2026.
Correction
Journal of Field Archaeology,
v. 51
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1080/00934690.2025.2610036
I manage the Mapping Heritage in South Asia (MAHSA) project at the McDonald Institute.
I am also a Research Associate at the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research and the Fitzwilliam Museum, where I curated the Gold of the Great Steppe exhibition (28th September 2021 to 30th January 2022).
Biography
- 2016 PhD in Archaeology, University College London. Thesis title: Late Bronze to Iron Age Land use and subsistence strategies in the Semirech'ye region of Kazakhstan
- 2007 MLitt in Middle East and Central Asia Security Studies, University of St Andrews. With distinction. Thesis title: How useful is the notion of 'environmental security' to Kazakhstan? A case-study of the Ili-Balkhash Basin
- 2004 BA in Archaeology and Anthropology University of Oxford. Thesis title: The role of archaeology in the development of the concept of the nation in Kazakhstan: a case study of archaeological material in Semirech'ye
Research
My PhD research explored the relationship between climate, subsistence strategies, and land use in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages in the Semirech'ye region of Kazakhstan through phytolith and faecal spherulite analysis. I am also interested in the political use of archaeology in modern day nation building in post-Soviet states, as well as cultural heritage management.
My previous experience in archaeological project management and building cultural heritage databases was gained during my time working for the ERC ADaPt project in Cambridge, and as Post Excavation Officer at Birmingham Archaeology, University of Birmingham. I have also worked at the Laboratory of Geoarchaeology, Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Publication
2026
2025 (Accepted for publication)
Petrie, C., Abdul-Jabbar, J., G.S., A., Alam, A., Berganzo Besga, I., Campbell, R., Conesa, F., Durrani, M., Green, A., Green, L., Garcia-Molsosa, A., Gerrits, P., Gregorio de Souza, J., Hameed, M., Khan, A., Madella, M., Mushtaq, MW., Orengo, H., V.N., P., S.V., R., Redhouse, D., Roberts, R., Sarmah, M., Samad, A., Singh, R., Singh, V., Suarez Moreno, M., Tomaney, J., Vafadari, A. and Vidyarthi, V.,
2025 (Accepted for publication).
Hidden in plain sight: the unrecognized contribution of the Survey of India in the documentation of ancient settlements in Pakistan and India
Journal of Field Archaeology,
2023 (Published online)
Amir, S. and Roberts, RC.,
2023 (Published online).
The Saka ‘Animal Style’ in Context: Material, Technology, Form and Use
Arts,
v. 12
Doi: http://doi.org/10.3390/arts12010023
2023
Roberts, R.,
2023.
MICRO-ENVIRONMENTAL REMAINS IN ARCHAEOLOGY: PHYTOLITHS AND FAECAL SPHERULITES AND THEIR APPLICATION FOR THE STUDY OF HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTIONS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL SEDIMENTS IN KAZAKHSTAN
Мәдени мұра,
Doi: http://doi.org/10.47500/2023.v15.i3.04
Berganzo-Besga, I., Orengo, HA., Lumbreras, F., Alam, A., Campbell, R., Gerrits, PJ., de Souza, JG., Khan, A., Suárez-Moreno, M., Tomaney, J., Roberts, RC. and Petrie, CA.,
2023.
Curriculum learning-based strategy for low-density archaeological mound detection from historical maps in India and Pakistan.
Sci Rep,
v. 13
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-38190-x
2021
Longman, DP., Murray, A., Roberts, R., Oakley, S., Wells, JCK. and Stock, JT.,
2021.
Energetics as a driver of human morphological thermal adaptation; evidence from female ultra-endurance athletes.
Evol Hum Sci,
v. 3
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2021.17
2019 (Accepted for publication)
Roberts, R., Haruda, A. and Goryachev, AA.,
2019 (Accepted for publication).
The Turgen II archaeological complex in its regional environmental context: geography, vegetation, fauna, and palaeoclimate
ИСТОРИЯ И АРХЕОЛОГИЯ СЕМИРЕЧЬЯ,
v. 6
2019
Longman, DP., Macintosh Murray, A., Roberts, R., Oakley, S., Wells, JCK. and Stock, JT.,
2019.
Ultra-endurance athletic performance suggests that energetics drive human morphological thermal adaptation.
Evol Hum Sci,
v. 1
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2019.13
2016
Stevens, CJ., Murphy, C., Roberts, R., Lucas, L., Silva, F. and Fuller, DQ.,
2016.
Between China and South Asia: A Middle Asian corridor of crop dispersal and agricultural innovation in the Bronze Age.
Holocene,
v. 26
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1177/0959683616650268
2015
Doumani, PN., Frachetti, MD., Beardmore, R., Schmaus, TM., Spengler, RN. and Mar'yashev, AN.,
2015.
Burial ritual, agriculture, and craft production among Bronze Age pastoralists at Tasbas (Kazakhstan)
Archaeological Research in Asia,
v. 1
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.ara.2015.01.001
2010
Beardmore, R.,
2010.
Pastoralist landscapes and social interaction in Bronze Age Eurasia
Central Asian Survey,
v. 29
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1080/02634937.2010.490680
Roberts, R., Cuttler, R., Al-Naimi, F., Ramsey, E. and Kallweit, H.,
2010.
The Qatar National Historic Environment Record: a bespoke cultural resource management tool and the wider implications for heritage management within the region
Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies,
v. 40
2008
Roberts, R., Bonora, GL. and Kurmankulov, Z.,
2008.
Preliminary Report on the 2007-2008 IAEK Campaigns in the Syrdarya Delta
East and West,
v. 58
Doi: http://doi.org/10.2307/29757771
2026
Amirova, S., Zhumatayev, R., Shakenov, S., Yergabylov, A., Roberts, R. and Martinon-Torres, M.,
2026.
Gold, Silver and Glass: Power Networks, Cultural Identities, Technology Transfers and Agency across the Old World (7th Century BC - 1st Century AD)
Doi: http://doi.org/10.32028/9781805831860
2025
Khan, A., Sarmah, M., Vidyarthi, V., Roberts, R. and Petrie, C.,
2025.
#HashtaggingHeritage: An exploration of South Asian social media landscapes and heritage
2025.
Reporting Heritage Destruction
Doi: http://doi.org/10.32028/9781805830382
2016
Chang, C. and Roberts, R.,
2016.
The Tale of a Mud Brick: Lessons from Tuzusai and De-Assembling an Iron Age site on the Talgar Alluvial Fan in South-eastern Kazakhstan
2024 (Accepted for publication)
Roberts, R., Abdul Jabbar, J., Dykes, N., Jones, H., Peszko, M., Madella, M., Orengo, H. and Petrie, C.,
2024 (Accepted for publication).
Historical maps as a multifaceted LOUD resource
Proceedings of the Computer Applications in Archaeology Conference 2021,
2021
Roberts, RC., Jabbar, JA., Jones, H., Orengo, HA., Madella, M. and Petrie, CA.,
2021.
Paper and pixels: historic maps as a multifaceted resource
Abstracts of the ICA,
v. 3
Doi: http://doi.org/10.5194/ica-abs-3-250-2021
2019
Merzbach, V., Longman, D., Macintosh, A., Roberts, R., Stock, J., Marques Pinto, J., Ferrandino, M. and Gordon, D.,
2019.
The Isokinetic Muscular Strength Characteristics Of Ultra-endurance Runners
Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise,
v. 51
Doi: http://doi.org/10.1249/01.mss.0000561092.95974.a9
Longman, DP., Macintosh, A., Roberts, R., Oakley, S., Wells, JCK. and Stock, JT.,
2019.
Endurance activity as a driver of morphological thermal adaptation: the energetics of ultramarathons in extreme temperatures
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY,
v. 168
2021
Roberts, R.,
2021.
Gold of the Great Steppe People, Power and Production
Teaching and Supervisions
G22: Sociopolitics of the past
PhD Students:
Saltanat Amir (KZ) (completed 2025): Goldsmithing technologies, organic materials and funerary rituals in the Saka societies of the Eurasian Steppe Region during the Iron Age (c. 900 – 100 BCE), funded by Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarships
Other Professional Activities
Curator, Gold of the Great Steppe exhibition. Fitzwilliam Museum, 28th September 2021 to 30th January 2022