I’m a Palaeolithic archaeologist. I hold a British Academy Research Fellowship at the University of Reading and am leading a project titled “Reverse Engineering Pleistocene Spears: interdisciplinary perspectives on raw materials and performance“. I am also part of the research team working on the wood remains from Schöningen.
I specialise in early hunting weaponry and experimental archaeology, the use of wood for tools, and the archaeology of children.
My doctoral research focused on the earliest weapons in the archaeological record, which are wooden spears that date as early as 400,000 years ago. These incredible artefacts represent the earliest examples of the longest-serving weapons known to have been made by humans. Weaponry provides a fascinating window into human food strategies, adaptations and dispersals throughout the Pleistocene.
I am co-chair of the EAA’s Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Community and take an active role in the Forager Children Interdisciplinary Studies Group.
My work has been funded by the British Academy, the Leakey Foundation, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, the Arts and Humanities Research Council, The European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association, UCL Centre for Humanities Interdisciplinary Research Projects, and crowdfunding on experiment.com.
Sticks and Stones 