Professor Caroline Sturdy Colls awarded Lucy Mair Medal for anthropology
Professor Caroline Sturdy Colls, from the University of Huddersfield’s Centre of Archaeology, has been awarded the prestigious Lucy Mair Medal by the Royal Anthropological Society (RAI).
The medal is awarded annually in recognition of excellence in the application of anthropology to the relief of poverty and distress, and the active recognition of human dignity.
Professor Sturdy Colls’ work documents genocide and other forms of mass violence using transdisciplinary approaches, drawing upon archaeology, anthropology, history, digital humanities and the arts.
In awarding the Lucy Mair Medal to Professor Sturdy Colls, the RAI expressed, “….its deepest appreciation for the leadership that you have shown in this vital area.”
Her innovative work using non-invasive technology led to the discovery of the gas chambers and mass graves in Poland at the site of the former Nazi-German death camp in Treblinka. Along with her team at the Centre of Archaeology, Prof. Sturdy Colls has worked at more than 60 Holocaust sites in Europe, as well as camps resulting from the occupation of the Channel Islands.
The Centre has also researched the Ovaherero and Nama genocide in Namibia, genocide and crimes against humanity in the Balkans, and missing persons cases in Cyprus.
“I was delighted to hear that I had been awarded the Lucy Mair Medal and to join such a distinguished list of former recipients," said Professor Sturdy Colls. "I am very grateful to the RAI for recognizing the value of the work that my team and I carry out.”
Professor Sturdy Colls, who was awarded the Dan David Prize earlier in 2025 for her work to uncover and preserve evidence of the Holocaust, is currently on a fellowship at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum along with doctoral student Jade Peckham, also from the University of Huddersfield.