Activities

HEAS Team Leaders Pere Gelabert and Benjamin Vernot were recently interviewed for Nature Magazine for their work in sediment DNA. The two researchers are pushing the boundaries of what we can learn from ancient dirt. Benjamin Vernot built a 1.6‑million‑probe capture panel to enrich for nuclear DNA in sediments - targeting Neanderthals, Denisovans, early modern humans, and even unknown archaic lineages. Such sediments typically contain very small amounts of human DNA, and lots of DNA from other species, and so Vernot also devised new computational methods to handle these challenges. He has applied these methods to sediments at caves like Galería de las Estatuas, where Neandertals lived for nearly 50,000 years. In this work, Vernot identified two distinct Neanderthal populationsm, with one replacing the other about 100,000 years ago. On the other side, Pere Gelabert showed you can brute‑force nuclear DNA from cave dirt with shotgun sequencing, and analyzed human, bison and wolf DNA from a single 25,000 year old sediment sample from Satsurblia cave. As Gelabert puts it, without sediment DNA, many of these human‑history clues would be impossible to uncover. Read Full Article  

We are delighted to announce the results of the HEAS Seed Grants February 2026 round. The following projects by HEAS members will be funded:   Applicant Project Amount Granted Mario Gavranović, Olivia Cheronet, Gábor Sánta Ágnes Somogyvári Genetic and Isotope Tests of a Tumulus Culture Population in Southern Hungary: Newcomers or Locals? 4400 Doralice Klainscek, Pamela Fragnoli ,Johannes H. Sterba Looking at the Ground Raw Material Suitability in the Desert Landscape of NW Arabia 4920 Mareike Stahlschmidt, Laura van der Sluis, Peter Steier, Lyndelle Webster Radiocarbon dating of bones and charcoal preserved in resin impregnated sediment blocks 5000 Carla Gómez-Montes and Timothy Canessa Clarifying the Nature of Human-Animal Occupations in Chufín Cave with Chronological and Paleoproteomic Data 5000     https://www.heas.at/research/seed-grants/

The Early Upper Palaeolithic of Iberia remains an actively debated record of human occupation, yet quantitative approaches to lithic assemblage variability are still lacking, especially among large-scale datasets that span the entire period and region. In this study, we utilised a newly compiled dataset of Aurignacian assemblages to explore techno-typological variability and test its spatial and temporal dimensions. Our work has been able to show that variability has a spatial – rather than temporal – character to the effect that assemblage dissimilarities increase with spatial distance. Our findings thus challenge the application of the classic Aquitaine model of techno-typological change and suggest that temporal change in the Aurignacian may be more unstructured than otherwise deemed. This has wider implications for the detection and characterisation of the technocomplex at large, corroborating previous claims of mosaicism and an inconsistent representation of diagnostic traits.   https://www.heas.at/research/publications/unpacking-lithic-assemblage-variability-in-the-early-upper-palaeolithic-a-multivariate-approach-to-the-structure-of-the-iberian-aurignacian/

HEAS Member Michelle Hämmerle, a PhD candidate in the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, won the Annual HEAS Photo competition for her picture of louse nits from the species Pediculus humanus americanus on the head of a 500-year old Inca mummy. Michelle was presented with a €100 book voucher at the Gräzlfest, the HEAS Annual Meeting, by the Head of HEAS, Tom Higham. Other pictures from the competition can be seen in the gallery below.         [gallery ids="5552,5553,5554,5555,5556,5557,5558,5559,5560,5561,5562,5563,5564"]

  Interest in science is high, as evidenced by well-attended children's universities, dedicated citizen scientists, and science fiction bestsellers. But how is new knowledge created, what are researchers working on, and why are diverse perspectives on unresolved questions more important today than ever before? The new podcast "What We Know" from the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) takes listeners into the world of science. It contextualizes new knowledge, previously overlooked connections, and background information. Each season focuses on a major scientific topic. The very first season of the FWF podcast, which premieres on November 12, tackles a truly significant subject. It's about nothing less than us: humanity. What do we know about being human? A good question – and not so easy to answer. Therefore, in six episodes, hosts Francesca Grandolfo and Thomas Zauner visit researchers at their workplaces and gather as much knowledge as possible. The episodes span from the origin of life four billion years ago, through the history of civilization and the development of language and cognition, to artificial intelligence and the impact of humans on the environment in the Anthropocene. Speaking of the Anthropocene – does it even exist? Making science tangible In laboratories, institutes, and in the field, journalists Francesca and Thomas speak with researchers throughout Austria about their current work, about basic research, curiosity, and…

HEAS Team Leader Mario Gavranović was recently awarded an FWF grant for his project on Beyond the Burial where he will work with other HEAS Team Leaders Ron Pinhasi and Mathias Mehofer.   Beyond the burial: Contextualizing the first Late Bronze and Iron Age graves in central Bosnia Research context This project focuses on the intensive evaluation of the recently uncovered inhumation graves in a mountain region of the Balkans in the central part of Bosnia. In contrast to investigated settlements that indicate a dense occupation in the Late Bronze and Iron Age (1200–200 BC), intact burials were never documented in the area. Hence, our knowledge was based on sporadic, destroyed finds with no information about interred individuals, mortuary practices or graves. The situation fundamentally changed with our work in the Zenica Basin of the Bosna River and, in particular, with the excavation of the Kopilo cemetery that offers data for this interdisciplinary project. Research questions For the first time, there is an exceptional opportunity to gain a profound insight into the funerary customs of the prehistoric population in this part of the Balkans. Particularly, the fact that the local communities did not practice prevailing cremation at that time in Europe raises questions about their role in the framework of the transition from the Bronze to Iron Age between Central…

A recent publication by HEAS member Berhard Fink et al. on 'Perceptions of female age, health and attractiveness vary with systematic hair manipulations' was covered in PsyPost.   https://www.psypost.org/hair-shine-linked-to-perceptions-of-youth-and-health-in-women/    https://www.heas.at/research/publications/perceptions-of-female-age-health-and-attractiveness-vary-with-systematic-hair-manipulations/    

by HEAS Team Leader Kerstin Kowarik   The FWF-funded project Mining and Dining investigates the dietary habits of Bronze and Iron Age miners through the analysis of exceptionally well-preserved human excrement recovered from the prehistoric salt mines of Hallstatt, Austria. The aim is to produce high-resolution, individual dietary profiles, offering new insights into nutrition, health, and everyday life in the Metal Ages. By combining archaeobotanical, parasitological, genetic, and proteomic analyses, the project examines 50 individual palaeofaeces to explore: • the diversity and complexity of prehistoric miners' diets, • long-term dietary patterns via gut microbiome composition, • the consumption of fermented and dairy products, • and possible correlations between diet and biological sex. This integrated, multi-method approach opens up a new perspective on prehistoric food culture – from cooking and consumption practices to health and social structures – and highlights the unique scientific potential of salt-preserved palaeofaeces. Project Details Mining and Dining is funded by the FWF Joint Projects Programme (Austria–South Tyrol) and carried out under the joint leadership of the Austrian Archaeological Institute (OeAI, Austrian Academy of Sciences) and the Institute for Mummy Studies (Eurac Research, Bolzano). Research partners include: • Natural History Museum Vienna • Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna • Geosphere Austria • Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle (USA) • MedUni Vienna • University of Trento…

HEAS member Michael Doneus received an award from the municipality of Mazara del Vallo in Sicily in recognition of his many years of archaeological research, which began in 2003. His former colleagues, Dr Erich Draganits (University of Vienna), Dr Christopher Severa (Newcastle University) and Cipriano Frazzetta (MA), were also honoured, as was Prof. Sebastiano Tusa, the former Sicilian Councillor for Cultural Heritage, posthumously. Links to some research results: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00934690.2020.1734898   https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10816-017-9348-9  

Calling all Palaeolithic and prehistoric researchers using GIS! The Call for Papers for Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA) 2026 in Vienna is now open, with an October 26th deadline. We are running the second iteration of our Palaeo-GIS session (Session 39). The Palaeo-GIS session is intended to encourage contributions from authors applying GIS in Palaeolithic or later prehistoric contexts and research topics. We particularly encourage authors to submit papers that reflect on the unique characteristics and challenges of their prehistoric research context, and engage reflectively with those challenges. You can read the full session abstract here: https://2026.caaconference.org/conference-sessions/  

HEAS Deputy Head Ron Pinhasi along with the Minerva team have recently published a paper on 'Polymer Length Governs DNA Adsorption Dynamics on Mineral Surfaces'. This paper also included HEAS Members Veer Vikram Singh, Richard Kimber and Stephan M. Kraemer. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/acs.est.5c08180 

The Team at HEAS are delighted to announce the speakers for the 2025-2026 Seminar Series. Covering Human Evolution and the Palaeolithic, Ancient Genomics, and Archaeological Science the series weclomes from speakers from all over Europe, the US and Canada, and South America. All talks are hybrid while some will be online only. Registration is now open here. To look back on previous seminars, have a look at our YouTube channel for recording from the talks and podcast interviews with the speakers.  

During excavation work in Hallstatt (on the property of the Kocsar-Riezinger family in the Seestraße), archaeological layers of scientific importance were uncovered: Medieval terracing walls, a burnt layer with coins, bricks and fragments of vessels of the Roman period, as well as up to one meter thick layers from the Latène period (Late Iron Age, c 450-15 BC). Around 1,000 artefacts from different epochs have recently been recovered. The results will be presented to the public on the 12th August 2025 at the NHM Wien. More information in the press release here. Press Release   [gallery ids="4676,4677,4678,4675"]    

Mareike Stahlschmidt, Susanna Sawyer and Omaima Zaki from the working group microarchaeology visited the Tischoferhöhle to sample for ancient sedaDNA analysis. SedaDNA could shed new light on homo sapiens and Neanderthal occupations of the cave. Recent excavation revealed lithics typically associated with homo sapiens, but also Neanderthals while no human fossil remains were discovered so far. A news sections by the ORF reports on these sensational new finds, including an interview with Sawyer on the potential of sedaDNA for identifying the makers of the lithic industries.   Interview (in German) https://on.orf.at/video/14285067/15919671/tischofer-hoehle-sensationsf