Margaret Cox

Forensic archaeology: an interview with Margaret Cox

Professor Margaret Cox is a forensic archaeologist and no stranger to Time Team as a human remains expert.

Today Margaret Cox is a professor, senior lecturer and course leader for the well-respected forensic archaeology courses at Bournemouth University. She has made numerous appearances on television, which, together with her published work, have earned her the respect of both the viewing public and the archaeological establishment.

So how did it all start?
'I came from a working-class family where archaeology was not really an option or available, apart from a few books in the local library. I left school at 16 and went to art college. Then I got married at 19 and had two children. My real interest in archaeology started in my twenties with the arrival of the Tutankhamun exhibition in Britain. At that time, the exhibition was important in promoting archaeology to the public.'

This initial interest was built upon when Margaret joined her local archaeological society in Shaftesbury, Dorset.

'They were a very good group and encouraged me further. At the time we ran our own business as a newsagent and with small children I decided that an Open University degree would suit the situation. There wasn't a dedicated archaeology course available at the time so I did a history and humanities course. I found that I wanted to lean more towards archaeology and discovered a very good syllabus at King Alfred's College Winchester. I continued with both courses and finished both degrees at the same time.'

How did you come to find work in archaeology?
'For my undergraduate dissertation I worked with Theya Molleson, of the Natural History Museum, and this led to a job offer on the Christ Church Spitalfields Project in London. At the same time I started a part-time PhD at the Institute of Archaeology in London.'

Margaret finished her part-time PhD in a record time of just four years.

'After Spitalfields, with my PhD finished, I was given a research fellowship at the Institute of Archaeology for a year working on the remains from Roman Lancaster and writing bone reports. After the fellowship, I worked as a consultant bone specialist and did various bone reports for different projects, but writing bone reports is a solitary occupation and I found that I was becoming bored and quite isolated.'

Did you ever think of a career change?
'I wrote to schools and colleges asking if they needed an archaeology teacher and of course nobody wrote back, but eventually I had a frantic call from Bristol Grammar School who were looking for an 'A' level history teacher. During my time at Bristol I learnt a great deal about teaching and found it very useful. It was while I was there that I became aware of a job advertised for a conservation archaeologist in the Somerset Levels working with wetland conservation.'

Wetland conservation is now an area very close to Margaret's heart.

'I became devoted to wetland conservation and I'm still heavily involved today. It's a different type of archaeology, with very good preservation of in-situ organic material. I was also project manager responsible for creating the Peat Moors Visitor Centre, which won the British Archaeological Award. This was very rewarding as it's quite a small centre.'

At the end of her contract Margaret started as an archaeological consultant with Gifford and Partners, an engineering consultancy, acting as the consultant for archaeology on various engineering projects.

Did this work conflict in any way with your interest in conservation?
'Working as an archaeologist in a large organisation has its benefits, and ideally archaeology should work more closely with development. However, I very soon realised that it wasn't for me personally. They were a very good organisation to work for, with some excellent people working for them, but after a year I was happy to accept a job here at Bournemouth University.'

When did the forensic side of archaeology interest you?
'What's really happened is I've gone full circle. The human remains and forensic archaeology are quite separate. I started with human remains but left that behind when I was lucky enough to get the job in the Somerset Levels. The forensic work started while I was working in Somerset. I had a phone call one day from a police officer in Wiltshire who had seen me on the television and asked if I could help them locate the remains of a missing person in a back garden in Wiltshire. They had reason to believe that she had been cremated in an old railway carriage and her remains scattered throughout the garden. They wanted me to help identify any remains and advise on more accurate recording techniques.'

Margaret worked on this case for a month.

'It was a very interesting project to work on but it made me aware of the importance of understanding the judicial system and legal framework. I don't like being in the position where I'm not sure of my ground, especially with something as important as justice.'

Margaret has helped on other legal cases, both in Britain and Europe – including a case for the International War Crimes Tribunal in the Balkans – and continues to appear as a top specialist on Time Team and other archaeology programmes.