Benjamin Gehres
Benjamin Gehres holds a doctorate in archaeology from the University of Rennes 2 (2016), and is an associate researcher at UMR 6566 CReAAH. He also holds a degree in geology from the Blaise-Pascal University of Clermont Ferrand (2007).
His work focuses on pre and metal ages paleo-economic systems of the Atlantic coast through the study of ceramic raw materials (petrography, geochemistry) and their diffusion1. It also contributes to methodological developments in the discipline through the application of plasma mass spectrometry coupled to a laser ablation system (LA-ICP-MS) in the determination of raw material sources used by potters[2,3,4]. Finally, its work aims to improve understanding of the status of certain pottery productions in western France, whose clays are uncommon and have superior properties to other raw materials5.
He joined the AUREUS project in 2017 as a post-doctoral fellow at IRAMAT-Centre Ernest-Babelon (UMR 5060). His research then focused on the production and diffusion of Roman, Celtic and Greek gold silver in the Western Mediterranean from chemical analyses by LA-ICP-MS. In 2018, he joined the ANR CIMO «Ceramics Printed of the Western Mediterranean» for a post-doctorate at the CEMEF laboratory (UMR 7635) of the Ecole des Mines de Paris. The aim of this program is to seek to model the ancient Neolithic settlements in this region by studying the technical traditions of pottery making. In this context, his research aims to define the mechanical properties, plasticity and resistance to mounting of the earths used by potters of the Liguro-provençal arch.