Rachel Crellin is an archaeologist who specialises in

archaeological theory Archaeological theory refers to the various intellectual frameworks through which archaeology, archaeologists interpret archaeological data. Archaeological theory functions as the application of philosophy of science to archaeology, and is occasion ...

and the prehistory of the British Isles. She joined the

University of Leicester The University of Leicester ( ) is a public university, public research university based in Leicester, England. The main campus is south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park, Leicester, Victoria Park. The university's predecessor, Univ ...

in 2015, and is an Associate Professor of Archaeology. She is also a metalwork wear-analyst. In 2020 she delivered the

Prehistoric Society The Prehistoric Society is a British learned society devoted to the study of the human past from the earliest times until the emergence of written history. Now based at University College London in the United Kingdom, it was founded by V. Gord ...

's annual Sarah Champion Memorial Lecture and in 2021 she delivered the

Royal Anthropological Institute The Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI) is a long-established anthropological organisation, and Learned Society, with a global membership. Its remit includes all the component fields of anthropology, such as biolo ...

's Curl Lecture.

Education

Crellin is from the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

, and studied her BA in Archaeology and Anthropology at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, and later completed her MA in Material and Visual Culture Studies at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. She completed a PhD at

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is a red brick university and a mem ...

and focused on the transition from the Late

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

into the Early

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

on the

Career

In 2015, Crellin joined the

as a Leverhulme Early Careers Fellow, where she undertook a study into the impact of Bronze axes in the British Isles. Between 2016 and 2022, Crellin collaborated with Chris Fowler of

to lead the "Round Mounds of the Isle of Man" project; the work was jointly funded by

Manx National Heritage Manx National Heritage () is the national heritage organisation for the Isle of Man. The organisation manages a significant proportion of the Island’s physical heritage assets including over 3,000 acres of coastline and landscape. It holds pro ...

and

Culture Vannin Culture Vannin is the trading name for the Manx Heritage Foundation, established in 1982 by the Isle of Man Government to promote Manx culture, heritage and language. It was rebranded in February 2014, having previously been known as the "Manx He ...

. In 2018 she was appointed to the position of Lecturer in

Prehistoric archaeology Prehistoric archaeology is a subfield of archaeology, which deals specifically with artefacts, civilisations and other materials from societies that existed before any form of writing system or historical record. Often the field focuses on ages ...

, where she teaches both in-person as well as on the remote course of Ancient History and Archaeology.

Selected publications

In 2020,

Routledge Routledge ( ) is a British multinational corporation, multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, academic journals, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanit ...

published Crellin's book on archaeological theory, ''Change and Archaeology''. In a review for ''

Antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

'', Dan Lawrence wrote "One of the great strengths of this book is the clarity of the discussion of theoretical ideas and concepts". Crellin co-authored ''Archaeological Theory in Dialogue: Situating Relationality, Ontology, Posthumanism, and Indigenous Paradigms'' with Craig N. Cipolla, Lindsay M. Montgomery, Oliver J. T. Harris, and Sophie V. Moore; in a review for ''

American Antiquity ''American Antiquity'' is a professional journal published by Cambridge University Press for the Society for American Archaeology, an organization of professional archaeologists of the Americas. The journal is considered to be the flagship jour ...

,'' Eleanor Harrison-Buck noted that they "do an excellent job of making these otherwise complex concepts more accessible". Crellin also co-authored ''Bronze Age Combat: An Experimental Approach'' with Raphael Hermann, Marion Uckelmann, Quanyu Wang, and Andrea Dolfini. Crellin has considered the past through a feminist perspective, culminating in the chapter titled "Posthumanist feminist archaeology" in the 2024 ''Routledge Handbook of Gender Archaeology''.

Books

* Crellin, R.J. Cipolla, C., Montgomery, L., Harris, O.J.T. and Moore, S. 2021. A''rchaeological Theory in Dialogue: situating relationality, ontology, posthumanism and indigenous paradigms''. London: Routledge. * Crellin, R.J. 2020. ''Change and Archaeology''. London: Routledge. * Hermann, R., Crellin, R.J., Ucklemann, M. and Dolfini, A. 2020. ''Bronze Age Combat: an experimental approach''. BAR. Oxford.

Journal articles

Cobb Cobb may refer to: People * Cobb (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Cobb * Cobb Rooney (1900–1973), American professional football running back Places New Zealand * Cobb River * Cobb Reservoir * Cobb Power ...

, H. and Crellin, R.J. 2022. Affirmation and action: a posthumanist feminist archaeology. ''Cambridge Archaeological Journal''. * Cipolla, C.N., Crellin, R.J., and Harris, O.J.T. 2021. Posthuman Archaeologies, Archaeological Posthumanisms. ''Journal of posthumanism 1'' (1): 5–21. * Crellin, R.J. and Harris, O.J.T. 2021. What difference does posthumanism make? ''Cambridge Archaeological Journal 31'' (3):469-75. * Tsoraki, C., Barton, H., Crellin, R.J. and Harris, O.J.T. 2021. Making marks meaningful: new materialism, microwear and the world of material signs. ''World Archaeology 52'' (3): 484–502. * Fowler, C., Crellin, R.J. and Gamble, M. 2021. Diversity and change in mortuary practices in the Neolithic of the Isle of Man. ''Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 87'': 83–107. * Crellin, R.J. and Harris, O.J.T. 2020. Beyond Binaries: interrogating ancient DNA. ''Archaeological Dialogues 27'' (1): 37–56. * Hermann, R., Crellin, R.J., Dolfini, A., Wang, Q., and Uckelmann, M. 2020. Bronze Age swordsmanship: new insights from experiments and wear analysis. ''Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 27'': 1040–1083. * Crellin, R.J. 2018. Examining the British and Irish Early Bronze Age Flat Axes of the Greenwell Collection at the British Museum. ''Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 18'': 858–888. * Crellin, R.J. 2017. Violent Times? Use-wear analysis of bronze weapons from the Isle of Man. ''Isle of Man Studies XV'' * Dolfini, A. and Crellin, R.J. 2016. Metalwork wear analysis: the loss of innocence. ''Journal of Archaeological Science 66'': 78–87.

Awards and honours

* Crellin is a Fellow of both the

Higher Education Academy Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy) is a British charity and professional membership scheme promoting excellence in higher education. It advocates evidence-based teaching methods and awards fellowships as professional recogniti ...

and the

Society of Antiquaries of Scotland The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is the senior antiquarian body of Scotland, with its headquarters in the National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh. The Society's aim is to promote the cultural heritage of Scotland. The usu ...

* Crellin delivered the 2020 Prehistoric Society's Sara Champion Lecture on the emergence of metals in Britain and Ireland * Crellin delivered the 2021 Royal Anthropological Institute's Curl lecture which is given biannually

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crellin, Rachel Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 21st-century British archaeologists Manx people British women archaeologists Alumni of the University of Cambridge Alumni of University College London Alumni of Newcastle University Academics of the University of Leicester Living people Year of birth missing (living people)