Team

An interdisciplinary team of archaeologists, palaeoecologists, and data scientists collaborating to push the boundaries of historical demography.

Martin Hinz

Project PI

Martin Hinz is the principal investigator of the ESTER project and researcher of Prehistoric Archaeology at Kiel University. His research focuses on computational archaeology, Bayesian modeling, and human-environment interactions in Europe and Western Asia. Martin has led large-scale projects like XRONOS, integrating archaeological and paleoenvironmental data to refine prehistoric population estimates. His work bridges archaeology, paleoecology, and statistical modeling to provide new insights into long-term societal transformations.

Sophie C. Schmidt

Postdoctoral Researcher
(Archaeological Data & Proxy Development)

Sophie Schmidt will focus on the development of archaeological demographic proxies. Her PhD (WIP at Freie Universität Berlin) deals with the 5th mill. BC in Brandenburg (North-Eastern Germany) and the connections to neighbouring regions. She employs statistical hypothesis tests and modeling to analyse interactions, settlement patterns and land use.

N.N.

Postdoctoral Researcher
(Palaeoecology & Environmental Data Integration)

Bringing expertise in palaeoecology, this postdoctoral researcher works on integrating environmental data into ESTER’s population models. Their work involves processing pollen data, sediment records, and climate reconstructions to assess human-environment interactions and long-term ecological trends. They also contribute to developing uncertainty estimates for past population dynamics.

Jun Sun

Postdoctoral Researcher
(Computational & Statistical Modelling)

Jun Sun is a postdoctoral researcher focusing on Bayesian hierarchical modelling and statistical approaches to reconstructing prehistoric population dynamics. Within ESTER, he develops and implements the computational framework for integrating heterogeneous archaeological and palaeoenvironmental proxies, explicitly accounting for uncertainties, biases, and differences in spatial and temporal resolution. His work advances robust, flexible, and reproducible models for investigating long-term demographic change across Europe and Western Asia.

Caroline Bach.

PhD Researcher
(European Population Trends & Innovation Dynamics)

The PhD researcher investigates prehistoric population trends in Europe, focusing on the relationship between demographic changes and technological innovations. Their work examines key transitions such as the introduction of secondary animal products and the impact of crises on population resilience. They will also contribute to methodological advancements in integrating archaeological and paleoecological datasets.

Advisory Board

• Michael Barton, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University
• Andrew Bevan, Institute of Archaeology, UCL
• Enrico R. Crema, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge
• Jennifer C. French, Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool
• Kristian Kristiansen, Department of Historical Studies, University of Gothenburg
• Felix Riede, School of Culture and Society, Aarhus University
• Alessio Palmisano, Department of Historical Studies, University of Turin
• Marko Porčić, Department of Archaeology, University of Belgrade
• Isabell Schmidt, Institute of Prehistoric Archaeology, Cologne University
• Stephen Shennan, Institute of Archaeology, UCL
• Michael E. Smith, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University
• Bernie Weninger, Institute of Prehistoric Archaeology, Cologne University

Header Image: Photo by Tobias Mrzyk at Unsplash