My doctoral research focuses on the epidemiology of plague, and explores the nature of plague mortality in the context of medieval England.  By assessing survivorship and mortality risk within skeletal assemblages from ‘plague pits’ and associated attritional medieval cemeteries, my work considers whether certain groups were more susceptible to plague or if it was a more indiscriminate killer.  My research utilises osteological data and historical records to attempt elucidation of any biological, socio-economic and environmental risk factors that may have influenced survivorship during pre-industrial plague epidemics throughout England.

My work also explores the expression of catastrophic mortality events within ‘typical’ attritional cemeteries, and how this influences our interpretation of the populations associated with such sites.

More generally, I am interested in all things relating to the manifestation of disease within past populations.  Following my BSc research, I also maintain a strong interest in forensic anthropology and biology.