The deep history of Sea Country: Climate, sea level and culture. This project aims to investigate the records of the now-submerged Pilbara coast (50,000 to 7000 years ago). Nearly a third of Australia’s landmass was drowned after the last ice age, and sea-level change displaced generations of people. Submerged landscape archaeology will help reveal past sea-level rise, population resilience, mobility and diet. The project integrates cultural and environmental studies and material analysis, and a ....The deep history of Sea Country: Climate, sea level and culture. This project aims to investigate the records of the now-submerged Pilbara coast (50,000 to 7000 years ago). Nearly a third of Australia’s landmass was drowned after the last ice age, and sea-level change displaced generations of people. Submerged landscape archaeology will help reveal past sea-level rise, population resilience, mobility and diet. The project integrates cultural and environmental studies and material analysis, and adapts a method from the world’s only confirmed submarine middens. It will use marine and aerial survey techniques to investigate physical and cultural submerged landscapes. This project expects to influence heritage and environmental management and the marine heritage sector.Read moreRead less
The Port Adelaide Historical Archaeology (PAHA) project. The aim of this project is to investigate the concept of neighbourhood archaeology in relation to the working class of Port Adelaide. There has been limited previous research on the residents of Port Adelaide and what has been done has mainly been from a town planning and sociological perspective. The traditional history of Port Adelaide has marginalised the role of the residents in the development of Port Adelaide. Archaeological excavati ....The Port Adelaide Historical Archaeology (PAHA) project. The aim of this project is to investigate the concept of neighbourhood archaeology in relation to the working class of Port Adelaide. There has been limited previous research on the residents of Port Adelaide and what has been done has mainly been from a town planning and sociological perspective. The traditional history of Port Adelaide has marginalised the role of the residents in the development of Port Adelaide. Archaeological excavation, therefore, along with extant collections, can provide information not available from other sources. Comparison with previous work undertaken outside Port Adelaide will also provide useful insights into life in early Port Adelaide.Read moreRead less
The Origin and Development of the Tongan Maritime Empire. This project aims to understand the nature and development of the Tongan maritime empire, the most complex socio-political entity to exist in prehistoric Oceania. Extensive excavations of monumental structures and other sites throughout the central Pacific will create the first cultural sequence of the empire and a comprehensive radiocarbon chronology. The excavations will concentrate on sites of cross-cultural contact between indigeno ....The Origin and Development of the Tongan Maritime Empire. This project aims to understand the nature and development of the Tongan maritime empire, the most complex socio-political entity to exist in prehistoric Oceania. Extensive excavations of monumental structures and other sites throughout the central Pacific will create the first cultural sequence of the empire and a comprehensive radiocarbon chronology. The excavations will concentrate on sites of cross-cultural contact between indigenous peoples of the region. In addition traditional and documentary historical records will be reanalysed. A substantial monograph will assess the significance of these new Pacific data in relation to our understanding of maritime empires around the world.Read moreRead less
Shipwrecks of the Roaring Forties: a maritime archaeological reassessment of some of Australia's earliest shipwrecks. This project will evaluate new ways of investigating the history of Europeans in the Indian Ocean by using the latest technology to evaluate seven Western Australian shipwrecks excavated over 40 years ago. The project will work with emerging technologies to study these significant sites and collections.
Southeast Asia's global economy, climate and the impact of natural hazards from the 10th to 21st centuries. This project's scope is uniquely broad and multidisciplinary, comprising collaborations between historians, archaeologists, seismologists and others. The aim is to analyse the development of south east Asia's vast and sophisticated economic system within the context of human-environment interactions, over a scale and time period which has been inadequately investigated.
The Australian historic shipwreck protection project: the in situ preservation and reburial of a colonial trader - Clarence (1850). The project will use cutting-edge technology to study and preserve an early colonial shipwreck at risk and develop a world-class strategy for the reburial and preservation of endangered historic shipwrecks. The project will help develop new national policy and technical guidelines for site managers of historic shipwrecks and offer new insights into colonial shipbuil ....The Australian historic shipwreck protection project: the in situ preservation and reburial of a colonial trader - Clarence (1850). The project will use cutting-edge technology to study and preserve an early colonial shipwreck at risk and develop a world-class strategy for the reburial and preservation of endangered historic shipwrecks. The project will help develop new national policy and technical guidelines for site managers of historic shipwrecks and offer new insights into colonial shipbuilding.Read moreRead less
The origins of human colonization in East Polynesia and their relevance to maritime migration. The Indo-Pacific is a world of islands, including Australia, which was colonized during prehistory in several phases of migration, the last and longest of which was in East Polynesia. Extensive excavation of a large, waterlogged archaeological site of this era in French Polynesia will provide a better understanding of the period, society and external relationships of the early migrants, and of the proc ....The origins of human colonization in East Polynesia and their relevance to maritime migration. The Indo-Pacific is a world of islands, including Australia, which was colonized during prehistory in several phases of migration, the last and longest of which was in East Polynesia. Extensive excavation of a large, waterlogged archaeological site of this era in French Polynesia will provide a better understanding of the period, society and external relationships of the early migrants, and of the processes of prehistoric maritime migration which link Australian peoples to those of our neighbours across the Pacific and Indian Oceans.Read moreRead less
Crossing the Green Sea: maritime mobility, trans-oceanic interaction and remote island colonisation in the tropical Indian Ocean. Australia is an Indian Ocean nation. It is strategically and politically important to understand our Indian Ocean neighbours, including small island nations such as the Maldives and Seychelles. Researching their history is part of this process. Building a collaborative research capacity between Australian and other Indian Ocean scholars, publishing the results of rese ....Crossing the Green Sea: maritime mobility, trans-oceanic interaction and remote island colonisation in the tropical Indian Ocean. Australia is an Indian Ocean nation. It is strategically and politically important to understand our Indian Ocean neighbours, including small island nations such as the Maldives and Seychelles. Researching their history is part of this process. Building a collaborative research capacity between Australian and other Indian Ocean scholars, publishing the results of research, building them into educational curricula, and maintaining a pool of Indian Ocean scholarly expertise in Australia is a national and community benefit. In addition, research results on the history of human colonisation and human impact on vulnerable environments will be significant to Australia as an island nation.Read moreRead less
Colonization of the Mariana Islands and its implications for Indo-Pacific prehistory. The Asia-Pacific region, including Australia, is linked by seas and oceans that have been crossed by colonists in ancient as well as recent times. The most significant prehistoric migration was the movement of people out of southern China, into Taiwan, Island Asia and from there into Micronesia and across the Pacific. New investigations of the oldest sites in the Marianas will provide better understanding of ea ....Colonization of the Mariana Islands and its implications for Indo-Pacific prehistory. The Asia-Pacific region, including Australia, is linked by seas and oceans that have been crossed by colonists in ancient as well as recent times. The most significant prehistoric migration was the movement of people out of southern China, into Taiwan, Island Asia and from there into Micronesia and across the Pacific. New investigations of the oldest sites in the Marianas will provide better understanding of early prehistoric maritime capacity, the connections between migrant groups who settled the islands of Asia and Oceania, and the processes of Indo-Pacific colonization. Improved knowledge of our neighbours capabilities and history is of clear national benefit to Australia.Read moreRead less
Microanalysis of human fossils: new insights into age, diet and migration. Human occupation of Australia and the Pacific dates back tens of thousands of years. New micro-analytical techniques now make it possible to learn about the life histories of these ancient peoples: their diet, migration paths and the climate in which they lived. This project will benefit the Indigenous populations and researchers of neighbouring countries through collaboration and increased knowledge of their ancestors, t ....Microanalysis of human fossils: new insights into age, diet and migration. Human occupation of Australia and the Pacific dates back tens of thousands of years. New micro-analytical techniques now make it possible to learn about the life histories of these ancient peoples: their diet, migration paths and the climate in which they lived. This project will benefit the Indigenous populations and researchers of neighbouring countries through collaboration and increased knowledge of their ancestors, thus enhancing Australia's links and status as a good neighbour in the region. This falls squarely into the Research Priority 'Safeguarding Australia - Understanding our Region and the World'. In the future, our analytical approach will give important insights into the complex and rich archaeological heritage of Australia. Read moreRead less