chemistry of human bone, looking mainly at diet, but also human movement and demography. We have continued to develop isotope measurement techniques, with a growing emphasis on investigating new systems (e.g. δD and δ34S) or using compound specific methods to better resolve the difference between inputs from terrestrial (C3) freshwater and marine systems. We have also been involved in applied work on changes in nutrition from the start of the Neolithic onwards. Schulting’s complementary interests extend this into the European Mesolithic. Other projects have looked at different parts of the world, such as the Caribbean and Iran, and from the chalcolithic to the post-medieval.
Archaeological Materials Science
RLAHA has a long interest in the analysis of archaeological materials, stretching back to Teddy Hall’s original interest in the analysis of archeological metalwork. During the 1990s there was a substantial focus on glass and glaze technology. More recently, an attempt has been made to take into account a more holistic view of the role of materials science in archaeology (Pollard and Gosden). We are currently developing a strong research interest in the social history of technological innovation and diffusion. This is expressed, for example, through work on the adoption of bronze technology in the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age.