News & Events
Social Media and Public Archaeology workshop
CAU photo wins Antiquity award!
CAU's Bronze Age log boats make the news
Research reveals new discoveries on cave use in the pre-Columbian Caribbean
Dr Sue Oosthuizen publishes new book on Anglo-Saxon England
PAST features CAU's work at Ham Hill and Milton Keynes (.pdf)
Clay tablet from Ziyaret Tepe makes the news (.pdf)
Excavating the Present: A Tribute to Syrian Mothers
Video highlights Lauren Cadwaller's research on diet
What Do Bones Say About Beliefs?
McDonald Visiting Scholar contributes to identification of skeleton of Richard III
History
The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research in the University of Cambridge was established in 1990 through a generous benefaction from the late Dr D M McDonald. The benefaction enabled the University to construct and maintain purpose-built premises for the Institute which include research rooms and laboratories, together with archive space and a seminar room.
Dr. Daniel McClean McDonald, born in Fort William, Scotland, in 1905, had degrees in Engineering (Glasgow) and Medicine (Birmingham). He was founder and Chairman of the BSR Group, manufacturers of record turntables and record changers. He died in his adoptive home, the Isle of Man, in February 1991.
The founding director of the Institute was Professor Colin Renfrew - Lord Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, formerly Disney Professor of Archaeology in the Department of Archaeology.
Background to the McDonald Institute Triskeles
Dr McDonald's choice of emblem for the Institute was influenced by the symbol of the Isle of Man, his adopted home. The winged feet of the Triskeles are those of Hermes, and were taken from a 5th century Syracusan coin.
