Professor Marc Oxenham

Biography

Marc F Oxenham was awarded a British Academy Global Professorship, in the School of Archaeology, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, between February 2020 and June 2024. 

He is currently an Honorary Prof at the University of Aberdeen and an Emeritus Prof in the School of Archaeology and Anthropology, The Australian National University. He received his PhD from the Charles Darwin University in 2001. He has held positions at Colorado College, USA, and the ANU. President of the Australasian Society of Human Biology (2012-14), Australian Future Fellow (2013-17), elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London (2011) and a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities (2016). Since 2009, he has acted as a consultant for the Unrecovered War Casualties Unit-Army (Australian Department of Defence) in which capacity he has searched for, recovered and identified defence force personnel from conflicts ranging from WWI to the Vietnam War, in France, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and northern Australia. In 2018 he was awarded a Silver Commendation by the Deputy Chief of Army in recognition of this work.

He has undertaken archaeological and/or bioanthropological research in Japan, China, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. Research specialisations include: reconstruction of health from human skeletal and dental remains, mortuary archaeology, and human identification and estimation of the time since death in forensic anthropological contexts. He is best known as a bioarchaeologist, focusing on human biological and socio-cultural adaptation to climate and technological variability/change in Holocene Southeast Asia.

Summary of research and public engagement outputs: 

Competitive research grant income A$4.1M (£ 2.2M), h-index 38, i-10th index 95, 362 outputs: 9 books (1 single, 1 co-authored, 7 edited), 48 chapters, 95 papers, 2 encyclopaedia articles, 75 forensic reports, and 136 (27 invited) conference papers/posters.

External Memberships

2011 Elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London (FSA)

2016 Elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities (FAHA)

2020 Elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland

Prizes and Awards

2018 Silver Commendation from Deputy Chief of Army (Major General Richard Burr) for my work in the recovery, identification and repatriation of Australian War Casualties

Research Overview

I have teaching and/or research expertise in human biology, bioarchaeology (osteoarchaeology), palaeopathology, archaeology, archaeology & history of medicine, and forensic anthropology. I have been privileged to have had collaborations with several outstanding PhD students that has led to: (1) a completely new sub-disciple: the Bioarchaeology of Care; (2) new methods for reconstructing ancient population demography; (3) an entirely novel methodological approach to the analysis of physiological stress signatures in dental remains; and (4) unique time since-death models for forensic applications. Internationally, I am recognised as a leader in Southeast and East Asian population mobility, health and disease over the past ten millennia. Most recently I have led a team recovering ancient pathogenic aDNA associated with a range of diseases in medieval Scottish material. I have been primary supervisor of 34 Honours; 20 Masters (2 with the UoA); and 12 PhD student completions in mortuary archaeology, osteo(bio)archaeology and forensic anthropology. 

Current Research

Human Stress, Resilience and Adaptation in Ancient Northern Ireland and Scotland

British Academy Global Professorship Research 2020-2024

While this professorship ended mid-2024, I continue to work with a range of colleagues to bring the results of this work to publication. The research program can be summarised as:

Utilising state-of-the-art/cutting-edge developments in ancient skeletal analysis this project develops new ways of understanding ancient population dynamics to assess health and stress over the last 6,000 years. Reasons for, and consequences of, the experience of stress in human communities spanning the origin of farming (Neolithic) through to the Medieval period will be modelled in a study that utilizes the rich, but understudied human remains collections archived in UK museums. Using methods developed by the PI in a different geographical context and applied in the UK for the first time, the project will provide new understanding of how northern communities biologically adapted to and were resilient to the vagaries of significant change in climate, environment, technology and economy throughout antiquity. The project will significantly grow an emerging area of bioarchaeological expertise at the University of Aberdeen and will provide new pioneering techniques in the field of bioarchaeology more generally.

Funding and Grants

Australian Research Council 

• 2015. LE150100015. AUD $430,000. ARC Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities Grant: Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research. My Role: CI. With: FI Shari Forbes; CIs and PIs: Roux CP; Stuart BH; Fu SL; Wallman JF; Roberts RG; van den Bergh GD; Donlon D; Adler CJ; Shewan LG; Robertson J; Oxenham, Mallett X; Walsh SJ; Wenger E; Found BJ; Hayes, Robert J; Harris SM; Cole D; Dodson JR; Blau S; Archer MS.
• 2013-2017. FT120100299. AUD $708,777. Australian Future Fellowship. Origins, health and demography of ancestral Southeast Asians: 2500 BC to 1000 AD.
• 2011-14. DP110101097. AUD $824,000. ARC Discovery. My Role: CI. The Archaeological and Biological Foundations of Southeast Asia, 2500 to 1000 BC. With: Bellwood P, Hung H-c.
• 2007-10. DP0774079. AUD $351,618. ARC Discovery. My Role: CI. The Creation of Southeast Asian peoples and Cultures, 3500 BC to AD 500. With: Bellwood P, Stevenson J.

• 2006. DP0666607.AUD $40,000. ARC Discovery. My Role: CI. The Flores hobbit - Homo floresiensis or microcephalic eastern Indonesian?With:Bulbeck, FD.

British Academy

• 2019 [for 2020-2024]. British Academy Global Professorship: four years. £750,000 (c. AUD $1.4M)

Other Competitive Grants

• 2018. Durham International Senior Fellowship (3 months). £3000 (c. AUD $5,200) plus return airfare (Australia Durham) and accommodation coasts for three months. Archaeology of Ancient Medicine.
• 2018. 18MEC26. ANU. AUD $135,000. Major Equipment Grant: Microscopy of the Primate Skeleton. My Role CI, with LCI Justyna Miszkiewicz and CI Alison Behie.
• 2017.AUD $9,000. Visiting Professor Grant, Indiana University, Bloomington.
• 2011. AUD $20,000. CASS Research Committee Conference Grant.
• 2010. AUD $17, 161. CASS Internal Equipment Grant Successful Bid.
• 2009. AUD $5,000. Australian Federal Police Grant for Forensic Neo-Taphonomic Research.
• 2007. AUD $84,000. Chiang Ching-Kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange. Taiwan, ROC. The Role of Taiwan in the Creation of Southeast Asian Peoples and Cultures, 3500 BC to AD 500. With: Bellwood P, Tsang C-h, Hung H-c, Yoshiyuki I.

Teaching Responsibilities

University of Aberdeen

I am involved in the delivery of the MSc Osteoarchaeology Programm, convened by Dr Rebecca Crozier.

MSc Osteoarchaeology Link

Additionally, since starting on 1st February 2020, I have contributed lectures to:

AY1503: CAVES TO KINGDOMS: AN INTRODUCTION TO PREHISTORIC ARCHAEOLOGY

AY4511: INDIGENOUS, COMMUNITY-BASED AND PUBLIC ARCHAEOLOGY

Australian National University

At the ANU I was responsible for the:

Conception, development, delivery of the forensic anthropology and archaeology program from 2005 to present. Includes development and delivery of a new major (and subsequently minor) as well as entirely new courses [Forensic Anthropology & Archaeology BIAN2128/6515; Archaeology of Death and Mortuary Practices ARCH2054/6521]. Establishment and convenorship of MA (forensic anthropology) from 2005 to 2010.

AND

Conception, development and delivery of the bioarchaeology program from 2005 to the present. Includes development and delivery of entirely new courses [Human Skeletal Analysis BIAN3015/6517; Ancient Health & Disease BIAN2125/6512; Ancient Medicine BIAN2130/6519] and the development and convenorship of a new Honours program: Combined Honours Archaeology & Biological Anthropology (2005 to 2015).