We are organising an online workshop on Tuesday March 10th 2026 on Maximising data from Palaeolithic bone: methods, integration and application.
Bone from Palaeolithic excavations is often very fragmented, limiting its interpretive value. However, recent methodological advances in archaeological science, proteomics and genetics can now help maximise the biological, environmental and behavioural data that can be extracted from these non-diagnostic bones and teeth. This free workshop will explore strategies for extracting maximal information from Palaeolithic bone collections. It will include short talks and open discussion sessions.
This event is open to all and free to attend. Registration has now closed and registered participants will receive the Teams link the week before the event.
We have a great line up of speakers, covering a range of topics, including chronology and dating, taphonomy and human behaviour, methodological advances, and subsistence and environment. The full programme can be downloaded here. Please note all times are UK times (GMT).
The abstract booklet is now available for download.
| Time (GMT) | Speaker | Title |
| 09:20 | Ruebens, Karen | Introduction |
| Chronology and dating | Chair: Karen Ruebens | |
| 09:30 | Adams, Neil | Dating historically collected material in museums: the case of the Upnor elephant |
| 09:40 | Talamo, Sahra | Back to Zero: Where do we stand with the Châtelperronian? |
| 09:50 | Casaccia, Nicole | A multidisciplinary approach redefining Central Europe’s earliest complex toolmaking: the case of the ivory boomerang from Obłazowa Cave (Poland) |
| 10:00 | Discussion | |
| 10:30 | Coffee break (20 mins) | |
| Taphonomy and human behaviour | Chair: Anna Wagner | |
| 10:50 | Raymond, Pauline | Integrating ZooMS and taphonomy further highlights differential butchery strategies and Neandertal cannibalism in the Quina Mousterian of Les Pradelles (southwest France) |
| 11:00 | Jallon, Anaelle | Don’t judge a bone by its color! A taphonomical investigation of bone faunal material from Amud Cave (Israel) |
| 11:10 | Peters, Carli | The impact of heating on bone protein preservation and its implications for palaeoproteomics |
| 11:20 | Brotons, Lisa | Applying palaeoproteomics to Middle Palaeolithic faunal assemblage from the Adriatic Region |
| 11:30 | Discussion | |
| 12:00 | Lunch break (50 mins) | |
| Method advancements | Chair: Frankie Tait | |
| 12:50 | Collins, Matthew | A High-Fidelity Language for Mapping the Modified Proteome in Ancient Bone |
| 13:00 | Tait, Frankie | Assessing the effect of NaOH for humic acid removal in palaeoproteomic analyses of archaeological bone |
| 13:10 | Rimon, Oded | Optimising methods for maximising evolutionary information content in palaeoproteomics |
| 13:20 | Discussion | |
| 13:50 | Coffee break (20 mins) | |
| Subsistence and environment | Chair: Geoff M Smith | |
| 14:10 | Wagner, Anna | Refining Taxonomic Resolution in an Upper Palaeolithic Faunal Assemblage at Korman’ 9 (Ukraine): An Integrated ZooMS Approach |
| 14:20 | Agras, Kenan | A Geometric Morphometric Approach to Assessing Morphological Variation in Fallow Deer Astragali from Üçağızlı I and Üçağızlı II Caves |
| 14:30 | Briatico, Giuseppe | From fossil teeth to environments and climate: implications for the Pleistocene archaeological records of the Ethiopian highlands |
| 14:40 | McCartin, Madison | Early human subsistence in northeast Asia: Preliminary results from Tolbor-17 and Tarvagataiin Am (Mongolia) |
| 14:50 | Discussion | |
| 15:15 | Conclusion | End 15:45 |