PhD project in The ancient DNA and palaeoenvironments of classical ports
PhD @University of Southampton posted 2 days agoJob Description
About the project
Port harbours were the umbilical cords of Classical (Greek and Roman) civilisations providing unique windows on population, diet/health, technology and environmental change. Silted-up harbours also provide an archive of pollen and sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA). PortGEN will explore this potential using sediments already collected from some of the largest ancient harbours and smaller sites in the UK.
This studentship will provide you with the essential qualifications in palaeoecology and sedaDNA that is now highly sort after in many areas of research (archaeology, ecology, environmental management) and also industry. Both and especially the sedaDNA approach are growing fields in not only archaeology but ecology and environmental sciences.
The areas of research will include some fieldwork in the UK and France, laboratory extraction of both pollen and sedaDNA, required bioinformatics and data analysis. This will all be undertaken in a joint Southampton-Tromsø lab within a research environment will many other students doing similar projects. This project (PortGEN) applies these methodologies to ancient port harbours because they are the umbilical cords of civilizations uniting land and sea and can provide a unique ‘window’ on population, diet/health, technology and environmental change.
Being the lifeblood of complex societies ports can reveal how society adapted to changing environmental conditions from disease to floods. So far, the ‘past of ports’ has been explored using archaeology, texts, plant/animal remains (seeds and bones), microfossils (e.g. pollen) and geochemistry. Since the discovery that extra-cellular ancient DNA can be preserved in sediments 20 years ago it has been used in lakes, estuaries, floodplains, soils and marine sediments.
Recent research outside archaeology has shown that shallow-marine sediments can retain DNA for thousands of years as so-called ancient sedimentary DNA (sedaDNA). This variety of sediment types implies that the sedimentary traps of ancient port harbours would hold DNA well, and above the 10oC mean annual temperature isotherm.
Entry requirements
You must have a UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent. Desirable: a Masters Degree in bioarchaeology, environmental archaeology, Quaternary Science, Palaeoecology, Physical Geography, Palaeoclimatology or a related subject area.
If English is not your first language, you will need an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) overall score of 6.5, with a minimum of 6.0 in all components. Your awarded certificate needs to be dated within the last 2 years.
Visit our English language proficiency pages to find out about other qualifications we accept.
If you need further English language tuition before starting your degree, you can apply for one of our pre-sessional English language courses.
Fees and funding
This is a fully-funded PhD position for UK candidates, with half of the funds coming from the Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute (SMMI) and the other half from the School of Geography and Environmental Science.
International applicants are welcome to apply but will need to qualify for the Horizon Europe fee waiver.
How to apply
You need to:
- choose programme type (Research), 2025/26, Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences
- choose PhD Geography (full time)
- add your supervisor in section 2 of the form
Applications should include:
- one-page proposal of the PhD project
- your CV (resumé)
- 2 academic references
- degree transcripts and certificates to date
Contact us
Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences
If you have a general question, email our doctoral college: fels-pgr-apply@soton.ac.uk.
Project leader
For an initial conversation, email Professor Tony Brown: Tony.Brown@soton.ac.uk.
