Archaeology

Academic staff: 10 
Research staff: 3
Research postgraduates: 10 

Archaeology has a long history within The University of Manchester, beginning with William Boyd Dawkins who was Curator of the Manchester Museum from 1869 and contributed much to the development of Palaeolithic archaeology.

Today, it is an internationally recognised centre for social and interpretive archaeology.

Research and teaching is supported by the rich resources provided by the John Rylands Research Institute and Library, the Manchester Museum and The University of Manchester Archaeological Unit.

Archaeology at Manchester is characterised by a number of themes, which give a distinctive flavour to our research and teaching. These include the study of:

  • Identity (personhood, gender, ethnicity, religion and sexual politics)
  • Place, landscape and monumentality
  • The history, theory, and philosophy of archaeology
  • Social complexity and the development of state-organised societies
  • The social significance of the past

Staff research ranges from the later Palaeolithic in Europe to the present.

Building on strong foundations in European and Near Eastern prehistory, it also has an international flavour, taking in parts of Africa, Asia, Australia, and South America.

We place a strong emphasis on the integration of theory and practice and are involved in a range of exciting research projects including:

  • The Stonehenge Riverside Project
  • Star Carr excavations
  • Callanish excavation
  • Alderly Edge Mines Project
  • Hilton of Cadboll Community Archaeology Project
  • Domuztepe excavations (Turkey
  • The Melos Island Survey (Greece)
  • Various projects in Bahrain, Ghana, Australia and Peru

Programmes

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