Having been born and raised just the other side of the river from where the Newport Medieval Ship was excavated and spending many years exploring the Roman ruins at Caerleon, I have long held an interest in archaeology. I came to the University of Southampton in 2020 to study archaeology and quickly developed an interest in maritime archaeology, completing my Undergraduate dissertation (2023) on maritime cargoes in the Eastern Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age periods.
In the summer between my Undergraduate and Master’s I went to Greece to participate in a project run by the University of Geneva and the Hellenic Centre of Marine Research looking at the submerged landscapes and archaeology of the Argolic Gulf, during which I dived and snorkelled on a number of sites including a Bronze Age city in the Bay of Kilhada, a Roman villa rustica, and a Classical temple.
The following year I completed my Master’s dissertation (2024) on the ancient harbour city of Apollonia in Cyrenaica (Libya), a site and region that continues to occupy my interest. As part of this research I looked at the ways in which the submerged and coastal ruins of the site have been impacted by coastal changes and anthropogenic activity over the past 200 years, and how the site could be protected for future generations.
Realising I wanted to pursue archaeology even further, I was accepted to do a PhD project at the University under the supervision of Dr Crystal El-Safadi, Dr Helen Farr, and Dr Lucy Blue. For this project, I am looking at how the communities of Cyprus during the Bronze Age accessed and interacted with the sea, and the role of the maritime environment in these interactions. As part of this research I am looking at topics including anchorages, maritime indicators in the material culture record, the use of rivers for maritime connectivity, and wind and current patterns around the island during the different seasons.
Alongside my current research, I also served as the host and chair of the organising committee for the Postgraduate Research in Archaeology Symposium 2025, the annual postgraduate student-led conference for the Archaeology Department. I have also been involved in a number of archaeological projects over the past few years, some of which include;
- Excavations at Bitterne Manor (Southampton)
- Geophysical survey at Kingston Maurward (Dorset)
- Intertidal surveys of shipwrecks (River Hamble & Itchenor Harbour)
- Underwater surveys in the Argolic Gulf (Greece)
- Community outreach and excavation of a Bronze Age barrow (Andover)
