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Post-Doctoral Researcher: Food and Feasting in Late Prehistoric Cyprus (0.8 fte)
The Department of World Archaeology, Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University, is looking for a Post-Doctoral Researcher in the field of Archaeology to join the Inequal Cyprus project funded by the European Research Council (ERC) and carried out at the Faculty of Archaeology of Leiden University.
Project Description
The Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University, seeks to appoint a 0.8 fte Post-Doctoral researcher to investigate food and feasting practices in late prehistoric Cyprus, between ca 4000 – 1700 BCE, by analysing archaeological contexts that might point to feasting events, and by performing isotope analysis, in particular on Oxygen and Carbon isotopes, on selected human remains and control samples from late prehistoric Cyprus. The aim is to reconstruct what food and feasting practices can tell us about the negotiation of social inequalities in Cyprus during the Chalcolithic, Early Bronze Age and Middle Bronze Age.
The successful candidate will work closely with colleagues in the World Archaeology and bio-archaeology at the Faculty of Archaeology, and with archaeological colleagues working on prehistoric Cyprus on the island and across the globe. The research should lead to a series of substantial research papers and the creation of a robust datasets on food and feasting. Candidates with a good knowledge of Cypriot prehistory, bio-archaeology and isotope analysis are especially encouraged to apply.
The Post-Doctoral Researcher will be working with Professor Bleda Düring (the project leader) and Dr. Jason Laffoon, who is a leading expert in isotope archaeology.
The ERC AdG project Inequal Cyprus projects investigates the consolidation of social inequalities – a so far poorly understood development of crucial importance in the rise of complex societies in West Asia. Recent archaeological research into social inequalities has either used quantitative methods, such as the GINI measure, to demonstrate the emergence of inequalities, or questioned the existence of inequalities in early complex societies, for example in work of Graeber and Wengrow, leaving the complex question of how social inequalities were first consolidated unresolved.
To move this topic forward we need a mixed methods approach that combines quantitative and qualitative analysis, to reconstruct the significance and durability of social inequalities in prehistoric societies. In this project, the focus is on late prehistoric Cyprus (4000-1700 BCE). Decades of research have produced rich datasets from settlements and cemeteries, that suggest clear transformations in the articulation of social inequalities. In the Chalcolithic (4000-2500 BCE) we have evidence for short-lived social inequalities, especially in house sizes. By contrast, in the Prehistoric Bronze Age (2500-1700 BCE), social inequalities appear more consolidated, for example in graves.
This project will investigate social inequalities in everyday life (houses, objects, mobility, and diet), and in performed settings (burials, feasts, and figurative objects), to reconstruct how social inequalities featured in these social arenas. The aim is to both quantify evidence for social inequalities, and study how inequalities were culturally negotiated. The results will shed light on how and why social inequalities were consolidated in late prehistoric societies in Cyprus and contribute to broader discussions on the emergence of social inequalities.
The candidate will work as part of a research team. The PI will focus on methodological challenges for reconstructing social inequalities in late prehistoric Cyprus. Two postdocs will investigate the articulation of exchange networks and how diet and feasting played a role in the reproduction of society in late prehistoric Cyprus. Four PhD candidates will investigate how migration, buildings, burial practices, and figurative objects were used to negotiate social inequalities.
Key tasks
Selection criteria
Our Faculty
The future of the past begins at Leiden University. The Faculty of Archaeology is internationally leading for its research, home to a broad array of specialisations and notable for its strong connection between teaching and research. Home to over 500 students in the multidisciplinary world of Archaeology, the Faculty, and its researchers from all areas of the archaeological field, determine the future of archaeological research.
We offer
Information
For more information about the content of this vacancy, please contact Professor Bleda Düring, the project leader of the Inequal Cyprus project at b.s.during@arch.leidenuniv.nl. For practical questions please mail to HR@arch.leidenuniv.nl.
De Universiteit Leiden is één van Europa’s meest vooraanstaande internationale onderzoeksuniversiteiten. De universiteit heeft zeven faculteiten in het alfa-, bèta- en gammadomein, is gevestigd in Leiden en Den Haag en heeft ruim 6.700 medewerkers en 29.520 studenten. Haar motto is Praesidium Libertatis – Bolwerk van Vrijheid.
Dankzij de bevlogen en betrokken medewerkers heeft de universiteit een leidende rol in wetenschappelijk onderzoek…
De Universiteit Leiden is één van Europa’s meest vooraanstaande internationale onderzoeksuniversiteiten. De universiteit heeft zeven faculteiten in het alfa-, bèta- en gammadomein, is gevestigd in Leiden en Den Haag en heeft ruim 6.700 medewerkers en 29.520 studenten. Haar motto is Praesidium Libertatis – Bolwerk van Vrijheid.
Dankzij de bevlogen en betrokken medewerkers heeft de universiteit een leidende rol in wetenschappelijk onderzoek en onderwijs en scoort Leiden elk jaar zeer goed in toonaangevende rankings. De lat ligt dan ook hoog. Ongeacht welk werk u aan onze universiteit doet, u wordt altijd aangemoedigd om uw horizon te verbreden, uw talenten te ontplooien en het maximale uit uzelf te halen.
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