The Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art (RLAHA) is a

laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratories are found in a variety of settings such as schools ...

at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

which develops and applies scientific methods to the study of the past. It was established in 1955 and its first director was Teddy Hall.RLAHA page on the Oxford University School of Archaeology website
/ref> The first deputy director was Dr Stuart Young, who was followed by

Martin Aitken Martin Jim Aitken FRS (11 March 1922 – 13 June 2017) was a British archaeometrist. Aitken was born in Stamford, Lincolnshire, and studied physics at Wadham College, Oxford. He was a fellow of Linacre College, Oxford. He was Professor of Archa ...

in 1957. After many years of de facto association with the Institute of Archaeology, in 2000 it was jointly brought under the single departmental umbrella of

School of Archaeology The School of Archaeology is an academic department of the University of Oxford comprising the Institute of Archaeology and the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art (RLAHA), and is part of Oxford's Social Sciences Division ...

. The laboratory includes the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit (ORAU), which carries out

radiocarbon dating Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for Chronological dating, determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of carbon-14, radiocarbon, a radioactive Isotop ...

using an accelerator mass spectrometer. The Laboratory publishes the journal ''

Archaeometry Archaeological science consists of the application of scientific techniques to the analysis of archaeological materials and sites. It is related to methodologies of archaeology. Martinón-Torres and Killick distinguish ‘scientific archaeology ...

'', and hosts a chair named for its first director, Edward Hall Professorship in Archaeological Science, and a seminar series named for Martin Aitkin. The Laboratory is currently directed by Professor Mark Pollard.

Areas of Research, Past and Present

Radiocarbon dating Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for Chronological dating, determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of carbon-14, radiocarbon, a radioactive Isotop ...

Luminescence dating Luminescence dating refers to a group of chronological dating methods of determining how long ago mineral grains were last exposed to sunlight or sufficient heating. It is useful to geologists and archaeologists who want to know when such an event ...

* Materials analysis * Palaeodiet *

Archaeological geophysics In archaeology, geophysical survey is ground-based physical sensing techniques used for archaeological imaging or mapping. Remote sensing and marine surveys are also used in archaeology, but are generally considered separate disciplines. Other ter ...

* Uranium-series dating *

Diagenesis Diagenesis () is the process of physical and chemical changes in sediments first caused by water-rock interactions, microbial activity, and compaction after their deposition. Increased pressure and temperature only start to play a role as sedi ...

* Tephrachronology

History of Directorship

* Teddy Hall, 1955–1989. * Mike Tite, 1989–2004. * Mark Pollard, 2004–2014. *

Christopher Bronk Ramsey Christopher Bronk Ramsey is a British physicist, mathematician and specialist in radiocarbon dating. He is a professor at the University of Oxford and was the Director of the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art (RLAHA) from 2 ...

2014–2019. * Mark Pollard, 2019–Present.

Edward Hall Professorship in Archaeological Science

In 1989, when Teddy Hall retired, the laboratory was placed in jeopardy. In order for the university to agree to the funding of the Deputy Directorship in 1955, Hall, who was independently wealthy, forfeited his own salary. Knowing that his replacement would require funding, he launched an appeal and raised a million pound endowment for a chair, the now eponymous Edward Hall Professorship in Archaeological Science. The first to take this chair was a previous student of

's, Mike Tite, who also worked with the pair on dating the Turin Shroud. Tite was Edward Hall Professor from 1989, until his retirement in 2004. He was replaced by Mark Pollard, who remains in post.

References

External links

Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art website

Archaeometry journal website
1955 establishments in England Archaeological research institutes in the United Kingdom Archaeology of the United Kingdom Departments of the University of Oxford Research institutes established in 1955 Research institutes in Oxford University and college laboratories in the United Kingdom {{UK-university-stub

Areas of Research, Past and Present

History of Directorship

Edward Hall Professorship in Archaeological Science

See also

References

External links