John Soderberg
John Soderberg 's (Ph.D. University of Minnesota 2003) research interests include zooarchaeology, historical archaeology, and the application of three-dimensional scanning technology to artifact analysis. His work on Clonmacnoise monastery (Co. Offaly, Ireland ) used archaeological, textual, and iconographic data to examine the origins of urbanism in medieval Europe and to demonstrate how social complexity can develop in the absence of a highly stratified socioeconomic organization. One of his current research projects investigates the role of animals in creating and subverting the ethnic identities of indigenous and colonizing groups following the Anglo-Norman colonization of Ireland in the 12 th century AD. Another current research project is developing methods for generating three-dimensional ‘topographic maps' of cut marks and other surface modifications on bones. Unlike SEM micrographs and other visualization methods, these maps allow for precise characterization of three-dimensional shape, an essential step in determining what or who created a mark. This research is part of a larger project in the Evolutionary Anthropology Laboratories to develop three-dimensional imaging and modeling techniques.
Selected Publications
in press “Clientage and Social Hierarchy in Early Medieval Ireland: An Archaeological Perspective” in Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium , vol. 19.
2004 “Wild Cattle: Red Deer in the Religious Texts, Iconography, and Archaeology of Early Medieval Ireland ” International Journal of Historical Archaeology , 8 (3): 167-184.
2004 “Distinguishing the Local from the Regional: Irish Perspectives on Urbanization in Early Medieval Europe ” in Continuity or Change: The Role of Analytical Scale in European Archaeology , James Mathieu and Rachel Scott, eds. British Archaeological Reports. Pages 67-82.
2001 “Feeding Communities: Monasteries and Urban
Development in Early Medieval Ireland ” in Shaping Communities: The Archaeology and Architecture of Monasticism , Sheila McNally, ed. British Archaeological Reports International Series 941. Pages 67-77.
1997 Review of Science and Society in Ireland : The Social Context of
Science and Technology in Ireland 1800-1950 , Peter Bowler and Nicholas Whyte (eds.), in New Hibernia Review (Spring 97), pages 154-155.
1995 “A Lost Cultural Exchange: Reconsidering the Bologna Shrine's Origin and Use” In The Proceedings of the Thirteenth Annual Harvard Celtic Colloquium , pages 156-165.