Rowan Flad

Rowan Flad is the John E. Hudson Professor of Archaeology at Harvard University, affiliated with the Peabody Museum. His research focuses on the emergence of complex societies in Bronze Age and Neolithic China, particularly in the Sichuan Basin and Gansu regions. He has conducted extensive fieldwork, including surveys in the Chengdu Plain and excavations at salt production sites. His work integrates zooarchaeology, ceramic analysis, and geochemical studies to explore technological change, ritual practices, and interregional interaction.

Key projects include the Chengdu Plain Archaeological Survey and the Tao River Archaeological Project. Flad critiques media bias in archaeological reporting and emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches to understanding past societies. He has authored influential books such as Salt Production and Social Hierarchy in Ancient China (2011) and co-edited volumes on ritual and economy in East Asian archaeology.

His recent research examines horse domestication, burial practices, and ceramic exchange networks. Flad’s work bridges theoretical archaeology with empirical fieldwork, addressing questions of specialization, value systems, and cultural transmission in early Chinese societies.