Our people
![Portrait of Anne Byard](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-06/Anne-Byard.jpg.webp?itok=AFrY9zEG)
Anni graduated with a BA (Hons) in Archaeology from the University of Liverpool in 2002 then spent several years in commercial archaeology as a field supervisor and project officer on large linear projects across southern Britain. In 2008, she joined the British Museum's Portable Antiquities Scheme as Finds Liaison Officer for Oxfordshire and West Berkshire, during which time she recorded over 17,000 mostly metal artefacts and completed an MSc in Landscape Archaeology at the University of Oxford.
Anni left the PAS in 2019 to undertake a PhD with the University of Leicester and the Ashmolean Museum, investigating the Iron Age to Roman transition in Britain through coin hoarding. A Project Officer for Oxford Archaeology since 2020, Anni specialises in metalwork and coins of all periods and has contributed to many reports and publications spanning the Bronze Age to post-medieval periods.
Anni is a Member of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (MCIfA).
![Headshot](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-05/Carlotta-Marchetto.jpg.webp?itok=IMZkAfW2)
Carlotta graduated from University of Roma Tre in 2010 with an MA in Archaeology. She started her archaeological career in Italy and then, in 2015, moved to UK to work for the Museum of London (MOLA). Carlotta joined our Cambridge office in 2017 and worked on site for a year before transferring to the Finds Department where she enrolled in the Oxford Archaeology specialist training scheme in Iron Age pottery. Having successfully completed the scheme she now works primarily as an Iron Age pottery specialist, writing client reports and contributing to publications. She also analyses and reports on Neolithic and Bronze Age pottery assemblages.
As a Project Officer, Carlotta is responsible for the day-to-day organisation of the Finds Department, liaising with both office and field staff and external specialists. As an Iron Age pottery specialist, she has analysed and reported on numerous assemblages in East Anglia and, her research interests range from the Late Bronze Age to the transitional Late Iron Age-Early Roman period. Carlotta is a member of the Prehistoric Ceramics Research Group.
![Portrait of Leigh Allen](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-05/Leigh_Allen.jpg.webp?itok=raskflus)
Leigh is Head of the Finds Department at Oxford Archaeology's Oxford office. She manages the processing, cataloguing, short-term curation and deposition of finds assemblages excavated by the field team, and also provides advice upon the lifting of fragile items found on sites. Leigh liaises with project managers, specialists (both internal and external), conservators and landowners to ensure the efficient and effective progress of the finds from excavation through to deposition. She also organises displays of finds for open days and exhibitions and assembles teaching boxes and handling collections for use in schools to promote the work of the Oxford Archaeology and share the findings with the public.
Leigh is also a finds specialist, and produces evaluation, assessment and publication reports on late medieval/post-medieval metalwork and worked bone objects of all periods. Recent work includes the large metalwork and worked bone assemblages from Oxford Archaeology’s excavations at Westgate and Magdalen College Oxford.
Leigh has a BA (Hons) in Ancient History and Archaeology from Nottingham University, a post-graduate Diploma in practical archaeology from Oxford University’s Department of Extramural Studies, and over 35 years’ experience in commercial archaeology.
![Portrait of Natasha Dodwell](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-05/Natasha-Dodwell.JPG.webp?itok=y5jKi16q)
Natasha graduated with a BA (Hons) in Archaeology and Prehistory from the University of Sheffield, followed by an MSc in Osteology, Palaeopathology and Funerary Archaeology (University of Bradford). She started her archaeological career at the Museum of London and now has over 30 years of experience working in commercial archaeology.
Prior to joining Oxford Archaeology in 2016, Natasha was the senior osteoarchaeologist at the Cambridge Archaeological Unit for 20 years and has an extensive knowledge of the archaeology of Eastern England, particularly of burial archaeology.
In her current role, Natasha is responsible for co-ordinating the work programmes in both the Finds and Environmental Departments at Oxford Archaeology's Cambridge office, liaising with specialists within the organisation and externally. She also oversees the post-ex training of staff, specifically junior specialists. With her specialism in osteology Natasha contributes to the grey literature and publications programmes at OA and has a particular interest in cremation practices and Bronze Age and Iron Age funerary archaeology. She is a member of the British Association of Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology (BABAO).
![Placeholder](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-06/placeholder-image-person-jpg.jpg.webp?itok=dRlRRyyv)
Ted has 10 years’ experience in commercial archaeology. Following a BA in Archaeology and Anthropology (Cambridge), Ted joined Oxford Archaeology's Cambridge office as an excavator. In 2016 he moved permanently into the Finds department. His current role is Finds Supervisor and Ceramics Specialist. His specialisms are in Fired Clay and Ceramic Building Materials analysis. In 2018, he completed an MA in Artefact Studies (UCL) where he formalised his finds training and developed skills in ceramic studies, petrography and elemental analyses. His main writing and research interests are in ceramic production sites, namely Roman pottery and tile kilns, as well as prehistoric to Medieval textile production tools and salt making.
![Headshot](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-05/Elizabeth_Stafford.jpg.webp?itok=yoF2av2o)
Elizabeth has a professional career spanning over 25 years in field, environmental archaeology, geoarchaeology, post-excavation analysis and project management. She has a BA (Hons) degree in Archaeology from the University of Wales College of Cardiff and an MSc in Geoarchaeology from the University of Reading. Having trained under Profs. J.G. Evans and M.G Bell, she specialises in geoarchaeology, predictive deposit modelling and malacology.
Elizabeth joined OA in 1996, having previously worked for archaeological organisations in Northeast England, the highlight of which was intertidal fieldwork on the Hartlepool submerged forest (Tees Archaeology). Whilst working for OA she has been involved in both research and developer-funded projects across the South, the Midlands, East Anglia, Northern England, France, and the Netherlands. She has worked on a range of multiperiod sites, with expertise in the Thames Valley, Greater London, Kent and Essex. She has extensive experience in the design and implementation of geoarchaeological investigations with deposit modelling on large infrastructure projects such as High Speed 1, High Speed 2, Heathrow Terminal 5, Crossrail, Thameslink, the Lower Thames Crossing and London Gateway Port.
She has a keen interest in natural history, wetland archaeology, coastal processes, and Quaternary climate change, much inspired from working as a student at Flag Fen. Elizabeth is an advocate of holistic and integrated approaches to archaeological and landscape investigation in which she has published extensively and contributed to various Historic England guidelines. She has had a long-standing involvement with Palaeolithic geoarchaeology, predominantly through her work in the Lower Thames in Kent (Ebbsfleet) and Essex (Purfleet). In 2016, she designed and managed, on behalf of Historic England, the production of the award-winning monograph, Lost Landscapes of Palaeolithic Britain. Collaborating with a team of lead academics, the book sought to synthesise and disseminate to the wider archaeological community the results of £8 million of funding from the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (ALSF).
Elizabeth has led the in-house Geoarchaeology Team at OA since its establishment in 2003, a specialist hub that carries out borehole and geophysical surveys, LiDAR interpretation, sediment analysis, deposit modelling, GIS analysis and integrated landscape syntheses, from site to regional scale.
![Headshot](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-05/Benjamin_Brown.jpg.webp?itok=y9mHJmuV)
Ben has worked in commercial archaeology for over 10 years, specialising in Geomatics for most of that time. His work covers CAD and GIS data processing, 3D modelling and photogrammetry, and field survey. He has aided in developing several of the survey workflows at Oxford Archaeology and is a qualified UAV pilot, with over 7 years’ experience of flying drones.
Prior to joining Oxford Archaeology, Ben completed a BA in Archaeology at the University of Southampton, followed by an MA in Palaeolithic Archaeology and Human Origins, then completed a DPhil (PhD) at the University of Oxford. He has worked on a wide variety of commercial sites and projects, across the UK and Europe, including Croatia, Norway and Spain.
His areas of interest include 3D reconstruction and modelling of archaeological landscapes and objects, the Lower & Middle Palaeolithic periods and their lithic tool technologies, GIS data analysis and mobile laser scanning.
![Portrait of Gary Jones](/sites/default/files/styles/person/public/2023-05/Gary_Jones_0.jpg.webp?itok=ovePaaX7)
Gary studied archaeology in Cardiff and UCL, where his interest in prehistory coincided with the development of GIS and its use the spatial analysis of past landscapes.
For over 10 years as a GIS specialist within Geomatics, Gary's role at Oxford Archaeology developed along with the discipline, undertaking various aspects of GIS management and analysis. He was also leading in the integration of new methodologies, such as photogrammetry into Oxford Archaeology’s geomatics workflows.
Since then, Gary has moved his focus on the integration digital archaeological data within the company, leading him to take the position of Digital Development Manager at Oxford Archaeology. In this role he focuses on increasing the accessibility of OAs digital output, including the development of Oxford Archaeology’s Digital Recording System and WebMap toolkits.