Dr Marion Dowd, MIAI, FSA

Archaeologist / Academic / Author

Originally from West Kerry, I moved to Cork in 1992 to study archaeology at University College Cork (UCC). My undergraduate degree, a Joint Honours BA in Archaeology & Léann Dúchais (1995), was followed by an MA in Archaeology (1997). My MA thesis, supervised by Prof Peter Woodman, was entitled ‘The human use of caves in Ireland’. Following graduation, I worked in commercial archaeology with Eachtra Archaeological Projects in Kerry and Cork, and spent 18 months teaching English in Madrid. I returned to UCC to undertake doctoral research funded by an Irish Research Council (IRC) Fellowship, again under the supervision of Prof Peter Woodman. My PhD was awarded in 2004 for research titled: ‘Caves: Sacred places in the Irish landscape’. Over the next year I divided my time between teaching and researching in the Dept of Archaeology at UCC and working on commercial projects with Eachtra Archaeological Projects.

In 2005 I joined Atlantic Technological University (ATU, previously IT Sligo) as a full-time permanent Lecturer of Archaeology, where I have taught on the BSc Applied Archaeology and BSc Environmental Science & Ecology degrees. I especially enjoy research supervision, whether undergraduate final year dissertations, MA/MSc programmes or PhD research.

With over two decades of research in Irish cave archaeology, I am the internationally recognised expert in this area. I have directed numerous cave research projects and directed multiple cave excavations across the country. Over the past two decades I have been awarded grant funding as Principal Investigator of various research projects and excavations, with funding from the Irish Research Council, the Royal Irish Academy, the National Monuments Service, the Office of Public Works, the Speleological Union of Ireland and ATU/IT Sligo. I believe in a multi-disciplinary approach that combines archaeology with cutting edge scientific techniques, history, folklore and medieval literary sources. I have collaborated with archaeologists, historians, geneticists and scientists from across Ireland, Britain and Norway, amongst others.

I have authored or co-authored over 100 publications, ranging from peer-reviewed national and international journal papers and books, to articles in local journals and popular archaeology magazines. I have published seven books as author, co-author, editor or co-editor. Though primarily a prehistorian, my publications cover all periods from the Late Upper Palaeolithic through to the Civil War, spanning 12,000 years. I am a regular contributor to Irish and UK television and radio on archaeological matters, and my research frequently appears in national and international press.

I am a Full Member of the Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland (MIAI), and an elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries (FSA) of London.

I live in North Sligo with my husband, our two children, and Robin the dog.