Research Themes

Katharina’s main interest is Later European Prehistory, in particular the Bronze- and Early Iron Ages in Central Europe. Within the ‘Tracing Networks’ program she researches identities and social relations by studying human representations and funerary remains.

The study of human representations north of the Alps will shed light on aspects of Early Iron Age identities as well as investigate the links in which communities are tied into networks of relationships with the Mediterranean. Examining human representations on a range of object types, including bronze and pottery, provides insights into the mechanisms of transmission of knowledge, technology and beliefs. Rather than focusing on the narrative content of the image, this project utilizes details such as gestures and postures, dress and associated objects as keys to understanding how identity and new understandings of society are communicated.

Her other main fields of interest are the Archaeology of the Human Body as well as Social Complexity in the Bronze and Iron Ages, both primarily based on the analysis of funerary remains. Furthermore she is interested in the history of archaeological theory and practice in Continental Europe and in computer applications in archaeology. Her field project on the Braunsberg, Lower Austria, focuses on Early Iron Age households and the investigation of relations between neighbouring sites in the border area of Austria, Slovakia and Hungary.

• Tracing Networks: craft traditions in the ancient Mediterranean and beyond
• Changing beliefs of the human body: A comparative social perspective
• CRIC: Identity and Conflict: Cultural Heritage and the Re-construction of Identities after Conflict.