Warfare and the Archaic State in Oceania. The project aim is to investigate warfare in the ancient Tongan state through a study of earthwork fortifications. The conflict record for an Archaic state in Oceania that survived for 650 years contributes a new perspective to global research on warfare in complex societies. The effect of conflict is a prominent issue for Australia and long-term records of warfare in our region will improve our understanding of it. Intra-state conflict is the most press ....Warfare and the Archaic State in Oceania. The project aim is to investigate warfare in the ancient Tongan state through a study of earthwork fortifications. The conflict record for an Archaic state in Oceania that survived for 650 years contributes a new perspective to global research on warfare in complex societies. The effect of conflict is a prominent issue for Australia and long-term records of warfare in our region will improve our understanding of it. Intra-state conflict is the most pressing threat to political stability in South-East Asia and the Pacific and the project would benefit Australia by showing how changes to political systems are associated with phases of conflict and peace.Read moreRead less
Submerged cultural landscapes and the underwater heritage of Sea Country. This project aims to substantially extend our knowledge of the vast but poorly characterised submerged cultural landscapes on the Australian continental shelf, which remains one of the critical gaps in Australian archaeology. Original fieldwork will target locations in Western Australia and the Northern Territory to enrich and contextualise the submerged archaeological record within the broader discourse. The project will ....Submerged cultural landscapes and the underwater heritage of Sea Country. This project aims to substantially extend our knowledge of the vast but poorly characterised submerged cultural landscapes on the Australian continental shelf, which remains one of the critical gaps in Australian archaeology. Original fieldwork will target locations in Western Australia and the Northern Territory to enrich and contextualise the submerged archaeological record within the broader discourse. The project will combine archaeology, marine science and Indigenous knowledge to enhance our understanding of Pleistocene and early Holocene human-environment dynamics. Research will be undertaken in partnership with Traditional Owners and will support a national policy for the protection of Indigenous underwater cultural heritage.Read moreRead less
Warratyi: Cultural Innovation in the Indigenous Settlement of Australia. This project aims to determine the role of cultural innovation in the Indigenous settlement of Australia's arid zone 50,000 years ago. Using innovative methods, it will produce new data on key technologies, symbolic behaviours and human interactions with animals and environment to identify the cultural innovations needed to overcome the challenges of Australia's deserts. Expected outcomes include new understandings of the s ....Warratyi: Cultural Innovation in the Indigenous Settlement of Australia. This project aims to determine the role of cultural innovation in the Indigenous settlement of Australia's arid zone 50,000 years ago. Using innovative methods, it will produce new data on key technologies, symbolic behaviours and human interactions with animals and environment to identify the cultural innovations needed to overcome the challenges of Australia's deserts. Expected outcomes include new understandings of the settlement of the arid zone to inform global debates relating to the dispersal, settlement and lifestyles of early humans in marginal environments. Expected benefits include new information for cultural tourism and education and to support South Australia’s World Heritage nomination for the Flinders Ranges.Read moreRead less
The other democracy: Medes in the Iron Age. This project aims to use evidence from archaeology and historical texts to develop a new
understanding of the consensus-based political system of the Medes of the Zagros Mountains in the first
millennium BCE. In spite of the enduring presence of the Medes in the historical texts of Ancient Greece and the
Near East, this research project would be the first major piece of scholarship to address the nature of Median
communities. This research seeks to cre ....The other democracy: Medes in the Iron Age. This project aims to use evidence from archaeology and historical texts to develop a new
understanding of the consensus-based political system of the Medes of the Zagros Mountains in the first
millennium BCE. In spite of the enduring presence of the Medes in the historical texts of Ancient Greece and the
Near East, this research project would be the first major piece of scholarship to address the nature of Median
communities. This research seeks to create a new model for how these agro-pastoral groups may have
responded to imperial incursions by the Assyrian Empire. Its goal is to benefit scholarship by developing a better
understanding of how democratic systems can develop as a flexible response to external pressures.Read moreRead less
From the Desert to the Sea: Managing Rock Art, Country and Culture. This Project will expand our understanding of Aboriginal settlement and land-use in north-west Australia by investigating how the mythological narratives of Australia’s deserts enable the transmission of knowledge in water-limited environments. Combining traditional ecological knowledge and novel scientific approaches (e.g. anthracology, remote sensing, oxygen-isotopes) will provide new insights into human behaviours at rock art ....From the Desert to the Sea: Managing Rock Art, Country and Culture. This Project will expand our understanding of Aboriginal settlement and land-use in north-west Australia by investigating how the mythological narratives of Australia’s deserts enable the transmission of knowledge in water-limited environments. Combining traditional ecological knowledge and novel scientific approaches (e.g. anthracology, remote sensing, oxygen-isotopes) will provide new insights into human behaviours at rock art site complexes. It will develop management regimes and formal certification for Indigenous rangers while building heritage capacity in these partner communities: enabling intergenerational, culturally appropriate knowledge transfer protocols are in place to ensure sustainable economic heritage futures.Read moreRead less
Rivers of Gold: The Legacy of Historical Gold Mining for Victoria's Rivers. By considering rivers as cultural artefacts, this project aims to evaluate how historical gold mining has shaped river systems in Victoria. Victoria’s historic mining industry led to extensive and long-lasting change to waterways across the state. The project plans to integrate approaches from landscape archaeology, physical geography, geomorphology and environmental chemistry to identify and map the extent of changes, i ....Rivers of Gold: The Legacy of Historical Gold Mining for Victoria's Rivers. By considering rivers as cultural artefacts, this project aims to evaluate how historical gold mining has shaped river systems in Victoria. Victoria’s historic mining industry led to extensive and long-lasting change to waterways across the state. The project plans to integrate approaches from landscape archaeology, physical geography, geomorphology and environmental chemistry to identify and map the extent of changes, including increased sedimentation, erosion, and chemical contamination. The project plans to demonstrate how historical mining continues to influence chemical and physical processes in Victorian streams and to develop understanding of the landscapes experienced by Victorians at the height of the mining boom. Project outcomes may provide improved context for catchment and reservoir management and counter prevailing impressions about causes of observed damage to rivers.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100187
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$391,950.00
Summary
Ethnoarchaeological investigation of religious systems in Ancient Polynesia. This project aims to document and compare the long-term historical trajectories of Eastern Polynesian chiefdoms by developing a new perspective on ancient ritual practices and monuments. Using archaeological, historical and ethnographic material, the project expects to increase our knowledge of Polynesia’s archaeological history. Anticipated outcomes of this project include a better understanding of traditional religiou ....Ethnoarchaeological investigation of religious systems in Ancient Polynesia. This project aims to document and compare the long-term historical trajectories of Eastern Polynesian chiefdoms by developing a new perspective on ancient ritual practices and monuments. Using archaeological, historical and ethnographic material, the project expects to increase our knowledge of Polynesia’s archaeological history. Anticipated outcomes of this project include a better understanding of traditional religious systems in Polynesia, and the development of a theoretical and methodological framework for the study of ancient rituals. It should further create a new model of collaborative research with Pacific Islanders for whom their legacy of ritual monuments bear a critical cultural significance; it thus informs a better understanding of Australia’s role in Pacific studies.Read moreRead less
Before Cook: Contact, Negotiation and the Archaeology of the Tiwi Islands. The narrative of culture contact in Australia is dominated by British colonisation, yet Indigenous Australians in Northern Australia had a much earlier connection with global explorers and traders. We aim to conduct the first systematic maritime and terrestrial archaeological investigations of the Tiwi Islands, alongside the study of material culture, oral history and archival materials associated with early Dutch explore ....Before Cook: Contact, Negotiation and the Archaeology of the Tiwi Islands. The narrative of culture contact in Australia is dominated by British colonisation, yet Indigenous Australians in Northern Australia had a much earlier connection with global explorers and traders. We aim to conduct the first systematic maritime and terrestrial archaeological investigations of the Tiwi Islands, alongside the study of material culture, oral history and archival materials associated with early Dutch explorers, British colonists, and Macassans. This multi-disciplinary approach will broaden our understanding of long-term race relations in Australia, the past presence of foreign visitors to Northern Australia, develop cultural heritage public policy and consolidate Tiwi cultural identity and history into the historical record.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
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR200200155
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$277,158.00
Summary
Aboriginal Involvement in the Early Development of Australian Archaeology. This project aims to interrogate the importance of Aboriginal knowledge in the development of Australian archaeology. Through a close study of archival and published archaeological literature, the project anticipates generating new knowledge and innovative interpretations of archaeology's history. Expected outcomes include a radical rewriting of a significant chapter of the nation’s history and enhancing the reinterpreta ....Aboriginal Involvement in the Early Development of Australian Archaeology. This project aims to interrogate the importance of Aboriginal knowledge in the development of Australian archaeology. Through a close study of archival and published archaeological literature, the project anticipates generating new knowledge and innovative interpretations of archaeology's history. Expected outcomes include a radical rewriting of a significant chapter of the nation’s history and enhancing the reinterpretation of museum displays and tourism presentation of heritage sites. This reclaiming of the contribution of the First Australians in the development of the current knowledge of 65,000 years of our history, seeks to benefit Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, and to contribute to ongoing reconciliation. Read moreRead less