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Stephen Mills

Dr Stephen Mills

Senior Lecturer

School of History, Archaeology and Religion

Email
MillsSF1@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone
+44 29208 75655
Campuses
John Percival Building, Room 4.13, Colum Drive, Cardiff, CF10 3EU

Overview

I participate in research on the Neolithic of south-east Europe, with a focus on the Lower Danube Valley in southern Romania, and provide contributions to other projects through surveying and the application of Geographical Information Systems (GIS). I have been able to integrate my research into my teaching and supervision of archaeology and history students with a particular focus on the application of spatial technologies and GIS. While at Cardiff I developed my research into the significance of sound in the past with case studies in Romania, Turkey and the UK. This research resulted in the book Auditory archaeology: understanding sound and hearing in the past (Mills 2014).

Research interests

Neolithic of south-east Europe

A new phase of research (2016-present, with  Dr Mirea, Teleorman County Museum and Professor Macklin, University of Lincoln) within the Lower Danube valley, Romania, examines the environmental contexts of human-river interactions during the period of transformation from hunter-gatherer (Mesolithic) to farming communities (Neolithic) at around 6100 BC. Preliminary fieldwork has identified surface scatters of worked flint of probable Mesolithic date and early Neolithic material culture (flint and pottery) in close proximity that may provide evidence for local continuity during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transformation.

Kerma site P5, Sudan

A new field project examines a settlement site of the Kerma period (c.2500-1500 B.C.) in the north Dongla Reach area of Sudan.  This is a collaboration between Cardiff University and the Sudan Archaeological Research Society with the co-operation and collaboration of Sudanese colleagues in the National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums.  The project is directed by Prof Paul Nicholson and myself.

Research projects

  • Early to mid-Holocene human-river interactions in the Lower Danube
  • P5 Kerma settlement site
  • Lyonesse Project
  • The Catacombs of Anubis
  • Views of an Antique Land: Imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War

Impact and engagement

Principal Investigator, with Professor Douglass Bailey, of the EU funded Măgura Past & Present project 2008-2011. The project produced new museum exhibitions and works of art to promote and present the heritage of Măgura village, southern Romania, for the benefit of local, national and international audiences. Invited artists used new research data on Early Neolithic farmers discovered around Măgura as inspiration to produce original pieces for exhibition in the regional museum and to run workshops in the village school. These activities transformed local community and artists' perceptions of the significance and value of Măgura's heritage.

The HLF-funded Views of an Antique Land project focussed on collecting and making accessible images of Egypt and Palestine as they would have been seen by people during the First World War. We collected and digitised photographs taken by service personnel, postcards, lantern slides and stereo-views and are making them available via an interactive website. This will provide a resource for anyone interested in seeing what their ancestors saw, or who is interested in how the ancient monuments, cities, towns and villages looked during the First World War. We also contributed content to workshops at a number of schools in south Wales to help further understanding of the experiences of people during the First World War.

Publication

2024

2023

2021

2020

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2011

2010

2009

2007

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

  • Mills, S. F. 2001. The SRAP GIS project. In: Bailey, D. W. et al. eds. Southern Romania Archaeological Project: second preliminary report. Cardiff Studies in Archaeology Vol. 20. Cardiff: Cardiff University, pp. 31-40.

2000

1999

  • Mills, S. F. 1999. Fieldwalking. In: Bailey, D. W., Andreescu, R. and Mills, S. F. eds. Southern Romania Archaeological Project: preliminary report 1998. Cardiff Studies in Archaeology Vol. 14. Cardiff: Cardiff University, pp. 35-44.
  • Mills, S. F. 1999. Surface collections: grab techniques. In: Bailey, D. W., Andreescu, R. and Mills, S. F. eds. Southern Romania Archaeological Project: preliminary report 1998. Cardiff Studies in Archaeology Vol. 14. Cardiff: Cardiff University, pp. 45-52.

Articles

Book sections

Books

Conferences

  • Mills, S. F. 2011. The potential of historic landscape characterisation for the Lower Danube region. Presented at: The lower Danube in Prehistory : Landscape Changes and Human-environment Interactions : proceedings of the International Conference, Alexandria, Egypt, 3-5 November 2010 Presented at Mills, S. and Mirea, P. eds.The Lower Danube in prehistory: landscape changes and human-environment interactions. Proceedings of the international conference, Alexandria, 3-5 November 2010. Bucureşti: Renaissance pp. 203-219.
  • Macklin, M. G., Bailey, D. W., Howard, A. J., Mills, S. F., Robinson, R. A. J., Mirea, P. and Thissen, L. 2011. River dynamics and the Neolithic of the Lower Danube catchment. Presented at: The Lower Danube in prehistory: landscape changes and human-environment interactions, Alexandria, Romania, 3-5 November 2010 Presented at Mills, S. F. and Mirea, P. eds.The Lower Danube in prehistory: landscape changes and human-environment interactions. Proceedings of the international conference, Alexandria, 3-5 November 2010. Bucureşti: Editura Renaissance pp. 9-14.
  • Mills, S. F. and Pannett, A. 2009. Sounds like sociality: new research on lithic contexts/technologies in Mesolithic Caithness. Presented at: Mesolithic horizons : papers presented at the Seventh International Conference on the Mesolithic in Europe, Belfast, UK, 29 August - 2 September 2005 Presented at McCartan, S. B. et al. eds.Mesolithic Horizons: Papers presented at the Seventh International Conference on the Mesolithic in Europe, Belfast 2005. Oxford: Oxbow Books pp. 715-719.
  • Bailey, D. W., Andreescu, R., Howard, A., Macklin, M. and Mills, S. F. 2004. Alluvial landscapes in the temperate Balkan Neolithic: investigating changes in fifth millennium BC land-use. Presented at: XIVème congrès UISPP - XIVth UISPP Congress, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium, 2-8 September 2001 Presented at Cauwe, N. et al. eds.The Copper Age in the Near East and Europe. BAR International Series Vol. 1303. Oxford: British Archaeological Reports pp. 339-341.
  • Howard, A. J., Macklin, M. G., Bailey, D. W., Andreescu, R. and Mills, S. F. 2003. Preservation and prospection of alluvial archaeological resources in the southern Balkans: a case study from the Teleorman river valley, southern Romania. Presented at: Alluvial Archaeology of North-West Europe and the Mediterranean, Leeds, UK, 18-19 December 2000 Presented at Howard, A. J., Macklin, M. G. and Passmore, D. G. eds.Alluvial Archaeology in Europe. Lisse: Balkema pp. 239-249.
  • Mills, S. F. 2000. An approach for integrating multisensory data: the examples of Sesklo and the Teleorman Valley. Presented at: 4th Meeting - Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology Conference (CAA), UK Branch, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK, 27-28 February 1999 Presented at Buck, C. et al. eds.Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology: Proceedings of the Fourth Meeting, Cardiff University, 27 and 28 February 1999. BAR International Series Vol. 844. Oxford: British Archaeological Reports pp. 27-37.

Research

Projects

Early to mid-Holocene human river interactions in the Lower Danube

A new research project within the Lower Danube valley, Romania, aims to examine the environmental contexts of human-river interactions during the period of transformation from hunter-gatherer (Mesolithic) to farming communities (Neolithic) at around 6100 BC (see Mills et al 2017 and Mills et al 2018). During preliminary fieldwork around the village of Poiana, located within an alluvial basin of the Danube River in Teleorman County, we have identified surface scatters of worked flint of probable Mesolithic date and early Neolithic material culture (flint and pottery) in close proximity that may provide evidence for local continuity during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transformation. This may be the first evidence of Mesolithic activity to be identified along the Lower Danube valley east of the Danube Gorges and might therefore provide important new data with the potential to further our understanding of transformations in human lifeways during this key period in prehistory. Further fieldwork, including test excavations, geomorphological mapping and palaeoenvironmental sampling, is planned to build on these provisional finds with the aim of establishing the foundation for a larger research project. This project is coordinated by Dr S. Mills, Cardiff University, and Dr P. Mirea, Teleorman County Museum, with Prof M. Macklin, University of Lincoln.

Duration: 2016-present

Kerma settlement site P5, Sudan

This projects examines settlement site P5 dating to the Kerma period (c.2500-1500 B.C.) in the north Dongla Reach area of Sudan.  This is a collaboration between Cardiff University and the Sudan Archaeological Research Society with the co-operation and collaboration of Sudanese colleagues in the National Corporation for Antiquites and Museums.  The project is directed by Prof Paul Nicholson and myself. A first season of fieldwork took place in Spring 2023 and consisted of site survey, assessment and collection of diagnostic material culture on the surface, and premlinary excavation of a burnt building.

Funded by: Sudan Archaeological Research Society and Michela Schiff Giorgini Foundation to the value of £12,200.
Duration: 2023 - present

Views of an Antique Land: Imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War

This project, co-directed with Prof. Paul Nicholson, collected and is making accessible images of Egypt and Palestine as they would have been seen by people during the First World War. To mark the Centenary of the First World War, a series of roadshows in England and Wales along with the development of an interactive website enabled a team of volunteers to acquire and interpret copies of photographs taken in Egypt and Palestine by service personnel or bought by them as postcards and which can be dated to the First World War. The volunteers receive training and develop skills in digital media and heritage presentation leading to a fuller interpretation of the First World War as a truly global conflict.
Exhibitions, school workshops and a conference provided opportunities for direct public participation in their heritage. The website will be a perpetual online learning resource offering new views of archaeological sites, military installations and cities as they appeared during the war.

Funded by: Heritage Lottery Fund Our Heritage programme to the value of £50,900
Duration: 2014 - present.

The new Views of an Antique Land online archive is now available.  We have produced films hosted on Vimeo about some aspects of the project (in Welsh and English).

The Catacombs of Anubis

The Catacombs of the canine god Anubis are located to the north-east of the Step Pyramid at Saqqara, Egypt. An examination of the burial catacombs for the dogs sacred to Anubis. Complete planning of the Catacomb and examination of the species present among the mummified remains.  Directed by Prof. Paul Nicholson with survey coordinated by Dr Steve Mills. This work is currently in press and will appear as a monograph in 2021.  Meanwhile, a short summary of the work can be found in Antiquity 89, (345), 645-661.

Funded by: National Geographic, Andante Travels, Thames Valley Ancient Egypt Society
Duration: 2009 - 2020

Learn more about the Catacombs of Anubis Project

Lyonesse Project: evolution of coastal and marine environments in Scilly

The Isles of Scilly contain wide expanses of shallow sub-tidal and intertidal environments flooded by rising relative sea levels during the late Holocene. It has long been known that the islands in their current form are a result of past marine transgressions that flooded early sites. The archipelago is therefore a valuable laboratory for studying continual sea level rises within an historical context. The Lyonesse Project aims to reconstruct the evolution of the physical environment of Scilly during the Holocene, the progressive occupation of this changing coastal landscape by early peoples and their response to marine inundation and changing marine resource availability. Of particular importance will be the collection and analysis of data that will increase knowledge of sea level change during the past 8,000 years and provide baseline data for estimating future sea level rise in Scilly which can feed into regional and national climate change forums and reviews. Methods include survey and sampling of inter-tidial and submerged peat deposits. Analysis of palynological, diatom and foramifica in association with radio-carbon and OSL dating.

Funded by: English Heritage to the value of £120,000.
Duration: 2009 - 2016

Joseph Anderson 150 Community Archaeology Project

The Anderson 150 project is a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the commencement of archaeological investigations in the Yarrows landscape, Caithness, Scotland, by the eminent antiquarian Joseph Anderson. The project involves small-scale community excavation, workshops with children from local primary schools and an annual prehistoric festival, and aims to raise local and national awareness of the heritage of the Yarrows area and train both children and adults in new heritage skills. The project is a collaboration between the University of Glasgow, Cardiff University, Northlight Heritage, the Yarrows Heritage Trust, Venture North and Northshore Pottery.

Funded by: the E.ON Camster Community Fund supported by Foundation Scotland, Eneco, Scottish Book Foundation and Venture North to the value of £32,800
Duration: 2015 - 2016

Learn more about Joseph Anderson 150

Auditory Archaeology

An approach that studies the important influence and significance of the sound environment in past daily life. Auditory archaeology was developed as a set of techniques and principles during AHRB-funded doctoral research in the Teleorman River Valley Neolithic landscape, Romania. The approach has been applied at Çatalhöyük, Turkey, a Neolithic settlement tell in a different landscape setting to the Romanian case study and which benefits from the presence of excavated and reconstructed prehistoric buildings. Research within a post-medieval (1750 - 1900 AD) mining landscape in Cornwall applies the techniques developed in auditory archaeology in the existing framework and context of Historic Landscape Characterisation developed by English Heritage.

My book Auditory archaeology: understanding sound and hearing in the past (2014 Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press) develops these themes and provides a flexible and widely applicable set of elements that can be adapted for use in a broad range of archaeological and heritage contexts. The outputs of this research form the case studies of the Teleorman River Valley, Çatalhöyük, and West Penwith. This volume will help archaeologists and others studying human sensory experiences in the past and present.

Art Landscape Transformations

A pan-European project on landscape, art and heritage consisting of ten partners and funded by the European Commission. The Cardiff partner project is centred around the Romanian village of Magura and, through the process of scientific and artistic interventions, will gain new insight into the relationships that different groups of people (past/present; local/foreign; academic/lay) have with their physical environment and associated archaeology.

Funded by: European Union’s Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency Culture Programme (2007-13) to the value of £108,000
Duration: 2008 - 2011

Learn more about the Art Landscape Transformations

Southern Romania Archaeological Project (SRAP)

This project studied the emergence and environmental context of sedentism in Southern Romania c. 6500-4000BC to refine and broaden our understanding of long-term patterns of land use and settlement in southeastern Europe.

Funded by: the British Academy, the Society of Antiquaries of London and Teleorman County Council, and its value is £50,000
Duration: 1998 - 2011

Teaching

Undergraduate

Year One contributions:

  • Discovering Archaeology

Year Two and Three contributions:

  • Spatial Technologies and Geographical Information Systems
  • An Introduction to Prehistoric Europe
  • Saqqara: Understanding a Sacred Landscape in Ancient Egypt

I also supervise Independent Studies and Dissertations when appropriate particularly on topics that cover digital archaeology, GIS, GPS, sensory scholarship and Neolithic southeast Europe.

Postgraduate

Masters

I contribute to:

  • Skills and Methods for Postgraduate study

I also supervise Dissertations when appropriate particularly on topics that cover digital archaeology, GIS, GPS, sensory scholarship and Neolithic southeast Europe.

For PhD & MPhil Supervision see the Supervision tab

Biography

Education and qualifications

  • 2002: PhD Archaeology Cardiff University - (thesis entitled – The significance of sound in 5th millennium BC southern Romania)
  • 1998: MA Archaeology Cardiff University (distinction)
  • 1997: BA Archaeology Cardiff University (first class honours)

Career overview

  • 2003-present Member of staff at the Cardiff School of History, Archaeology and Religion (Junior Research Fellow until October 2006; Lecturer to July 2016; Senior Lecturer from August 2016)
  • 2001-2003 GIS mapper Historic Environment Section, Cornwall County Council working as a team member on two projects: The Cornish Mining World Heritage Site Bid (now inscribed) and the Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey

Professional memberships

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London

Speaking engagements

  • 2023:  Early to mid-Holocene human-river interactions in the Lower Danube: recent research at Poiana, Teleorman County. Institute of Research, University of Bucharest, Romania
  • 2020: The First World War in three dimensions. 3D-Con, National Stereoscopic Association, Tacoma (online conference)
  • 2019: Views of an Antique Land: imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War. Sussex Egyptology Society, UK
  • 2017: Views of an Antique Land: imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War. Friends of the Egypt Centre Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. Fulton House, Swansea University
  • 2017: Views of an Antique Land: imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War. Friends of Cathays Cemetery, Cardiff University
  • 2017: Early to mid-Holocene human-river interactions in the Lower Danube. Conference in honour of Dragomir Popovici, Ialomiţa County Museum, Slobozia, Romania
  • 2016: Views of an Antique Land: imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War. Discovering Collections, Discovering Communities conference, The Lowry, Salford, UK
  • 2016: Views of an Antique Land: imaging Egypt and Palestine in the First World War. T.E. Lawrence Symposium, Oxford University, UK
  • 2015: Walking to (a)muse: exploring senses of place with Ruth. Society for American Archaeologists conference, San Francisco, USA
  • 2013: Auditory Archaeology at Çatalhöyük. Cardiff Archaeological Society, Cardiff, UK

Committees and reviewing

  • 2020 - 2022: Deputy Head of Archaeology & Conservation
  • 2021 - 2022: Programme lead for Archaeology & Conservation
  • 2009 - present: Editorial Board, Buletinul Muzeului Judetean Teleorman
  • 2019 - 2021: Exams Officer for Archaeology & Conservation
  • 2018 - 2021: Enrolment Officer for Archaeology & Conservation
  • 2018 - 2019: Archaeology & Conservation Research Seminar series Coordinator
  • 2017 - present: Grant Reviewer for European Research Council for archaeoacoustics and related research
  • 2012 - 2017: Postgraduate Tutor for Archaeology (PGT & PGR)
  • 2012 - 2017: Member of Postgraduate Taught Board of Studies and Board of Examiners
  • 2012 - 2017: Member of the Postgraduate Research Committee
  • 2012 - 2017: Member of the Postgraduate Staff-Student Panel
  • 2011 - 2017: Chair of Information Resources Working Group
  • 2011 - 2015: School representative on the University Web Transformation Project
  • 2011 - 2013: Member of the External Affairs Committee
  • 2009 - 2016: School representative on the University Digital Preservation Task/Steering Group
  • 2008 - 2017: School representative on the University Web User Group now the Web Producer’s Network
  • 2008 - 2017: Member of the School Web Advisory Group
  • 2007 - 2011: Director of Information Resources Committee
  • 2007 - 2011: Member of the School Board
  • 2004 - 2017: Web producer for School
  • 2004 - 2017: Web author for Archaeology & Conservation
  • 2003 - present: Member of the Archaeology undergraduate Board of Studies and Board of Examiners
  • 2003 - 2018: Member of the History & Ancient History undergraduate Board of Studies and Board of Examiners

Supervisions

Current

  • Co-Superisor (40% with Eve MacDonald) for Domiziana Rossi - The Evolution of Sasanian urbanism in Iran after the Arab-Muslim Conquest
  • Co-Supervisor (50% with Niall Sharples) for Neil Gunther - A GIS study of settlement patterns for the later prehistoric period, southeast Wales and the tribal area of the Silures
  • Co-Supervisor (40% with Niall Sharples) for Anna-Elyse Young - A story through stone: Utilising the presence and morphology of lithic tools as a proxy for an understanding of the nature of the Neolithisation of southern England and southern Wales
  • Co-Supervisor (20% with Paul Nicholson) for Tara Draper-Stumm - Treasure Hunting, Museum Exhibits & Souvenirs: The History and Journeys of Sekhmet Statues into Museum & Private Collections outside Egypt in the 19th and 20th Centuries
  • Co-Supervisor (20% with Paul Nicholson) for Emmet Jackson - The history of Egyptology and Ancient Egyptian collections in Ireland, 1746-1922

Current supervision

Anna-Elyse Young Young

Anna-Elyse Young Young

Graduate Demonstrator

Past projects

Completed

  • Co-Supervisor (50% with Guy Bradley) for Adele Burnett - Roman forts and their landscapes (awarded 2023)
  • Co-Superisor (50% with Ben Jervis) for Gill Vickery - Medieval settlement development in Dorset (awarded 2022)
  • Co-Supervisor (50%) for Rhiannon Philp - Changing tides: understanding the context of prehistoric sea level changes in south Wales (awarded 2018)
  • Co-Supervisor (50%) for Scott Williams - Visualising a complex visual landscape: evaluating digital technologies in the reinterpretation of late period north Saqqara (awarded 2018) SHARE scholarship
  • Co-Supervisor (50%) for Sian Thomas - The South West Peninsula and the Roman World: a new interpretation of the social identity during the 1st to 4th centuries AD (awarded 2018) AHRC funded
  • Co-Supervisor (50%) for Caroline Pudney – Environments of change: social identity and material culture in the Severn Estuary from the first century B.C to the second century A.D (awarded 2012)
  • Co-Supervisor (20%) for Christopher Timmins – A phenomenology and GIS-based investigation into motives and priorities in siting Iron Age enclosures in Wales (awarded 2012)
  • Co-Supervisor (33%) for Catherine Preston – Geology, visualization and the 1893 Hauliers' Strike: an interdisciplinary exploration (awarded 2011) Richard Whipp Scholarship

Research themes

Specialisms

  • Archaeology of Europe, the Mediterranean and the Levant
  • Geospatial information systems and geospatial data modelling
  • Spatial data and applications