Autor: Maeve Nic Samhradáin

News

Invitation to Exhibition Opening at the ÖAW

BALKAN-ARCHÄOLOGIE IM FOKUS Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren, liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen, das Österreichische  Archäologische  Institut der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften  lädt  Sie  sehr  herzlich  ein  zur: Ausstellungseröffnung     Balkan-Archäologie im Fokus. Visualisierung neuer Forschungen« 13.Oktober 2022, um 15:00 Uhr Festsaal und Aula Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz 2, 1010 Wien Die Visualisierung des archäologischen Erbes auf dem Balkan stellt eine Region ins Rampenlicht, die für die Geschichte auf dem europäischen Kontinent in vielerlei Hinsicht grundlegend ist. Südosteuropa ist eine Schlüsselregion für die Menschheitsgeschichte, in der fundamentale kulturelle, soziale und technologische Entwicklungen erstmals auftreten und einen nachhaltigen Einfluss auf Europa und seine Gesellschaften haben. Damit zählt der Balkanraum zu einem der aufregendsten und auch herausforderndsten Gebiete für die archäologische Grundlagenforschung. Die Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften kann auf eine lange Forschungstradition  in  Südosteuropa  zurückblicken,  die  das  Österreichische Archäologische Institut in enger Zusammenarbeit mit Kooperationspartner*innen aus verschiedenen Ländern des Balkans fortführt. Daher freuen wir uns, Sie zur Ausstellungseröffnung gemeinsam mit dem Präsidenten der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften Heinz Faßmann und diplomatischen Vertretungen begrüßen zu dürfen, welche den Beginn unserer archäologischen Wanderausstellung markiert. In diesem Rahmen wird auch die Premiere unseres 3D-Animationsfilms "Visualising the Unknown Balkans" stattfinden.   Die Eröffnung beginnt um 15:00 Uhr mit anschließendem Empfang im Hauptgebäude der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Doktor-Ignaz-Seipel-Platz 2, 1010 Wien. Ein detailliertes Programm entnehmen Sie bitte dem Anhang. Um Antwort…

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Department of Evolutionary Anthropology (DEA) Members

Lumila Paula MENÉNDEZ

I am a biological anthropologist specialized in human evolution and biocultural diversity in the Americas. I was born in Argentina, where I also conducted my studies and most of my training. Currently, I am leading two projects, one funded by the German Foundation for Scientific Research (DFG), aims to study cranial variation in individuals from South America, for evaluating the role of evolutionary and ecological factors during the human diversification across the whole Holocene; and the other, funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), points to validate virtual anthropology protocols for contributing in the forensic human identification in Mexico. To tackle these issues, I apply imagining techniques, geometric morphometrics methods, as well as multivariate statistics, and I work interdisciplinary collaborating with archaeologists, geneticists, forensic experts, biologists, linguists, and philosophers of science.

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Network Associates

Richard KIMBER

I am a postdoctoral researcher within the Department of Environmental Geosciences (EDGE).  I am primarily interested in studying DNA-mineral interactions with the goal of elucidating mineralogical and geochemical controls on the preservation of (ancient) DNA. I co-supervise several projects within the MINERVA (Mineralogical Preservation of the Human Biome) research platform that focus on DNA interactions at mineral surfaces and their role in promoting (or inhibiting) DNA preservation in the presence of common degradation agents. By addressing these questions, we aim to improve our ability to find and extract ancient DNA from sediments.

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HEAS member Maria Ivanova-Bieg appointed member of EAA Scientific Advisory Committee.

HEAS member Maria Ivanova-Bieg was appointed as a member of the EAA Scientific Advisory Committee. The European Association of Archaeologists (EAA) is the most important professional association of archaeologists in Europe with over 15.000 members from 60 countries worldwide, working in prehistory, classical, medieval and historical archaeology. The Scientific Advisory Committee serves as a think-tank, assisting the Executive Board and the Statutory Committees of the EAA in strategic decision-making.

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HEAS in the News: Mathias Mehofer’s research on the metallurgy at the Cukurici Höyük profiled in ‘Der Standard’

Austria's Der Standard published an article on HEAS's own Mathias Mehofer's research on the metallurgy at the Cukurici Höyük. Full Story, in German, below: https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000138691196/das-grosse-netzwerk-der-metallurgen-vom-cukurici-hoeyuek Check out the original research in the Open Access book Çukuriçi Höyük 3 For general information on Mathias Mehofer´s work see: https://vias.univie.ac.at/en/research/archaeometallurgy-and-archaeometry/projects/  

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Department of Evolutionary Anthropology (DEA) Members

Annette OERTLE

I am a postdoctoral fellow with the Douka Palaeoproteomics and ZooMS laboratory in the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Vienna. As an archaeological scientist (zooarchaeologist) I specialise in collagen peptide fingerprinting (ZooMS) and archaeomalacology. My research interests lie in tropical, coastal and island archaeology with particular focus on Australia, the Pacific Islands and Island South East Asia (ISEA). I am interested in questions regarding human evolution, changes in subsistence behaviours, and site formation processes. I completed my PhD in 2019 from the University of Sydney, Australia, and was a postdoctoral researcher on the ERC FINDER project based at the Max Planck Institute SHH Jena, Germany. I am currently a Marie-Skłodowska Curie Postdoctoral Fellow leading project DENI-CESTOR (DENIsovan anCESTORs in Sahul: deciphering human evolution through molecular techniques) and PI on a Leaking Foundation Grant (Using ZooMS to identify new human fossils in archaeological deposits in Papua New Guinea). Marie-Skłodowska Curie Postdoctoral Fellow (2022-2024) Principal Investigator: Leakey Foundation Grant (2022-2023)

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News Allgemein

Exciting new publications from HEAS Deputy Head Ron Pinhasi

The Southern Arc and its lively genetic History Vast paleogenetic study reveals insights on migration patterns, the expansion of farming and language development from the Caucasus over western Asia and Southern Europe from the early Copper Age until the late middle ages   In a trio of papers, published simultaneously in the journal Science, Ron Pinhasi from the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology and Human Evolution and Archaeological Sciences (HEAS) at the University of Vienna and Songül Alpaslan-Roodenberg from the University of Vienna and Harvard University, Iosif Lazaridis and David Reich at Harvard University—together with 202 co-authors—report a massive effort of genome-wide sequencing from 727 distinct ancient individuals with which it was possible to test longstanding archaeological, genetic and linguistic hypotheses. They present a systematic picture of the interlinked histories of peoples across the Southern Arc Region from the origins of agriculture, to late medieval times. Read in full here The Southern Arc and its lively genetic History Ancient DNA from Mesopotamia suggests distinct Pre-Pottery and Pottery Neolithic migrations into Anatolia. A genetic probe into the ancient and medieval history of Southern Europe and West Asia. The genetic history of the Southern Arc: A bridge between West Asia and Europe

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HEAS member Martin Kuhlwilm awarded a FWF 1000 Ideas grant

HEAS member Martin Kuhlwilm is among 20 researchers awarded a grant in the FWF 1000 Ideas scheme. With this programme, the FWF funds high-risk research projects off the beaten track. In this project, Prof. Kuhlwilm will explore the potential preservation of RNA viruses in historical specimens of great apes. Since it is well-known that zoonotic transmissions of viruses had an impact on humans, studying virus evolution in the past can guide the understanding of the present. However, unlike DNA, RNA is very poorly preserved and more challenging to explore.       Read more here (in German)    

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The Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) Team Leaders

Pamela FRAGNOLI

I am an archaeometrist with a degree in Archaeological Sciences and a PhD in Archaeology. As ceramic specialist I am involved in various projects in the pre- and historical Mediterranean and South-Western Asia. My research focuses on the study of craft organization in relation to cultural, economic and political changes. As supervisor of early-career scientists I expanded my expertise to pigment, brick, mortar and glass analyses. Currently, I am head of the Research Group “Object Itineraries” and part of the core team of the Research Infrastructure “Heritage Sciences” at the OeAI as well as lecturer at the University of Vienna.

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The Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) Team Leaders

Alfred GALIK

Alfred Galik originally studied paleontology at the Univ. of Vienna. Since 2003 he has collaborated as a research associate at the institute for Anatomy at the Vetmed Univ Vienna. From 2012 to 2016 he was university assistant at the institute for Anatomy, histology and embryology at the Vetmed Univ Vienna with cooperations in numerous historical and prehistoric archaeozoological projects. He was awarded with the habilitation with the venia legendi “archaeozoology in veterinary medicine” in 2016. Since 2016 Alfred Galik is member of the ÖAI as academy scientist. His prime-interest lies on Archaeozoology, including archaeomalacology and ichthyoarchaeology, besides animal anatomy and osteology, palaeopathology, domestication and evolution research, morphometry and environmental history.

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Ancient DNA from Mesopotamia suggests distinct Pre-Pottery and Pottery Neolithic migrations into Anatolia.

Lazaridis, I., Alpaslan-Roodenberg, S., Acar, A., Açıkkol, A., Agelarakis, A., Aghikyan, L., Akyüz, U., Andreeva, D., Andrijašević, G., Antonović, D., Armit, I., Atmaca, A., Avetisyan, P., Aytek, A.İ., Bacvarov, K., Badalyan, R., Bakardzhiev, S., Balen, J., Bejko, L., Bernardos, R., Bertsatos, A., Biber, H., Bilir, A., Bodružić, M., Bonogofsky, M., Bonsall, C., Borić, D., Borovinić, N., Bravo Morante, G., Buttinger, K., Callan, K., Candilio, F., Carić, M., Cheronet, O., Chohadzhiev, S., Chovalopoulou, M.-E., Chryssoulaki, S., Ciobanu, I., Čondić, N., Constantinescu, M., Cristiani, E., Culleton, B.J., Curtis, E., Davis, J., Demcenco, T.I., Dergachev, V., Derin, Z., Deskaj, S., Devejyan, S., Djordjević, V., Duffett Carlson, K.S., Eccles, L.R., Elenski, N., Engin, A., Erdoğan, N., Erir-Pazarcı, S., Fernandes, D.M., Ferry, M., Freilich, S., Frînculeasa, A., Galaty, M.L., Gamarra, B., Gasparyan, B., Gaydarska, B., Genç, E., Gültekin, T., Gündüz, S., Hajdu, T., Heyd, V., Hobosyan, S., Hovhannisyan, N., Iliev, I., Iliev, L., Iliev, S., İvgin, İ., Janković, I., Jovanova, L., Karkanas, P., Kavaz-Kındığılı, B., Kaya, E.H., Keating, D., Kennett, D.J., Deniz Kesici, S., Khudaverdyan, A., Kiss, K., Kılıç, S., Klostermann, P., Kostak Boca Negra Valdes, S., Kovačević, S., Krenz-Niedbała, M., Krznarić Škrivanko, M., Kurti, R., Kuzman, P., Lawson, A.M., Lazar, C., Leshtakov, K., Levy, T.E., Liritzis, I., Lorentz, K.O., Łukasik, S., Mah, M., Mallick, S., Mandl, K., Martirosyan-Olshansky, K., Matthews, R., Matthews, W., McSweeney,…

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Allgemein

Ancient DNA from Mesopotamia suggests distinct Pre-Pottery and Pottery Neolithic migrations into Anatolia

Lazaridis, I., Alpaslan-Roodenberg, S., Acar, A., Açıkkol, A., Agelarakis, A., Aghikyan, L., Akyüz, U., Andreeva, D., Andrijašević, G., Antonović, D., Armit, I., Atmaca, A., Avetisyan, P., Aytek, A.İ., Bacvarov, K., Badalyan, R., Bakardzhiev, S., Balen, J., Bejko, L., Bernardos, R., Bertsatos, A., Biber, H., Bilir, A., Bodružić, M., Bonogofsky, M., Bonsall, C., Borić, D., Borovinić, N., Bravo Morante, G., Buttinger, K., Callan, K., Candilio, F., Carić, M., Cheronet, O., Chohadzhiev, S., Chovalopoulou, M.-E., Chryssoulaki, S., Ciobanu, I., Čondić, N., Constantinescu, M., Cristiani, E., Culleton, B.J., Curtis, E., Davis, J., Demcenco, T.I., Dergachev, V., Derin, Z., Deskaj, S., Devejyan, S., Djordjević, V., Duffett Carlson, K.S., Eccles, L.R., Elenski, N., Engin, A., Erdoğan, N., Erir-Pazarcı, S., Fernandes, D.M., Ferry, M., Freilich, S., Frînculeasa, A., Galaty, M.L., Gamarra, B., Gasparyan, B., Gaydarska, B., Genç, E., Gültekin, T., Gündüz, S., Hajdu, T., Heyd, V., Hobosyan, S., Hovhannisyan, N., Iliev, I., Iliev, L., Iliev, S., İvgin, İ., Janković, I., Jovanova, L., Karkanas, P., Kavaz-Kındığılı, B., Kaya, E.H., Keating, D., Kennett, D.J., Deniz Kesici, S., Khudaverdyan, A., Kiss, K., Kılıç, S., Klostermann, P., Kostak Boca Negra Valdes, S., Kovačević, S., Krenz-Niedbała, M., Krznarić Škrivanko, M., Kurti, R., Kuzman, P., Lawson, A.M., Lazar, C., Leshtakov, K., Levy, T.E., Liritzis, I., Lorentz, K.O., Łukasik, S., Mah, M., Mallick, S., Mandl, K., Martirosyan-Olshansky, K., Matthews, R., Matthews, W., McSweeney,…

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A genetic probe into the ancient and medieval history of Southern Europe and West Asia.

Lazaridis, I., Alpaslan-Roodenberg, S., Acar, A., Açıkkol, A., Agelarakis, A., Aghikyan, L., Akyüz, U., Andreeva, D., Andrijašević, G., Antonović, D., Armit, I., Atmaca, A., Avetisyan, P., Aytek, A.İ., Bacvarov, K., Badalyan, R., Bakardzhiev, S., Balen, J., Bejko, L., Bernardos, R., Bertsatos, A., Biber, H., Bilir, A., Bodružić, M., Bonogofsky, M., Bonsall, C., Borić, D., Borovinić, N., Bravo Morante, G., Buttinger, K., Callan, K., Candilio, F., Carić, M., Cheronet, O., Chohadzhiev, S., Chovalopoulou, M.-E., Chryssoulaki, S., Ciobanu, I., Čondić, N., Constantinescu, M., Cristiani, E., Culleton, B.J., Curtis, E., Davis, J., Demcenco, T.I., Dergachev, V., Derin, Z., Deskaj, S., Devejyan, S., Djordjević, V., Duffett Carlson, K.S., Eccles, L.R., Elenski, N., Engin, A., Erdoğan, N., Erir-Pazarcı, S., Fernandes, D.M., Ferry, M., Freilich, S., Frînculeasa, A., Galaty, M.L., Gamarra, B., Gasparyan, B., Gaydarska, B., Genç, E., Gültekin, T., Gündüz, S., Hajdu, T., Heyd, V., Hobosyan, S., Hovhannisyan, N., Iliev, I., Iliev, L., Iliev, S., İvgin, İ., Janković, I., Jovanova, L., Karkanas, P., Kavaz-Kındığılı, B., Kaya, E.H., Keating, D., Kennett, D.J., Deniz Kesici, S., Khudaverdyan, A., Kiss, K., Kılıç, S., Klostermann, P., Kostak Boca Negra Valdes, S., Kovačević, S., Krenz-Niedbała, M., Krznarić Škrivanko, M., Kurti, R., Kuzman, P., Lawson, A.M., Lazar, C., Leshtakov, K., Levy, T.E., Liritzis, I., Lorentz, K.O., Łukasik, S., Mah, M., Mallick, S., Mandl, K., Martirosyan-Olshansky, K., Matthews, R., Matthews, W., McSweeney,…

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The genetic history of the Southern Arc: A bridge between West Asia and Europe

Lazaridis, I., Alpaslan-Roodenberg, S., Acar, A., Açıkkol, A., Agelarakis, A., Aghikyan, L., Akyüz, U., Andreeva, D., Andrijašević, G., Antonović, D., Armit, I., Atmaca, A., Avetisyan, P., Aytek, A.İ., Bacvarov, K., Badalyan, R., Bakardzhiev, S., Balen, J., Bejko, L., Bernardos, R., Bertsatos, A., Biber, H., Bilir, A., Bodružić, M., Bonogofsky, M., Bonsall, C., Borić, D., Borovinić, N., Bravo Morante, G., Buttinger, K., Callan, K., Candilio, F., Carić, M., Cheronet, O., Chohadzhiev, S., Chovalopoulou, M.-E., Chryssoulaki, S., Ciobanu, I., Čondić, N., Constantinescu, M., Cristiani, E., Culleton, B.J., Curtis, E., Davis, J., Demcenco, T.I., Dergachev, V., Derin, Z., Deskaj, S., Devejyan, S., Djordjević, V., Duffett Carlson, K.S., Eccles, L.R., Elenski, N., Engin, A., Erdoğan, N., Erir-Pazarcı, S., Fernandes, D.M., Ferry, M., Freilich, S., Frînculeasa, A., Galaty, M.L., Gamarra, B., Gasparyan, B., Gaydarska, B., Genç, E., Gültekin, T., Gündüz, S., Hajdu, T., Heyd, V., Hobosyan, S., Hovhannisyan, N., Iliev, I., Iliev, L., Iliev, S., İvgin, İ., Janković, I., Jovanova, L., Karkanas, P., Kavaz-Kındığılı, B., Kaya, E.H., Keating, D., Kennett, D.J., Deniz Kesici, S., Khudaverdyan, A., Kiss, K., Kılıç, S., Klostermann, P., Kostak Boca Negra Valdes, S., Kovačević, S., Krenz-Niedbała, M., Krznarić Škrivanko, M., Kurti, R., Kuzman, P., Lawson, A.M., Lazar, C., Leshtakov, K., Levy, T.E., Liritzis, I., Lorentz, K.O., Łukasik, S., Mah, M., Mallick, S., Mandl, K., Martirosyan-Olshansky, K., Matthews, R., Matthews, W., McSweeney,…

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Natural History Museum Vienna (NHM) Members

Konstantina SALIARI

Konstantina Saliari is the curator of the Archeological Zoological Collection at the Natural History Museum Vienna. She took her Master´s degree in archaeology with the specialization in archaeozoology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in 2012 and her PhD in archaeozoology from the University of Vienna in 2017. Konstantina Saliari has carried out archaeozoological analysis of animal remains from the Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Ages, as well as from the Roman, Early Medieval and Medieval periods. Her main research topics include husbandry strategies, socio-economic and environmental aspects, aiming at connecting different research fields and the dissemination of archaeozoological methods and results to academic and public audience.

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Department of Evolutionary Anthropology (DEA) Members Allgemein

Susanna SAWYER

Susanna is a Lise Meitner Postdoctoral Researcher at the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Vienna. She completed her PhD under Svante Pääbo on genomic insights into Denisovans and Neandertals of Denisova Cave. She joined the department in 2018 and has focused on a wide range of ancient DNA questions. She is particularly interested in ancient epigenetics and the effect of maternal behavior on methylation signals during gestation in ancient human populations. In 2023 she will begin a new project on human ancient DNA analyses from sediments.

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Grey wolf genomic history reveals a dual ancestry of dogs

Bergström, A., Stanton, D.W.G., Taron, U.H., Frantz, L., Sinding, M.-H.S., Ersmark, E., Pfrengle, S., Cassatt-Johnstone, M., Lebrasseur, O., Girdland-Flink, L., Fernandes, D.M., Ollivier, M., Speidel, L., Gopalakrishnan, S., Westbury, M.V., Ramos-Madrigal, J., Feuerborn, T.R., Reiter, E., Gretzinger, J., Münzel, S.C., Swali, P., Conard, N.J., Carøe, C., Haile, J., Linderholm, A., Androsov, S., Barnes, I., Baumann, C., Benecke, N., Bocherens, H., Brace, S., Carden, R.F., Drucker, D.G., Fedorov, S., Gasparik, M., Germonpré, M., Grigoriev, S., Groves, P., Hertwig, S.T., Ivanova, V.V., Janssens, L., Jennings, R.P., Kasparov, A.K., Kirillova, I.V., Kurmaniyazov, I., Kuzmin, Y.V., Kosintsev, P.A., Lázničková-Galetová, M., Leduc, C., Nikolskiy, P., Nussbaumer, M., O’Drisceoil, C., Orlando, L., Outram, A., Pavlova, E.Y., Perri, A.R., Pilot, M., Pitulko, V.V., Plotnikov, V.V., Protopopov, A.V., Rehazek, A., Sablin, M., Seguin-Orlando, A., Storå, J., Verjux, C., Zaibert, V.F., Zazula, G., Crombé, P., Hansen, A.J., Willerslev, E., Leonard, J.A., Götherström, A., Pinhasi, R., Schuenemann, V.J., Hofreiter, M., Gilbert, M.T.P., Shapiro, B., Larson, G., Krause, J., Dalén, L., Skoglund, P., 2022. Grey wolf genomic history reveals a dual ancestry of dogs. Nature. read more

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Monograph published by HEAS member Mathias Mehofer

  Monograph published by HEAS member Mathias Mehofer HEAS member Mathias Mehofer recently published his monograph “Çukuriçi Höyük 3, Ein frühbronzezeitliches Metallhandwerkerzentrum in Westanatolien, OREA 22, Vienna 2022” on EBA metallurgy found in Western Turkey. The site was investigated within several FWF, START and ERC grants under the direction of HEAS´ co-operationpartner Prof. Dr. Barbara Horejs Austrian Archaeological Institute, Austrian Academy of Science. The book itself focuses on the interdisciplinary examination of the metallurgical remains from Çukuriçi Höyük (western Turkey), which date from the Late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age (c. 3300–2700 BC). The exceptionally rich ensemble includes almost all parts of the technological chain (chaîne opératoire), from tools, casting moulds, furnaces, ores, raw metal and ingots to finished products, tin bronzes and precious metals (Au, Ag). On the one hand, these remains were classified according to archaeological typological criteria, and on the other hand, they were analysed using various scientific methods (metallography, SEM-EDS, ED-XRF and lead isotope analysis). The arsenical copper production can be regarded as an outstanding result of the research; to date, there are only very few Bronze Age sites where evidence for this is present. The produced As-copper was fed into the East Aegean-West Anatolian networks. Precious metal and weapons additionally demonstrate that not only everyday objects but also prestige goods were produced. The fact that…

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Ancient DNA reveals five streams of migration into Micronesia and matrilocality in early Pacific seafarers

Liu, Y.-C., Hunter-Anderson, R., Cheronet, O., Eakin, J., Camacho, F., Pietrusewsky, M., Rohland, N., Ioannidis, A., Athens, J.S., Douglas, M.T., Ikehara-Quebral, R.M., Bernardos, R., Culleton, B.J., Mah, M., Adamski, N., Broomandkhoshbacht, N., Callan, K., Lawson, A.M., Mandl, K., Michel, M., Oppenheimer, J., Stewardson, K., Zalzala, F., Kidd, K., Kidd, J., Schurr, T.G., Auckland, K., Hill, A.V.S., Mentzer, A.J., Quinto-Cortés, C.D., Robson, K., Kennett, D.J., Patterson, N., Bustamante, C.D., Moreno-Estrada, A., Spriggs, M., Vilar, M., Lipson, M., Pinhasi, R., Reich, D., 2022. Ancient DNA reveals five streams of migration into Micronesia and matrilocality in early Pacific seafarers. Science 377, 72-79. read more

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The creative millennia: transition to the Neolithic in the central Zagros

»The creative millennia: transition to the Neolithic in the central Zagros« Hojjat Darabi | Austrian Archaeological Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences; Department of Archaeology, Razi University The central Zagros received pioneering research on the emergence of early agricultural and village life by R. Braidwood in 1959-60. However, later shift of research toward the Levant put it in shadow for several decades until recent investigations have once again highlighted its key place in the Neolithization processes in west Asia. Unlike the Levant, where a protracted change from Epipaleolithic to Neolithic is seen, the border line between these two periods is evidently sharp in the central Zagros suggesting unprecedent features appeared in the first two millennia of the Holocene, a pivotal transitional time severely known in the region. Current evidence gained from the sites of Chogha Golan, Sheikhi Abad, Asiab, Ganj Dareh and a few others suggests that, following an environmental improvement at the end of the Younger Dryas, local communities engaged in short-term inhabitations, collective or communal ceremonies, and an increasing reliance on wild progenitors of early domestic plant and animal species. It is assumed that subsequent longer occupation towards sedentary life not only increased population numbers but also resulted in an environmental depression. This seems to have caused people to widen their diet toward low-level food production and subsequently agricultural village…

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Population dynamics and genetic connectivity in recent chimpanzee history

Fontsere, C., Kuhlwilm, M., Morcillo-Suarez, C., Alvarez-Estape, M., Lester, J.D., Gratton, P., Schmidt, J.M., Dieguez, P., Aebischer, T., Álvarez-Varona, P., Agbor, A., Angedakin, S., Assumang, A.K., Ayimisin, E.A., Bailey, E., Barubiyo, D., Bessone, M., Carretero-Alonso, A., Chancellor, R., Cohen, H., Danquah, E., Deschner, T., Dunn, A., Dupain, J., Egbe, V.E., Feliu, O., Goedmakers, A., Granjon, A.-C., Head, J., Hedwig, D., Hermans, V., Hernandez-Aguilar, R.A., Imong, I., Jones, S., Junker, J., Kadam, P., Kaiser, M., Kambere, M., Kambale, M.V., Kalan, A.K., Kienast, I., Kujirakwinja, D., Langergraber, K., Lapuente, J., Larson, B., Laudisoit, A., Lee, K., Llana, M., Llorente, M., Marrocoli, S., Morgan, D., Mulindahabi, F., Murai, M., Neil, E., Nicholl, S., Nixon, S., Normand, E., Orbell, C., Ormsby, L.J., Pacheco, L., Piel, A., Riera, L., Robbins, M.M., Rundus, A., Sanz, C., Sciaky, L., Sommer, V., Stewart, F.A., Tagg, N., Tédonzong, L.R., Ton, E., van Schijndel, J., Vergnes, V., Wessling, E.G., Willie, J., Wittig, R.M., Yuh, Y.G., Yurkiw, K., Zuberbuehler, K., Hecht, J., Vigilant, L., Boesch, C., Andrés, A.M., Hughes, D.A., Kühl, H.S., Lizano, E., Arandjelovic, M., Marques-Bonet, T., 2022. Population dynamics and genetic connectivity in recent chimpanzee history. Cell Genomics 2, 100133. read more

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HEAS welcomes NHM as a Partner

HEAS is delighted to welcome the Naturhistorisches Museum Wien (NHM) as a new partner in the research network. Gerhard Weber, head of HEAS said “This collaboration will mean that we broaden our expertise and extend our possibilities. We started to bridge between institutions in Vienna (University and Museum), to create an even more effective European hub for human evolution research”      

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Vienna Institute for Archaeological Science (VIAS) Members

Gabriele SCHARRER-LIŠKA

Gabriele Scharrer-Liška was educated at the University of Vienna (M.A. in 1994, PhD in 1999). Since 19959 she has been employed at the Vienna Institute for Archaeological Sciences (VIAS) focusing at social, economic and landscape archaeological issues of the Mediaeval Period in Central Europe.    

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Publications
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News

Podiumsdiskussion: Seit wann gibt es moderne Menschen und was treibt sie an?

Am 13. Juni 2022 nahm Gerhard Weber, Leiter des HEAS, an einer Podiumsdiskussion im Universitätshauptgebäude der Universität Wien teil. Unser Verhalten hat sich weiterentwickelt: als Mittel zum Überleben. Heute stehen wir kurz davor, mit unserem Verhalten das Überleben zukünftiger Generationen zu gefährden. An der Universität Wien diskutierten Experten aus den unterschiedlichsten Bereichen am Ende unserer aktuellen #SEMESTERFRAGE die Faktoren und Muster, die unser Handeln bestimmen.     Podiumsdiskussion: Seit wann gibt es moderne Menschen und was treibt sie an?    

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Publications

Northeastern Asian and Jomon-related genetic structure in the Three Kingdoms period of Gimhae, Korea

Gelabert, P., Blazyte, A., Chang, Y., Fernandes, D.M., Jeon, S., Hong, J.G., Yoon, J., Ko, Y., Oberreiter, V., Cheronet, O., Özdoğan, K.T., Sawyer, S., Yang, S., Greytak, E.M., Choi, H., Kim, J., Kim, J.-I., Jeong, J., Bae, K., Bhak, J., Pinhasi, R., 2022. Northeastern Asian and Jomon-related genetic structure in the Three Kingdoms period of Gimhae, Korea. Current Biology read more

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The Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) Members

Viola SCHMID

I am a postdoctoral researcher in the research group Quaternary Archaeology at the Department of Prehistory & West Asian/Northeast African Archaeology of the Austrian Archaeological Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. Since my master’s, I focus on lithic technological developments in the southern African Stone Age. In 2019, I finished my PhD on the C-A layers of Sibhudu Cave (KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) in the light of the MSA lithic technologies in MIS 5 with "magna cum laude" in a joint doctoral programme at the Universities of Tübingen and Paris Nanterre. I started my Hertha Firnberg project ‘Time of essential changes in human history (TECH)’ in October 2022. The project concerns the analysis of lithic assemblages from three quasi-synchronous sites, Sibhudu Cave, Bushman Rock Shelter, and Rose Cottage Cave, in different biomes of South Africa. My aim is to gain a better understanding of the lithic technology, innovativeness and connectedness of past societies in South Africa during Marine Isotope Stage 5.    

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HEAS team members from the Dept. of Evolutionary Anthropology have obtained the first ancient DNA data from the Korean Three Kingdoms period. Eight 1,700-year-old ancient Korean genomes have been sequenced.

An international team led by The University of Vienna and the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in collaboration with the National Museum of Korea has successfully sequenced and studied the whole genome of eight 1.700-year-old individuals dated to the Three Kingdoms period of Korea (approx. 57 BC-668 AD). The Team was led by Pere Gelabert and Prof. Ron Pinhasi with Victoria Obbreiter of HEAS together with Prof. Jong Bhak and Asta Blazyte from the UNIST and Prof. Kidong Bae from the National Museum of Korea. These are the first published genomes from this period in Korea and bring key information for the understanding of Korean population history. Links: University of Vienna Website Full article  

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News Video

HEAS Member featured in University of Vienna science magazine Rudolphina

Traces of human life are not only found in fossils but also in sediments. In the video, doctoral candidate and HEAS member Victoria Oberreiter explains how she develops new methods to retrieve ancient DNA from "dirt" to get a better insight into our past. "Most people would probably associate sediments with the dirt underneath their feet. But what if I tell you that with my research, we are able to extract ancient human DNA from exactly that source?" Victoria Oberreiter, PhD candidate at the Vienna Doctoral School of Ecology and Evolution, says. Her research focuses on extracting ancient DNA from mineralogical sources.   VIDEO: Heas Member Victoria Oberreiter explains her research  

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A new article has been published by HEAS member Martin Kuhlwilm et al. on the genomic history of chimpanzees.

In this paper, DNA data has been gathered from feces of hundreds of chimpanzee individuals living in Africa. Such genomic data from the wild provides a fine-grained picture of the history of our closest living relatives. During the past tens of thousands of years, differences between regions emerged, but there were also opportunities for gene flow and migration. The local genetic variation can now be used to track the geographic origin of captive and confiscated chimpanzees, which is important for the conservation of threatened species. Read full article

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