Susanne Kerner

Susanne Kerner

  • Karen Blixens Plads 8

    2300 København S

1993 …2020

Research activity per year

Personal profile

Current research

The role of of food in identity building and the relationship between commensality and social organisation.

Ritual landscapes in Mughayrat. A survey and excavation in central Jordan.

Social organisation, prestige and craft specialisation (6th to 3rd mill. BCE)

 

 

Teaching:

Undergraduate Teaching

Introduction to Mesopotamian Archaeology, Archaeological Theory, Technique and Method, Approaches to Historic Archaeology, Complex Society, Neolithisation, Archaeology of Israel, Jordan and Palestine, Archaeology of Iran, Women in the Near East, Archaeology of Social Life, BA-seminar

Graduate Teaching

Theory and Method, International Seminar (topics such as Opposition and Resistance, Rituals, Archaeology and Memory, The social life of things, Food and Commensality, Gender, Architecture, Conflict, Water), Special Topics: Food and Identity, Critical Analysis, Grenvalg Studies, Supervisison of MA-papers (e.g. Iron-Age pottery from Jordan, Middle-Bronze-Age pottery from Syria, Hittite landscape archaeology, Stone vessels from Dilmun, Neo-Assyrian figurines, Neolithic groundstone tools from Shkarat Msiad, Ubaid figurines)

Supervision of PhDs

 

Primary fields of research

Near Eastern Archaeology

Theoretical Archaeology, particulary Gender Studies

Social and Political Development (Stateformation)

Food, its cultural and social aspects

Ritual

Pottery studies

CV

Susanne Kerner, Mag. Art. , Dr. Phil. (Berlin)

 

Curriculum Vitae

Since 2004      Lektor (Associate Professor) in Near Eastern Archaeology at the Carsten-Niebuhr-Section (TORS) in Copenhagen, Denmark (afdelingsleder 2005-2010)          

2002-2003      Work as pottery specialist on material from Aqaba, Jordan, for the German Archaeological Institute. Part-time lecturer at Free University in Berlin

2001-2002      Full-time grant from the German Research Foundation (DFG) to work on the publication of the excavation at Umm Qais – Gadara, Jordan.

2000-2001      Guest-lecturer at the Carsten-Niebuhr Institute in Copenhagen.

1998-2000      Several short-time contracts  (analysis of archaeological material and field-directorship) for the German Archaeological Institute (DAI).

1998              Dr. phil (Craft specialisation and social organisation in the Southern Levant)

1990-1995      Director at the GPI in Amman (Jordan)

1988-1990      Academic Assistant at the German Protestant Institute for Archaeology and History (GPI) in Amman (Jordan)

1987              Magister Artium in Near Eastern Archaeology (major), Ethnology/Anthropology and Assyriology (Freie Universität Berlin, Germany)

 

EXCAVATIONS

2014-current   Fieldschool of the Copenhagen University (ToRS) in Jordan

2013-current   Director of the "Ritual Landscapes in Murayghat, Jordan project"

2008-2009      Director of the survey and clearance project “The Desert and the Sown in Northern Jordan (DSNJ)”

2000              Field-director of the field-school excavation at Shaqarat Mazyad (CNA-project)

1999              Field-director of the excavation in Tell Khanasiry (DAI project)    

1998-2005      Pottery specialist at a prehistoric excavation in Aqaba (DAI-project)

1992-1995      Director of the excavation Umm Qais (Hellenistic-Roman) in Northern Jordan. 

1990-1992       Co-director of the prehistoric excavation Abu Snesleh in central Jordan

 

 

LECTURES (selection) and STUDIES

2017                 Invited lecture at Dead Sea Conference in Chemnitz "The Chalcolithic in the Dead Sea Region"

2016                 Lecture at ICJAH in Amman “The Ritual landscape of Murayghat”; Lecture at ICAANE in Vienna “The Transition between the Late Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze Age in the Southern Levant”.

2015                 Invited lecture “Water in the Steppe. Chalcolithic water systems and forerunners” in Copenhagen (Symposium held on the occasion of Peder Mortensen's 80th birthday).

2013                Lecture at ICJAH in Berlin „Late Chalcolithic and Middle Bronze Age Pottery in Abu Snesleh and its meaning in food preparation“; at 5th. Mill. BC Iran conference „The pottery of Tall-i-Gaud-i-Rahim“.

2012                Lecture at ICAANE in Warschau (The desert and the sown in Northern Jordan), at COPPER-Conference in Krakau (Organisation of labour and social complexity in the metal work of the Chalcolithic).

2009                 Lecture at Prehistory Conference in Amman (Problems, gaps and promises in Late Prehistoric research in Jordan)

2008                 Lectures at ICAANE in Rome (Rank, Status and Agency in Chalcolithic Southern Levant), at ARCHAIA in Copenhagen (Pottery analysis)

2007                 Invited lecture at university of Freiburg.

2006                 Invited Lecture at workshop ICAANE in Madrid (The transition from the complex societies of the Late Chalcolithic to the urbanised societies of the Early Bronze Age was not smooth but bumpy) and Ubaid-conference in Durham (Ubaid period and craft specialisation). 

2004                 Lectures: ICHAJ in Petra (Elites and Exchange in the Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze     Age I), ICAANE in Berlin, invited lectures at DAI in Damascus (Das Wassersystem in Gadara- Umm Qais and at university of Vienna (Metall und Gesellschaft in der Levante)

2001-2004         Organisation and publication of a lecture-programme for the wider public over several years (with the Goethe-Institute). 

2002                Invited lectures to the “Domestic Space” Conference in Toronto, the university of Binghamton, DAI, Berlin.

2001                 Lectures: ICHAJ in Sydney (Chiefdoms in the Southern Levant), 5th Mill. conference in Liverpool (Political Organisation).       

2000                 Invitations to the workshop “The individual as a force in history“ in Copenhagen; Wadi Faynan-Conference (Metal Production, Labour Organisation and Social Complexity). Lecture about the Tell Khanasiry-project in Copenhagen (ICAANE).       

1999                 Lectures: Conference about Water “Men of Dikes” in Petra-Jordan (Organisation of water supply in Gadara);  Instrumentum-Conference in Berlin (Specialisation).

1998                 Lecture: ICHAJ in Copenhagen (Pottery decoration and specialisation).

1996                 Invitation for lecture: Conference about “History of Science” in Regensburg (Processual and Post-Processual Archaeology: different possibilities in interpretation).

1992-1995         Lectures: International Conference on the History and Archaeology of Jordan (ICHAJ) in Irbid; ARAM Conference in Oxford; BANEA-Conference in London; Free University Berlin; ICHAJ in Turin (Water systems in northern Jordan; Problems of chronology and interpretation in the Chalcolithic period).                                                      

 

ORGANISATION of EXHIBITIONS and CONFERENCES

 

2014                 Co-organisation of the "Food, Identity and Social Change workshop"

2013                 Organisation of "A Day of Ritual" in ToRS, Copenhagen University.

2010-2011         Planning and Organisation of a workshop “Food and Identity” in Copenhagen (with Cynthia Chou and Morten Warmind)          

2009                 Planning and Organisation of “Climate and Ancient Society” in Copenhagen

2008                 Organisation of ARCHAIA conference in Copenhagen 2003-2004         Member of the planning committee for the 2004 "Faces of the Orient" exhibition about     Jordan 

2000                 Planning and Organisation (administrative and academic) of the international symposium “Adaptation of Archaeological Methods in Near Eastern Archaeology” in Berlin (with Arnulf Hausleitner).

1992-1996         Organisation of two international conference in co-operation with four other foreign institutes and Jordanian agencies, co-operation in the organisation of different workshops (Irbid, Leiden)

1991-1994         Organisation of an exhibition about German archaeological work in Jordan. Financial planning and supervision of a restoration project in the Ottoman village near Umm Qais, Jordan (income generating project for the population).                                                   

 

CULTURAL HERITAGE PROJECTS

2001                 Advice to the Jordanian Department of Antiquities for the final concept in the regional museum in Irbid, northern Jordan.

1995                 Installation of a museum-room with finds from excavation in Umm Qais.

1992-1994         Supervision and enlargement of a local museum in Umm Qais as well as planning and co-ordination of further restoration works on the site.

1990                 Organisation and implementation of the new information boards for the National Museum of Archaeology in Amman.

           

EXTERNAL FINANCING

Umm Qais excavations: 20.000-30.000 DM each from German Research Foundation (DFG) and Gerda-Henkel Stiftung 1993, 1994, 1995.

Umm Qais restauration project: 20.000 DM from Ministry for Development 1991

Abu Snesleh excavation: 20.000 DM from German Archaeological Institute in 1990 and 1992

Climate and Ancient Societies conference: 90.000 DKK from Faculty of Humanities (on top of 250.000 DKK from Forskningsråd)

The Desert and the Sown in Northern Jordan (DSNJ) survey: 200.000 and 300.000 DKK in 2008 and 2009.

Ritual Landscape in Murayghat, Jordan: 190.000 DKK in 2014.

 

MEMBERSHIP

Founding of a multi-disciplinary  network-group for intensive studies concerning generaltheoretical questions of archaeology and anthropology (economic, social questions ofdevelopment, conflicts, hierarchy, cult etc.) 1986-cont.

 

Member of „Deutsche Orient Gesellschaft“

Member of scientific committee of journal „Das Altertum“ (since 2004)

Member of scientific committee of journal “Paleorient” (since 2009)

 

Publications                Susanne Kerner

MONOGRAPHIES

ín prep.        The Water System in Umm Qais – Gadara. Excavations from 2000-2005.

2001    Das Chalkolithikum in Jordanien. Die Entwicklung von handwerklicher Spezialisierung und ihre Beziehung­­ zu gesellschaftlicher Komplexität­­.. Orient-Archäologie 8, Berlin.

1993    Die Keramik aus Vakilabad. Berliner Beiträge zum Vorderen Orient 13. Berlin, Dietrich Reimers Verlag.

EDITORSHIP

2015   Commensality. From Everyday Food to Feast. Bloomsbury Publishers, London. (peer-reviewed). With Cynthia Chou and Morten Warmind.

2015   Ancient Societies and Climate. Museum Tusculanum Press, Copenhagen. (peer-reviewed). With Rachael J. Dann and Pernille Jensen.

2010    Social development in the 6th and 5th mill. BCE (Turkey, Iran and the Levant). Thematic volume Paléorient, vol. 36.1, 1-198.

1994    The Near East in Antiquity IV. Archaeological work of national and international institutions in Jordan. Al-Kutba, Amman

1992    The Near East in Antiquity III. German contributions to the archaeology of Jordan, Palestine, Syria Lebanon and Egypt. Al-Kutba, Amman.

1990    The Near East in Antiquity II. German contributions to the archaeology of Jordan, Palestine, Syria Lebanon and Egypt. Al-Kutba, Amman.

1989    The Near East in Antiquity I. German contributions to the archaeology of Jordan, Palestine, Syria Lebanon and Egypt. Al-Kutba, Amman.

Hausleiter, Arnulf/ Kerner, Susanne and Müller-Neuhof, Bernd

2004    Material Culture and Mental Spheres. Proceedings of the Symposium 2000 in Honour of Prof. Dr. H.J. Nissen. Münster.

Adolf Hoffmann and Kerner, Susanne

2002    Gadara- Gerasa und die Dekapolis. Mainz, Philipp-von-Zabern Verlag.

 

ARTICLES and REVIEWS

fc. a     Metal Production, Labour Organisation and Social Complexity. Proceedings of the Wadi Feynan Conference. CBRL, Amman. Accepted May 2000.

fc. b     Social-Political Organisation in the 6th to 4th mill. BC, in the Southern Levant. In: Baird, D. and Campbell, S. (eds.), Proceedings from the Liverpool Conference, November 2001. Accepted March 2003.

fc. c    Review of „Cromlechs, Dolmen und Menhire“ by U. Worschech. In: Levant, accepted October 2009.

2017    The Ritual Landscape of Murayghat, Jordan. ADAJ 2017., 359-374. (With R.H. Barnes, M. Flender, I. Ruben & A. Andersson)

2016    Murayghat. AJA 120.4, 650-652. Archaeology in Jordan 2014-1015.

2016 Umm Qais-Gadara. In: Finney, P. C. (ed.), The Eerdmans Encyclopedia of Early Christian Art and Archaeology, vol. 2, 676-677. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, (Mi).

2016 Fest som samfundets lim: alkohol og dans i oldtidens nære Orient. In: Søgaard, D. M. & Nielsen, J. (eds.), Alkohol: Årbog for ToRS 2015. København: Institut for Tværkulturelle og Regionale Studier, Københavns Universitet, p. 22-31. (Tværkultur; No. 6).

2016 The Water System in the Decapolis City of Umm Qais (Gadara). In: J. K. Madsen, N. Overgaard Andersen, & I. Thuesen (eds.), Water of Life. Essays from a symposium held on the occasion of Peder Mortensen's 80th birthday, 116-128. Proceedings of the Danish Institute in Damascus. Copenhagen.

2016 The excavation of Abu Snesleh with particular consideration of food related organisation. SHAJ XII, 155-163. Amman, Department of Antiquities.

2015 Introduction. In: Kerner, S., Chou, C. & Warmind, M. (eds.) Commensality. From Everyday Food to Feasting. 1-9. With C. Chou.

2015 Drink and Commensality. Or how to hold on to your drink in the Chalcolithic. In: Kerner, S., Chou, C. & Warmind, M. (eds.) . From Everyday Food to Feasting, 125-135. London, Bloomsbury.

2014  Problems, gaps and promises of 6th and 5th Millennium BC research in Jordan.. In: M. Jamhawi (ed.) Jordan’s Prehistory. Past and Future Research, 229-236. Proceedings of the Jordan Prehistory Conference. Amman, DoA.

2014 The desert and the sown project in Northern Jordan. In: Proceedings of the 8th International Congress of the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East,Warshaw, 136-144.

2012   Forhistorien. Sfinx 35, 46-51.

2012   Mad og Identitet. Tvaerkultur. Aarbog for ToRS 2011, 37-42. 

2011     The Late Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age transition in the Southern Levant and Special Pottery  from Hujeirat al-Ghuzlan. In: Chesson, M. (ed.), Daily Life, Materiality, and Complexity in Early Urban Communities of the Southern Levant. Papers in Honor of Walter E. Rast and R.Thomas Schaub, 153-172. Winona Lake, Eisenbrauns.

2010    Craft specialisation and its relation with social organisation in the Late 6th to early 4th mill BCE of the Southern Levant. Paléorient 36.1, 179-198.

2010    Introduction - Social development in the 6th and 5th mill. BCE (Turkey, Iran and Southern Levant). Paléorient 36.1, 5-10.

2010    Rank, Status and Agency in Chalcolithic Southern Levant. In: Matthiae, P., Pinnock, F., Nigro, L. and Marchetti, N. (eds.),  Proceedings of the 6th International Congress of the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East, 793-806. Wiesbaden, Harrassowitz Verlag.

2009    Review of “Archaeology, Anthropology and Cult: The Sanctuary at Gilat, Israel”, T. Levy (ed.) BASOR 356, 91-93.

2009    Review of „’En Esur (’Ein Asawir) I. Excavations at a Protohistoric Site in the Coastal Plain of Israel. IAA Reports 31“ E.Yannai (ed.). Paleorient 35, 137-138.

2009    The Pottery of Hujeyrat al-Ghuzlan 2000 to 2004. In: K. Schmidt and L. Khalil (eds.) Prehistoric Aqaba I, 127-233. Orient-Archäologie 23. Rahden, VML.

2008    Characterisation and Documentation of Material (particularly Pottery). In: N. Marchetti & I. Thuesen (eds.), ARCHAIA. Case Studies on research Planning, Characterisation, Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites, 131-136. BAR IS 1877. Oxford, Archaeopress.

2008    The Transition between the Late Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze Age in the Southern Levant. In: Kühne, H., Czichon, R. & Kreppner, F. (eds.), Social and Cultural Transformations: The Archaeology of Transitional Periods and Dark Ages, 155-166. Proceedings of the 4th ICAANE, 2004. Wiesbaden, Harrasowitz.

2005    Water-Systems in Gadara and other Decapolis Cities. In: H.D. Bienert and J. Häser (eds.), Men of Dikes and Canals. The Archaeology of Water in the Middle East, 187-202. Orient-Archäologie 13. Rahden, VML.

2003    The Pottery from Hujeirat al-Ghuzlan 1998-2003. Occident & Orient 18-20. Amman.

2003    The Pottery of Hujayrat al-Ghuzlan 2000 to 2003 – A First Summary, ADAJ 47 (2003) 175-182.

2002    Gadara - Schwarzweiße Stadt zwischen Adjlun und Golan. In:Hoffmann, A. und  Kerner, S. (eds.), Gadara-Gerasa. Die Dekapolis, 125-136. Mainz, Philipp von Zabern Verlag.

2002    Ground Stone Artefacts and Stone Vessels from Tall Hujeyrat al-Ghuzlan and Wadi al-Yutum B. In: Brückner, H., Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age Sites near ‘Aqaba, Jordan. Orient-Archäologie, 270-279. Berlin, VML.

2002    The Pottery Assemblage from Tall Hujeyrat al-Ghuzlan and Wadi al-Yutum B. In: Brückner, H. et al., Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age Sites near ‘Aqaba, Jordan. Orient-Archäologie 5, 244-256. Berlin, VML.

2001    Pottery Decoration as a Medium to Examine Specialised Production in the 6th to 4th Mill. B.C. Studies in the History and Archaology of Jordan VII, 157-162. Amman, DoA.

2001    “Abu Snesleh”, “ Gadara”. In: A. Negev and S. Gibson (eds.), Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land, 14-15, 187-188. New York - London, Contiuum.

2001                Tell Khanasiri. In: Archaeology in Jordan, by S. Savage, K.A. Zamora & D. Keller, American Journal of Archaeology 105 (3), 437-438.

2000    The Chalcolithic in the Southern Levant. In: H.D. Bienert and B. Müller-Neuhof (ed.), At the Crossroads, 35-46. Amman, al-Kutba.

1999    Ethnoarchäologie, Analogien und ihr Zeitbezug. In: H. Kühne, R. Bernbeck and K. Bartl  (eds.), Fluchtpunkt Uruk. Archäologische Einheit aus methodischer Vielfalt, 61-69. Rahdorf, Marie Leidorf Verlag.

1998    The Chalcolithic Period. In: Guidebook, to be published by the French Embassy Amman.

1998    The Excavations in Umm Qais. In: Guidebook, published by the French Embassy Amman.

1997    Preliminary Report about the 1993-1995 Seasons in Umm Qais-Gadara. Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 41, 283-302.

1997    Review: D. Obeidat, 1995: Die neolithische Keramik aus Abu Thawwab, Jordanien. SENEPSE 2. Berlin. Paléorient 23 (1): 126-127.

1997    Specialization in the Chalcolithic in the Southern Levant. In: H.G. Gebel, Z. Kafafi, G. Rollefson (eds.): Prehistory of Jordan II. Perspectives from 1997, 419-427. Berlin, ex oriente.

1997    Status, Perspectives and Future Goals in Jordanian Chalco­lithic Research. In: H.G. Gebel, Z. Kafafi, G. Rollefson (eds.): Prehistory of Jordan II. Perspectives from 1997, 465-474. Berlin, ex oriente.

1997    Umm Qais-Gadara. In: Archaeology in Jordan, by Patricia Bikai and Virginia Egan. American Journal of Archaeology 101, 514-515.

1996    Die Keramik. In: R. Lamprichs, Abu Snesleh: Erste Ergebnisse der Ausgrab­ungen 1990 und 1992. Fundortbeschreibung - Stratigraphie - Architektur. Ugarit-Forschungen 28: 303ff.

1995    Bericht über die Grabung in Gadara 1991-1994. Jahrbuch des Deutschen Evangelischen Instituts für die Altertumswissenschaft des Heiligen Landes Bd.4, 40-46. Hannover.

1995    Das Chalkolithikum in Jordanien - ein Flickenteppich. In: K. Bartl, R. Bernbeck und M. Heinze (eds.), Zwischen Euphrat und Tigris, 68-79. DAI Baghdad. Hildesheim, Georg Olms Verlag.

1995    Umm Qais-Gadara. In: Archaeology in Jordan, by Pierre Bikai. American Journal of Archaeology  99, 513.

1994    The German Protestant Institute for Archaeology and other German Projects in Jordan. In: S. Kerner (ed.), The Near East in Antiquity IV, 49-65, Amman.

1993    Abu Snesleh. In: Archaeology in Jordan, by Bert De Vries and Pierre Bikai. American Journal of Archaeology 97, 466-467.

1993    Umm Qais-Gadara. In: Archaeology in Jordan, by Bert De Vries and Pierre Bikai. American Journal of Archaology 97, 474.

1992    Abu Snesleh. In: Archaeology in Jordan, by Bert De Vries. American Journal of Archaelogy 96, 513.

1992    Umm Qais-Gadara: Recent Excavations. ARAM 4, 407-423.

1989    German Excavations in Jordan. In: S. Kerner (ed.), The Near East in Antiquity I, 9-14. Amman.

  

CO-AUTHOR

 

Kerner, Susanne/ Bernbeck, Reinhard/ Lamprichs, Roland and Lehmann, Gunnar

1999  Excavations in Abu Snesleh: Middle Bronze Age and Chalcolithic architecture in central Jordan. The Near East in Antiquity III, 43-54.

Kerner, Susanne/ Eichmann, Ricardo and Khrayshah, Fauwwaz

1999  Palaeoenvironmental and Archaeological Studies in the Khanasiri Region: Preliminary Results of the Archaological Investigation of Tell Khanasiri. Occident & Orient 4 (1+2), 27-29.

Kerner, Susanne and Hoffmann, Adolf

1993  Gadara - Umm Qais: Preliminary report on the 1991 and 1992 Seasons. Annual of the Department of Antiquities in Jordan 37, 359-384.

Kerner, Susanne/Krebs, Hauke and Michaelis, Dietmar

1997    Watermanagement in northern Jordan. Studies in the History and Archaology of Jordan VI, 265-270. Amman.

Kerner, Susanne and Maxwell, Lee

1990    Die Keramik. In: P.C. Bol, A. Hoffmann und Th. Weber, Gadara in der Dekapolis: Deutsche Ausgrabungen bei Umm Qais in Nordjordanien 1986-1988. Archäolo­gi­scher Anzeiger, p. 193-266.

Kerner, Susanne, Quintero, Leslie and Wilke, Phil

2010    “Jordan’s Prehistory: Past and Future Research”. Conference organised by the Jordanian Department of Antiquities and B. FINLAYSON and G.O. ROLLEFSON, as well as CBRL, ACOR, GPI and IFPO, 25-28 May 2009. Paleorient 36.1, 199-203.

Amr, Khairieh/Najjar, Mohammed/ Kerner, Susanne/ Rielley, Kevin and McCreery, David W.

1993    Wadi al-Qattar Salvage Excavation 1989. Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 37, 263-278.

Bernbeck, Reinhard/ Lamprichs, Roland/ Lehmann, Gunnar and Kerner, Susanne

1994    Wasserspeicherung in der jordanischen Steppe. Das Altertum 40, 163-174.

Lehmann, Gunnar/ Lamprichs, Roland/ Kerner, Susanne and Bernbeck, Reinhard

1991    The 1990 Excavations at Abu Snesleh: Preliminary Report. Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan 35, 41-65.

 

 

Introductory remarks on publicationslist

Complete overview under CV

Short presentation

Meeting Hours: Tu 13.00-15.00 (September-December)

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
  • SDG 13 - Climate Action

Keywords

  • Faculty of Humanities
  • Near Eastern Archaeology, Theoretical Archaeology, State development
  • Food studies
  • Ritual
  • Gender studies
  • Social organisation
  • Theoretical Archaeology
  • State development

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