Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130100046
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$374,575.00
Summary
Foundations of Island Southeast Asian maritime interaction: unravelling cause and consequence for the transformation of past societies. The successful spread of Neolithic innovations across the world was one of the most important transformations in human history. This project combines the geochemical and technological analysis of stone tools to track the evolution of maritime colonisation in Island Southeast Asia, the foundation for the success of agriculture in this region.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100133
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$409,297.00
Summary
Early animal husbandry and socio-political complexity in the Asia-Pacific. This project will investigate the origins of animal husbandry and its link to the creation of wealth, the development of socio-political prestige systems, the rise of inequality, and the coevolutionary effects of the domestication process on pigs. It focuses on 15 stratified Neolithic archaeological sites in the tropical island region of Island Southeast Asia and the Pacific dating between 4000-500 years ago. An expected ....Early animal husbandry and socio-political complexity in the Asia-Pacific. This project will investigate the origins of animal husbandry and its link to the creation of wealth, the development of socio-political prestige systems, the rise of inequality, and the coevolutionary effects of the domestication process on pigs. It focuses on 15 stratified Neolithic archaeological sites in the tropical island region of Island Southeast Asia and the Pacific dating between 4000-500 years ago. An expected outcome will be the establishment of an integrated evolutionary theoretical model that could be applied to analyzing agricultural transitions globally. Such a model predicts socio-political and rational economic strategies in pig management systems and can be tested using zooarchaeological analyses.Read moreRead less
The archaeology of ritual architecture on the islands of Malakula, Vanuatu. This project will define the historical trajectory, function and role of ritual architecture across Malakula, Vanuatu, furnishing crucial comparative data and contributing to debates on the dynamics and manifestations of long-term social changed across the Pacific. Contemporary issues such as population growth, land and food security will be addressed.
Using fossil insects and plants to recognise past human impacts on Pacific island biodiversity. This project will enhance our ability to characterise human impact on island biodiversity. It will develop novel research methods that can be applied in the Australian context to understand changes in biodiversity that come with human impact. The contemporary emphasis on biosecurity in the protection of Australia's unique environment against human-introduced exotic pests and diseases can be better und ....Using fossil insects and plants to recognise past human impacts on Pacific island biodiversity. This project will enhance our ability to characterise human impact on island biodiversity. It will develop novel research methods that can be applied in the Australian context to understand changes in biodiversity that come with human impact. The contemporary emphasis on biosecurity in the protection of Australia's unique environment against human-introduced exotic pests and diseases can be better understood in the context of past introductions. Our project will demonstrate the role Australian archaeologists and natural scientists can play in understanding the spread of humans across the Pacific and the environmental consequences of colonisation. It will increase collaboration between research institutions in the Australia/Pacific region.Read moreRead less
Indian Textile Technology as archaeological evidence for population movements in Early Southeast Asia. This project uses archaeological textiles to investigate population movements in the late prehistoric period of Southeast Asia. It involves collaborative links between researchers from the Institute of Archaeology in Vietnam, the Centre for Southeast Asian Prehistory in Ho Chi Minh City, the Fine Arts Department of Thailand and museums and archaeological institutions in South India. It not only ....Indian Textile Technology as archaeological evidence for population movements in Early Southeast Asia. This project uses archaeological textiles to investigate population movements in the late prehistoric period of Southeast Asia. It involves collaborative links between researchers from the Institute of Archaeology in Vietnam, the Centre for Southeast Asian Prehistory in Ho Chi Minh City, the Fine Arts Department of Thailand and museums and archaeological institutions in South India. It not only profiles Australian expertise in Southeast Asia but facilitates high levels of communication and the exchange of ideas. Read moreRead less
The archaeology of Sulawesi: a strategic island for understanding modern human colonization and interactions across our region. This project will investigate the archaeology and palaeoenvironment of Sulawesi over the past 50,000 years. Sulawesi is strategically positioned to test competing models of initial modern human expansion, and trajectories of cultural change and interaction, across our region. It also addresses the National Research Program goal of responding to climate change.
The Missing Millennium and the Origins of Agriculture in Southeast Asia. This project aims to investigate the missing millennium – a significant gap in our understanding of the arrival of food producing populations into northern Vietnam between 5000 and 4000 years ago, before their expansion across the rest of Mainland Southeast Asia. Substantial new insights will include information on cultural development and population ancestry, an enhanced archaeological chronology, and details of the subsis ....The Missing Millennium and the Origins of Agriculture in Southeast Asia. This project aims to investigate the missing millennium – a significant gap in our understanding of the arrival of food producing populations into northern Vietnam between 5000 and 4000 years ago, before their expansion across the rest of Mainland Southeast Asia. Substantial new insights will include information on cultural development and population ancestry, an enhanced archaeological chronology, and details of the subsistence economies of both farmers and hunter-gatherers in the region. Significant benefits are expected in understanding the population history behind modern Southeast Asia, especially Vietnam.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100070
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$370,807.00
Summary
Radiocarbon dating enamel and the first domestic pigs in South East Asia. This project aims to develop techniques to radiocarbon date archaeological tooth enamel. In warm environments, it is rarely possible to date bone, as the protein targeted degrades rapidly. Without direct dates on skeletal material, chronologies underpinning archaeological studies across much of Australia and South East Asia (SEA) are insecure, hindering the study of numerous archaeological questions. Enamel is relatively s ....Radiocarbon dating enamel and the first domestic pigs in South East Asia. This project aims to develop techniques to radiocarbon date archaeological tooth enamel. In warm environments, it is rarely possible to date bone, as the protein targeted degrades rapidly. Without direct dates on skeletal material, chronologies underpinning archaeological studies across much of Australia and South East Asia (SEA) are insecure, hindering the study of numerous archaeological questions. Enamel is relatively stable, but it does degrade during burial. The effect of degradation on the radiocarbon age of archaeological teeth will be studied to identify the least altered areas for dating. Using these outcomes, a chronology for the spread of pigs through SEA will then be developed, testing models that explain how early farming practices developed.Read moreRead less
The Niah Cave project: archaeological textile analysis. This project on archaeological textiles from excavations at Niah Cave in Sarawak involves collaborative links between researchers from many different disciplines from the Australian National University, the National University of Singapore, the University of Cambridge and the University of Leicester as well as researchers from the Sarawak Museum in Malaysia. The project is an integrated program of archaeological excavation and environmental ....The Niah Cave project: archaeological textile analysis. This project on archaeological textiles from excavations at Niah Cave in Sarawak involves collaborative links between researchers from many different disciplines from the Australian National University, the National University of Singapore, the University of Cambridge and the University of Leicester as well as researchers from the Sarawak Museum in Malaysia. The project is an integrated program of archaeological excavation and environmental science by an inter-disciplinary team from universities in Great Britain, Australia, Sarawak and the USA and will lead to further international collaboration.Read moreRead less
Origins, health and demography of ancestral Southeast Asians: 2500 BC to 1000 AD. This project will investigate the origins, demography and health of ancestral Southeast Asian peoples, particularly during and after the Neolithic revolution. This crucial and transformative period in prehistory ushered into Southeast Asia the first farmers, novel technological changes, waves of new migrants and hitherto unknown diseases.