UHI Orkney has secured funding to create a new state of the art environmental archaeology laboratory, strengthening Orkney’s position at the forefront of heritage and environmental science research.
Plans for the new facility have been approved by Orkney Islands Council, allowing the redevelopment of existing UHI Orkney assets into a specialist centre known as the Archaeology and the Environment Science facility, or AEonS.
The facility will be one of only two of its kind in the UK, addressing a major gap in environmental archaeology research capacity.
Funding for the project has been awarded by UK Research and Innovation through the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s Research Infrastructure for Conservation and Heritage Science programme.
The AEonS facility forms part of a wider grant award of nearly £1.6 million aimed at supporting innovation and long term research in heritage science.
The new laboratories will enable advanced processing of biological materials recovered from archaeological sites, including ancient soils and sediments that are critical to understanding past environments and human activity.
Alongside the fixed laboratory, a mobile unit will support environmental archaeology work in the field across Orkney and the wider Highlands and Islands.
The mobile laboratory will also be used for community outreach, travelling to schools and local events to bring environmental archaeology directly into communities.
Although based in Orkney, the AEonS facility will be accessible to visiting researchers, commercial units, UHI students and research partners from across the UK.
The project is expected to complement and strengthen existing teaching and research activity at the UHI Archaeology Institute, supporting both staff and postgraduate students.
Councillor Gwenda Shearer, Chair of Education, Leisure and Housing, said:
“The AEonS facility is a really exciting development for the UHI Archaeology Institute.
“This funding gives us opportunities we simply did not have before, from new scientific techniques to fresh partnerships that can deepen our understanding of Orkney’s past.
“It opens the door to so many possibilities, and we cannot wait to see what discoveries come from it.”
Professor Ingrid Mainland of the UHI Archaeology Institute said:
“Environmental archaeology contributes to our understanding of natural environmental changes and human impact in the past and in looking forward through researching subjects such as biodiversity change, sustainability, economic strategies, rewilding and futureproofing natural resources.
“Across the UK, expertise and facilities for environmental archaeology research are diminishing, which risks creating generational gaps in skills and a national inability to take this research forward.
“The AEonS facility has been established to meet these needs and ensure that skills gaps and shortages are addressed to provide a sustainable future for environmental archaeology in Scotland.”
The AEonS project is a partnership between UHI Orkney, Orkney Museums, Historic Environment Scotland, Glasgow University, Archaeology Scotland, the University of St Andrews SCAPE team, and the University of Southampton, with UHI Orkney acting as lead partner.
The RICHeS funding programme was launched in October 2024 as part of an £80 million UK wide investment to support scientific equipment and technology that will safeguard heritage for future generations.
To date, more than £37 million has been awarded to heritage science projects across the UK through the programme, supporting collaboration between universities, museums and research organisations.
For Orkney, the new AEonS facility represents a significant step forward in research capability, education, and community engagement rooted firmly in the islands’ globally recognised archaeological landscape.
