A paper delivered by UHI Archaeology Institute PhD candidate Anna Estaroth has been highly commended in the 2024 Don Henson Award.
Anna’s presented her paper, How wonder theory can help to understand skyscape archaeological phenomena, at the 45th annual meeting of the Theoretical Archaeology Group (TAG), in Bournemouth, at the weekend.
The judges were very impressed by her talk, which considered the interaction between sunlight, shade, and Orcadian Neolithic buildings from the perspective of wonder theory. Her research explored 60 structures in Orkney and Shetland, her presentation focusing on the Knap of Howar and Structures Five and Ten at the Ness of Brodgar.
Showing examples from her Orkney fieldwork, she highlighted where sunlight and shadow may have emphasised specific parts of the structures – “Bringing the celestial into the mundane highlights the imaginative and wondrous practices which could have taken place.”
We’d be delighted to hear from anyone considering a self-funded MRes or PhD. Our research themes and topics are outlined here and if any of those are of interest, contact Professor Jane Downes for more information.
