Neolithic study receives first Serbian ERC grant

A project investigating the Earth’s population growth between 10,000BC and 5,000BC has secured a grant from the European Research Council. The researchers from the project are the first in Serbia to receive attention from the ERC.

The BIRTH project, led by Sofija Stefanovic at the University of Belgrade, will receive €1.7m of funding from the science body and will examine the Neolithic period. The project will run for five years and will research fertility rates and aim to explain why population grew so rapidly during this period. Scientists will also analyse prehistoric teeth, which can provide important information on a human’s lifespan, as well as dental cement, which changes during pregnancy.

Around 500 skeletons will be analysed as part of the project. It is hoped that following the study, direct data on the number of childbirths in prehistoric women during this period will be created. The project will also receive funding from the Serbian Ministry of Education.