Podcasts and Videos

Daniel Neep’s new book, A History of Modern Syria provides a comprehensive account of how a nation born in conflict nevertheless sustained a rich, complex, and diverse society that, after the fall of the Assad regime, will chart its own path into the uncertain future. Neep is joined by panellists: Dr Haian Dukhan, Dr Hiba Salem and Dr Ammar Azzouz.

Drawing on examples from the Middle East and North Africa, Dr. Bijan Rouhani explores how to move beyond simple digitisation towards approaches that centre community consent, shared authority, and environmental responsibility. He explores how digital technologies, databases, and AI tools can support—rather than replace—local knowledge and stewardship, and how global standards can guide more balanced data governance.

Over the past decade, Sela for Training and Protection of Heritage has pioneered a model of community-based heritage conservation in Jordan, transforming the way local communities engage with archaeological resources. Maria Elena Ronza traces Sela’s journey from its founding in Petra in 2015 to its role today as a leading organization linking conservation practice, vocational training, and sustainable development.

Based on extensive participatory fieldwork, Wafa Alkhadra’s approach to research in Barefoot Nisswiyya theory is a clear break from traditional ethnography.  Alkhadra uses the cultural heritage-based concepts of al-‘Ishra (living with) and al-Bawh (spontaneous disclosure) in place of viewing communities as objects of observation.

Dr Jamie Fraser presents new evidence from British Museum excavations at Khirbet Um al-Ghozlan in the Wadi Rayyam, which include a storage complex, industrial processing tools, and—critically—microscopic botanical remains directly associated with olive pressing. Together, these discoveries illuminate the vital role that olive horticulture played in both the emergence and collapse of the region’s earliest cities.

Dr Kay Prag shares personal reflections and archaeological insights from decades of research at Iktanu—a site with a dramatic landscape and a rich, layered history spanning from the Early Bronze Age to the Persian Period. From its modest beginnings in a 1965 survey visit to multiple excavation seasons, the story of Iktanu offers a valuable window into early settlement in Jordan. Dr Prag discusses the discoveries made, the challenges faced, and the impact of the site on her lifelong research journey.

Diana Darke's book explores the evidence embedded in medieval monasteries, churches and castles, from Mont Saint-Michel and the Leaning Tower of Pisa to Durham Cathedral and the Basilica of Santiago de Compostela. Tracing the origins of key design innovations from this pre-Gothic period, she sheds new light on the masons, carpenters and sculptors behind these masterpieces and argues that ‘Romanesque’ architecture should be recognised for what it truly is: Islamesque.’

Dr. Evi Margaritis is Associate Professor at the Cyprus Institute, based at the Science and Technology in Archaeology and Culture Research Center. She is one of the leading experts in archaeobotanical research in the eastern Mediterranean and the only archaeobotanist based in Cyprus.

Positioned at the crossroads of Coptic and Armenian traditions in Cyprus, Mehmetcan Soyluoglu looks at how Sourp Magar serves as a unique lens to explore the cultural landscape and monastic traditions that evolved from the Byzantine period onward, particularly in the Kyrenia Range.

Professor Thilo Rehren is A.G. Leventis Professor for Archaeological Sciences and Director of the Science and Technology in Archaeology and Culture Research Center. His research focuses on the reconstruction and understanding of the technological processes related to the manufacture of metals, glass, glazes and ceramics.

In intensifying climate and political crises, rising migration, and growing tensions across and within borders, historic cities like Nicosia  are increasingly facing challenges of social and spatial division. Dr. Georgios Artopoulos shares innovative projects aimed at involving local stakeholders in the management of Nicosia’s historic public spaces.

Eman Shahin and Alice Lubbock talk about the BIRI Project Women Transcending Boundaries, a project which uncovers the intertwined lives of women who shaped archaeology and heritage work across many regions. Using the archives of the British International Research Institutes (BIRI), they trace how letters, photographs, field notes and personal writings reveal an interconnected history of women whose contributions were often overlooked.