Cultural change in its environmental context: exploring, interpreting, and managing archaeologically rich, large-scale cultural landscapes in the Mediterranean Basin. (1) Production of a Holocene climate history and evaluation of long-term human response to environmental change in Mediterranean to continental climate zones. (2) Development of relationships with international researchers, including leading scholars from Italy, Bulgaria, the United States, and the Netherlands. (3) Extension of Aus ....Cultural change in its environmental context: exploring, interpreting, and managing archaeologically rich, large-scale cultural landscapes in the Mediterranean Basin. (1) Production of a Holocene climate history and evaluation of long-term human response to environmental change in Mediterranean to continental climate zones. (2) Development of relationships with international researchers, including leading scholars from Italy, Bulgaria, the United States, and the Netherlands. (3) Extension of Australia's leadership in Mediterranean archaeology to the Balkans through building institutional relationships and initiating a presence in Bulgaria (arguably the most promising country in its region for archaeological research). (4) Development of innovative remote sensing methods for archaeological reconnaissance with wide applicability, including in Australian contexts and by other Australian research projects.Read moreRead less
The Silk Roads in the Bronze Age: critical links between Eurasia and China. The early rise of China's great civilization owed its rapid momentum to important technological innovations that were brought in from the far distant Eurasian steppes, but almost nothing is known of how or why this process took place. The project aims to explore these questions through excavations at one of China's most important Bronze Age archaeological sites in western Xinjiang. The innovations include the cultivation ....The Silk Roads in the Bronze Age: critical links between Eurasia and China. The early rise of China's great civilization owed its rapid momentum to important technological innovations that were brought in from the far distant Eurasian steppes, but almost nothing is known of how or why this process took place. The project aims to explore these questions through excavations at one of China's most important Bronze Age archaeological sites in western Xinjiang. The innovations include the cultivation of wheat and barley, complex metallurgical techniques in bronze, silver and gold, the domesticated horse and the spoke-wheeled chariot, which became a universal weapon of war across the ancient world. The project aims to test theories of cultural transmission through interactive GIS modelling of environment and land use potential.Read moreRead less
Seth, God of Confusion: the archaeology of a cult centre in Egypt. This project aims to examine the growth and survival of the cult of Seth in Egypt's Western Desert against the background of the cult's suggested proscription elsewhere in the ancient state. Through detailed excavation and radiometric dating of the cult centre in Dakhleh Oasis, it aims to explore the proposition that the continued veneration of Seth can be read as a sign of regional independence. This is intended to challenge the ....Seth, God of Confusion: the archaeology of a cult centre in Egypt. This project aims to examine the growth and survival of the cult of Seth in Egypt's Western Desert against the background of the cult's suggested proscription elsewhere in the ancient state. Through detailed excavation and radiometric dating of the cult centre in Dakhleh Oasis, it aims to explore the proposition that the continued veneration of Seth can be read as a sign of regional independence. This is intended to challenge the orthodox view that Egypt operated as a monolithic state; reshaping how we approach ancient Egyptian religion and administration. In doing so, the study is expected to position an Australian research team at the forefront of contemporary scholarship on Egypt, enhancing our national reputation in the promotion and preservation of global heritage.Read moreRead less
Environmental and cultural change along the Central Murray River. The aim of this project is to understand how past people in the riverine landscapes of the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) were influenced by and adapted to environmental change. This will be achieved using a novel cross-disciplinary approach combining state-of-the-art palaeoenvironmental and archaeological methods. Indigenous people of the MDB have always been closely linked to rivers, however, over the period of human habitation flow ....Environmental and cultural change along the Central Murray River. The aim of this project is to understand how past people in the riverine landscapes of the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) were influenced by and adapted to environmental change. This will be achieved using a novel cross-disciplinary approach combining state-of-the-art palaeoenvironmental and archaeological methods. Indigenous people of the MDB have always been closely linked to rivers, however, over the period of human habitation flows on these rivers were likely subject to changes that exceeded present-day variability. Understanding how these changes have impacted humans, offers clues on adaption to environmental change and aids in developing strategies for living with the inherently variable and vulnerable rivers in drylands.Read moreRead less
Megalithic Connections: Imperilled Cultural Heritage in Laos and India. This interdisciplinary project aims to document and explore the cultural connections between the geographically disparate megalithic cultures of Laos and India and create an enduring digital record of these threatened cultural assets. Integrating archaeological science and pioneering data capture technologies, the project will create globally significant new knowledge; advance heritage management processes including transfer ....Megalithic Connections: Imperilled Cultural Heritage in Laos and India. This interdisciplinary project aims to document and explore the cultural connections between the geographically disparate megalithic cultures of Laos and India and create an enduring digital record of these threatened cultural assets. Integrating archaeological science and pioneering data capture technologies, the project will create globally significant new knowledge; advance heritage management processes including transferrable exploratory technologies; and help underpin economic, social and cultural benefit in these regions. With an increasing awareness of the need to conserve global cultural assets, Australia will take the lead in developing breakthrough technological solutions and new cross-country research and practitioner capability.Read moreRead less
Earliest Village People: the shift to sedentary life in the Natufian period. This project aims to investigate the shift to sedentary life by excavating one of the earliest villages, founded by hunter-gatherers around 12,500 BCE. Of key interest are foundational burials at Wadi Hammeh 27 in Jordan and their role in the establishment of this new kind of settlement. Well-preserved deposits present a rare opportunity to track a community in the act of settling down so significant knowledge about the ....Earliest Village People: the shift to sedentary life in the Natufian period. This project aims to investigate the shift to sedentary life by excavating one of the earliest villages, founded by hunter-gatherers around 12,500 BCE. Of key interest are foundational burials at Wadi Hammeh 27 in Jordan and their role in the establishment of this new kind of settlement. Well-preserved deposits present a rare opportunity to track a community in the act of settling down so significant knowledge about the transition to sedentism should be generated. An interdisciplinary approach combining archaeology, bioanthropology and archaeogenetics may provide new explanations of early social organisation. Potential benefits include the building of international collaborations and the development of Australia’s role in the Middle East.Read moreRead less
Reuniting cargoes: Underwater Cultural Heritage of the Maritime Silk Route. Beginning in the mid 1400s the Maritime Silk Route witnessed the largest known expansion of global trade. But the legacy of artefacts retrieved from this time has not been appropriately understood because the objects were mostly salvaged and dispersed without recording the archaeological details of their find-spots. Our multilateral consortium aims to discover the cultural value of the largest Southeast Asian ceramic col ....Reuniting cargoes: Underwater Cultural Heritage of the Maritime Silk Route. Beginning in the mid 1400s the Maritime Silk Route witnessed the largest known expansion of global trade. But the legacy of artefacts retrieved from this time has not been appropriately understood because the objects were mostly salvaged and dispersed without recording the archaeological details of their find-spots. Our multilateral consortium aims to discover the cultural value of the largest Southeast Asian ceramic collections in Indonesia and Australia with archaeological science. By employing and enhancing international conventions, the project will generate new knowledge about this decisive epoch in world history and build capacity to preserve the underwater cultural heritage of our region for future generations.Read moreRead less
Contemporary Indigenous relationships to rock art. This project aims to understand the roles and meanings of archaeological heritage in the lives of Indigenous people today. Archaeological investigations typically rely on objects, images and places as evidence of past human activity, but these "artefacts" could also tell us about present-day relationships between people and their archaeological heritage. The project will examine how Aboriginal people from the south-western Gulf of Carpentaria en ....Contemporary Indigenous relationships to rock art. This project aims to understand the roles and meanings of archaeological heritage in the lives of Indigenous people today. Archaeological investigations typically rely on objects, images and places as evidence of past human activity, but these "artefacts" could also tell us about present-day relationships between people and their archaeological heritage. The project will examine how Aboriginal people from the south-western Gulf of Carpentaria engage with rock art, one of the most visual aspects of the archaeological record. By focussing on the cultural re-working of relationships to rock art, this project aims to provide new understandings to inform national and Indigenous futures, and support progressive advancements in land and sea management.Read moreRead less
Unraveling the mystery of the Plain of Jars, Laos. Since their discovery in the 1930s, the mysterious collections of giant stone jars scattered throughout central Laos have remained one of the great prehistoric puzzles of south-east (SE) Asia. It is thought that the jars represent the mortuary remains of an extensive and powerful Iron Age culture. This project seeks to determine the true nature of these sites, which date to a dynamic period of increasing complexity in SE Asia (c.500BCE-500CE). T ....Unraveling the mystery of the Plain of Jars, Laos. Since their discovery in the 1930s, the mysterious collections of giant stone jars scattered throughout central Laos have remained one of the great prehistoric puzzles of south-east (SE) Asia. It is thought that the jars represent the mortuary remains of an extensive and powerful Iron Age culture. This project seeks to determine the true nature of these sites, which date to a dynamic period of increasing complexity in SE Asia (c.500BCE-500CE). The project entails extensive reconnaissance, precision mapping, archaeological excavation and analysis of associated burial material. Using a suite of cutting-edge archaeological technologies, it is expected to have far-reaching benefits for archaeology, science, Laos and World Heritage.Read moreRead less
Seascapes, Sea People, and Indigenous Knowledge: Maritime heritage at the land/sea interface. This project will educate the broader Australian community of the complexities of Indigenous maritime heritage, by producing a clear understanding of the ways Indigenous people define and maintain seascapes. This research involves working with the Yanyuwa Aboriginal community to record knowledge of the sea, examining 'new', 'old', gendered, and generational knowledge associated with sea territories. By ....Seascapes, Sea People, and Indigenous Knowledge: Maritime heritage at the land/sea interface. This project will educate the broader Australian community of the complexities of Indigenous maritime heritage, by producing a clear understanding of the ways Indigenous people define and maintain seascapes. This research involves working with the Yanyuwa Aboriginal community to record knowledge of the sea, examining 'new', 'old', gendered, and generational knowledge associated with sea territories. By widely disseminating the results, we will reveal important details of the complexities of sustaining the biodiversity and cultural makeup of Australian seascapes. Furthermore, this Project will provide vital knowledge for the management of coastal regions in an era of predicated sea level rise.Read moreRead less