About
My doctoral research is an investigation of the archaeology and history of sarsen stone use in southern Britain.
Funded by the South, West, and Wales Doctoral Training Partnership, I am co-supervised by Professor Martin Bell (University of Reading) and Professor Josh Pollard (University of Southampton).
My study area extends from Dorset to Kent, and expect my specific case studies to be in south-west Dorset, north Wiltshire, the Oxfordshire/Berkshire border, south Buckinghamshire, and the Medway Valley in Kent.
A heritage professional for a number of year, I work for Historic England, the UK public body that helps people care for, enjoy, and celebrate England’s historic environment. With strengths in archaeological archives, aerial photography, and historic mapping, my current role is in heritage protection.Education
2016 –
University of Reading, PhD candidate
2009 – 2010
University of Exeter, MA (Experimental Archaeology)
1991 – 1994
University of Cambridge, MA (Archaeology and Anthropology)Work Shared in CORE
Visual art
Conference papers
Abstracts
Presentations
Other Publications
WHITAKER, K.A. (in preparation) “Post-medieval and modern sarsen stone industries in prehistoric landscapes” Post-medieval Archaeology
WHITAKER, K.A. (in review) “’Sarsen stones in Wessex’: a Society of Antiquaries project contextualised and renewed.” The Antiquaries Journal
WHITAKER, K.A. (2019) “Sarsen stone quarrying in southern England: an introduction” In Teather, A. et al Extracting more than rock? Insights into the acquisition of stone and flint in the Neolithic Neolithic Studies Group Seminar Papers. Oxford: Oxbow
WHITAKER, K.A. (in press) “Sarsen-working at Stonehenge” and “The history of thought about sarsen origins for Stonehenge” In Parker-Pearson, M. et al(2019) Stonehenge for the Ancestors. Part 1: Landscape and Monuments.Leiden: Sidestone Press
WHITAKER, K.A. (2018) “What if none of the building stones at Stonehenge came from Wiltshire?” Oxford Journal of Archaeology 38(2) 10.1111/ojoa.12161
WHITAKER, K. (2014) “The Wild Heerbrugg A5 in Britain in 2014” Photogrammetric Record29(148): 456-462
CRAWFORD, J., WHITAKER, K., AND WILLIAMS, A. (2014) Aerofilms. A History of Britain from Above. Swindon: English HeritageUpcoming Talks and Conferences
25 August 2019: ‘Secret Sarsen’. A guided walk for the Wiltshire Archaeology and Natural History Society. Families welcome, bring a picnic! Contact
hello@wiltshiremuseum.org.uk for details and booking.
13-14 September 2019: Landscape Survey Group conference presentation ‘Rural Landscapes, Industrial Pasts’ co-authored with Dr Coralie Aicheson. Details and booking at http://landscapesurvey.org/?page_id=795
9 October 2019: ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Sarsen Stone’. Talk for the Astons villages, Oxfordshire.
19 October 2019: Wiltshire Buildings Record annual study day presentation ‘Sarsen stone for building’. Details and booking at http://www.wiltshirebuildingsrecord.org.uk/coming-soon/
26 October 2019: Society of Antiquaries New Researchers conference presentation ‘Shipwrecked mariners on some foreign shore: recovering sarsen stones from the Society’s Sarsen Stones in Wessex project archive MS953. Details and booking at https://www.sal.org.uk/events/2019/10/new-researchers-conference/
16-18 December 2019: Theoretical Archaeology Group conference [watch this space for comics and folklore coming to University College London at this year’s TAG]
24 February 2020: PLACEing symposium [watch this space for objects and materials in landscapes]
27 February-4 March 2020: PLACEing exhibition [watch this space for objects and materials in landscapes coming to an art gallery]
Memberships
Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London
