Natural History Museum Vienna (NHM) Team Leaders

Sandra LÖSCH

I am a biological anthropologist interested in understanding the lives of past populations through the study of human skeletal remains. I am Head of the National Skeletal Collection at the Natural History Museum Vienna and affiliated with the Medical University of Vienna, drawing on many years of experience as a forensic anthropologist. By combining osteological, paleopathological, ancient DNA, and isotope analyses with archaeological evidence, I investigate health, mobility, social structures, and funerary practices across time and space. I am particularly motivated by the potential of interdisciplinary research to uncover new perspectives on human history and evolution and to bridge biological and cultural approaches to the past. I enjoy collaborating with colleagues from different disciplines and sharing research findings with students and the wider public.  

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Department of Evolutionary Anthropology (DEA) Team Leaders

Ron PINHASI

Deputy Head

Dr. Ron Pinhasi  is the Head of the Ancient DNA Lab. His research focuses on human evolution including fieldwork projects on the Middle-Upper Palaeolithic transition in the Caucasus. He held an ERC Starting Grant project (2011-2015) that focused on human genetic history, migrations and admixture, and developed the widely-used ancient DNA optimisation method from the petrous bone.

Research Areas: , ,
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