PALaEoScot: New Approaches to Scotland’s Oldest Archaeology

This lecture presents the latest results of the PALaEoScot project, a research initiative from the University of Aberdeen centred on the use of archaeo-ecological approaches to explore the low visibility archaeology of Late Pleistocene Scotland and its recolonisation as glaciers retreated. The latest evidence for Scotland’s Ice Age people will be explored, along with their continental connections, the landscapes they encountered, and the fearsome beasts they shared their world with. This lecture was part of the Edinburgh Science Festival 2026. About the Speaker Professor Kate Britton FSAScot began her archaeological career in 2002 at Durham University, where she studied Archaeology (BSc), specialising in prehistory, bioarchaeology and palaeodietary reconstruction. She then moved on to University of Reading in 2005 to study for a NERC-funded MSc degree in Geoarchaeology. It was at Reading that Kate began to incorporate the stable isotope analysis of animal and human remains into her research. In 2006 she returned to Durham to start a PhD in Bioarchaeology, again receiving sponsorship from NERC. In 2007 she joined the Department of Human Evolution at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, initially as a doctoral candidate, and after finishing her thesis, as a post-doctoral research scientist and DAAD Junior Scholarship holder. Kate was appointed Lecturer in Archaeological Science in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Aberdeen in 2010, becoming Senior Lecturer in 2016, and Head of Department in 2020. Kate was made Professor (Personal Chair) in 2021. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Support Us The Society is grateful for our thousands of Fellows across the globe, whose support enables us to record our lectures, making them free and open to all. Anyone who is interested in Scotland’s past can apply to become a Fellow, whether they are an enthusiast or professional. In addition to helping the charity achieve its aims, benefits of Fellowship include: exclusive access to all articles in the Society’s annual peer-reviewed journal the use of the FSAScot post-nominal letters invitations to exclusive in-person and online events becoming part of a network of Fellows (members) with one common passion – Scotland’s past “In recent years, I have greatly appreciated the enhanced opportunities to attend online events and lectures from Canada, as well as participating in the Society’s outreach activities to Fellows based outside Scotland.” - Elizabeth Ewan, Professor Emerita of Scottish Studies and History and a member of the Centre for Scottish Studies at the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada If you would like to find out more about joining this network of Fellows, learning about Scotland’s history, heritage and archaeology from the Palaeolithic to the present day, and helping a charity which has supported the study and enjoyment of Scotland's past for over 240 years, please visit our website: https://www.socantscot.org/join/