Michelle Alexander (archaeologist)

Last updated

Michelle Alexander is a bioarchaeologist with an interest in multi-faith societies and is senior lecturer in bioarchaeology at the University of York. [1]

Contents

Research

Alexander specialises in the study of medieval diet through stable isotope analysis. She was part of the research team for the European Research Council funded project The Archaeology of Regime Change: Sicily in Transition, which explored the changes in population in medieval Sicily. [2] She is part of the research team for the Urban Ecology Zanzibar project. [3] She is project lead for the Faith in Food, Food in Faith Network funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council. [4] She is part of the research team for ArchSci2020, which explores new scientific techniques to understand the circumpolar world. [5] She is Co-Investigator on Landscapes of (Re)Conquest, which seeks to understand relationships between people, castles and landscapes in medieval Iberia. [6] Alexander has published or co-authored work on millet in diets in early medieval Italy, [7] medieval diet in Leopoli-Cencelle, [8] medieval diet in agrarian Apulia, [9]

Additionally Alexander has worked within teams to apply her research across a range of species, including:

As well as across time periods:

Career

In 2011, Alexander was appointed as a research fellow in the Department of Archaeology at Aberdeen University. [1] In 2011, she returned to Durham University as a visiting research fellow, as well as holding a post at Cornell University, US, in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. [1] In 2012, Alexander was appointed lecturer in bioarchaeology at the University of York, which was followed by a Senior Lectureship in 2018. [1]

Education

Alexander graduated with BSc (Hons) in archaeology from Durham University in 2005. [1] She studied for an MSc in bioarchaeology supported by Manchester and Sheffield Universities in 2006. [1] Alexander graduated with a PhD from Durham University in 2010, which was funded by a Durham Doctoral Fellowship. [1] Her doctoral thesis was entitled: Exploring Diet and Society in Medieval Spain: New Approaches Using Stable Isotope Analysis. [20]

Related Research Articles

Bioarchaeology in Europe describes the study of biological remains from archaeological sites. In the United States it is the scientific study of human remains from archaeological sites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sella River (Bay of Biscay)</span> River in Asturias, Spain

The Sella is a river located in northwest Spain. It flows through the province of León and Asturias from the Picos de Europa to the Cantabrian Sea of the Atlantic Ocean at Ribadesella.

<i>Pomacea doliodes</i> Species of gastropod

Pomacea doliodes is a species of freshwater snail, an aquatic gastropod mollusk in the family Ampullariidae, the apple snails. It belongs to kingdom Animalia, phylum Mollusca, class Gastropoda, order Architaenioglossa, family Ampullariidae, genus Pomacea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domuztepe</span> Archaeological site in Turkey

Domuztepe was a large, Late Neolithic settlement in south east Turkey, occupied at least as early as c.6,200BC and abandoned c.5,450BC. The site is located to the south of Kahramanmaraş. Covering 20 hectares, it is primarily a Halaf site of the 6th millennium BC and is the largest known settlement of that date.

Gribshunden or Griffen, also known by several variant names including Gribshund, Gripshunden, Gripshund, Griff, and Griffone, was a Danish warship, the flagship of Hans (John), King of Denmark. Gribshunden sank in 1495 after an explosion while in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Ronneby in southeastern Sweden; the ship is one of the best-preserved wrecks yet discovered from the late medieval period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blick Mead</span>

Blick Mead is a chalkland spring in Wiltshire, England, separated by the River Avon from the northwest edge of the town of Amesbury. It is close to an Iron Age hillfort known as Vespasian's Camp and about a mile east of the Stonehenge ancient monument. Evidence from archaeological excavations at the site since 2005 indicates that there was continuous human habitation from 10,000 BP to 6,000 BP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medieval bioarchaeology</span> Study of human remains recovered from medieval archaeological sites

Medieval bioarchaeology is the study of human remains recovered from medieval archaeological sites. Bioarchaeology aims to understand populations through the analysis of human skeletal remains and this application of bioarchaeology specifically aims to understand medieval populations. There is an interest in the Medieval Period when it comes to bioarchaeology, because of how differently people lived back then as opposed to now, in regards to not only their everyday life, but during times of war and famine as well. The biology and behavior of those that lived in the Medieval Period can be analyzed by understanding their health and lifestyle choices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kristina Killgrove</span> American bioarchaeologist, science communicator, and author

Kristina Killgrove is an American bioarchaeologist, science communicator, and author who primarily covers anthropology and archaeology news and engages in research on ancient Roman skeletons. She is a regular contributor to Live Science and previously to Mental Floss,Science Uncovered, and Forbes. From 2012 to 2018, she was faculty in anthropology at the University of West Florida and she has maintained an affiliation as a research scholar at the Ronin Institute since 2011. She is currently affiliated with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Janet Montgomery FBA is a British archaeological scientist and academic. Having studied at the University of Bradford, she is now Professor of Bioarchaeology at Durham University. She specialises in the study of diet and migration via tooth enamel biomineralization and isotope analysis.

Tamsin O'Connell is an archaeological scientist based at the University of Cambridge. Her work has pioneered the use of isotope analysis in archaeology, specifically diet and climate in human and animal tissues.

Michael Phillip Richards is an archaeological scientist, researcher and an academic. He is an archaeology Professor at Simon Fraser University and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Archaeological Science, a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries (London) and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Richards has published more than 300 research articles. His research focuses on studying the diets diet evolution and migrations of past humans and animals using various techniques such as isotope analysis and radiocarbon dating. His work is highly cited and has gathered media coverage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Near Eastern bioarchaeology</span> Archaeological sub-discipline

Near Eastern bioarchaeology covers the study of human skeletal remains from archaeological sites in Cyprus, Egypt, Levantine coast, Jordan, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen.

Dental microwear analysis is a method to infer diet and behavior in extinct animals, especially in fossil specimens. Typically, the patterns of pits and scratches on the occlusal or buccal surface of the enamel are compared with patterns observed in extant species to infer ecological information. Hard foods in particular can lead to distinctive patterns. Microwear can also be used for inferring behavior, especially those related to the non-masticatory use of teeth as 'tools'. Other uses include investigating weaning in past populations. Methods used to collect data initially involved a microscope and manually collecting information on individual microwear features, but software to automatically collect data have improved markedly in recent years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boncuklu Höyük</span> Neolithic archaeological site in Turkey

Boncuklu Höyük is a Neolithic archaeological site in Central Anatolia, Turkey, situated around 9 km from the more famous Çatalhöyük site. The tell is made up of the remains of one of the world's oldest villages, occupied between around 8300 to 7800 BCE. The buildings are small and oval shaped with walls constructed of mudbricks. The remains of burials of human bodies were found below the floors of the buildings. The earliest known ceramics of Anatolia have been discovered there.

Ronika K. Power is an Australian archaeologist who is a Professor of Bioarchaeology in the Department of History and Archaeology and Director of the Centre for Ancient Cultural Heritage and Environment at Macquarie University. Power is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London and the Royal Society of New South Wales.

Antonija Vilcāne is a medieval archaeologist from Latvia, who specialises in the study of Latgalian culture. First excavated in 1939 by Francis Balodis and Elvīra Šņore, Vilcāne succeeded Evalds Mugurēvičs as the archaeologist leading excavation at Jersika hillfort. She has also led excavations at Anspoku and Drusku hillforts, at Turaida Museum Reserve, in the cemetery near the Preiļi manor chapel, amongst others. She is an expert on the archaeology of whips and their handles, which are a particular feature of medieval Latvian material culture.

The Camel Carving Site is considered among the most prominent archaeological sites in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Located in Al-Jawf region in the north of Saudi Arabia, specifically in the eastern center of Sakaka Governorate, it is one of the most significant rock art discoveries in the region to date, and among the top 10 discoveries in the world in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aquihuecó</span> Archaeological site in Argentina

Aquihuecó is an archaeological site in Argentina. It is located by the city of Chos Mahal in the Neuquén province of Argentina. Aquihuecó is the biggest hunter-gatherer burial site in Patagonia. The site is located on top of a mound in a dune and was utilized as an open-air burial site by prehistoric inhabitants of the land. Archaeologists have excavated at least 65 human inhumations at the area. These burials were marked with either large stones or piles of small stones. Many of the graves contained burial goods such as stone pendants, grinding tools, sharp instruments, projectile points, milling tools, lithic spheres, and beads, necklaces, or earrings made from mollusc shells. Some of the skulls found at the site display a circular or pseudocircular body modification of the cranial vault. The site is dated to have been inhabited from around 5000 to around 3000 years before present. Aquihuecó was first discovered in 1997 and began excavation in 2003.

The McQueen Shell Ring is a Late Archaic archaeological site off the coast of Georgia, notable for its surplus of copper artifacts recovered during multiple excavations. This Late Archaic Occupation, constructed between 2300 and 1800 cal. B.C., is marked by radiocarbon dates from artifacts found at the site. Notable excavation findings include a conical pit, sheet copper, and calcined human and animal bones. The McQueen Shell Ring is part of a network of ring buildings where Native Americans created significant deposits of shells derived from oysters and clams. These shell networks, believed to be villages, ritual gathering points, and having multiple uses over time, date back to the Late Archaic period. The copper artifacts have been meticulously analyzed at the Elemental Analysis Facility at the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History.

Flint Dibble is an American archaeologist and science communicator, whose research focuses on foodways in ancient Greece, and whose science communication promotes the field of archaeology and debunks pseudoarchaeology. He teaches at Cardiff University, where he is the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Research Fellow leading the ZOOCRETE project. He is the son of archaeologist Harold L. Dibble.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Michelle Alexander - Archaeology, The University of York". www.york.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  2. "Sicily in Transition | Exploring the Archaeology of Regime Change". www.sicilyintransition.org. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  3. "Staff". Urban Ecology and Transitions of the Zanzibar Archipelago. 2019-04-23. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  4. "Faith in Food and Food in Faith: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Dietary Practice « White Rose College of the Arts & Humanities". wrocah.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  5. "ArchSci2020 - About". sites.google.com. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  6. "About us". Landscapes of (Re) Conquest. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  7. Ganzarolli, Giovanna; Alexander, Michelle; Chavarria Arnau, Alexandra; Craig, Oliver E. (2018-08-01). "Direct evidence from lipid residue analysis for the routine consumption of millet in Early Medieval Italy". Journal of Archaeological Science. 96: 124–130. Bibcode:2018JArSc..96..124G. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2018.06.007. hdl: 11577/3271879 . ISSN   0305-4403. S2CID   135021468.
  8. Baldoni, Marica; Scorrano, Gabriele; Alexander, Michelle; Stasolla, Francesca Romana; Marsella, Luigi Tonino; Rickards, Olga; Martínez-Labarga, Cristina (2019-04-01). "The medieval population of Leopoli-Cencelle (Viterbo, Latium): Dietary reconstruction through stable isotope analysis from bone proteins" (PDF). Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. 24: 92–101. Bibcode:2019JArSR..24...92B. doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.12.013. ISSN   2352-409X. S2CID   134013504.
  9. Rolandsen, Guro Linnerud; Arthur, Paul; Alexander, Michelle (2019-12-01). "A tale of two villages: Isotopic insight into diet, economy, cultural diversity and agrarian communities in medieval (11th–15th century CE) Apulia, Southern Italy" (PDF). Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. 28: 102009. Bibcode:2019JArSR..28j2009R. doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.102009. ISSN   2352-409X. S2CID   210290907.
  10. "Chicken study reveals evolution can happen much faster than thought | University of Oxford". www.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  11. "SeaChanges". sites.google.com. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  12. Heikkinen, M. E.; Ruokonen, M.; Alexander, M.; Aspi, J.; Pyhäjärvi, T.; Searle, J. B. (2015). "Relationship between wild greylag and European domestic geese based on mitochondrial DNA" (PDF). Animal Genetics. 46 (5): 485–497. doi:10.1111/age.12319. ISSN   1365-2052. PMID   26096191.
  13. Manin, Aurelie; Corona-M, Eduardo; Alexander, Michelle; Craig, Abigail; Thornton, Erin Kennedy; Yang, Dongya Y.; Richards, Michael; Speller, Camilla F. (2018). "Diversity of management strategies in Mesoamerican turkeys: archaeological, isotopic and genetic evidence". Royal Society Open Science. 5 (1): 171613. doi:10.1098/rsos.171613. PMC   5792941 . PMID   29410864.
  14. Reitz, Elizabeth J.; Speller, Camilla; McGrath, Krista; Alexander, Michelle (2016-12-01). "A sixteenth-century turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) from Puerto Real, Hispaniola" (PDF). Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. 10: 640–646. Bibcode:2016JArSR..10..640R. doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2016.05.050. ISSN   2352-409X.
  15. Frantz, Laurent A. F.; Haile, James; Lin, Audrey T.; Scheu, Amelie; Geörg, Christina; Benecke, Norbert; Alexander, Michelle; Linderholm, Anna; Mullin, Victoria E.; Daly, Kevin G.; Battista, Vincent M. (2019-08-27). "Ancient pigs reveal a near-complete genomic turnover following their introduction to Europe". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 116 (35): 17231–17238. Bibcode:2019PNAS..11617231F. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1901169116 . ISSN   0027-8424. PMC   6717267 . PMID   31405970.
  16. Brown, Chloe; Alexander, Michelle (2016-11-21). "Hair as a Window on Diet and Health in Post-Medieval London: an isotopic analysis". Internet Archaeology (42). doi: 10.11141/ia.42.6.12 . ISSN   1363-5387.
  17. Baldoni, Marica; Scorrano, Gabriele; Gismondi, Angelo; D’Agostino, Alessia; Alexander, Michelle; Gaspari, Luca; Vallelonga, Fabrizio; Canini, Antonella; Rickards, Olga; Martínez-Labarga, Cristina (2018-10-11). Caramelli, David (ed.). "Who were the miners of Allumiere? A multidisciplinary approach to reconstruct the osteobiography of an Italian worker community". PLOS ONE. 13 (10): e0205362. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1305362B. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0205362 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   6181348 . PMID   30308078.
  18. Baldoni, Marica; Gismondi, Angelo; Alexander, Michelle; D'Agostino, Alessia; Tibaldi, Domitilla; Di Marco, Gabriele; Scano, Giuseppina; Canini, Antonella; Caserta, Emmanuela; Rickards, Olga; Martínez-Labarga, Cristina (2019-10-01). "A multidisciplinary approach to investigate the osteobiography of the Roman Imperial population from Muracciola Torresina (Palestrina, Rome, Italy)" (PDF). Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. 27: 101960. Bibcode:2019JArSR..27j1960B. doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.101960. ISSN   2352-409X. S2CID   202356712.
  19. Charlton, Sophy; Ramsøe, Abigail; Collins, Matthew; Craig, Oliver E.; Fischer, Roman; Alexander, Michelle; Speller, Camilla F. (2019-11-01). "New insights into Neolithic milk consumption through proteomic analysis of dental calculus". Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences. 11 (11): 6183–6196. Bibcode:2019ArAnS..11.6183C. doi: 10.1007/s12520-019-00911-7 . ISSN   1866-9565.
  20. MUNDEE, MICHELLE (2010). Exploring Diet and Society in Medieval Spain: New Approaches Using Stable Isotope Analysis (Doctoral thesis). Durham University.