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Archaeological, Geographical & Environmental Sciences

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Dr Ingrid Mainland

Senior Lecturer in Environmental Archaeology

Archaeological Sciences

Room:	Phoenix SW 1.03
Tel:	(01274) 233541
Email:	I.L.Mainland@Bradford.ac.uk

Ingrid Mainland joined Bradford University in 1999 and is a Senior Lecturer in Environmental Archaeology. She undertook her undergraduate studies at Durham University (BA Hons Archaeology) before moving to the Dept. of Archaeology at Sheffield University where she completed a PhD (1995) and held a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship (1995-1998). Ingrid teaches all aspects of environmental archaeology, with a specific emphasis on archaeozoology. She is the course manager for BSc Bioarchaeology.

Professional activities

• Editor, Environmental Archaeology: the Journal of Human Palaeoecology
• Research Sub-committee of the ‘Heart of Neolithic Orkney’ UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Steering group, 'Centre of Excellence for Northern Cultural Environments (ESSENCE)'
• Fellow, Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
• Member, International Council of Archaeozoology (ICAZ)
• Member, Association of Environmental Archaeology (AEA)
• Reviewer for NERC, NSF, Wellcome Trust; refereed articles for many journals

Research

One of Ingrid’s primary research themes is dental microwear analysis and palaeodiet in domesticates where research activities have focused on refining methodologies and piloting archaeological application, supported by grants from NERC (2003-2006), the British Academy (2002-2003), the Nuffield Foundation (2003) and UoB (2003-2004). More recently, her research interests in archaeozoology have expanded to consider the relationship between bone histology and animal management, supported by the Leverhulme Trust (2005-2007). In addition, she has a longstanding research interest in the socio-economic interpretation of archaeofaunas from the North Atlantic islands. The following summarises Ingrid’s most significant current and recent projects.

Biomechanics and animal lifestyle (Leverhulme, 2005-7)

This project, in collaboration with Dr. Holger Schutkowski, UoB, seeks to establish the potential of skeletal microstructure for reconstructing the lifestyle history of domestic and non-domestic animals within archaeological contexts (Mainland et al. 2007).

Sustainability of livestock management practises in Norse Greenland and Iceland (British Academy,2002-3; UoB, 2003-4)

Ongoing research on modern and ancient microwear in ovicaprines from the North Atlantic islands aims to explore the relationship between husbandry methods, overgrazing, landscape degradation and settlement abandonment in the North Atlantic islands (e.g. Mainland 2001; 2003a; 2005; Mainland and Halstead 2005). Future work includes collaboration with Dr. Tom McGovern, CUNY as part of his NSF/IPY award, ‘Human Ecodynamics in the Norse North Atlantic’.

Retroviruses, sheep movement and wool production in Neolithic and Bronze Age Europe

Ingrid is participating in project led by Prof. Massimo Palmarini (University of Glasgow) which seeks to interpret the distribution of endogenous retroviruses in the domestic sheep. This has significant implications for understanding the colonisation of Europe by the first farmers in the Neolithic and for the development of sheep secondary products (wool).

Sheep/goat diet and management in the early Neolithic farming communities of south-eastern Europe

Neolithic Makriyalos, Greece - in collaboration with Dr. P. Halstead, University of Sheffield (Mainland 2003b; Mainland and Halstead 2005); Neolithic Ecsegfalva, Hungary - in collaboration with Dr. A. Whittle, University of Cardiff. (Mainland 2007).

Refining palaeodietary methods of determining animal diet in antiquity: a case study of seaweed as fodder in coastal environments (NERC, 2004-6)

In collaboration with Prof. Mike Richards, Max Planck Institute, and Dr. Marie Balasse, NHM, Paris. This project seeks to establish palaeodietary signatures for the use of seaweed as fodder in antiquity (Balasse et al. 2009)

Pig diet, domestication and management (AHRB/Wellcome Trust, 2002-4; University of Texas, 2007-8)

Research in collaboration with the AHRB/Wellcome Durham pig project (director Dr. K. Dobney) entailed microwear analysis of suids from diverse archaeological contexts, including significant early domestication sites in Japan and Europe (Dobney et al. 2005; Wilkie et al. 2007). Ongoing research (with Dr. Rabinowitz, Texas University) is focusing on pig husbandry at Chersonesos, Ukraine.

North Atlantic archaeofaunas.

Ingrid is the archaeozoologist for several ongoing research projects in Orkney: Ness of Brodgar, Neolithic (with Nick Card, ORCA); Mine Howe, Iron Age (with Nick Card and Jane Downes, ORCA/Orkney College) (Mainland and Ewens 2005); Earl’s Bu, Viking/Late Norse (with Dr. C. Batey, University of Glasgow) (Mainland 1995); Snusgar, Viking/Late Norse (with Dr. D. Griffiths, University of Oxford) (Mainland 2007).

Publications Since 2000

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