Take care of yourselves and others!

In these trying circumstances, it is crucial no to lose sight of the things that are most important - being...
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New BIRTH publication – journal article “Bone spoons for prehistoric babies”

ERC BIRTH team has published its latest results in the article "Bone spoons for prehistoric babies: Detection of human teeth marks...
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Scientific gathering “Social sciences and humanities in Serbia”

On Friday, December 13th, at 9:00 AM, in the Grand Hall of SASA scientific gathering "Social sciences and humanities in...
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About the project

 

BIRTH is a 5 year research project financed by the European Research Conucil and led by Professor Sofija Stefanović  at the BioSense Institute in Novi Sad, Serbia. The BIRTH project will investigate the key biological and cultural mechanisms affecting fertility rates resulting in the Neolithic Demographic Transition, the major demographic shift in human evolution. We integrate skeletal markers with micro-nutritional and macro-scaled cultural effects on fertility rates during the Early-Middle Holocene (10000-5000 BC) in the Central Balkans. Human, animal and plant remains, will be analysed using methods from bioarchaeological, forensic, chemical sciences in order to:

  1. Investigate variability in the patter of birth rates (number of pregnancies, interval(s) between them and the duration of the reproductive period) though historical analysis of irregularities in tooth cementum of women;
  2. Determine paleoobsteric and neonatal body characteristics, health status and nutrition through analysis of skeletal remains;
  3. Determine micronutritional changes during the Early-Middle Holocene through trace element (Zn, Ca and Fe) analysis;
  4. Investigate the micro and macronutritional value of prehistoric foodstuffs, through an analysis of animal and plant remains and to compare the nutritional intake in relation to health and fertility;
  5. Establish a chronology of the NDT in the Balkans by summed radiocarbon probability distributions;
  6. Explore the possible role of culture in driving fertility increases, through analysis of community attitudes to birthing through investigation of artefact connected to the birthing process.

 

 

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Meet our team

Dr Sofija Stefanović

Dr Sofija Stefanović

Principal investigator

Physical anthropologist, coordinates the project and investigates skeletal paleoobstetric evidence, neonatal growth and development, and the role of macro and micro nutrients in reproductive success and health. Furthermore, she is exploring possible archaeological indicators of prehistoric community concern for birthing and baby care.

Dr Vesna Dimitrijević

Dr Vesna Dimitrijević

Senior Researcher

Archaeozoologist, coordinates analysis of animal remains and investigates different aspects of the significance of animals for human communities during the early stages of animal domestication.

Dr Marko Porčić

Dr Marko Porčić

Senior Researcher

Archaeologist, coordinates the reconstruction of population dynamics and develops methods for the reconstruction of demographic aspects of prehistoric populations based on skeletal and other kinds of archaeological evidence.

Dr Bojan Petrović

Dr Bojan Petrović

Senior Researcher

Paediatric dentist, investigates dental aspects of health and nutrition through the analysis of bite marks, characterization of bone and dental tissues, simulation of interactions between these structures and elemental analysis using SEM, EDX and nanoindentation techniques.

Dr Dragana Filipović

Dr Dragana Filipović

Senior Researcher

Archaeobotanist, investigates the use of plants, their role in the diet and economy, and the scale and intensity of crop cultivation at the time of the emergence and spread of agriculture.

Dr Darko Stojanovski

Dr Darko Stojanovski

Postdoc

Archaeologist; investigates
organic residue (lipids) from
Neolithic pottery, as a way of
reconstructing human diet and the
relationship between humans and
their environment at the beginning of
farming and sedentary lifestyle.

Jelena Jovanović

Jelena Jovanović

Postdoc

Physical anthropologist, investigates skeletal evidence of health and nutrition and paleoobstetric data through the analysis of female pelvic bones and neonatal bones by 3D reconstruction.

Ivana Živaljević

Ivana Živaljević

Postdoc

Archaeozoologist, investigates macro and micronutritive potential of diet, especially the role and effects of an aquatic diet on human health and fertility.

Kristina Penezić

Kristina Penezić

PhD Student

Archaeologist, investigates skeletal evidence of fertility through the analysis of irregularities in the tooth cementum which occurs in pregnancy, namely the width and degree of mineralization of incremental lines.

Tamara Blagojević

Tamara Blagojević

PhD Student

Archaeologist, reconstructs population dynamics using the method of summed radiocarbon probability distributions.

Jugoslav Pendić

Jugoslav Pendić

PhD Student

Archaeologist, involved in geopositioning of archaeological sites investigated within the project. He is also involved in 3D photography of archaeological material analyzed within the project using photogrammerty and 3D visualization.

MSc. Sanja Kojić

MSc. Sanja Kojić

PhD Student

Master of Power, Electronic and Telecommunication Engineering with wide expertise in characterization techniques (SEM, 3D profile Microscopy, Optical Microscopy, Nanoindentation techniques) used in Micro and Nano Electronic, Bio-medicine and Dentistry and Data Base forming and maintenance. For BIRTH project in-charged for all kinds of Microscopy, Nanoindentation and Data Base forming.

Marija Krečković

Marija Krečković

PhD Student

Archaeologist, assists in database systematization and sample preparation.

Collaborators

Richard Evershed

Richard Evershed

Head of the Organic Geochemistry Unit, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol

Collaborating on the extraction and analyses of organic residues (lipids) from archaeological pot-shards from four Neolithic sites in the Balkan Peninsula. This should give us an insight into the diet of the people in prehistory, the function of the different pots, as well as the introduction and consumption of milk and dairy products at this early stage of farming.

Anđelka Putica

Anđelka Putica

The Town Museum of Sombor, Serbia

BIRTH project collaborates with AnđelkaPutica on various topics, including research on the Early Neolithic sites of Magareći mlin and Topole-Bač (archaeological background, the analysis of the pottery assemblages, providing access to the osteological material for anthropological and archaeozoological analyses and pottery for lipid analyses).

Darko Radmanović

Darko Radmanović

Museum of Vojvodina, Serbia

BIRTH project collaborates with archaeozoologist Darko Radmanović on the analysis of faunal remains from the Early Neolithic site of Golokut-Vizić.

Aneta Fidanoska

Aneta Fidanoska

Archaeozoologist in Archaeological museum of Macedonia

BA in archaeology (University “St. Cyril and Methodius”, Faculty of Philosophy in Skopje), Master in archaeometry (“St. Clement of Ohrid”, Faculty of History in Sofia)
BIRTH project collaborates with Ms Aneta Fidanoska on the archaeozoological study of the Early Neolithic site Govrlevo.

Ursula Wittwer - Backofen

Ursula Wittwer - Backofen

Head of Department, Biological Anthropology, Faculty of Medicine University of Freiburg

Collaboration on the Tooth cementum annulation analyses

Petra Katharina Urban

Petra Katharina Urban

Research Associate, Biological Anthropology, Faculty of Medicine University of Freiburg

Collaboration on the Tooth cementum annulation analyses

Marie Balasse

Marie Balasse

CNRS-Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris

BIRTH project collaborates with dr Marie Balasse on the analysis of stable nitrogen and carbon isotope compositions (δ15N and δ13C) of dentine collagen from cattle in order to determine their weaning stages and seasonality in diet; as well as on the analysis of stable carbon and oxygen isotope compositions (δ13C and δ18O) of enamel bioapatite from cattle molars in order to determine their birth seasonality and gain a better understanding of the landscape.

Goce Naumov

Goce Naumov

Assistant Professor, Goce Delčev University, Republic of Macedonia

BIRTH project collaborates with Goce Naumov on the research on Early Neolithic sites in the Republic of Macedonia. This mainly includes the research on the site of Vrbjanska Čuka, but also collaborations with other museum institutions in the Republic of Macedonia (City Museum Skopje, Institute and Museum Štip, Institute and Museum –Prilep, Institute and Museum Bitola). Dr Goce Naumov specializes in Neolithic settlement archaeology, pottery and figurines.