Staff

Prof Robin Coningham, BA, PhD (Cantab.)

Professor in the Department of Archaeology

Telephone: 41145 (Faculty Telephone 42904)

Pro-Vice-Chancellor in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health

Telephone: +44 (0) 191 33 42904

Member of the Centre for the Study of the Ancient Mediterranean and the Near East

Biography

Professor Robin Coningham is the Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health and holds a Chair in Archaeology in the Department of Archaeology.

He studied Archaeology and Anthropology at King's College, Cambridge and, after a six-month appointment as Graduate Scholar of the British Institute in Eastern Africa, returned to King's to complete his PhD under the supervision of Dr F.R. Allchin. He then joined the Department of Archaeological Sciences at Bradford in 1994, becoming Professor of South Asian Archaeology and Head of Department in 2004. He moved to a Chair in Archaeology at Durham in 2005 and was Head of the Department of Archaeology between 2007 and 2008 before becoming Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health.

Professor Coningham is committed to field research and has conducted fieldwork in Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka aimed at refining Early Historic chronologies and investigating the region's second, Iron Age, urbanization and the genesis of Indian Ocean trade. Past projects range from excavations in the Citadel of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka's earliest capital, and deep sounding at the Bala Hisar of Charsadda in the Vale of Peshawar - one of the great sites on Pakistan's portion of the Silk Road, to reinvestigations of the birthplace and childhood home of the Buddha in Nepal. With colleagues from Sri Lankan, Indian and British Universities, he co-directs a major AHRC-funded investigation of the hinterland of Anuradhapura, analyzing the organization and development of the city's extra-mural settlements. This work recognizes the centralizing role played by Buddhist monasteries within the hinterland as well as the role of irrigation in sustaining colonization in the island’s Dry Zone.

He also works in Iran, where joint excavations supported by the Iranian Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, The University of Tehran, The British Academy and the British Institute of Persian Studies at Tepe Pardis and Tepe Sialk are beginning to provide a firm chronology for the spread of late Neolithic communities in the Central Plateau of Iran and their socio-economic developments. Professor Coningham is also committed to the preservation of cultural heritage, joining eight international missions for UNESCO and reviewing the Research Framework for the Brú na Bóinne UNESCO World Heritage Site for the Irish Government. He parallels this with an interest in the relationship between identity and cultural heritage in regions of conflict as well as the impact of the international trade in illicit antiquities. Further to this commitment, he launched a Centre for the study of Ethics of Cultural Heritage with the Durham philosopher, Geoffrey Scarre.

In addition to these activities, Professor Coningham is a member of the British Academy's Sponsored Institutes and Society’s Committee (BASIS) and Reviewer for Panel SH6 of the European Research Council and former posts include Honorary Secretary of the British Institute of Persian Studies (The British Academy) and member of Research Panel 1 of the Arts and Humanities Research Council. He is a Trustee of the Ancient India and Iran Trust (Cambridge) and Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society and acted as a QAA specialist in Archaeology for seven Departmental reviews and was a QAA Review Chair for a further five. He has conducted publication evaluations for Cambridge University Press, Thames & Hudson, AltaMira Press, Current Anthropology, Antiquity, Asian Perspectives, Cambridge Archaeological Journal, Iran, and South Asian Studies and is a member of AHRC's Peer Review College and has evaluated grants for the National Science Foundation, American Institute for Sri Lankan Studies, The British Academy and NERC.

Professor Coningham would be pleased to supervise research postgraduate students interested in the Archaeological visibility of Buddhism, Caste and the development of craft specialisation, Indian Ocean trade, International cultural resource management, Later Prehistory and Early Historic archaeology of Southern Asia (from Iran to Myanmar), Politics, identity and archaeology, Urbanisation and the Prehistory of Iran. Please email him about potential topics.

CURRENT RESEARCH STUDENTS

K. Strickland, M.A., The Jungle Tide: Urban Collapse in Early Medieval Sri Lanka, Arts and Humanities Research Council PhD Award

S. Al-Ghamdi, M.A., Neolithic settlement in the south-west of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia PhD Award

J. Marshall, M.A., Missing links: demic diffusion and the development of agriculture in the Central Iranian plateau Arts and Humanities Research Council PhD Award

R. Daroogheh-Nokhodcheri, M.A., Imperialism, Nationalism and the History of Archaeology in Iran

C. Villalobos, M.A., History of Mexican archaeology, nationalism and heritage tourism, Government of Mexico PhD Award

C. Davis, M.A., Buddhist Monasteries: centres of redistribution or recluses? Arts and Humanities Research Council PhD Award

A. Margussian, M.A., Iranian Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organisation, Ceramic typologies and stylistic phylogenesis: the prehistoric ceramics of the Central Plateau of Iran

PAST RESEARCH STUDENTS

Dr H. Fazeli, Director, Iranian Centre for Archaeology, Tehran, Social complexity and craft specialisation in the Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic period in the central plateau of Iran 2001

Dr R. Young, Lecturer, Department of Archaeology, University of Leicester Food procurement strategies in Iron Age Pakistan 2000

Dr H. Karimian, Lecturer, Department of Archaeology, University of Tehran Space and society in Mediaeval Bam 2003

Dr L. Ford, Ceramic Specialist, West Yorkshire Archaeology Unit. Towards the scientific provenancing of Rouletted ware 2004

Dr M. Mortazavi, Chairman, Department of Archaeology, University of Zahedan System collapse? A reassessment of the end of the civilisations of southeast Iran in the second millennium BC 2004

Andrew Newton, MPhil Politics and archaeology in nineteenth and twentieth century Germany 2005

Dr P. Gunawardhana, Head of Department, Department of Archaeology, University of Kaleniya Monastic planning and sectarianism in Sri Lanka 2006

Dr Abed Al Raouf Mayyas, Lecturer, Faculty of Science, Jordanian University of Science and Technology (with B. Stern: University of Bradford) Late Prehistoric ceramic function and provenance in the Tehran Plain 2007

Dr Mark Manual, PDRA, University of Durham Normative models and the social organisation of the Harappan civilisation 2008

Research Groups

Research Projects

Research Interests

Archaeological visibility of Buddhism
Caste and the development of craft specialisation
Indian Ocean trade
International cultural resource management
Later Prehistory and Early Historic archaeology of Southern Asia (from Iran to Myanmar)
Politics, identity and archaeology
Urbanisation

Indicators of Esteem

2006: Honorary Secretary, British Institute for Persian Studies:
2006: Member, Research Panel 1 (Classics, Ancient History and Archaeology), Arts and Humanities Research Council:
2006: Member, Second Scientific Committee on the nomination of the Qhapaq Nau (Inka Highway), UNESCO World Heritage Centre:
2004: 2004-2005 Member, Management Committee, Arts and Humanities Research Centre for Textile Conservation and Textile Studies:

Selected Publications

Articles: magazine

Coningham R.A.E. & Schmidt A. 1998. Ancient Buddhist Sites in Nepal. Minerva 9(1): 40-42.
Coningham R.A.E. 1997. Charsadda: Alexander's City on the North West Frontier. Minerva 8(3): 38-40.
Coningham R.A.E. & Schmidt A. 1997. Monuments Under Threat in Bangladesh. Minerva 8(4): 39-43.
Coningham R.A.E. 1995. The Origins of the Brahmi Script Reconsidered: The New Evidence from Anuradhapura. Minerva 8(2): 27-31.

Articles: review

Coningham R.A.E. & Hardman C. 2004. Identity, Fundamentalism and Archaeology in Modern South Asia. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 14(1): 156-159. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham R.A.E. 1998. Buddhism Rematerialised and the Archaeology of the Gautama Buddha. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 8(1): 121-126.
Coningham R.A.E. 1995. East is East and West is West, and Never the Two Shall Meet. Antiquity 69(266): 1051-1055.

Books: authored

Coningham R.A.E. & Ali I. 2007. Charsadda: The British - Pakistani Excavations at the Bala Hisar of Charsadda. Oxford: Archaeopress. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham, R.A.E. 2006. Anuradhapura: The British - Sri Lankan Excavations at Anuradhapura Salgaha Watta: Volume 2 The Artefacts. Oxford: Archaeopress. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham R.A.E. & Milou J.-F. 2001. Reactive Monitoring Mission to Lumbini, Birthplace of Lord Buddha: Report and Recommendations of a UNESCO Mission to Nepal. Kathmandu: UNESCO Kathmandu.
Coningham, R.A.E. 1999. Anuradhapura: The British - Sri Lankan Excavations at Anuradhapura Salgaha Watta: Volume 1 The Site. Oxford: Archaeopress for the Society for South Asian Studies Monograph Series. (Additional information)

Books: edited

Gunawardhana, P., Adikari, G. & Coningham, R.A.E. 2010. Essays in Archaeology 2. Colombo: Neptune Publications.
Gunawardhana, P. & Coningham, R.A.E. 2005. Essays in Archaeology. Colombo: Godage International Publishers. (Additional information)

Books: sections

Coningham, R.A.E. & Coningham, S.E. 2008. Chandragupta Maurya. In Great military leaders and their campaigns. Black, J. London: Thames and Hudson.
Coningham, R.A.E. & Manuel, M.J. 2007. The Indus Civilisation. In 30,000 Years of Art. Fortenberry, Diane London: Phaidon. (Additional information)
Coningham R.A.E. 1999. South Asia. In The Seventy Wonders of the World. Scarre S.J. London: Thames and Hudson.

Conference proceedings

Ford, L. & Coningham, R.A.E. (2006). Early Historic Specialisation and Standardisation: The Technology of Rouletted Ware and Associated Wares at Anuradhapura. Deutsches Archaologisches Institut.
Krishnan K. & Coningham R.A.E. (1997). Microstructural Analysis of Samples of Rouletted Ware and Associated Pottery from Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. Oxford and IBH.
Coningham R.A.E. (1997). The Spatial Distribution of Craft Activities in Early Historic Cities. Oxford and IBH.
Coningham R.A.E. (1994). Notes on the Construction and Destruction of Ancient Sri Lankan Buildings. Oxford and IBH.

Edited essays

Coningham & Lewer N. 2000. Identity and Archaeology in South Asia. Antiquity.

Essays in edited volumes

Young, R.L. & Coningham, R.A.E. 2010. From Village to State: Modelling Food Consumption and Ideological Change at Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. In Essays in Archaeology. Gunawardhana, P., Adikari, G. & Coningham, R.A.E. Colombo: Neptune Publishers. 81-92. (Additional information)
Schmidt, A. & Coningham, R.A.E. 2010. Geophysical Investigations of World Heritage Sites in South Asia. In Essays in Archaeology. Gunawardhana, P., Adikari, G. & Coningham, R.A.E. Colombo: Neptune Publishers. 285-290.
Coningham, R.A.E., Acharya, K.P., Schmidt, A. & Bidari, B. 2010. Searching for Kapilavastu. In Essays in Archaeology. Gunawardhana, P., Adikari, G. & Coningham, R.A.E. Colombo: Neptune Publishers. 55-66. (Additional information)
Coningham, R.A.E. & Manuel, M.J. 2008. Warfare in ancient South Asia. In The ancient world at war. de Souza, P. London.: Thames and Hudson. 229-242. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Gillmore, G.K., Coningham, R.A.E., Young, R., Fazeli. H., Rushworth, G., Donahue, R. & Batt, C.M. 2007. Holocene alluvial sediments of the Tehran Plain: sedimentation and archaeological site visibility. In Reconstructing human-landscape interactions. Wilson, L., Dickinson, P. & Jeandron, J. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars. 37-67. (Additional information)
Coningham, R.A.E. & Strickland, K.M. 2007. South Asia Sri Lanka. In Encyclopedia of Archaeology. Pearsall, Deborah M. Elsevier. 791-795. (Additional information)
Coningham, R.A.E. & Manuel, M.J. 2007. South Asia The Northwest Frontier and Kashmir region. In Encyclopedia of Archaeology. Pearsall, Deborah M. Oxford: Elsevier. 733-745. (Additional information)
Coningham, R.A.E. & Young, R. 2007. The archaeological visibility of caste. In The Archaeology of Identities: A Reader. Insoll, T. London: Routledge. 250-264. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham, R.A.E. & Manuel, M.J. 2007. The Indus Civilisation. In Archaeologica The world's most significant sites and cultural treasures. Cremin, Aedeen Melbourne: Random House. 240-245. (Additional information)
Coningham, R.A.E., Cooper, R. & Pollard, A.M. 2006. What value a unicorn's horn? A study of archaeological value. In The ethics of Archaeology: philosophical perspectives on archaeological practice. Scarre, C. & Scarre, G. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 260-272. (Additional information)
Coningham R.A.E. 2005. South Asia: From Early Villages to Buddhism. In The Human Past. Scarre C.J. London: Thames and Hudson. 518-551. (Additional information)
Coningham R.A.E. & Mann S. 2005. The Story of the Stupa Revisited. In Essays in Archaeology. Gunawardhana P. & Coningham R.A.E. Colombo: Godage International Publishers. 31-43. (Additional information)
Coningham R.A.E. 2002. Deciphering the Indus Script. In Indian Archaeology in Retrospect. Settar, S. & Korrisettar R. New Delhi: Indian Council of Historical Research. 2: 81-104.
Ali I. & Coningham R.A.E. 2002. Recording and Preserving Gandhara's Cultural Heritage. In Illicit Antiquities: the Destruction of the World's Archaeological Heritage. Brodie J., Doole J. & Renfrew A.C. Cambridge: McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research. 25-31.
Coningham, R.A.E. 2001. The archaeology of Buddhism. In Archaeology and world religion. Insoll, T. London: Routledge. 61-95. (View publication online)
Coningham R.A.E. & Young R.L. 1999. The Archaeology of Caste. In Case Studies in Archaeology and World Religions. Insoll T. Oxford: BAR. 84-93.
Coningham R.A.E. 1997. Anuradhapura. In The Oxford Campanion to Archaeology. Fagan B. New York: Oxford University Press. 38-39.
Coningham R.A.E. 1995. Dark Age or Continnum? An Archaeological Analysis of The Second Emergence of Urbanism in South Asia. In The Archaeology of Early Historic South Asia: The Emergence of Cities and States. Allchin F.R. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 54-72.
Coningham R.A.E. & Allchin F.R. 1995. The Rise of Cities in South Asia. In The Archaeology of Early Historic South Asia: The emergence of Cities and States. Allchin F.R. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 152-184.

Journal papers: academic

V. Ramaroli, J. Hamilton, P. Ditchfield, H. Fazeli, A. Aali, R.A.E. Coningham, & A.M. Pollard 2010. The Chehr Abad "salt men" and the isotopic ecology of humans in ancient Iran. American Journal of Physical Anthropology (May 27, 2010 ).
Gillmore, G.K., Coningham, R.A.E., Fazeli, H., Young, R.L., Magshoudi, M., Batt, C.M. & Rushworth, G. 2009. Irrigation on the Tehran Plain, Iran: Tepe Pardis - the site of a possible Neolithic irrigation feature? Catena 78(3): 285-300. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham, R.A.E. & Manuel, M.J. 2009. Priest-kings or puritans? Childe and willing subordination in the Indus. European Journal of Archaeology 12(1-3): 27-37.
Stern, B., Connan, J., Blakelock, E., Jackman, R., Coningham, R.A.E. & Heron, C. 2008. From Susa to Anuradhapura reconstructing aspects of trade and exchange in bitumen-coated ceramic vessels between Iran and Sri Lanka from the third to the ninth centuries AD. Archaeometry 50(3): 409-428. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Fazeli, H., Coningham, R.A.E., Young, R.L., Gillmore, G.K., Maghsoudi M. & Raza, H. 2007. Socio-Economic transformations in the Tehran Plain: Final season of settlement survey and excavations at Tepe Pardis. Iran 45: 267-286. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham, R.A.E., Gunawardhana, P., Manuel, M.J., Adikari, G., Katugampola, M., Young, R.L., Schmidt, A., Krishnan, K., Simpson, I., McDonnell, G. & Batt, C. 2007. The state of theocracy: defining an Early Medieval hinterland in Sri Lanka. Antiquity 81(313): 699–719. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham, R.A.E., Fazeli, H., Young, R.L., Gillmore, G.K., Karimian, H., Maghsoudi, M., Donahue, R.E. & Batt, C.M. 2006. Socio-economic transformations:settlement survey in the Tehran Plain and excavations at Tepe Pardis. Iran 44: 33-62. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Ali, T., Coningham, R.A.E., Connan, J., Gething, I., Adam, P., Dessort, D. & Heron, C. 2006. South Asia's earliest incendiary missile? Archaeometry 48(4): 641-655. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham, R.A.E., Gunawardhana, P., Adikari, G., Katugampola, M., Simpson, I. & Young, R.L. 2006. The Anuradhapura (Sri Lanka) Project: the hinterland (phase II), preliminary report of the first season 2005. South Asian Studies 22: 53-64. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Ford, L.A., Pollard, A.M., Coningham, R.A.E. & Stern, B. 2005. A geochemical investigation of the origin of Rouletted and other related South Asian fine wares. Antiquity 79(306): 909-920. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Fazeli H., Coningham R.A.E. & Batt C.M. 2004. Cheshmeh-Ali Revisited: Towards an Absolute Dating of the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic of Iran's Tehran Plain. Iran 42: 13-23. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham R.A.E., Fazeli H., Young R.L. & Donahue R.E. 2004. Location, Location, Location: A Pilot Study of the Tehran Plain 2003. Iran 42: 1-12. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham R.A.E. 2004. [Contribution to] CA Forum on Anthropology in Public: Archaeology at the Heart of a Political Confrontation: The case of Ayodhya. Current Anthropology 45(2): 251. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Coningham R.A.E. 2002. Beyond and Before the Imperial Frontiers: Early Historic Sri Lanka and the Origins of Indian Ocean Trade. Man and Environment 27: 99-108. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Ali I., Batt C.M., Coningham R.A.E. & Young R.L. 2002. New Explorations in the Chitral Valley, Pakistan: An Extension of the Gandharan Grave Culture. Antiquity 76(293): 647-653. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Fazeli H., Donahue R.E. & Coningham R.A.E. 2002. Stone Tool Production, Distribution and Use During the Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic on the Tehran Plain, Iran. Iran 40: 1-14. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Fazeli H., Coningham R.A.E. & Pollard A.M. 2001. Chemical Characteristics of Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic Pottery from the Tehran Plain, Iran. Iran 39: 55-71. (Additional information) (View publication online)
Young R.L., Coningham R.A.E., Batt C.M. & Ali I. 2000. A Comparison of Kho and Kalasha Subistence Patterns in Chitral, NWFP, Pakistan. South Asian Studies 16: 133-142.
Coningham R.A.E. & Lewer N. 2000. Archaeology and Identity in South Asia: Interpretations and Consequences. Antiquity 74: 664-667.
Coningham R.A.E. 2000. Contestatory Urban Tests or were Cities in South Asia built as Images. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 10: 348-357.
Coningham R.A.E. & Lewer N. 2000. The Vijayan Colonisation and the Archaeology of Identity in Sri Lanka. Antiquity 74: 707-712.
Coningham R.A.E. & Lewer N. 1999. Paradise Lost: the Bombing of the Temple of the Tooth - a UNESCO World Heritage Site in South Asia. Antiquity 73: 857-866.
Coningham R.A.E. & Sutherland T. 1998. Dwellings or Granaries? The Pit Phenomenon of the Kashmir-Swat Neolithic. Man and Environment 22: 29-34.
Ali T, Coningham R.A.E., Durrani M.A. & Rahim G. 1998. Preliminary report of the first two seasons of archaeological investigations at the Bala Hisar of Charsadda. Ancient Pakistan 12: 1-34.
Coningham R.A.E. & Edwards B. 1998. Space and Society at Sirkap. Ancient Pakistan 12: 47-76.
Young R.L. & Coningham R.A.E. 1998. Subsistence Patterns in NWFP: An Archaeological Study. Ancient Pakistan 12: 39-126.
Coningham R.A.E. 1998. The Nepali Terai and Sites Associated with the Birth and Childhood of Gautama Buddha. Journal of the British - Nepla Association 22: 23-26.
Coningham R.A.E., Allchin F.R., Batt C.M. & Lucy D. 1996. Passage to India? Anuradhapur and the Early Use of the Brahmi Script. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 6(1): 73-97.
Janaway R.C. & Coningham R.A.E. 1995. A Review of Archaeological Textile Evidence from South Asia. South Asian Studies 11: 159-176.
Coningham R.A.E. 1995. Monks, Caves and Kings: A Reassessment of the Nature of Early Buddhism in Sri Lanka (Ceylon). World Archaeology 27: 222-242.
Coningham R.A.E. 1994. Anuradhapura Citadel Archaeological Project: Preliminary Results of a Season of Geophysical Survey. South Asian Studies 10: 179-188.
Coningham R.A.E. 1993. Anuradhapura Citadel Archaeological Project: Preliminary Results of the Excavation of the Southern Rampart. South Asian Studies 9: 111-122.
Coningham R.A.E. & Allchin F.R. 1992. Anuradhapura Citadel Archaeological Project: Preliminary Results of the Third Season of Sri Lankan - British Excavations at Salgaha Watta. South Asian Studies 8: 155-167.
Coningham R.A.E. & Allchin F.R. 1991. Anuradhapura Citadel Archaeological Project: Preliminary Report of the Second Season of Sri Lankan - British Excavations at Salgha Watta. South Asian Studies 7: 167-175.
Coningham R.A.E. 1990. Anuradhapura Citadel Archaeological Project: Preliminary Report of the First Season of Sri Lankan - British Excavations at Salgaha Watta. Ancient Ceylon 9: 23-48.

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Grants Awarded and Grant Applications

2005: The British Institute Of Persian Studies Excavation And Survey In The Tehran Plain, Iran £8,000
2004: AHRC The Anuradhapura (Sri Lanka) Project: Phase 2 - The Hinterland £215,870
2004: The British Academy Excavation And Survey In The Tehran Plain, Iran £20,000
2004: The British Institute Of Persian Studies Excavation And Survey In The Tehran Plain, Iran £10,000

Honorary Research Staff