https://hdl.handle.net/2123/6044 2026-06-10T16:37:19Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/34864 Climate Migrants and the Origins of Swahili Society in Eastern Africa Dumitru, Ioana A.; Alders, Wolfgang; Kristiansen, Søren M.; Lupien, Rachel; Raja, Rubina; Sindbæk, Søren M.; Olsen, Jesper Climate extremes are often framed as triggers of societal crisis and collapse, yet human mobility frequently emerges as a resilient response. We show that climatic disruption destabilized inland farming systems in sixth-century CE eastern Africa, with compounding stress during the Late Antique Little Ice Age (LALIA). Using archaeological evidence, paleoclimate reconstructions, environmental models, and bioclimate simulations, we examine how these overlapping stressors reshaped settlement dynamics. Multi-proxy paleoclimate records document sixth-century CE hydroclimatic heterogeneity, with droughts and wetter intervals occurring asynchronously across the region. These conditions generated uneven ecological pressures, disproportionately affecting rainfed agricultural systems associated with inland Early Iron Age communities linked to the spread of Bantu-speaking farmers. By the late sixth to early seventh centuries CE, archaeological evidence indicates that some of these groups established the first sustained settlements along the eastern African coast, despite low suitability for rainfed cereal cultivation and exposure to climatic and environmental hazards unfamiliar to inland settings. This shift reflects the activation of long-standing mobility patterns within eastern African lifeways, expressed here as a more durable reconfiguration: permanent settlement in environmentally challenging coastal zones supported by subsistence diversification and access to marine resources. These developments laid the foundations for proto-Swahili communities and one of the Indian Ocean’s most enduring maritime traditions, demonstrating how climatic stress can catalyze social innovation. 2026-02-18T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/30230 After the Revolution: A Review of 3D Modelling as a Tool for Stone Artefact Analysis Wyatt-Spratt, Simon With over 200 peer-reviewed papers published over the last 20 years, 3D modelling is no longer a gimmick but an established and increasingly common analytical tool for stone artefact analysis. Laser and structured light scanning, photogrammetry, and CT scanning have all been used to model stone artefacts. These have been combined with a variety of different analytical approaches, from geometric morphometrics to custom reduction indices to digital elevation maps. 3D lithic analyses are increasingly global in scope and studies aim to address an ever-broadening breadth of research topics ranging from testing the functional efficiency of artefacts to assessing the cognitive capabilities of hominid populations. While the impact of the computational revolution on lithic analysis has been reviewed, the impact of 3D modelling on lithic analysis has yet to be comprehensively assessed. This paper presents a review of how 3D modelling in particular has impacted the field of stone artefact analysis. It combines a quantitative bibliometric analysis with a qualitative review to assess just how “revolutionary” 3D modelling has been for lithic analysis. It explores trends in the use of 3D modelling in stone artefact analysis, its impact on the wider lithic analysis field, and methodological, regional and theoretical gaps which future research projects could explore. 2022-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/28423 Instagram as a tool for archaeological science communication Caspari, Gino With the accelerated growth the social media platform Instagram has seen over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic its potential as a tool for communicating archaeological science is becoming ever more apparent. The platforms' focus on images and video makes it specifically suited for visually rich fields like archaeology. Here we present the results of a three-year effort in archaeological science communication on the platform, analyzing audiences, impacts, and issues arising. The amount of archaeological content on the platform is growing rapidly, but reaching a broad audience effectively needs to be tied to well-defined communication strategies. We argue that Instagram can be turned into a powerful educational tool for public archaeology, including providing guidance for new students, mitigating pervasive conspiracy theories, elucidating the issues with collecting and trading artifacts, and adding nuance to the public image of archaeology. 2022-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/26575 Palaeogenomic analysis of black rat (Rattus rattus) reveals multiple European introductions associated with human economic history Yu, He; Jamieson, Alexandra; Hulme-Beaman, Ardern; Conroy, Chris J.; Knight, Becky; Speller, Camilla; Al-Jarah, Hiba; Eager, Heidi; Trinks, Alexandra; Adikari, Gamini; Baron, Henriette; Böhlendorf-Arslan, Beate; Bohingamuwa, Wijerathne; Crowther, Alison; Cucchi, Thomas; Esser, Kinie; Fleisher, Jeffrey; Gidney, Louisa; Gladilina, Elena; Gol’din, Pavel; Goodman, Steven M.; Hamilton-Dyer, Sheila; Helm, Richard; Hillman, Chris; Kallala, Nabil; Kivikero, Hanna; Kovács, Zsófia E.; Kunst, Günther Karl; Kyselý, René; Linderholm, Anna; Maraoui-Telmini, Bouthéina; Morales-Muñiz, Arturo; Nabais, Mariana; O'Connor, Terry; Oueslati, Tarek; Morales, Eréndira M. Quintana; Pasda, Kerstin; Perera, Jude; Perera, Nimal; Radbauer, Silvia; Ramon, Joan; Rannamäe, Eve; Grego, Joan Sanmartí; Treasure, Edward; Valenzuela-Lamas, Silvia; van der Jagt, Inge; Van Neer, Wim; Vigne, Jean-Denis; Walker, Thomas; Wynne-Jones, Stephanie; Zeiler, Jørn; Dobney, Keith; Boivin, Nicole; Searle, Jeremy B.; Krause-Kyora, Ben; Krause, Johannes; Larson, Greger; Orton, David Abstract The distribution of the black rat ( Rattus rattus ) has been heavily influenced by its association with humans. The dispersal history of this non-native commensal rodent across Europe, however, remains poorly understood, and different introductions may have occurred during the Roman and medieval periods. Here, in order to reconstruct the population history of European black rats, we generated a de novo genome assembly of the black rat, 67 ancient black rat mitogenomes and 36 ancient nuclear genomes from sites spanning the 1 st -17 th centuries CE in Europe and North Africa. Analyses of mitochondrial DNA confirm that black rats were introduced into the Mediterranean and Europe from Southwest Asia. Genomic analyses of the ancient rats reveal a population turnover in temperate Europe between the 6 th and 10 th centuries CE, coincident with an archaeologically attested decline in the black rat population. The near disappearance and re-emergence of black rats in Europe may have been the result of the breakdown of the Roman Empire, the First Plague Pandemic, and/or post-Roman climatic cooling. 2021-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/24068 New evidence for the transcontinental spread of early faience Wang, Yingzhu; Rehren, Thilo; Tan, Yuchen; Cong, Dexin; Jia, Peter Weiming; Henderson, Julian; Ma, Hongjiao; Betts, Alison; Chen, Kunlong This paper presents compositional results for six faience beads from Adunqiaolu, an Early Bronze Age site in western Xinjiang, China. It is shown that all analysed samples were made of mixed-alkali flux with sodium oxide 8–10% and potassium oxide 5–9%. The microstructure of samples indicates that cementation glazing was used. The analytical results, together with the typology of the faience beads were then compared with data of Bronze Age faience beads found in Europe and East Asia. There are clear similarities in both typological and technological features. As the earliest faience objects discovered in China so far, the Adunqiaolu beads set an essential starting point for the further discussion on the early exchange network evidenced by faience products and long distance transmission of technologies and knowledge. This observation is of significance for deepening our understanding of prehistoric exchange between West and East across the Eurasian continent by providing another element in addition to metallurgy, cereal crops and herding animals. 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/21585 Persians in Attic Ceramic Catalogue Miller, Margaret The Catalogue, of 128 items, was prepared as part of my book project entitled Representing Persians in Attic Arts. Many of the items have been known and studied for their historical interest since the early 19th century. This Catalogue includes an accurate full bibliography including a number of obscure publications; the catalogue for my monograph lists the bare minimum of publications. I propose to make my Catalogue with full bibliography available on line in the expectation that it will assist researchers. 2019-12-19T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/19760 The Jarash City Walls Project: Excavations 2001 – 2003: Final Report Kehrberg-Ostrasz, Ina; Manley, John This final report is a straight forward account of the excavation findings per season and the summation of the research results directly related to the finds. This report, therefore, does not provide updated scholarly discussions on Gerasa’s and the later Jerash city walls and urbanisation which were not the aim of the project. Discussions subsequent to our published findings can be found in related current publications by authors cited in this bibliography. 2019-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/17014 Mutable spaces and unseen places: A study of access, communication and spatial control in households at Early Iron Age (EIA) Zagora on Andros Mann, Kristen Patricia This paper explores household spatiality using excavated household data from the Early Iron Age settlement of Zagora on Andros, in Greece. The site has extensive household remains, undisturbed by subsequent occupation, with clear evidence of an intensification of spatial arrangements during the final phase of occupation. As such, the Zagora material is well-suited to nuanced investigations of space and human behaviour. The principles of convex spatial analysis (access analysis) are employed as a first step in examining spatial arrangements and control in the context of human behaviour. Emphasis is placed on the value of access analysis as a visual (rather than quantitative) tool for exploring the use and perception of space from partially preserved household remains. This research queries how identified patterns of access and communication might have shaped the experience and social perception of household space. It examines the degree of control over sight, movement and the level of interaction between household inhabitants and the larger community. It then considers how other spatial attributes such as access to natural light, and the configuration of floor areas, hearths and other built features can help us further explore the functional and social implications of spatial arrangements. This analysis allows for the patterns, characteristics and attributes of different spatial systems to be readily and visually assessed. Most importantly, the approach is provisional not prescriptive, and does not prioritise one spatial interpretation over others 2015-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/13555 Money doesn’t make the world go round: Angkor’s non-monetisation Lustig, Eileen It has been observed that, in contrast to other Asian and Southeast Asian polities, there are no records of monetary transactions in Angkor's 6th–14th century inscriptions, and no reference to a unit of account after the late 8th century. Explanations for this have been offered, but none of them have much support. In fact, a considerable range of monetary concepts are expressed throughout the study period, and it is unlikely that there was no unit of account. Differences between records of temple inventories and exchange transactions suggest that perhaps display was more important in temples, and that quantitative values such as weights were important in the exchanges. An explanation for the lack of monetary transactions may lie in the fact that the epigraphy is written by and for an elite seemingly concerned more with merit, hierarchy and display of wealth than bureaucratic detail. 2009-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/8673 Capturing Archaeological Performance on Digital Video: Implications for Teaching and Learning Archaeology Colley, Sarah; Gibbs, Martin In 2009 we produced a series of edited video clips to demonstrate practical methods to archaeology students at the University of Sydney in Australia. The videos were made publicly accessible via YouTube and incorporated into teaching of an undergraduate archaeological field methods course in 2010 and 2011. Our paper outlines staff experiences of making and using the videos for teaching and discusses results of student questionnaire feedback about the videos and the course. The results provide insight into the effectiveness of different ways of teaching practical archaeology in a context of large class sizes and limited resources and the potential of using digital video technologies to communicate archaeology to students and other audiences. Copies of the videos are on YouTube and are published by Alexander Street Press: Alexandria, VA in their Anthropology Online Collection. 2012-09-21T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/2123/6253 Archaeological Fish Bone Images Archive Tables Colley, Sarah Tables (List of Fishes, Fish Taxon Names and Codes, Fish Anatomy Names and Codes and '1880s NSW Fisheries Commission Information'), data indexes and explanation of data relationships. Part of the 'Archaeological Fish-Bone Images' archive (http://hdl.handle.net/102.100.100/127)also registered with Research Data Australia (http://services.ands.org.au/home/orca/rda/view.php?key=102.100.100%2F134) and the on-line publication: Colley, S. and R. Brownlee 2010 'Archaeological Fish Bones On-Line: a digital archive of Sydney fishes' published in 'Internet Archaeology' Reports research conducted by Sarah Colley for the Sydney Fish Project Stage 1. The content, coding and data structures are also useful for other researchers who wish to document and interpret fish remains from other comparable archaeological sites. Includes interpretation of Aboriginal and colonial fish and fishing in the Sydney region from before and after AD1788 based on archaeological, historical and environmental information. 2010-06-18T00:00:00Z