Delwen Samuel
Career
2005- Visiting researcher, Nutritional Sciences Division, Kings College London
1997-2005 Wellcome Trust Fellowship in Bioarchaeology, Institute of Archaeology,
University College London & Nutritional Sciences Research Division, King’s College
London
1997 Scottish and Newcastle Fellowship, McDonald Institute, Cambridge
1994-96 NERC major research grant, microscopy and ancient foods, McDonald Institute,
Cambridge
1990-93 British Academy post-graduate studentship, Department of Archaeology, University
of Cambridge
1986-89 Freelance archaeobotanist, excavations in Syria, and at Amarna, Egypt.
1985-6 M.Sc. in Bioarchaeology, Institute of Archaeology (now part of UCL). Canada
NSERC post-graduate studentship (held in Britain)
1980-84 BSc, Major: General Biology, Minor: Classics; Bishop's University, Lennoxville,
Québec, Canada.
Sites
Amarna, Egypt: I worked at this site, directed by Barry Kemp (Faculty of Oriental
Studies, University of Cambridge) from 1987 to 1999 on a variety of projects, all
linked by ancient food. I established a pump-driven flotation recovery system for
plant remains and charcoal as well as small bones and insects (recovered well by
flotation in desiccated environments). I oversaw the archaeobotanical recovery and
analysis of both Amarna occupation periods: the well-known Pharaonic New Kingdom,
and the Late Antique levels, until 1999, when I handed over responsibility for archaeobotany
in order to concentrate on my residue research. In addition, I have experimented
extensively with ancient Pharaonic cereal processing techniques, drawing together
the excellent archaeo¬logical evidence for both domestic and state processing. I
have made a survey and recovered surface stone tools, mainly saddle querns, from
across the site. I have prepared a typology of the querns.
Tell Zagan and Tell Hwes, Syria (1987-1989): recovery and description of small assemblage
of plant remains from rural Bronze Age sites.
Tell Nustell, Syria (1988-1989): recovery of small assemblage of plant remains from
rural Bronze Age site.
Qaryat Medad, Tell Guftan, Tell Shheil, and others, Syria (1988-1989): in a large-scale
flotation programme I recovered a substantial assemblage of plant remains from a
series of Medieval Islamic (9th-14th c. AD) rural sites of the middle Euphrates valley;
now fully published.
Kinet Höyük (Turkey): I set up an archaeobotanical recovery system at this multi-period
site in 1995 at the invitation of Dr. Marie-Henriette Gates (Bilkent University,
Turkey).
