Postdoctral fellowship in biology and taphonomy of Mesolithic and Upper Palaeolithic human fossils from the South-West of France W/M

Employeur

The University of Bordeaux is a great dynamic and responsible university that cares about the well-being of its staff. Joining us means working in a privileged environment within a particularly diverse and open professional community, benefiting from welcome and inclusion schemes, training and internal mobility. It means participating in an academic, scientific and human adventure. It means committing to meeting the challenges of the 21st century.

Join the laboratory From Prehistory to Present: Culture, Environment and Anthropology (PACEA) – of the University of Bordeaux!

PACEA is a joint research unit attached to the CNRS (Ecology & Environment), the University of Bordeaux and the Ministry of Culture. At the interface of biological, environmental and human sciences, its work addresses major questions related to the factors that have shaped humanity, enabling our ancestors to settle on all continents thanks to adaptive capacities whose diversity we are currently exploring.

As part of the Human Past Major Research Program (GPR), we are recruiting a Postdoctral fellowship in biology and taphonomy of Mesolithic and Upper Palaeolithic human fossils from the South-West of France W/M.

“Human Past” aims to document, characterize and understand the tipping points that have induced major biological and cultural changes within past human populations. Spanning a large chronological period (from Prehistory to historical times), our research aims to identify the steps that enabled a primate originally adapted to African ecosystems to evolve into a species that occupies and impacts every ecosystem on the planet. Biological and social systems will be scrutinized at different scales from a multitude of perspectives with particular attention paid to phenotypic and genetic variability, cognition, technology, social organization, belief systems, and genetic and cultural adaptive strategies that drive human societies.

Votre mission

The scientific proposal consists of conducting:

1.     the biological study of original human fossils from different age classes dating to the Late Paleolithic and the Mesolithic in southwestern France

2.     the study of their taphonomic history

3.     discussions about the variability and originality of mortuary and/or funerary practices, and thus the extent to which they reflect a form of behavioral modernity

This research relates to WP1 and WP4 of the GPR Human Past by addressing at least two tipping points:

-        When, how, and for whom did Late Paleolithic groups reinvent primary burial practices?

-        In relation to previously known mortuary gestures, is it possible to discuss a novel expression of behavioral modernity based on the treatment afforded to certain individuals?

A third set of research will focus on differences in mortuary treatments between Late Paleolithic hunter-gatherers and those of the Mesolithic.

# Development of a database on human fossils from southwestern France (Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Occitanie regions) dating to the Late Paleolithic and the Mesolithic

·       You realize inventoris of sites that have yielded human remains and human remains associated with these sites

·       You proceed data recording of the most relevant biological and taphonomic variables for the project

# Study of Late Paleolithic and Mesolithic human fossils temporarily housed at PACEA and in museum collections

·       two collections from Aurignacian sites: Brassempouy, Isturitz

·       collections of Gravettian and Solutrean sites: Soulabé-las-Maretas, Combe-Saunière

·       collection of one Magdalénien site of Taillis des Coteaux and one Mesolithic fossil: Gare de Couze

·       Labattut rock shelter, Chancelade, Saint-Germain-la-Rivière, La Madelaine, Bruniquel (Magdalenian; National Archaeology Museum, Perigord Art and Archaeology Museum, National Museum of Prehistory, Montauban Museum)

·       Le Roc-du-Barbeau (Sauveterrian ; National Museum of Prehistory)

# Scientific valorisation and supervision of students

·       You participate in national and international conferences

·       You write manuscripts of articles highlighting the results obtained (privileged international editorial supports) individually and in collaboration with the teams

·       You co-supervise or supervise Master 2 students on a topic related to the project by defining the research topic in cohesion with the PACEA teaching team and will participate in the master’s jury

Vos atouts / Vos talents

Holder of a PhD in Biological Anthropology or Prehistory, you have solid knowledge in odontology and human osteology as well as the diversity of mortuary practices within non-state societies.

·       Good knowledge in classical and 3D geometric morphometric methods for the study of fossil human remains

·       You have proven experience in the taphonomic analysis of paleoanthropological assemblages

·       quality to work collaboratively and to integrate effectively within a research laboratory

·       You are proficient in written and oral French and English (level C1 / C2) in reading and writing scientific articles and have already published in an ideally international journal

Do you recognize yourself? Apply!

More information:

The research - conducted under the direction of Bruno Maureille - will focus on the biological study and taphonomic history of original human fossils from the Recent Palaeolithic preserved at PACEA or present within the collections of regional or national museums. The activity will be mainly carried out in a laboratory. This research will feed into the results of the teams Evodibio (25%), Comos (25%), H-Envi (25%) and Eurapal (25%).

This position involves travel in France and abroad (equipment studies, field work, conferences), the B permit is required.

Based in Pessac, Gironde, FRANCE – access by tramway line B (stop « François Bordes ») buses, bike. The laboratory is near the city-centre of Bordeaux and about 60 Km of the Atlantic coasts.

24-month fixed-term contract

Gross monthly salary: from 2750€ and 3090€ according to the salary grid

Job Benefits:

50 days of annual leave from the first year

75% of the cost of a Gironde public transport pass covered

Contribution to private healthcare insurance of 15€ / month

Subsidised meals

Leisure, sports and cultural activities for all staff

Disabled-friendly establishment

Possibility of staff parking

Sustainable mobility package for commuting between home and work

Welcome programme and training courses

Recruitment process: Applications are reviewed as they arrive.

Candidates selected for an interview will be contacted by the Recruitment Officer for a first pre-qualification phone conversation. An interview with the supervisor will then be organised by videoconference. Interested applicants should send a CV, brief statement of qualifications and basis for interest in the position, copies of up to 3 relevant publications, and the email addresses of 2 appropriate references.