Applications closed at 17:00 on Monday July 4th 2011

The Discovery Programme is seeking applications for the position of Principal Researcher for a Late Iron Age & Roman Ireland (LIARI) 0-500AD Project

This is an 18 month contract;

salary €45,915 per annum

Closing date for applications is 5.00pm 4 July 2011

Contact us at 63 Merrion Square, Dublin 2; (01) 6393039;

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 LIARI Apllication Form (141.92 kB)

The LIARI Project Background

The purpose of this project is to investigate a relatively enigmatic and understudied yet formative period in Ireland's past: the first few centuries AD. In particular it will consider the nature of Ireland's interactions with the Roman Empire, and especially with Roman Britain.

Objectives

• to characterise the environment, settlement patterns, social structures and ritual practices (both pagan and potentially Christian) during the period covered
• to assess the extent to which these differ from those of the last few centuries BC and the extent to which they changed over the course of the period, which includes the immediate aftermath of the collapse of Roman authority in Britain
• to reassess the nature of the interactions between Ireland and the Roman Empire and to consider the extent to which changes evident within the period were influenced by these contacts
• to consider the responses of people in Ireland – potentially including resistance as well as reception – to the Roman Empire
• to compare and contrast Roman-Irish interactions with those between the Empire and other regions immediately outside its boundaries

Strategies

• The project will comprise a number of modest and discrete modules of short duration that will collectively fulfil its objectives but which will also stand as independent entities.
• Collaborative networks will be established with scholars working in Ireland and abroad.
• The project will focus initially on the east of the country, and especially on the region centring on the Boyne and Liffey valleys, where there is particularly rich evidence for settlement and other sites dating to this period as well as for interactions with the Empire.
• The sections on Late Iron Age and Roman material in the DP's recent scoping studies (completed January 2011) will be used as a basis for selecting particular settlements and landscapes for detailed study, and an initial reassessment of the relevant artefactual evidence will also be carried out.
• The first module will focus primarily on coastal sites that may illuminate outside contacts, most notably promontory forts. It is envisaged that a programme of topographical and geophysical survey of selected promontory forts, perhaps supplemented by excavation, will be carried out within the first year.
• Settlements and ritual/religious sites in river valleys leading from the east coast will also be considered. These might include one or more ecclesiastical sites that were probably founded before 500.
• In order to investigate power structures and institutions such as kingship, some of the sites selected may form components of ceremonial landscapes. In particular, there is considerable potential to build upon and carry forward the DP's long-standing programme of research on the landscape of Tara.
• Future modules will include a comprehensive reassessment of the artefactual evidence for the period (both 'native' and 'Roman'). This will be carried out in consultation/collaboration with those researchers who are currently working on some of this material. A pilot study on an aspect of the material culture of the period will be carried out as part of the initial module.
• In another module the environmental context will be considered through a reassessment of published data (building on the DP's recent scoping study on the late prehistoric environment) and ideally through the collection of new environmental data.
• The emerging patterns will be placed in a broad international context through a comparative study of transfrontier interactions, preferably carried out in collaboration with scholars working on material from other regions immediately outside the borders of the Empire.

Job description – Principal Investigator – Late Iron Age and 'Roman' Ireland AD 0-500

Pay grade: c.€45,000

Location: headquarters at 63 Merrion Square, Dublin 2, with fieldwork as necessary. This is an eighteen-month contract and is non-pensionable.

Organisational data:

This project is one of a number of research projects undertaken by the Discovery Programme, all of which are supported by the core administrative, technical and environmental staff.

The person appointed will be responsible to a supervising project committee and, in a day-to-day sense, to the CEO of the Discovery Programme. The person appointed will be responsible for the supervision of any assistant employed for the project and for day-to-day relations with any external organisation or individual involved in the research.

Job Summary

The purpose of this project is to investigate a relatively enigmatic and understudied yet formative period in Ireland's past: the first half of the first millennium AD. In particular it will consider the nature of Ireland's interactions with the Roman Empire, and especially with Roman Britain. The project will comprise a number of modest and discrete modules of short duration that will collectively fulfil its objectives. This position relates to the first of these modules which will focus primarily on eastern coastal sites, most notably promontory forts, that may illuminate outside contacts. It is envisaged that a programme of topographical and geophysical survey of selected promontory forts, perhaps supplemented by small-scale excavation, will be carried out within this module.

It is envisaged that the emerging pattern will be placed in a broad international context through a comparative study of transfrontier interactions, preferably carried out in collaboration with scholars working on material from other regions immediately outside the borders of the Empire.

The duties of the person appointed will be as follows:

The primary task is to assess the current state of knowledge relating to Ireland AD 0-500, with particular emphasis on the nature of Roman-Irish interactions, and to direct a programme of research involving survey and possibly small-scale excavation on a selection of relevant east coast sites. This research must be publication ready by the end of the contract. In order to achieve these aims the appointee must:

• Use the relevant sections of the three recently completed DP scoping studies on the late prehistoric environment, Iron Age settlement and Ireland, 400-800, as the basis for a new assessment of the current state of knowledge on Late Iron Age and 'Roman' Ireland.
• Carry out a desk-top survey with a view to identifying relevant monuments and potential study areas on the east coast, especially in the area of the Boyne and Liffey valleys, where there is particularly rich evidence dating to this period, as well as for interactions with the Roman world.
• Carry out, in association with the DP survey team, a field survey using such techniques as geophysics, Lidar, terrestrial laser-scanning and photogrammetry of a small selection of relevant sites and monuments in the region, with a particular emphasis on coastal promontory forts. If possible, this work may be supplemented by small-scale excavation.
• Provide a critical assessment of the potential of the sites/locations identified including their potential for further survey, excavation and environmental analyses.
• Establish links, and ideally partnerships, with other institutions, corporate bodies and researchers (including archaeologists and scholars working in other academic disciplines) that may contribute knowledge and expertise.
• Ensure that both the general desk-based assessment of the period and the field survey are ready for publication by the end of the contract.
• In addition the person appointed will be required
• To provide regular progress reports to the CEO, project committee and Directorate.
• To provide public and academic presentations on the progress of the research as and when appropriate including online content and outreach material and activities.
• To explore the possibilities for finding alternative and/or additional sources of income to finance the project.

Person Specification: Principal Researcher - Late Iron Age & Roman Ireland

Essential attributes:

• Demonstrated expertise in the general area being investigated by the project
• PhD in relevant subject area or demonstration of equivalent independent research
• Demonstration of ability to carry out and deliver independent research in an area related to the project
• Proven ability to deliver research project on a tight timeframe/budget
• Demonstrated leadership/co-ordination of small research team/associates
• Demonstrated excellent written and communication skills
• Demonstrated record of bringing research to publication
• Project management experience

Desirable attributes:

• GIS interpretation/processing experience
• Experience in directing archaeological excavations or excavation licence eligible
• Expertise in geophysical and topographical surveying
• Expert knowledge of the material culture of the project period
• Budget management experience
• Full driving licence and access to own vehicle
• Holder of FAS Safe Pass
• Flexibility towards working arrangements
• Team worker
• Ability to take account of sources and secondary literature in more than one language