Anna Bloxam
Assistant Professor in Archaeology, Faculty of Arts
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Biography
I began my training in Archaeology and Anthropology (BA, University of Bristol) and after working with prehistoric cremated remains chose to develop this specialism further through the Human Osteology and Funerary Archaeology MSc at the University of Sheffield. I subsequently split my time between work in osteology and within the legal advice sector in South Yorkshire before moving to London for my PhD.
My PhD was awarded in 2020 by the UCL Institute of Archaeology, with my thesis re-examining the processes of culture change across the Neolithic to Bronze Age transition in Britain in light of new osteological, radiocarbon, and genetic evidence.
From January 2020 I was employed at Canterbury Christ Church University as the Sessional Lecturer in Prehistoric Archaeology until starting the position of Assistant Professor in Archaeology in the department of Classics & Archaeology at Nottingham University in September 2021.
Expertise Summary
- European prehistory
- Archaeological theory
- Osteoarchaeology
- Radiocarbon modelling
- Geospatial analysis (GIS)
Teaching Summary
I teach a wide range of practical and theoretical archaeology modules and am a Fellow of Advance HE. In 2025 I received the Lord Dearing Award for outstanding contributions to student experience and… read more
Research Summary
My current research relates primarily to modelling and theorising processes of culture change, with projects exploring different processes and practices in later prehistoric and early medieval… read more
Selected Publications
I teach a wide range of practical and theoretical archaeology modules and am a Fellow of Advance HE. In 2025 I received the Lord Dearing Award for outstanding contributions to student experience and teaching.
My undergraduate module on mapping and spatial analysis is open to students across Humanities. A related Special Topic on spatial analysis is open to Archaeology MRes and Classics MA students.
In 2025/26 I am module convenor for:
- Mapping the Humanities (+ Postgraduate Special Topic)
- Osteology
- Understanding the Past II
I am also providing teaching on:
Alongside undergraduate teaching I am happy to participate in staff and researcher knowledge exchange and run computational skills training through the Researcher Academy.
Current Research
My current research relates primarily to modelling and theorising processes of culture change, with projects exploring different processes and practices in later prehistoric and early medieval periods of northern and western Europe. Recent publications include: new radiocarbon methods for modelling the diffusion of innovations (with Enrico Crema, Chris Stevens, and Marc Vander Linden); the role of climate change and plague in Early Medieval social change (with Rhiannon Comeau and Andy Seaman); and the 'Beaker' transition in Britain (with Mike Parker Pearson).
Ongoing collaborative projects in this area include: work on Bronze Age climate change; historic lead pollution; the early medieval communities of the Peak District; and mapping historic bear-baiting records. Ongoing fieldwork projects include the Castleton Hospital Project, directed by Colin Merrony of Sheffield University, for which I am the project osteologist.
I am also running a British Academy-funded research project on improving digital skills training for Arts and Humanities researchers. For this project I will be running a variety of workshops on Python programming which will be made freely available in 2026.
I am always happy to discuss new project ideas and collaborations, particularly in the fields of radiocarbon analysis, osteology, and GIS/spatial humanities,
DAVIES, CALLAN, BLOXAM, A., O'REGAN, H., CHARLTON, S. and LEWIS, L., 2025. Bear Journeys in Early Modern England The Seventeenth Century. CREMA, E.R., BLOXAM, A., STEVENS, C.J. and VANDER LINDEN, M., 2024. Modelling diffusion of innovation curves using radiocarbon data Journal of Archaeological Science. 165, 105962