Archaeology
How people have lived from ancient times until today is surveyed through successful research at the University. Objects, buildings and landscapes, as well as skeletons of humans and animals, are studied to reveal information about past societies.
The archaeological research at Stockholm University spans broad areas from the Stone Age to the present. There is a particular focus on living conditions and world views during the Iron and Middle Ages. Another expanding field is contemporary archaeology, which focuses on ruins and other traces that can tell us about our modern society.
One of our strengths is the research laboratories in the Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies. Here, methods are developed to extract more knowledge from bone material – everything from sex and age to potential diseases. Scientific methods are also used to study DNA and kinship between individuals or populations. Analyses of various trace elements in skeletal remains or ceramics may reveal migration patterns and how households and diets worked.
This area also includes numismatic research, which has resulted in a unique database of coins from the Viking and Middle Ages. Antiquity is another area of research in which the cultures of the Mediterranean are studied. For example, our researchers have participated in an extensive project in Pompeii. In order to understand life in the volcanic city, they have surveyed an entire quarter and studied how it worked and developed. The department receives external funding from the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Central Bank's Jubilee Fund, the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities, and the EU Framework Programme.
Web editor:
Paul Parker
Last updated:
November 23, 2011
Source: Communications Office
