Gopesh Jha
IMPRS
Main Focus
Gopesh Jha is a doctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, Jena and affiliated with Institut für Naturwissenschaftliche Archäologie, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen. He is currently working under the supervision of Dr. habil. Patrick Roberts, Prof. Dr Michael Petraglia and Prof. Dr. Christopher Miller. His doctoral research explores human-environment relationships in the deep past, intending to understand habitat transformations and their potential impact on human ecology. He is particularly interested in hominin ecology during the Middle and Late Pleistocene in South Asia, studying the relationship between climatic stressors, behavioural plasticity, and population dynamics. His doctoral project aims to understand the role of climatic upheaval in behavioural changes in India during the Middle and Late Pleistocene, such as technological diversification and initiation of microlithization. He employs a multi-proxy environmental approach (Leaf-wax biomarkers, compound-specific Isotope: δ¹³C and δD, bulk δ¹³C and δ¹8O). He combines that data with technological data to explore the relationship between varying environmental conditions and technological shifts.
Curriculum Vitae
I have received B.A. (hons.) and M.A. (hons.) degree in Archaeology and Ancient History from The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara (India), with a specialization in Prehistory and Bio-anthropology. As a part of my M.A. curriculum, I worked on multiple projects focused on diverse archaeological subjects like Harappan Ernestite drills, Harappan weights, and stone-tool assemblages. My work on vein-quartz based middle palaeolithic assemblage from Jogpura triggered my interest in Human origin research. I deepened my interest in palaeolithic archaeology and geoarchaeology during M.A. dissertation where I worked on the lithostratigraphic context of flake-based industries (mode III/PCTs) in Saurashtran peninsula, India.
I have also pursued a joint master’s degree in Archaeological Material Sciences (ARCHMAT) as a fully funded Erasmus Mundus partner country fellow. ARCHMAT familiarized me to the specialized skills in archaeology and analytical characterization of materials using diverse range of Archaeometric techniques (such as ATR-FT-IR, GC-MS, Py-GC-MS, EA-IRMS, benchtop XRF, XRD and SEM-EDS,). My M.Sc. dissertation was based on multi-proxy paleoenvironmental reconstruction, aimed to understand the environmental impact of ~74 Toba eruption on South Asia at local scale.
Publications
Zuccarelli Freire, V. N., Ziegler, M. J., Caetano-Andrade, V., Iminjili, V., Lellau, R., Rudd, R., Jha, G., ... & Furquim, L. Addressing the Anthropocene from the Global South: Integrating Paleoecology, Archaeology and Traditional Knowledge for COP Engagement. Frontiers in Earth Science, 12, 1470577. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2024.147057
Jha, G., Sinha, D. K., Jha, D. K., & Ajithprasad, P. (2024).
Coasting into India?-Assessing lithostratigraphic context of Middle
Palaeolithic occupation in Saurashtra Peninsula. Quaternary Environments and Humans, 100034. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.qeh.2024.100034
Roberts, P., Caetano-Andrade, V. L., Fisher, M., Hamilton, R., Rudd, R., Stokes, F., Jha, G ... & Isendahl, C. (2024). Uncovering the Multibiome Environmental and Earth System Legacies of Past Human Societies. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 49.
Anil, D., Devi, M., Jha, G., Khan, Z., Mahesh, V., Ajithprasad, P., & Chauhan, N. (2024). Deep-rooted Indian Middle Palaeolithic: Terminal Middle Pleistocene lithic assemblage from Retlapalle, Andhra Pradesh, India. PloS one, 19(8), e0302580. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0302580
Jha, G., Kothari, V., Vyas, V., & Ajithprasad, P. (2023). Assessing
Systematic Blade Production in the Indian Subcontinent with Special
Reference to Eastern Gujarat. Quaternary, 6(2), 25. https://doi.org/10.3390/quat6020025
Anil, D., Ajithprasad, P., Mahesh, V., & Jha, G. (2019). Middle Palaeolithic Sites Associated with Youngest Toba Tuff Deposits from the Middle Gundlakamma Valley, Andhra Pradesh, India. Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology 7: 01‐14, Kerala.