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Dr Adelle Bricking
Research student
Overview
I hold a BA in Anthropology from Northern Kentucky University where I had a dual focus on archaeology and cultural anthropology. I moved to Wales in 2016 for my MA in archaeology at Cardiff University. My MA dissertation compared human remains in Iron Age hillforts and middens in Wessex, and I fell into a love/hate with the mysterious and varied ways people disposed of their dead in this period. I realised I had barely scratched the surface and wanted to take it further, so now I'm doing a PhD under the diligent supervision dream-team of Dr Rich Madgwick and Prof Niall Sharples!
My PhD thesis is currently very unimaginatively titled "Iron Age mortuary practice in southwest Britain". I am using a holistic approach combining secondary burial data and cutting-edge primary analysis. The secondary research is creating a monstrous database of all human remains data from Iron Age contexts in my region to identify patterns in burial characteristics across the region. The primary research is a targeted histological analysis of human remains from case study sites to reconstruct early post-mortem treatments. Together, a more comprehensive understanding of Iron Age burial in this region will be achieved!
Twitter: @archae_delle
Publication
2023
- Madgwick, R. and Bricking, A. 2023. Exploring mortuary practices: Histotaphonomic analysis of the human remains and associated fauna. In: Guarino, P. and Barclay, A. eds. In the Shadow of Segsbury: The Archaoelogy of the H380 Childrey Warren Water Pipeline, Oxfordshire, 2018-20. Cotswold Archaeology Monograph Cirencester: Cotswold Archaeology, pp. 96-102.
- Mavroudas, S. R., Alfsdotter, C., Bricking, A. and Madgwick, R. 2023. Experimental investigation of histotaphonomic changes in human bone from whole-body donors demonstrates limited effects of early post-mortem change in bone. Journal of Archaeological Science 154, article number: 105789. (10.1016/j.jas.2023.105789)
2022
- Bricking, A., Hayes, A. and Madgwick, R. 2022. An interim report on histological analysis of human bones from Fishmonger's Swallet, Gloucestershire. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Speleological Society 29(1), pp. 67-86.
- Bricking, A. 2022. Mortuary practices in the Iron Age of Southwest Britain. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
Articles
- Mavroudas, S. R., Alfsdotter, C., Bricking, A. and Madgwick, R. 2023. Experimental investigation of histotaphonomic changes in human bone from whole-body donors demonstrates limited effects of early post-mortem change in bone. Journal of Archaeological Science 154, article number: 105789. (10.1016/j.jas.2023.105789)
- Bricking, A., Hayes, A. and Madgwick, R. 2022. An interim report on histological analysis of human bones from Fishmonger's Swallet, Gloucestershire. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Speleological Society 29(1), pp. 67-86.
Book sections
- Madgwick, R. and Bricking, A. 2023. Exploring mortuary practices: Histotaphonomic analysis of the human remains and associated fauna. In: Guarino, P. and Barclay, A. eds. In the Shadow of Segsbury: The Archaoelogy of the H380 Childrey Warren Water Pipeline, Oxfordshire, 2018-20. Cotswold Archaeology Monograph Cirencester: Cotswold Archaeology, pp. 96-102.
Thesis
- Bricking, A. 2022. Mortuary practices in the Iron Age of Southwest Britain. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
Research
Research interests:
- Iron Age mortuary practice
- Histology/histotaphonomy
- Iron Age settlement, particuarly hillforts!
- Iron Age art and iconography
Current projects:
Life and Death in Iron Age Wales
Project team: Dr Oliver Davis, Dr Richard Madgwick, Adelle Bricking
This project will focus on the analysis of human remains from two of the sites with the largest assemblages – Dinorben and RAF St. Athan. By combining the contextual study of this material with isotopic and micro-taphonomic analysis, the aim of this project is to directly address how we understand mortuary practices, but also to reveal new insights into the demographics of later prehistoric populations in Wales.
Analyses generously funded by the Cambrian Archaeological Association.
Back to Backwell: A histological examination of human remains from Backwell Cave, North Somerset
The focus of this project is to identify early post-mortem treatments afforded to individuals deposited within the cave through histological analysis of bone diagenesis. This will help determine whether the individuals were inhumed within the cave—as suggested by excavators in the early 20th century—or defleshed prior to deposition. Additionally, radiocarbon dating and stable isotope analysis will greatly enhance our understanding of the lives and deaths of people buried.
C14 generously funded by the Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society (SANHS)
Thesis
Iron Age mortuary practice in southwest Britain
Teaching
Qualifications: Associate Fellow, Advance HE (mark: distinction)
Fellowship reference: PR190890
Seminar tutor:
- Introduction to Ancient History 1: Gods, Kings and Citizens, 1000-323 BCE
- Deep Histories: The Archaeology of Britain
Demonstrator:
- Discovering Archaeology (Drawing, GIS)
- Analysing Archaeology (Archaeological Science)
- Bioarchaeology (Isotope preparation and analysis)
- Forensic Osteoarchaeology (introduction to zooarchaeology)
Teaching assistant:
- Pots, Poems and Pictures: Using Evidence for Ancient History