Stephen Smith

I am an Irish archaeologist and researcher of the Roman period, with a specific focus on inter-cultural communication and geo-political identity development.

This research is predicated on investigating the subtle symbiosis of cultural motifs across the ancient Mediterranean, particularly in funerary contexts, as a by-product of already established means of interconnectivity such as trade routes and sea lanes. Specifically focusing on the Roman Republic and Empire, this research endeavors to understand the development of socio-political identity for indigenious cultures and other long-established peoples and city-states, during the expansionary period of the Roman Empire.

My past research for my MA at La Sapienza, Universita di Roma focused on a similar theme of plural identity and geopolitical identity development in southern Italy during the mid-to-late Republic. While my BA research at Trinity College Dublin centred around the culutral interconnectivity and symbiosis of Roman administration and indigenious peoples in north-eastern Iberia during the Late Republic and Early Empire.

I have also worked on a large number of Archaeological excavations across Ireland, the UK, Greece and Italy, including Neolithic, Bronze Age, Roman, Greek, Early Medieval, Norse and Late Medieval sites, excavating bath-houses, nymphaeums, burial grounds, plague sites, crypts, subterraneans, forts, and settlements of various shapes, sizes and origins.

Furthermore, I have worked extensively in the analysis and protection of World Heritage sites, Underwater archaeological sites, and archive management and digitization for public consumption, along with post-ex, Geo-physical survey and report writing. These supplement the academic research listed above, but I often feel torn between trowel and typing for how I spend my working days.

Honours, Awards and Grants

• W. Bernard Herman Graduate Scholarship in Art History
• Leonore V. Kinghorn Scholarship in Archaeological Research 2025
• Hal Jackman Research Fellowship for Archaeological Fieldwork 2025
• Irish Hellenic Society Award Winner 2019
• Cecil Day-Lewis Literary Award

Selected Publications

• “Plural Identity in Magna Graecia"- Greco-Roman Intercultural Exchange and Identity Development in Southern Italy 290BC- 87BC” – MA Thesis (2024), Universita di Roma, La Sapienza
• “Iberia, The province that made an Empire: Cultural Interaction and Exchange Between Celtiberian Tribes and the Roman Republic 202BC- 14AD” – BA Thesis (2020), Trinity College Dublin

Professional Affiliations

• Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland
• American Institute of Archaeologists
• European Association of Archaeologists