McKenzie Bentley

I am an archaeological scientist specialising in radiocarbon dating and residue analysis. I have earned a BSc in Chemistry and BA in Humanities from Florida State University (2020) as well as a MSc in Archaeological Science from the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford (2022). My research interests lie at the intersection of human occupation, climate, and ecology, particularly in terms of networks of exchange and resource-acquisition patterns. In the past, my research has included geochemical characterisation studies of ceramics from Neolithic sites across the southeastern US with the goal of establishing links between early sedentary communities. My current research as part of the ‘Human-Environment Relationships in pre-Columbian Amazonia’ (HERCA) project, funded by the AHRC-FAPESP, involves construction of high-resolution chronologies using radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling techniques. I am also involved in protocol development and lipid residue analysis of ceramics using supercritical fluid extraction and GCMS techniques. My work with HERCA producing and managing radiocarbon data from pre-Columbian Amazonia aims to refine our understanding of human occupation sequences within the context of regional climatic and ecological changes.