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
Living with Heritage: Integrating time, place and culture for World Heritage conservation. World Heritage conservation in developing countries is challenged by conflicting demands of preservation, economic development and social equity. Managing these demands requires monitoring of the dynamic interaction between natural environment, cultural heritage and contemporary society. Angkor, the great World Heritage site in Cambodia, epitomises the challenge. A joint Cambodian and international team wi ....Living with Heritage: Integrating time, place and culture for World Heritage conservation. World Heritage conservation in developing countries is challenged by conflicting demands of preservation, economic development and social equity. Managing these demands requires monitoring of the dynamic interaction between natural environment, cultural heritage and contemporary society. Angkor, the great World Heritage site in Cambodia, epitomises the challenge. A joint Cambodian and international team will create a time-based, spatial information monitoring system for site management using Angkor as a test case. The new methodology integrates past and future research, community values, national policies and international heritage best-practice. Research, management and governance come together to reconcile the competing demands of living with heritage.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
Elam in the 2nd millennium B.C.: A multi-regional approach. Although it was one of the Near East's most powerful ancient states, Elam has received less scholarly attention than its neighbours. Using an innovative approach targeting three unexcavated sites (Deh-e Now, Tepe Senjar and Liyan) in Iran, this project aims to investigate Elam at its height during the 2nd millennium B.C. Archaeological excavations will be undertaken over a 5 year period and materials which have rarely received attention ....Elam in the 2nd millennium B.C.: A multi-regional approach. Although it was one of the Near East's most powerful ancient states, Elam has received less scholarly attention than its neighbours. Using an innovative approach targeting three unexcavated sites (Deh-e Now, Tepe Senjar and Liyan) in Iran, this project aims to investigate Elam at its height during the 2nd millennium B.C. Archaeological excavations will be undertaken over a 5 year period and materials which have rarely received attention in the past will be analysed using a wide range of scientific techniques. The project will be the first major investigation of Elam in almost 25 years.Read moreRead less
Angkor and the Limits of Pre-industrial Urban Growth: magnitude, residence pattern and duration. Angkor, the medieval Khmer capital, was the largest pre-industrial, dispersed urban complex on Earth. New estimates of its extent and duration, and new interpretations of its residence pattern and decline will help to clarify the history of the city and to identify the operational limits of pre-industrial dispersed urbanism.
Urban Infrastructure, Inertia and Ecology: the growth and decline of Angkor, Cambodia (9th to 16th Century AD). Australia emphasises the value of partnerships with developing nations in the Asia-Pacific for the continued stability of our region. Australia has played a significant role in assisting Cambodia toward stability and sustainable growth, and Australian researchers have assisted greatly in the development of individual and institutional capabilities. This project's large, multi-discipli ....Urban Infrastructure, Inertia and Ecology: the growth and decline of Angkor, Cambodia (9th to 16th Century AD). Australia emphasises the value of partnerships with developing nations in the Asia-Pacific for the continued stability of our region. Australia has played a significant role in assisting Cambodia toward stability and sustainable growth, and Australian researchers have assisted greatly in the development of individual and institutional capabilities. This project's large, multi-disciplinary research team provides a significant new perspective on a cultural site of global importance and extends active collaboration with Cambodian agencies responsible for managing Angkor - the Asia-Pacific flagship World Heritage site - by providing engagement with world-class research expertise and facilities. Read moreRead less
Greater Angkor from ancestry to abandonment: the growth, daily life and transformation of the suburbs of Angkor. Australia promotes the value of partnerships with developing Asia-Pacific nations for the continued stability of our region. In Cambodia, Australia plays a significant role in assisting stability and sustainable growth. Our research has contributed greatly to the development of individual and institutional capabilities, providing engagement with world-class research expertise and faci ....Greater Angkor from ancestry to abandonment: the growth, daily life and transformation of the suburbs of Angkor. Australia promotes the value of partnerships with developing Asia-Pacific nations for the continued stability of our region. In Cambodia, Australia plays a significant role in assisting stability and sustainable growth. Our research has contributed greatly to the development of individual and institutional capabilities, providing engagement with world-class research expertise and facilities. This large, international, multidisciplinary team will provide a significant new approach to Angkor, the iconic Asia-Pacific flagship World Heritage site and will actively work with Cambodian agencies responsible for the site in the context of the Australian-Cambodian government collaboration on the "Heritage Management Framework Project" for Angkor.Read moreRead less
History in their bones: A diachronic, bioarchaeological study of diet, mobility and social organisation from Cambodian skeletal assemblages. Australia will further enhance its role as an innovator in the archaeology of SE Asia through this cross-disciplinary, international collaboration on the mobility, health, age and diet in ancient Cambodia. Local collaborations will be expanded and academic and cultural relations with Cambodia will be reinforced and strengthened. This research will expand ....History in their bones: A diachronic, bioarchaeological study of diet, mobility and social organisation from Cambodian skeletal assemblages. Australia will further enhance its role as an innovator in the archaeology of SE Asia through this cross-disciplinary, international collaboration on the mobility, health, age and diet in ancient Cambodia. Local collaborations will be expanded and academic and cultural relations with Cambodia will be reinforced and strengthened. This research will expand understanding of Cambodian history and underscore its pivotal role in mainland SE Asian archaeology. Australia's advancement of knowledge about Cambodia's rich cultural antiquity will be recognized worldwide by a global community acutely mindful of the losses to culture and heritage endured by Cambodia in the recent past.Read moreRead less
Key of Anshan, Bolt of Elam: Cultural evolution and state formation in the Fahliyan Plain (Fars, Iran), 4000 BC - 500 AD. This project will excavate cultural material from the site of Tul-e Spid in the area of Fahliyan in southwest Iran and has been proposed as the location of Huhnuri, the Key of Anshan and the Bolt of Elam. Little is known about Fahliyan, yet it lies on the route between the two ancient capitals of the region. Excavation and analysis of material from Tul-e Spid will provide ins ....Key of Anshan, Bolt of Elam: Cultural evolution and state formation in the Fahliyan Plain (Fars, Iran), 4000 BC - 500 AD. This project will excavate cultural material from the site of Tul-e Spid in the area of Fahliyan in southwest Iran and has been proposed as the location of Huhnuri, the Key of Anshan and the Bolt of Elam. Little is known about Fahliyan, yet it lies on the route between the two ancient capitals of the region. Excavation and analysis of material from Tul-e Spid will provide insight into the evolution of states and empires that developed in southwestern Iran, and the first indication of the changes that occurred in regional areas during their formation.Read moreRead less
Leading-edge digital reconstruction and biomechanical modelling meet the Neanderthal skull: So why the long face? Perhaps no other extinct species has excited scientific or popular imagination as has our closest cousin, the Neanderthal. Who were these people? Once presented as the archetypal brute, it is now increasingly clear that these powerful, large brained humans were capable of sophisticated behaviours and that most of us carry Neanderthal DNA. Yet many questions remain. One of the most pe ....Leading-edge digital reconstruction and biomechanical modelling meet the Neanderthal skull: So why the long face? Perhaps no other extinct species has excited scientific or popular imagination as has our closest cousin, the Neanderthal. Who were these people? Once presented as the archetypal brute, it is now increasingly clear that these powerful, large brained humans were capable of sophisticated behaviours and that most of us carry Neanderthal DNA. Yet many questions remain. One of the most persistent is why the distinctive drawn out, prognathous face? The project will address this question, applying and developing recent advances the applicants have made in digital reconstruction and modelling, maintaining Australian research at the leading edge in the fast growing fields of virtual reconstruction and comparative biomechanics.Read moreRead less