Michael Brandl
Mag. Dr.
Michael Brandl
Mag. Dr.
- Coordination | Lithic Lab
- Archaeological Sciences – Lithic Lab
- +43 1 51581-6136
- michael.brandl(at)oeaw.ac.at
- Dominikanerbastei 16 | 1010 Vienna
Biographical sketch
Master’s degree in Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of Vienna in 2005. In 2013, PhD in Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of Vienna with a focus on Natural Sciences for rock analyses with the thesis »Characterisation of Middle European Chert Sources. A Multi Layered Approach to Analysis«. Field director between 2005 and 2007 at AS-Archäologieservice. From 2007 to 2012 repeatedly working for the Austrian Academy of Sciences, 2012-2016 guest researcher, and 2017 employed at the OREA-Institute as raw material analyst. Since 2011 lecturer at the Institute of Prehistoric and Historical Archaeology at the University of Vienna and 2016 additionally at the Karl-Franzens-University in Graz. Participated in numerous international research projects for provenance analyses of SiO2 rocks in archaeological contexts. PI for investigations of the Neolithic chert quarry in the Rein Basin in Styria; since 2021 coordinator of the unit Archaeological Sciences.
Research Projects
- »Raw Material Project«
- »Characterisation of Early Neolithic Chert Resources in the Pusta Reka Region«
- »Characterisation and Provenance Studies of Lower Palaeolithic Stone Tools from Karain Cave«
- »BergbauLandschaftWien: Prehistoric Chert Mining in Vienna and its Catchment Area«
- »Radiolarite Mining in Vienna before the Neolithic? Raw Material and Technological Analyses of an Unusual Lithic Assemblage«
Research interests
- Raw material analyses according to the »Multi Layered Chert Sourcing Approach« (macroscopic, microscopic, petrographic/geochemical)
- Provenance analyses of lithic raw materials in archaeological contexts
- Prehistoric chert mining worldwide
- Socio-economic aspects and theory of the procurement, processing and distribution of lithic raw materials
- Geo-archaeological investigations at archaeological sites
Publications
- Ressourcen der Neandertaler im Burgenland (Österreich): Die Csaterberge bei Kohfidisch als Limnosilizit-Rohmaterialquelle vom Mittelpaläolithikum bis in die Kupferzeit. / Schmitsberger, Oliver; Brandl, Michael; Schmid, Viola C et al.
In: Archaeologia Austriaca, Vol. 105, 02.12.2021, p. 11-50. - Provenance analyses of chipped stone tools from Neolithic Platia Magoula Zarkou, Thessaly (Greece). / Brandl, Michael; Hauzenberger, Christoph; Filzmoser, Peter et al.
In: Mitteilungen der Österreichischen Mineralogischen Gesellschaft (Proceedings of the Austrian Mineralogical Society), Vol. 165, 2019, 02.09.2019, p. 32. - Did prehistoric foragers behave in an economically irrational manner? Raw material availability and technological organisation at the early Gravettian site of Willendorf II (Austria). / Moreau, Luc; Brandl, Michael; Nigst, Philip R.
In: Quaternary International, Vol. 406, 25.06.2016, p. 84-94. - The Application of the Multi-Layered Chert Sourcing Approach (MLA) for the Characterisation and Differentiation of 'Chocolate Silicites' from the Holy Cross Mountains, South-Central Poland. / Brandl, Michael; Hauzenberger, Christoph; Martinez, Maria M et al.
In: Archaeologia Austriaca, No. 100, 15.06.2016, p. 119-149. - Geochemical Sourcing of Flint Artifacts from Western Belgium and the German Rhineland: Testing Hypotheses on Gravettian Period Mobility and Raw Material Economy. / Moreau, Luc; Brandl, Michael; Filzmoser, Peter et al.
In: Geoarchaeology - An International Journal, Vol. 31, No. 3, 15.05.2016, p. 229-243. - Aktueller Stand der archäologischen Forschungen im Becken von Rein unter besonderer Berücksichtigung einer im Jahr 2010 durchgeführten Probegrabung in der Hornsteinlagerstätte Rein–Eisbach (Steiermark, Österreich). / Modl, Daniel; Brandl, Michael.
In: Schild von Steier, Vol. 26, 31.12.2014, p. 280-308.
- Success, limits and failure of subsistence strategies in eastern Central Europe during the early Gravettian and the Last Glacial Maximum – objectives and first results. / Buchinger, Norbert; Einwögerer, Thomas; Händel, Marc et al.
Journal of Quaternary Science. Vol. Special Issue Sucess, limits and failure, 2021. p. 28-29. - Engraved cortices from the Gravettian site of Krems-Wachtberg (Austria). / Simon, Ulrich; Brandl, Michael; e, Hugo Obermaier-Gesellschaft für Erforschung des Eiszeitalters und der Steinzeit (Editor).
61st Annual Meeting of the Hugo Obermaier Society, 23.‒27.04.2019 in Erkrath. 2019. p. 70. - Terrain Difficulty as a Relevant Proxy for Objectifying Mobility Patterns and Economic Behaviour in the Aurignacian of the Middle Danube Region: the Case of Stratzing-Galgenberg (Austria). / Moreau, Luc; Heinz, Guido; Cramer, Anja et al.
Faro, 10-12 March 2016. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017. p. 134-147. - Sourcing of flint artefacts from western Belgium and the German Rhineland: using visual and geochemical methods following a multi-layered approach. / Moreau, Luc; Brandl, Michael; Filzmoser, Peter et al.
Raw materials exploitation in Prehistory: sourcing, processing and distribution. Book of Abstracts. Faro, 2016. p. 9. - Stratzing-Galgenberg in its lithic landscape: Difficulty of terrain as a relevant proxy for objectifying mobility patterns and economic behaviour in the Aurignacian of the Middle Danube region. / Moreau, Luc; Heinz, Guido; Cramer, Anja et al.
57. Jahrestagung der Hugo Obermaier-Gesellschaft für Erforschung des Eiszeitalters und der Steinzeit e.V.. Erlangen: Dr. Faustus, 2015. p. 46. - Contemporary Rock Crystal Mining in Minas Gerais, Brazil – an Ethno-Archaeological Case Study. / Brandl, Michael; Trnka, Gerhard; Bostyn, F (Editor) et al.
Lithic Raw Material Resources and Procurement in Pre- and Protohistoric Times. Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Flint Mining in Pre- and protohistoric Times (Paris, 10-11 September 2012). Oxford: Archaeopress, 2014. p. 121-130 (BAR International Series 2656).
- Mining and Use of Vienna Radiolarite: An Integrated Study of Lithic Resource Management. / Schmitsberger, Oliver; Brandl, Michael; Penz, Martin et al.
Lithic Raw Materials in Prehistory: Methods, Practice and Theory. ed. / Michael Brandl; Maria Gurova. Verlag der ÖAW, 2025. p. 119-176 (Oriental and European Archaeology; Vol. 33). - Chert of Choice: Raw Material Procurement Strategies in Northeastern Vorarlberg (Austria) during the Boreal and Atlantic – a Case Study. / Posch, Caroline; Brandl, Michael.
Lithic Raw Materials in Prehistory: Methods, Practice and Theory. ed. / Michael Brandl; Maria Gurova. Verlag der ÖAW, 2025. p. 87-118 (Oriental and European Archaeology; Vol. 33). - Silex-Frauen-Figuren in Kammern-Grubgraben? / Neugebauer-Maresch, Christine; Brandl, Michael; Uthmeier, Thorsten (Editor) et al.
STONE AGE. Studying Technologies of Non-analogous Environments and Glacial Ecosystems. Papers in Honor of Jürgen Richter. Bonn: Dr. Rudolf Habelt GmbH, 2024. p. 351-362 (Universitätsforschung zur prähistorischen Archäologie (UPA) Band 393). - Kalba: Main results of the renewed fieldwork during the campaigns of 2019-2022. / Schwall, Christoph (Editor); Brandl, Michael; Fadi, Pascale El (Editor) et al.
Advances in UAE Archaeology, Proceedings of Abu Dhabi’s Archaeology Conference 2022. Abu Dhabi: Zayed National Museum – Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi and Archaeopress., 2023. p. 147-155. - Der Import von Lapislazuli in der mykenischen Welt. / Eder, Birgitta; Brandl, Michael; Eder, Birgitta (Editor) et al.
Ein anderes Griechenland. 125 Jahre Forschungen des Österreichischen Archäologischen Instituts in Athen zum antiken Griechenland / Μια άλλη Ελλάδα. 125 χρόνια έρευνας του Αυστριακού Αρχαιολογικού Ινστιτούτου Αθηνών για την Αρχαία Ελλάδα. Athen: Kapon, 2023. p. 434-437. - Reflecting on the History and Use of Rectangular Obsidian “Mirrors” from Mexico: Reinterpreting Old Museum Collections and Indigenous–Colonial Intersections. / Martinez, Maria M; Brandl, Michael; Noyes, Sharps et al.
Contextualizing Museum Collections at the Smithsonian Institution: The Relevance of Collections-Based Research in the Twenty-First Century. Washington DC: Smithsonian Scholarly Press, 2022. (Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropology 54). - Neolithische und bronzezeitliche Nutzung von Silex- und Bergkristalllagerstätten in Tirol und Vorarlberg 339, 2019, / Bachnetzer, Thomas; Leitner, Walter; Brandl, Michael et al.
UPIKU:TAUKE, Festschrift für Gerhard Tomedi zum 65. Geburtstag. Universitätsforschungen zur prähistorischen Archäologie 339. 2019. p. 51–68. - In the footsteps of Balthasar Hacquet and the rediscovery of "Berg Lichostiwne". / Brandl, Michael; Martinez, Maria M; Trnka, Gerhard et al.
The Bucovina Museum Suceava -. Karl A. Romstorfer Publishing House, 2018. p. 495 - 510 (Materiality and Identity in Pre- and Protohistoric Europe - Homage to Cornelia-Magda Lazarovici). - Typical Gravette retouching on “Nano-Gravette points” – meaningful form or formal constraint? Considerations from the study of a Nano Gravette point from Northern Lower Austria in a private collection. / Schmitsberger, Oliver; Brandl, Michael; Trnka, Gerhard et al.
Quaestiones Praehistoricae - Studia in honorem Professoris Vasile Chirica. Vol. Honoraria 14 Bucureşti – Brăila, 2018. p. 75–86. - Chert from the Rein Basin (Styria, Austria): Prehistoric use and distribution. / Brandl, Michael; Martinez, Maria M; Modl, Daniel et al.
Connecting Networks: Characterising Contact by Measuring Lithic Exchange in the European Neolithic. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2015. p. 103-115 (Archaeopress Archaeology). - Research at La Milpa East (RB LME) and the Aguada Lagunita Elusiva (RB Lagunita): The 2010 Season. / Weiss-Krejci, Estella; Brandl, Michael; Brett, A (Editor) et al.
Occasional Papers 12: Mesoamerican Archaeological Research Laboratory (MARL). Austin: The University of Texas, 2011. p. 143-169 (Research Reports from the Programme for Belize Archaeological Project).
- Studies on Lithic Raw Material in Northern Belize. In: Programme for Belize Archaeological Project: Report of Activities from the 2009 Field Season, ed. by Fred Valdes, Jr. Report Submitted to The Belize Department of Archaeology, Belmopan, Belize (short reports), 2010. / Brandl, Michael.
2010.
- Marta Capote, Susana Consuegra, Pedro Díaz-del-Río and Xavier Terradas, eds. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference of the UISPP Commission on Flint Mining in Pre- and Protohistoric Times (Madrid, 14-17 October 2009) (BAR International Series 2260. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2011, 302pp; numerous b/w illustr., pbk, ISBN 978- 1-4073-0831-9). / Brandl, Michael; Weiss-Krejci, Estella (Editor).
In: European Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 17, No. 4, 03.12.2014, p. 737-741.
3D models of wear states of an Early Neolithic (Linearbandkeramik) flat axe (WEAR project)
Dietrich, L. I., von Tycowicz, C., Brandl, M., Baunack, L., Mayer, J., Haußner, E. & Hein, W., Zenodo, 6 Jun 2025