Staff profile

I am a Research Technician in X-Ray Computed Tomography at the Department of Archaeology, Durham University. My role includes both research and facility development — contributing to a BBSRC-funded project on plant phenomics and leading the expansion of XRCT capabilities within the Newcastle Material Culture Analytical Suite (NeMCAS), supported by the AHRC-funded Research Infrastructure for Conservation and Heritage Science (RICHeS) initiative.

My archaeological research focuses on the sourcing, production, and organization of construction materials in the ancient Mediterranean and Caucasus. I integrate material analysis, GIS mapping, agent-based modelling, and architectural energetics to reconstruct the logistics, resource management, and labour investment behind monumental Roman and Byzantine building projects.

I hold a PhD in Archaeology from the University of Edinburgh, following an MSc in European Archaeology and a BA in Anthropology with a minor in Mechanical Engineering. I have held research posts at the University of Edinburgh, the University of Bologna, and the British Institute at Ankara, with projects funded by the Leverhulme Trust, the British Institute at Ankara, and the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

I am currently co-leading the BIAA-funded project, "Fortifying Frontiers: A Multi-Scalar Study of Late Antique Defensive Architecture in Ancient Lazica."

• X-Ray Computed Tomography (XRCT) for applications in archaeology, heritage science, and biological sciences (including plant phenomics)
• Late Antique and Byzantine architecture and infrastructure
• Mechanical and geotechnical analysis of archaeological materials
• Material sourcing, production, and technology in ancient construction (mortar, brick, stone)
• Architectural energetics and the logistics of large-scale building projects

Chapter in book

• The energetics of earth and turf construction in the Roman world
  
  Snyder, R., Russell, B., Romankiewicz, T., & Beckett, C. (2023). The energetics of earth and turf construction in the Roman world. In From Concept to Monument: Time and Costs of Construction in the Ancient World - Papers in Honour of Janet DeLaine (pp. 135-158). Archaeopress Oxford.
• Reflections on Energetics Studies and Roman Architecture
  
  Barker, S. J., Snyder, J. R., & Ward, C. A. (2022). Reflections on Energetics Studies and Roman Architecture. In Architecture and the Ancient Economy (pp. 59-110). Edizioni Quasar.
• Exploiting the Landscape: Quantifying the Material Resources Used in the Construction of the Long-distance Water Supply of Con stantinople
  
  Snyder, J. R. (2017). Exploiting the Landscape: Quantifying the Material Resources Used in the Construction of the Long-distance Water Supply of Con stantinople (pp. 199-215). Verlag des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums, Mainz.

Journal Article

• Bound by Binders: Multicraft Organisation and Industrial Interdependence of Lime Production for Mortar in the Eastern Mediterranean during Late Antiquity
  
  Murphy, E. A., & Snyder, J. R. (2024). Bound by Binders: Multicraft Organisation and Industrial Interdependence of Lime Production for Mortar in the Eastern Mediterranean during Late Antiquity. Journal of Late Antique, Islamic and Byzantine Studies, 3(1-2), 179-208. https://doi.org/10.3366/jlaibs.2024.0032
• Beyond Urban Planning: Challenges of Resource Management in the Construction of Late Antique Capital Cities
  
  Snyder, J. R. (2024). Beyond Urban Planning: Challenges of Resource Management in the Construction of Late Antique Capital Cities. Studies in Late Antiquity, 8(3), 380-420.
• Towards a High-Definition Approach to the Study of Byzantine Fortifications: The Case Study of Tsikhisdziri (Western Georgia)
  
  Intagliata, E. E., Naskidashvili, D., & Snyder, J. R. (2019). Towards a High-Definition Approach to the Study of Byzantine Fortifications: The Case Study of Tsikhisdziri (Western Georgia). Anatolica, 45, 181-192.
• Agent-based modelling and construction–reconstructing antiquity’s largest infrastructure project
  
  Snyder, J. R., Dilaver, O., Stephenson, L. C., Mackie, J. E., & Smith, S. D. (2018). Agent-based modelling and construction–reconstructing antiquity’s largest infrastructure project. Construction Management and Economics, 36(6), 313-327.