Durham Archaeology

Vote to make Melsonby Hoard Current Archaeology’s Rescue Project of the Year - Durham University

Cast your vote to make the Melsonby Hoard @currentarchaeology.bsky.social's Rescue Project of the Year 2026!

Unearthed by our archaeologists, the hoard is one of the UK’s largest and most important Iron Age finds 👉 www.durham.ac.uk/news-events/...

@proftommoore.bsky.social

New #Antiquity blog post co-authored by our Dept's Prof Dan Lawrence @dl-arch.bsky.social! 👇

Photograph from the bottom up of Durham Cathedral, standing against a blue sky dappled with white clouds. There is bright yellow sunlight illuminating the sky in the lower left of the photo, from the sun that is just hidden by one of the cathedral's walls.

📣 New senior academic job opening 📣

We are looking for an outstanding candidate to join us as Professor of Cultural and Natural Heritage!

Learn more and apply: durham.taleo.net/careersectio...

📅 Closes 31 Jan 2026, 11:59pm GMT

(Left to right) Dan, Miljana and Ilya sat on the back of the field vehicle on site (credit: Peter J. Brown).

The international investigation was led by Dr Viktor Merz and Dr Ilya Merz from Toraighyrov University (Kazakhstan), Dr Miljana Radivojević from
@uclarchaeology.bsky.social and Professor Dan Lawrence (@dl-arch.bsky.social) from @arcdurham.bsky.social 7/14

Drone photograph of the archaeological site of Semiyarka, looking from the south-east to the north-west, taken in July 2018. The outlines of several rectilinear buildings are visible running in a line across a flat grassland (credit: Peter J. Brown)

NEW In the heart of the Eurasian steppe, a #BronzeAge metropolis has been unearthed, showing that the settlements of nomadic steppe societies were just as sophisticated as contemporary, more traditionally 'urban' civilisations.

#AntiquityThread 1/14 🧵

🏺 #Archaeology

Archaeologists have unearthed a Bronze Age metropolis in the heart of the Eurasian steppe: an early form of city as complex as those of contemporary, more traditionally 'urban' civilisations, showing how steppe polities were just as sophisticated.

🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...

🏺 #Archaeology

The social behind the physical - Assessing tie formation processes of ancient route systems Analysing and understanding connectivity of human social networks of (ancient) societies offers new perspectives on their functioning. However, social…

New paper out! 🥳

We use MCMC-MLE Temporal Exponential Random Graph Models (MTERGMs) to assess which network patterns and social processes explain the formation of the ancient hollow ways.

Read the full open access paper here:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

#Archaeology #NetworkScience

Fascinating new #research by @nikulinaav.bsky.social, who has recently joined @arcdurham.bsky.social. She used an innovative #AI approach to reveal how #Neanderthals shaped Europe's #landscapes. Read her @plosone.org paper:
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
#archaeology @unileiden.bsky.social

Our team @arcdurham.bsky.social in Erbil with colleagues from the General Directorate of Heritage & Museums, developing a national heritage database to support the protection & sustainable management of the KRI's rich cultural heritage -they also tested the Amal in Heritage app for site assessment.

Liberate My Library reading list screenshot

Libby reading list screenshot

To celebrate #BlackHistoryMonth, we're shining a spotlight on our wonderful range of curated resources. From eBooks to films, there’s plenty to explore 📚💜

Through our Liberate My Library reading list, you can access a selection of books and eBooks suggested by staff and students 🌈

Strontium and oxygen isotope analysis reveals changing connections to place and group membership in the world’s earliest village societies - Scientific Reports Scientific Reports - Strontium and oxygen isotope analysis reveals changing connections to place and group membership in the world’s earliest village societies

Read the full study here #OpenAccess - www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Ancient teeth provide new insight into the lives of the world’s first farming villagers  - Durham University

🔔🧠 New research alert! 🧠🔔

Our Dr Eva Fernandez-Dominguez (senior author), Dr Kelly Blevins and Prof Janet Montgomery are part of a worldwide team that analysed patterns of mobility of the first farmer societies of Southwest Asia.

Learn more below! 👇
www.durham.ac.uk/departments/...

#Archaeology

We are The Times and The Sunday Times University of the Year 2026 and ranked third overall in its Good University Guide. Congratulations to our global university community on this success. 🎉

Read more: brnw.ch/21wVU4Q

Middle East Bronze and Iron Age cultures wine production - Durham University

Bronze and Iron Age farmers in the Middle East prioritised wine production over olive growing in times of climatic change. Researchers in our Department of Archaeology and @durhamearthsci.bsky.social analysed charred seeds and wood samples 👉 www.durham.ac.uk/news-events/...

Early medieval namestone.- 8th century AD - from Lindisfarne

Early medieval namestone.- 8th century AD - from Lindisfarne

Early medieval namestone.- 8th century AD - from Lindisfarne

Three early medieval namestones in one morning in the @digventures.bsky.social @arcdurham.bsky.social excavations at #Lindisfarne

📣📣 Our Bill Finlayson & fellow archaeologists help to uncover the mystery of the hundreds of 'desert kites' stretching across the Arabian desert. Find out who built these megastructures, the purpose they served & the ingenious discovery that was unearthed...👇🏻
www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

A well-deserved reflection of the quality of Rob's scholarship, international #research profile and excellent stewardship of @antiquity.ac.uk 👏 Congratulations to Rob and the other researchers involved!

Delighted to announce that our own Dr Rob Witcher forms part of the #REF2029 #Archaeology sub-panel!

Learn more in the news story linked in the post below 👇

An image of Greek collection before the repacking project surrounded by tissue paper

A display of one of our student placements preparing to create new storage for the Greek collection.

Our Greek collection after the repacking project in their now homes.

Our Greek collection after the repacking project in their now homes.

Hi! We’re Poppy & Izzy from Archaeology. Over 3 weeks on placement at the #DUMuseumofArchaeology, we explored collections care & curation. We repacked & updated records for the Greek collection and helped design a coin map showing ancient city-states through mythology & trade #DUCollections

Postdoc Job! Come and work with me in Durham, and a bunch of @sse1k.bsky.social heroes in Venice and Basel, doing agent-based modelling of socio-environmental systems in the Ancient Mediterranean...
durham.taleo.net/careersectio...

In this article, our Honorary Fellow in Archaeology @peterjbrown.bsky.social sheds new light on the story of the Zanj rebellion – a slave revolt that took place in the late 9th century in southern Iraq. Peter and his team have unearthed the timelines. Read more 👉 www.durham.ac.uk/research/cur...

Riley Snyder Best Article of the Year - Durham University

Congratulations to Dr Riley Snyder, awarded Best Article of the Year by 'Studies in Late Antiquity'!

Titled: 'Beyond Urban Planning: Challenges of Resource Management in the Construction of Late Antique Capital Cities'

Learn more: www.durham.ac.uk/departments/...

#archaeology #research #DurhamUni

I still can’t get over how good this photo of Roman lead bullets taken by @arcdurham.bsky.social students Rowan Colley and Isla Mustin is 🥰.
They did amazing work on the trail I describe in this thread - please do check it out!

www.armittdigitaltrail.co.uk/roman-ambles...
#RomanFortThursday

You can read The Armitt’s Roman Ambleside digital trail entry on the sling bullets and our knowledge of the so-called Battle of Ambleside here, researched and written by @arcdurham.bsky.social student Isla Mustin

#RomanFortThursday

www.armittdigitaltrail.co.uk/lead-bullets

Rowan Colley, Isla Mustin and Faye Morissey discussing the tombstone of Flavius Fuscinus and Flavius Romanus, held in The Armitt

Rowan and Isla taking photographs at Ambleside Roman Fort

Isla and Rowan spent two weeks in Ambleside with me and the Armitt curator, Faye Morissey, researching the objects, designing the trail route, and writing the trail text, as part of their @arcdurham.bsky.social
Advanced Professional Training module

#RomanFortThursday

So delighted to announce the official launch of The Armitt’s new digital trail through Roman Ambleside! The trail was developed by our fabulous @arcdurham.bsky.social 2nd-years Rowan Colley and Isla Mustin, with initial work by LU student Bastien Hamilton… 🧵

#RomanFortThursday #RomanBritain 🏺

On Friday night #TheGefrinTrust, along with our partners #AdGefrin and @arcdurham.bsky.social, lit up the contours of Edwin's palace and grandstand. For the first time in over a millennium, the structures' footprints could be seen against the dramatic backdrop of Yeavering Bell. (Image: A. Jansen)

Archaeology Fieldwork in Moldova 2025 - Durham University

🔗 Updated link for the news story - sorry for any confusion!
www.durham.ac.uk/departments/...

Two students crouch in an archaeological section excavating mammoth bones. A label reads 'Excavating mammoth bones!'

Paul Pettitt stands by a table with several small finds in clear bags. He is speaking to Deputy Ambassador Samantha Smith who is holding a small find in her hand.

Archaeological excavation section showing mammoth thoracic vertebrae and ribs with stone tools. There is a metre stick for scale.

📸🦣 Snapshots from our recent return to Moldova - hard at work at a 25,000-year old Upper #Palaeolithic campsite! We were also delighted to receive a visit last week from Samantha Smith, the British Deputy Ambassador to Moldova.

Learn more about what we've found: www.durham.ac.uk/departments/...

Profile photo of Professor Sarah Semple on a sunny day. In the background are grassy fields and green hills.

We're delighted to announce that our Professor Sarah Semple has been made a Fellow of The British Academy 👏 Congratulations Sarah on her well-deserved achievement!

Learn more about this honour in the article below!
www.durham.ac.uk/news-events/...

@britishacademy.bsky.social #DurhamUni #DUresearch