The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology and Anthropology of Body Modification

The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology and Anthropology of Body Modification explores the ways in which cultures worldwide have used body modifications to express cultural, social, and individual meanings. Including cranial shaping, teeth filing, tattooing, and body piercing, the Handbook examines the diverse practices that have transformed the human body across history. It delves into the rituals, symbolism, and technological advancements behind these modifications, offering a comprehensive look at how humans have used their bodies as canvases to reflect their identities and values. The Handbook is an insightful exploration of humanity's enduring desire for self-expression and cultural connection.

Franz Manni is associate professor at the National Museum of Natural History (Paris, France). He conducts multidisciplinary studies in the realms of human population genetics, biodemography, computational linguistics, archaeology, and geography. His primary research interest is in the dynamics and determinants of past and present human migrations. He has been scientific commissioner and curator of several exhibitions at the Musée de l'Homme, (Paris), including the first exhibition of body piercing adornments from prehistory to the present (Piercing, 2019).
Francesco d'Errico is a CNRS Director of Research at the University of Bordeaux and Professor at the University of Bergen. His research explores the evolution of human cognition and symbolic cultural practices in Africa and Eurasia. The author of hundreds of papers in leading scientific journals, he is known for challenging the model of a symbolic revolution by showing that symbolic artifacts existed in Africa at least 80,000 years
ago. He has co-led major ERC-funded projects on cultural modernity and human numerical cognition, as well as a University of Bordeaux project devoted to identifying tipping points in biological and cultural evolution.