About MHAAM

The analysis of DNA extracted from archaeological remains has transformed the study of the human past. Until now the new insights have been restricted chiefly to “pre-history,” and to northern, cooler regions of the globe, where DNA is better preserved.

 

DNA is now beginning to illuminate the period that saw the rise of civilizations in the ancient Mediterranean. Accordingly, the Initiative for the Science of the Human Past at Harvard (SoHP) is delighted to announce the renewal for five more years (2021-2026) of the now established Harvard-Max Planck Research Center for the new discipline of archaeoscience focusing its investigations on ancient biomolecules, including ancient DNA.

 

The Max Planck-Harvard Research Center for the Archaeoscience of the Ancient Mediterranean (MHAAM) is a platform to engage colleagues and students in the discovery of new data which will prompt us to re-think and revise many of our contemporary perspectives on the history of pandemic disease, cultural engagement, migration and human health. 

 

The main research sites for MHAAM are the Johannes Krause’s Department of Archaeogenetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, and the Initiative for the Science of the Human Past at Harvard (SoHP), with research groups including those of Michael McCormick, David Reich, and Christina Warinner.