Prehistoric Transitions Research Group
Director: Dr Ron Pinhasi
The Department has a long tradition of research on Irish prehistory, which began with pioneering landscape survey undertaken at Lough Gur by the first Professor, Sir Bertram Windle. His successors to the Cork chair excavated some of the most important prehistoric sites in Ireland, most notably at Lough Gur, Newgrange, Mount Sandel, Ferriter’s Cove and Ross Island. Current research on prehistory continues this strong fieldwork tradition, with the focus now on studying key transitions periods in Irish and world prehistory. This research centres on four areas, namely the Neanderthal question and the Middle/Upper Palaeolithic transition; the origins of agriculture and the Mesolithic/Neolithic interface; the adoption of metallurgy in Atlantic Europe; indigenous survivals and the Celticization of late prehistoric Ireland. Current projects include:
• The Iverni Project: exploring the Late Bronze Age/Iron Age transition in south-west Ireland (Professor William O’Brien)
• The Beara Project: the landscape archaeology of upland settlement in peninsulara south-west Ireland (Professor William O’Brien)
• The evolutionary history of Neanderthals and their potential interface with early modern humans in the southern and northern Caucasus ( Dr Ron Pinhasi)
