Postdoctoral Research Assistant in Industrial Archaeology

(University of Bristol, Department of Archaeology)

Following a successful bid to the AHRB by the Department of Archaeology, a one year assistantship is offered to undertake research and
cataloguing of the papers of Isambard Kingdom Brunel held in the Special Collections of Bristol University Library. Funding has been obtained for
a pilot project of what is anticipated will be a three year programme, that will digitise the entire collection (which includes both papers and
drawings), which will then be placed on public access.

The appointment will be expected to work with a technical assistant in the preparation of the digital archive, providing abstracted cataloguing data,
and on occasions transcriptions of important letters. A small travel budget is available to locate the physical remains of Brunel's work and to link
these with the documentation. He or she will also be expected to help in the interpretation of the material, and to contribute to a publication and
possibly exhibitions (planned for 2006) on the work of Brunel.

The successful candidate will be expected to have completed a PhD or have done so before commencing the appointment, on a topic related to
the project. The fields that are considered as related are industrial archaeology, history of technology, historical engineering and 19th century
economic history. The successful candidate will have had experience of working with 19th century archives, and  will have to show competence in
reading and transcribing documents of this period. The knowledge of historical engineering will also be an advantage, as will a familiarisation of IT
(ncluding databases and imaging software).  We are looking a strongly motivated candidate who is able to show initiative and drive.

Full details of this position are online at http://www.bris.ac.uk/boris/jobs/ads?ID=15834

Further information about the Department are online at http://www.bris.ac.uk/Depts/Archaeology/

Informal enquiries should be sent to Dr M Horton (Head of Department): [log in to unmask] Tel: (44) (0)117 954 6060