Marija Svilar

Dr.

Marija Svilar

Dr.
  • associated
  • RG »Prehistoric Phenomena«

Biographical sketch

Marija Svilar is an archaeologist specialising in Neolithic pottery studies, with a particular focus on life-cycle approaches, secondary use, and ceramic consumption practices in the Central Balkans. She obtained her PhD in Archaeology from the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Philosophy (2021), with a thesis entitled Life cycle of pottery: use and discard of ceramic vessels in the Late Neolithic of the Central Balkans. She also holds an MA on the beginnings of the Bronze Age in the Morava Valley (2007) and a BA in Archaeology from the same institution (2005). Since October 2025, Marija has been a JESH Fellow at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), hosted by the Austrian Archaeological Institute, working on patterns of pottery recycling in the Neolithic under the supervision of Prof Barbara Horejs. Previously, she worked at the Faculty of Philosophy, Belgrade (2022), and at the Institute of Archaeology in Belgrade (2016–2019), where she served as Editorial Secretary of Starinar journal and coordinated the institute’s library. Marija has participated in numerous excavations, field surveys, and post-excavation projects in Serbia and Montenegro, with particular expertise in processing and analysing large ceramic assemblages. Her research employs comparative analysis of ceramic assemblages to better understand the social and functional roles of pottery in Neolithic life.

Research interests

  • Life-cycle approaches to pottery: production, use, secondary use, recycling, and discard practices
  • Comparative analysis of Neolithic ceramic assemblages across SE Europe
  • Interdisciplinary approaches combining macroscopic, laboratory-based analyses and experimental work
  • Archaeological theory, Etnhnoarchaology
  • Human behaviour and collective practices