Contact: barbara.cvitkusic@inantro.hr

Academic and Scientific Degrees:

  • 2018 – Scientific Associate (scientific area of humanities, field ethnology and anthropology)
  • 2015 – University of Zagreb, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; PhD in Archaeology, Thesis Title: Personal Ornaments as Means of Communication during Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic on the Eastern Adriatic
  • 2008 – BA in Anthropology and History of Art, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

Work Experience:

  • 2020 Scientific Associate, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia
  • 2017 Professional advisor in science and higher education, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb
  • 2015 Postdoctoral associate, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb
  • 2008 Assistant, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb

Scientific projects:

  • 2025–2029. Prehistoric Landscape of Northern Dalmatia (PraDalmatia); Associate; NextGenerationEU, PI: Prof. Dario Vujević, PhD, Department of Archaeology, University of Zadar, Croatia
  • 2024. – 2027. Applied bioanthropology in the study of ancient and contemporary populations in the Republic of Croatia (BioAntroPop); Associate; NextGenerationEU, PI: dr. L. Bočkor, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia
  • 2023. – 2024. Il Popolamento Arcaico dell’arcipelago Caraibico e Il Suo Adattamento all’ecosistema Marino: L’abitato Costiero di el Pozito (Samaná, Repubblica Dominicana); Associate; PI: prof. Emanuela Cristiani; Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
  • 2020 – 2024, COST Action 19141 „Integrating Neandertal Legacy: From Past to Present“; MC substitute; Main proposer: Ivor Janković, PhD, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia
  • 2020 – 2024, „Prehistoric hunter-gatherers in Istria and adjacent regions: Patterns of Late Pleistocene lifestyle and mobility (PREHISTRIA)“; Croatian Science Foundation (IP-2019-04-7821); Associate; Principal investigator: Ivor Janković, PhD, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia
  • 2020 – 2024, „Epigravettian Communities of Northern Dalmatia“; Croatian Science Foundation (IP-2019-04-6115); Associate; Principal investigator: Dario Vujević, PhD, University of Zadar, Zadar, Croatia
  • 2018 – 2020, „Centre for Applied Bioanthropology“; European Fund for Regional Development (K.K. 01.1.1.02.0002.); Associate; Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia
  • 2015 – 2018, „Transition and Tradition in Vlakno Cave: Modelling the Palaeolithic-Mesolithic transition in Northern Dalmatia“; Croatian science foundation (UIP-2014-09-1545); Associate; Principal investigator: Dario Vujević, PhD, University of Zadar, Zadar, Croatia
  • 2014 – 2017, „Archaeological Investigations into the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene of the Lim Channel, Istria“; Croatian Science Foundation (HRZZ-UIP-2013-11-7789); Associate; Principal investigator: Ivor Janković, PhD, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia
  • 2008 – 2013, „Stochastic and Kibernetical Models in Anthropology“ (MZOS nr.196-1962766-2736); Assistant; Principal investigator: Jasna Miličić, PhD, Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia

Organizational Skills and Competences:

  • 2024
    • 20th European Anthropological Association (EAA) Congress: Anthropology in the Anthropocene: Investigating Human Influences on the Global Ecosystem, 5th – 8th September 2024, Zagreb (member of organising committee)
    • Exhibition “New archaeological research of the Paleolithic of Istria”,  PREHISTRIA Project, 02.02.-14.02.2024, Archaeological Museum in Zagreb, (member of organising committee)
  • 2023 Study Abroad Program: Bioarchaeology, University of Central Florida, USA, (organiser)
  • 2022.
    • Study Abroad Programs: Bioarchaeology, University of Central Florida, USA & Archaeology, University of Wyoming, USA (organiser)
    • International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES) Inter-Congress- Coming of Age on Earth: Legacies and Next Generation Anthropology, 09th – 14th March 2021, Virtual Conference (member of organising committee)
  • 2021. Study abroad program „Bioarchaeology in Croatia I: Osteology and Bioarchaeology lab methods“ & „Bioarchaeology in Croatia II“, Mississippi State University 
  • 2020      Study Abroad Program, University of Wyoming, USA
  • 2019      Study Abroad Program „Bioarchaeology in Croatia I: Osteology and Bioarchaeology lab methods“ & „Bioarchaeology in Croatia II“, Mississippi State University, USA
  • 2018     22nd European Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, 28th August – 1st September 2018 (general secretary)
  • 2017    43rd School of Biological Anthropology Dr. Hubert Maver: New horizons in Anthropology, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb (general secretary)
  • 2016
    • 20th European Anthropological Association (EAA) Congress: European Anthropology in a Changing World – from Culture to Global Biology, Zagreb (general secretary)
    • 42nd School of Biological Anthropology Dr. Hubert Maver: New Findings from Vindija Cave, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb (general secretary)
    • International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES) Inter-Congress: World anthropologies and privatization of knowledge – engaging anthropology in public, Dubrovnik (member of organizing committee)
  • 2015    Anthropology and Tourism: Improving the Competencies in Cultural Tourism, Croatian Heritage Foundation, Zagreb (secretary)
  • 2014    40th School of Biological Anthropology Dr. Hubert Maver: Interactions between Archaic and Modern Humans, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb (member of organizing committee)
  • 2011     38th School of Biological Anthropology Dr. Hubert Maver: Current Research on Palaeolithic in Southern and Central Europe, Croatian medical Association, Zagreb (member of organizing committee)
  • 2010
    • 37th School of Biological Anthropology Dr. Hubert Maver: The Vindija Neandertals and Their Place in History, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb (member of organizing committee)
    • LINEE: New Challenges for Multilingualism in Europe, Dubrovnik, (member of organizing committee)
  • 2009
    • 35th School of Biological Anthropology Dr. Hubert Maver: Biological Anthropology of Health in the 21st Century: From Describing Variation to Understanding  Determinants, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb (secretary)
    • Anthropology and Health: New Challenges for Molecular Anthropology and Genetics, St. Jacob Monastery, Dubrovnik  (member of organizing committee)
    • Anthropology and Health: Developing Research Design and Analysis Models to Study Determinants of Health and Wellbeing, St. Jacob Monastery, Dubrovnik (member of organizing committee)

Scientific and Professional Work:

  • 12/2024 – 11/2025  Postdoctoral Fellowship, project „HideTech: Unlocking Ancient Techniques: Multiproxy Analysis of Experimental and Ethnographic Osseous Tools for Archaeological Interpretation of Hide and Skin Processing“, Sapiexcellence Fellowship, Diet and Ancient Technology Laboratory (DANTE), Department of Oral and Maxillo Facial Sciences, Sapienza Universitá di Roma, Italy
  • 12/2022 – 11/2023  Postdoctoral Fellowship, project „ReDress: Making prehistoric dressing-up visible through an integrated approach for studying ornaments, stone and bone tools“, Sapiexcellence Fellowship, Diet and Ancient Technology Laboratory (DANTE), Department of Oral and Maxillo Facial Sciences, Sapienza Universitá di Roma, Italy
  • February 2018 – Professional education; DANTE – Diet and ANcient TEchnology Laboratory, Sapienza Universitá di Roma, Italy
  • April 2017 – Professional education; DANTE – Diet and ANcient TEchnology Laboratory, Sapienza Universitá di Roma, Italy
  • July 2009 – December 2012: Assistant to editorial board of International scientific journal „Collegium Antropologicum“

List of publications

Research Interest: archaeological anthropology; development of symbolic thinking; changes in the symbolic and cultural behaviour; prehistoric populations; symbolic artefacts

Memberships in Professional Organizations and Associations:

  • The International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences (Union Internationale des Sciences Préhistoriques et Protohistoriques – UISPP
  • European Anthropological Association
  • European Association of Archaeologists