Peter Mills

Peter Mills is a tenured Professor of Anthropology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo (UHH), where he has taught since 1997. He directs the Heritage Management graduate program and founded the UH Hilo Geoarchaeology Laboratory in 2004, specializing in non-destructive basalt and volcanic glass analysis. Mills holds a BA in Anthropology from the University of Vermont (1984), an MA from Washington State University (1987), and a PhD from UC Berkeley (1996).

His research focuses on:

• Archaeology of colonialism, stone tool economies, and heritage decolonization in the Pacific
• Hawaiian maritime history and Indigenous vessel technology (e.g., Connecting the Kingdom)
• Ranching culture ethnohistory on Maunakea
• Geoarchaeological methods using ED-XRF spectrometry

Analyses of Mills’ publications reveal strong trends in Pacific archaeology, volcanology, and Indigenous histories. His work emphasizes geochemical sourcing of artifacts, reinterpretations of colonial narratives, and the role of technology in precontact Hawaiian state formation.

Scientific Awards:

• Frances Davis Award for Undergraduate Teaching (2001)
• Historic Hawaiʻi Foundation Preservation Award (2015)
• Society for Hawaiian Archaeology Public Archaeology Award (2022)

Mills mentors graduate/undergraduate researchers at the Geoarchaeology Lab, where 17 students have co-authored peer-reviewed papers. He secured NSF grants for laboratory instrumentation and leads huakaʻi (field excursions) for heritage projects.

He collaborates with institutions like the University of Nevada, Reno, and Novosibirsk State Academy. Current work includes a tall-ship educational initiative and finalizing a book on Maunakea ranching archaeology.