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Emma joined BU in 2010 having previously worked at the University of Reading and the Institute of Archaeology University College London. She completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge. Before moving to Bournemouth, Emma was on an Arts and Humanities Research Council funded postdoctoral project in Jordan for two years, which involved the data management and running of the on-site laboratories at WF16, a Pre Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) site in southern Jordan.
Her research is concerned with the development of agriculture and sedentism in Southwest Asia, with specific focus on the analysis of phytoliths – silica bodies which form in and around plant cells, and microfauna. “This area of research interests me because it combines my curiosity about the past with my passion for the natural world and my love of travel,” says Emma.
Her passions have been fulfilled by international research in many interesting and diverse places including Zambia, Sicily, Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Jordan and the Hebrides. And she has encountered some challenging experiences during her research: being intercepted by secret police in Syria was an interesting experience and being mistaken for a ‘lady of the night’ by hotel staff in Damascus, a rather unique one. She also managed to subsist on a largely sardine and humous based diet while in early pregnancy in Jordan. Despite this, the best thing about her job is “getting to do something I love and being paid for it.”
Her most cherished experience in Archaeology was being part of the WF16 team and participating in the excavation of one of the most amazing PPNA sites in the world. “Fieldwork can be challenging but hugely rewarding and I worked with a great team of fellow archaeologists who all did a fantastic job. I felt very privileged to be a part of it.” Her proudest moment is not running away when being charged at by a hippo while drinking a gin and tonic on the banks of the Zambezi. What’s the biggest issue facing your area of research right now? “Lack of money. There are many interesting projects that aren’t getting funded, talented people who can’t find jobs and departments forced to run on a shoe-string. Many of the best academics are leaving the UK for greener pastures, all of which has a detrimental effect on the standard of Higher Education in the UK.”
When not working, Emma likes to read novels and cycle at a leisurely pace. She is a Member of the Council for British Research in the Levant, the British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara, the Association for Environmental Archaeology and the Society for Phytolith Research.
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