Rachel King
@rachelking.bsky.social
Assoc Prof of Cultural Heritage at UCL
History of archaeological thought, disorder, 🇱🇸🗻🇿🇦: https://tinyurl.com/4rb3av9n
Neoliberalism + heritage: https://tinyurl.com/5bedkshr
Methods and Methodologies in Heritage Studies: https://tinyurl.com/92rmc887
History of archaeological thought, disorder, 🇱🇸🗻🇿🇦: https://tinyurl.com/4rb3av9n
Neoliberalism + heritage: https://tinyurl.com/5bedkshr
Methods and Methodologies in Heritage Studies: https://tinyurl.com/92rmc887
THIS IS WHAT I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR LET’S GOOOOOO
Episode 46: Sapiens
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
Sapiens
Podcast Episode · If Books Could Kill · 11/20/2025 · 1h 38m
podcasts.apple.com
November 20, 2025 at 5:16 PM
THIS IS WHAT I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR LET’S GOOOOOO
Reposted by Rachel King
Our first speaker for the series will be Hiba Alkhalaf (Voices of Heritage/Aswat Alturath). She'll be speaking about "From Destruction to Recovery: Syrian Heritage, Fourteen Years on". Link to book below.
www.bbk.ac.uk/events/event...
www.bbk.ac.uk/events/event...
From Destruction to Recovery: Syrian Heritage, Fourteen Years On (CISA seminar series)
First in the Archaeological Collaboration after Conflict Spring 2026 seminar series
www.bbk.ac.uk
November 17, 2025 at 8:50 AM
Our first speaker for the series will be Hiba Alkhalaf (Voices of Heritage/Aswat Alturath). She'll be speaking about "From Destruction to Recovery: Syrian Heritage, Fourteen Years on". Link to book below.
www.bbk.ac.uk/events/event...
www.bbk.ac.uk/events/event...
Reposted by Rachel King
There is nothing better than Robert Lloyd Parry reading a ghost story in a chapel in December. It is as much a part of Christmas as carols, presents and watching It's A Wonderful Life for the forty-first time.
"Casting the Runes" & "The Residence at Whitminster", two ghost stories by M R James, in a fascinating chapel in London on December 7. Tickets below:
tickets now on sale for "Casting the Runes" in London on 7 December
londonmonthofthedead.com/mrjames2025....
londonmonthofthedead.com/mrjames2025....
November 17, 2025 at 6:43 PM
There is nothing better than Robert Lloyd Parry reading a ghost story in a chapel in December. It is as much a part of Christmas as carols, presents and watching It's A Wonderful Life for the forty-first time.
Reposted by Rachel King
In the immortal words of Sir Mix-a-Lot: "And ugh, double-up, ugh, ugh".
2 doggy papers are so much better than 1. Both studies a testament to slow science & international collaboration between brilliant people. What it's all about.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
2 doggy papers are so much better than 1. Both studies a testament to slow science & international collaboration between brilliant people. What it's all about.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
The emergence and diversification of dog morphology
Dogs exhibit an exceptional range of morphological diversity as a result of their long-term association with humans. Attempts to identify when dog morphological variation began to expand have been con...
www.science.org
November 13, 2025 at 7:30 PM
In the immortal words of Sir Mix-a-Lot: "And ugh, double-up, ugh, ugh".
2 doggy papers are so much better than 1. Both studies a testament to slow science & international collaboration between brilliant people. What it's all about.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
2 doggy papers are so much better than 1. Both studies a testament to slow science & international collaboration between brilliant people. What it's all about.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Rachel King
🚨 Job Klaxon! 🚨
@ucl.ac.uk Institute of Archaeology currently has a vacancy for an Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Islamic Archaeology (Ref.: B03-02751)
The post is available from 1 Jan 2026 & is funded until 31 Dec 2028 in the first instance, providing cover for Corisande Fenwick
bit.ly/4oxQgfp
@ucl.ac.uk Institute of Archaeology currently has a vacancy for an Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Islamic Archaeology (Ref.: B03-02751)
The post is available from 1 Jan 2026 & is funded until 31 Dec 2028 in the first instance, providing cover for Corisande Fenwick
bit.ly/4oxQgfp
Job Vacancy: Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Islamic Archaeology
The UCL Institute of Archaeology currently has a vacancy for an Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Islamic Archaeology (Ref.: B03-02751).
bit.ly
November 12, 2025 at 9:37 AM
🚨 Job Klaxon! 🚨
@ucl.ac.uk Institute of Archaeology currently has a vacancy for an Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Islamic Archaeology (Ref.: B03-02751)
The post is available from 1 Jan 2026 & is funded until 31 Dec 2028 in the first instance, providing cover for Corisande Fenwick
bit.ly/4oxQgfp
@ucl.ac.uk Institute of Archaeology currently has a vacancy for an Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Islamic Archaeology (Ref.: B03-02751)
The post is available from 1 Jan 2026 & is funded until 31 Dec 2028 in the first instance, providing cover for Corisande Fenwick
bit.ly/4oxQgfp
Super excited to use this fabulous ‘Behind the Paper’ article by @petravaiglova.bsky.social and @kjkillackey.bsky.social to teach my undergrad theory students about how good visualisations are well-theorised ones. Such a wonderful piece of sci comm! 🏺🧪
communities.springernature.com/posts/making...
communities.springernature.com/posts/making...
Making cutting-edge archaeological science accessible to others
Archaeological scientists are constantly pushing the boundaries with regards to increasing the resolution of analyses and decreasing the masses of what can be analysed. But being cutting-edge is not e...
communities.springernature.com
November 10, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Super excited to use this fabulous ‘Behind the Paper’ article by @petravaiglova.bsky.social and @kjkillackey.bsky.social to teach my undergrad theory students about how good visualisations are well-theorised ones. Such a wonderful piece of sci comm! 🏺🧪
communities.springernature.com/posts/making...
communities.springernature.com/posts/making...
Reposted by Rachel King
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 12:55 AM
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
Reposted by Rachel King
My name is Ozymandias, king of kings!
Look on my UNESCO World Heritage list works and advance neoliberal governmentality!
Look on my UNESCO World Heritage list works and advance neoliberal governmentality!
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings; look on my works, which are part of a nutritious breakfast.
my name is ozymandias, king of kings. ask your doctor if looking upon my works is right for you.
November 6, 2025 at 2:58 AM
My name is Ozymandias, king of kings!
Look on my UNESCO World Heritage list works and advance neoliberal governmentality!
Look on my UNESCO World Heritage list works and advance neoliberal governmentality!
Reposted by Rachel King
The latest output from my milk research with Johanna Zetterström-Sharp @uclarchaeology.bsky.social published in @theconversation.com
theconversation.com/the-politics...
theconversation.com/the-politics...
The politics of milk: how a simple drink got caught up in power, culture and identity
Milk is never just milk. It’s saturated with meaning, emotion and contradiction, and provokes strong responses in people.
theconversation.com
October 24, 2025 at 4:46 AM
The latest output from my milk research with Johanna Zetterström-Sharp @uclarchaeology.bsky.social published in @theconversation.com
theconversation.com/the-politics...
theconversation.com/the-politics...
Reposted by Rachel King
Just over a week out from publication day for my book, In the Shadow of El Tajín: The Political Economy of Archaeology in Modern Mexico (@univnebpress.bsky.social). Read more below or at www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/978....
🗃️📚🇲🇽🏺 #skystorians #Mexico #archaeology #heritage
🗃️📚🇲🇽🏺 #skystorians #Mexico #archaeology #heritage
October 24, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Just over a week out from publication day for my book, In the Shadow of El Tajín: The Political Economy of Archaeology in Modern Mexico (@univnebpress.bsky.social). Read more below or at www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/978....
🗃️📚🇲🇽🏺 #skystorians #Mexico #archaeology #heritage
🗃️📚🇲🇽🏺 #skystorians #Mexico #archaeology #heritage
Look at the cool things my colleagues are doing! ✨
"first successful detection of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone in bones, teeth and dental calculus, opening a way to identify pregnancy in the archaeological record." phys.org/news/2025-10... #histmed #WomensHealth #MedievalSky
Ancient skeletons yield the first hormonal evidence of reproductive life
University of Sheffield and University College London researchers have made the first successful detection of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone in bones, teeth and dental calculus, opening a wa...
phys.org
October 24, 2025 at 12:05 PM
Look at the cool things my colleagues are doing! ✨
So very excited to be a panellist at #UAD25 @uclarchaeology.bsky.social! Come ask me anything (and entertain my kids who will be on their own half term adventure) 🏺
Finally, the moment you've all been waiting for - our panel sessions for University Archaeology Day #UAD25! Our expert panels will be answering questions from YOU in the audience @britishacademy.bsky.social or at home - come along to ask everything you've ever wanted to ask about archaeology!
October 24, 2025 at 12:00 PM
So very excited to be a panellist at #UAD25 @uclarchaeology.bsky.social! Come ask me anything (and entertain my kids who will be on their own half term adventure) 🏺
Book cultures in archaeology YESPLEASE!🏺
New: 'How to Get Ahead in Archaeology...' by Heather Keeble
doi.org/10.11141/ia....
It explores the role that book reviews in British periodicals played in establishing the public credibility of archaeologists as the discipline was in a state of flux & undergoing processes of professionalisation
doi.org/10.11141/ia....
It explores the role that book reviews in British periodicals played in establishing the public credibility of archaeologists as the discipline was in a state of flux & undergoing processes of professionalisation
How to Get Ahead in Archaeology:
Using the Book Review System as a Strategy for 19th-Century Archaeologists, with a Case Study on Charles Roach Smith (1806–1890)
The 19th century was a formative period for archaeology, which wanted to define itself as a credible, scientific subject distinct from antiquarianism. It remained, however, an amateur pursuit with no ...
doi.org
October 20, 2025 at 10:39 AM
Book cultures in archaeology YESPLEASE!🏺
Reviewer 2 says I need to ‘engage with Rachel King’s work more’ in this paper and 1) right on, but also 2) do I not have a distinctive writing voice?! Is this a hidden superpower?
October 20, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Reviewer 2 says I need to ‘engage with Rachel King’s work more’ in this paper and 1) right on, but also 2) do I not have a distinctive writing voice?! Is this a hidden superpower?
Reposted by Rachel King
NEW Sudan is a diverse country with a rich cultural heritage that is under threat from conflict. In a guest editorial, Habab Idriss Ahmed & Geoff Emberling discuss the brave efforts of the Sudanese antiquities department (NCAM) to protect Sudan's #archaeology 🏺
🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...
🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...
October 20, 2025 at 7:13 AM
NEW Sudan is a diverse country with a rich cultural heritage that is under threat from conflict. In a guest editorial, Habab Idriss Ahmed & Geoff Emberling discuss the brave efforts of the Sudanese antiquities department (NCAM) to protect Sudan's #archaeology 🏺
🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...
🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...
Reposted by Rachel King
Are you a student at a UK university and looking for support to come to TAG York? Did you know the Royal Archaeological Institute Cheney Bursary is available to support you?
You can find more details here: www.royalarchinst.org/grants/bursa...
@royalarchinst.bsky.social
You can find more details here: www.royalarchinst.org/grants/bursa...
@royalarchinst.bsky.social
Bursaries
Cheney Bursaries for StudentsAs a result of a bequest left by Frank Cheney, the Institute has a fund to enable students that attend a UK university to attend RAI Meetings and conferences. Individuals ...
www.royalarchinst.org
October 8, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Are you a student at a UK university and looking for support to come to TAG York? Did you know the Royal Archaeological Institute Cheney Bursary is available to support you?
You can find more details here: www.royalarchinst.org/grants/bursa...
@royalarchinst.bsky.social
You can find more details here: www.royalarchinst.org/grants/bursa...
@royalarchinst.bsky.social
Teaching the 2019 Big Gods paper (retractionwatch.com/2021/07/07/c...) as a cautionary tale in archaeological theory, and also in how not to use excel
Critique topples Nature paper on belief in gods
Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay A widely-touted 2019 study in Nature which argued that large societies gave rise to belief in fire-and-brimstone gods — and not the ot…
retractionwatch.com
September 30, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Teaching the 2019 Big Gods paper (retractionwatch.com/2021/07/07/c...) as a cautionary tale in archaeological theory, and also in how not to use excel
Super excited for this! And what excellent timing now that we’re putting together a module on (among other things) gaming 🤗
Pre-orders for Carved in Stone are open!! This book is gorgeous, and I am so grateful to use it (and the artwork!) in my videos.
You can pre-order from @stoutstoat.co.uk here: www.stoutstoat.co.uk/carvedinstone
Thanks to @archaeonado.bsky.social for the endorsement!
🏺 #archaeology #ArchaeologySky
You can pre-order from @stoutstoat.co.uk here: www.stoutstoat.co.uk/carvedinstone
Thanks to @archaeonado.bsky.social for the endorsement!
🏺 #archaeology #ArchaeologySky
September 12, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Super excited for this! And what excellent timing now that we’re putting together a module on (among other things) gaming 🤗
Reposted by Rachel King
🏺🗃️
Our first working-class prehistorian, Bill Varley, assisted socially during the Depression by recruiting unemployed men from Liverpool to his and Joan’s hillfort excavations in Cheshire, allowing them to work whilst still drawing their benefits.
August 15, 2025 at 11:48 AM
🏺🗃️
Reposted by Rachel King
The British university mess is so clearly what happens when the incentives of the people administering and consulting on the system bear no relation to those of anyone actually working in it
August 6, 2025 at 8:40 AM
The British university mess is so clearly what happens when the incentives of the people administering and consulting on the system bear no relation to those of anyone actually working in it
🏺Putting together an exercise using field diaries for my archaeological theory class and wondering whether anyone knows of any digitised/archived *laboratory* diaries that would be good to teach with? 🙏🏻
(Before anyone asks the Catalhoyuk research portal search isn’t working 🙃)
(Before anyone asks the Catalhoyuk research portal search isn’t working 🙃)
August 5, 2025 at 8:03 AM
🏺Putting together an exercise using field diaries for my archaeological theory class and wondering whether anyone knows of any digitised/archived *laboratory* diaries that would be good to teach with? 🙏🏻
(Before anyone asks the Catalhoyuk research portal search isn’t working 🙃)
(Before anyone asks the Catalhoyuk research portal search isn’t working 🙃)
Reposted by Rachel King
Today is August 1.
Asking an academic how their book is going is a felony.
Asking an academic how their book is going is a felony.
August 1, 2025 at 12:17 PM
Today is August 1.
Asking an academic how their book is going is a felony.
Asking an academic how their book is going is a felony.
Reposted by Rachel King
Like science? Then you better be interested when *someone* starts putting out hit pieces on scientists. This is beyond the pale ethically and honestly anyone who doesn’t want to slide to hell on a slick of ai generated content that benefits billionaire business, maybe now is the time to get angry.
August 1, 2025 at 7:05 AM
Like science? Then you better be interested when *someone* starts putting out hit pieces on scientists. This is beyond the pale ethically and honestly anyone who doesn’t want to slide to hell on a slick of ai generated content that benefits billionaire business, maybe now is the time to get angry.
Reposted by Rachel King
2/ On that direction of travel, I wrote this earlier this year: apollo-magazine.com/usaid-abolit...
What the dismantling of USAID means for world heritage
As development agencies have become increasingly entangled with heritage projects, the end of USAID raises the question of who will fill the funding gap
apollo-magazine.com
July 22, 2025 at 12:21 PM
2/ On that direction of travel, I wrote this earlier this year: apollo-magazine.com/usaid-abolit...
My children have complementary approaches to birthday cake
July 19, 2025 at 2:21 PM
My children have complementary approaches to birthday cake