International Applications of Archaeological Sciences

In 2018 and 2019, the Department of Archaeology at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History hosted intensive, invitation-only, one-week workshops on the International Applications of Archaeological Sciences (IAAS). These workshops were designed specifically for students and other early career researchers from around the world and provided crash-course training sessions in modern methods of the archaeological sciences. The goal was not just to train the participants in the course, but to send skills and knowledge back to regional institutes and provide long-term opportunities for attendees and spark enthusiasm for the exploration and application of diverse archaeological science methods. In both years, more than 15 members of the department’s scientific community including technicians, group leaders, postdoctoral scholars, and graduate students, provided training sessions that included both hands-on experience as well as group discussions and seminars.

The workshop provided training and tutorials in a series of archaeological science approaches that have international applicability. The workshop covered a variety of methods, including quantitative lithics analyses, Geographical Information Systems approaches, ancient proteomics, ZooMS, stable isotope analysis, both micro and macroscopic methods in archaeobotany, morphological identifications in archaeozoology, human osteology, chronological methods and models, and statistical analysis. Organized trips and tours of local prehistory museums and archaeological sites were also integrated into the program in 2019. The workshop was a rewarding experience for both the participants and the instructors.

In light of our departments goals and the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic that prevented us from assembling for intensive 2020 and 2021 workshops, the MPI-SHH is launching a virtual IAAS resource! The IAAS virtual resource will bring videos and tutorials highlighting emerging methods in archaeological science that address a wide range of research questions concerning human evolution, the domestication of plants and animals, dispersal and displacement of people, and others topics and themes. All videos will be freely available for viewing to anyone around the world with the hope that this resource will remove limitations to accessing training in area-defining methodologies in the archaeological sciences.

Please view our virtual IAAS videos and sign-up for content updates!