" I graduated from the University of Winchester in 2020 with a degree in BA (Hons) Archaeology, having produced a first-class dissertation examining belief changes as seen through mortuary practices during the British Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. It was during this project that I came to understand the need for greater balance between good theory and empirical methods for the production of more meaningful, data-driven research.
My sincere passion for prehistory led me to undertake a degree in MSc Bioarchaeology at Southampton (awarded Distinction). Though I love bones and stones in equal measure, I chose to focus on the latter for my dissertation. This research project involved the 2D geometric morphometric analysis of Middle Palaeolithic handaxe assemblages to investigate Neanderthal culture, achieving a grade of 95%. This included the use of offshore material.
The preliminary, statistical results produced from this research show trends at various scales of observation: handaxe morphologies appear representative of group demography, are demarcated by particular river systems, and fall within a wider regional trend that seems to cover much of north-west Europe. In theory, this possibly hints towards handaxes being used as spatio-temporally stable visual communicators of social information, akin to a ‘lithic census’, as I called it. This behaviour is similarly observed in various ethnographic contexts.
However, these exciting results would have benefited from an expanded database and greater control for multiple variables. This motivated me to pursue this research for my PhD at Southampton; it will now be expanded and further refined under the supervision of Prof John McNabb and Dr Rachel Bynoe.
After many eventual years of research, it is my hope to one day become a Professor so that I may engage, motivate, and inspire the next generation of bright and passionate researchers. I firmly believe education to be humanity’s most important treasure – the crown jewel of which lies in knowing our past. "
