Melanie Jonasch

Dr. Melanie Jonasch serves as a Scientific Associate at the Institute of Classical Archaeology within Freie Universität Berlin's Department of History and Cultural Studies, leading the DFG-funded project "A new model for the western city district of Selinunte" since May 2025 in collaboration with the German Archaeological Institute Rome and Kiel University. Her academic trajectory includes coordination of the Selinunte project at DAI Rome (2020-2024), research roles at DAI Berlin (2012-2019), and a Volkswagen Foundation Fellowship at the University of British Columbia (2017-2018).

She completed her PhD in Classical Archaeology at Freie Universität Berlin in 2012 with the dissertation "Les pierres du bon buveur. Eine regionale Konvention unter den Grabstelen des römerzeitlichen Gallien" on funerary stelae in Roman Gaul.

Her research centers on ancient fortifications and territorial control systems, the militarization of landscapes, and dynamics of expansion, mobility, and migration in antiquity. She investigates community identity formation and settlement transformations through fieldwork in Greek Sicily (Selinunte, Monte Turcisi) and Roman Gaul, integrating archaeological evidence with theoretical frameworks to analyze military-societal interactions.

Analysis of her 15 most recent publications (2014-2025) reveals a methodological evolution from regional studies of Roman Gaul and Zeugma's fortifications toward comprehensive urban analysis of Selinunte. Recent work emphasizes multidisciplinary approaches combining geophysics, stratigraphy, and historical context to reconstruct western Sicily's military landscapes, culminating in her current DFG project.

No scientific awards or fellowships are documented in available sources.

She has secured significant research funding including the current DFG grant and a Volkswagen Foundation fellowship, but no student supervision is mentioned. Her grant management focuses on collaborative projects like the Selinunte initiative involving DAI Rome and Kiel University.

As principal investigator of the Selinunte project, she directs a multidisciplinary team conducting geophysical prospection and excavation, with recent findings published in August 2025 revealing new insights into Ligures Baebiani settlements.