Last Saturday, first-year Aberdeen PhD student Barbora Wouters was awarded the Nenquin prize for her Masters dissertation, 'A micromorphological study of the dark earth of Antwerp (burchtsite)'. The Jacques A. E. Nenquin Prize is a biennial award for the best Masters dissertation in archaeology produced at the University of Gent or the Free University of Brussels.
Jacques Nenquin (1925 – 2003) was an emeritus professor of archaeology at both institutions, and had previously also been affiliated to the Royal Museum of Central Africa, the National Research Foundation and the Université officielle du Congo (Lumumbashi). His research focused on local archaeology of the Roman period (i.e. ‘Salt. A study in Economic Prehistory’, 1961) and African archaeology (excavations in Sanga, Congo). He was a member of the Belgian Royal Academy for Overseas Sciences, Ordentliches Mitglied der Deutchen Archäologischen Instituts, Honorary Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, member of the Panafrican Congress on Archaeology and Quaternary Studies and Founder Member of the British Institute of History and Archaeology in East Africa (Nairobi).
The prize was established in 2011 by the Nenquin family to support excellence in original research produced by young researchers. Five nominees from both universities were selected for the second edition of the prize, the winner receiving an engraved trowel and €2000.
An external jury of four members was appointed to select the winning study. Apart from the dissertation itself, the assessment was based on a summary of the work in the form of an article (ca. 8000 words) written in English. This year, the jury consisted of Prof. Dr. Peter Attema (Universiteit Groningen, the Netherlands), Prof. Dr. Patrick Degryse (KU Leuven, Belgium), Prof. Dr. Colin Haselgrove (University of Leicester, UK) and Prof. Dr. Laurent Verslype (UC Louvain, Belgium). The jury praised Wouters’ winning dissertation for its maturity, its interdisciplinary character and the successful combination of archaeological and micromorphological data while mastering a new technique. They were particularly impressed by its authentic contribution to the knowledge of early medieval Antwerp, the methodological implications of the study and the formulation of new research questions concerning the research of early medieval towns.
Well done Barbora! Welcome to Aberdeen, and here's to a bright future for you in Archaeology!