R. E. Taylor & SAS Student Poster Awards - Society for Archaeological Sciences

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General Information

R. E. Taylor portrait The SAS has a longstanding program of awards for outstanding student conference posters in the realm of archaeometry. The prestigious R.E. Taylor Student Poster Award acknowledges innovative student contributions to archaeological research through the use of scientiﬁc methods, and has enhanced the careers of prominent young scholars and professionals for more than two decades. The award is named in honor of Professor Emeritus R. Ervin Taylor of the University of California at Riverside for his outstanding contributions in the development and application of radiocarbon dating in archaeological research and his dedication to the founding of The Society for Archaeological Sciences, his leading role as President (1980) and General Secretary (1981-2002) of the Society, and his committed service as Editor of the SAS Bulletin. Professor Taylor's many valuable contributions were recognized by the Society of American Archaeology in 2004 with the Fryxell Award for Interdisciplinary Research.

These awards are typically given yearly at the Society for American Archaeology annual meeting and every other year at the International Symposium on Archaeometry. In some years poster or presentation competitions are administered by SAS at other conferences under the R.E. Taylor program or through SAS sponsorship of awards judged by the conference organizers. Event organizers interested in an SAS-sponsored award should review our co-sponsorship guidelines and contact SAS as far in advance of the event as possible.

R. E. Taylor Student Poster Award Competition at the 91st SAA Annual Meeting

The Society for Archaeological Sciences invites applications for the R.E. Taylor Poster Award at the 91st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology in San Francisco, California. The award consists of $200 USD and a complimentary 2026 SAS membership. A runner-up prize will include $100 USD and SAS membership. Both winners are expected to provide the SAS with a ~500 word extended abstract based on their poster for publication on the SAS News webpage. The Society will further publicize the winners and their research via social media.

Entries will be judged on the signiﬁcance of the archaeological problem, appropriateness of the methods used, soundness of conclusions, quality of the poster display, and oral presentation of the poster by the student, who should be the ﬁrst author in order to be considered. Applicants must submit an email application to Tatsuya Murakami (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) by no later than Sunday April 26th, 2026. Applications must include a PDF copy of the final poster that will be presented at the meeting, evidence that you have registered for the SAA meeting (receipt), and proof of your status as an undergraduate or graduate student (valid student ID or signed letter from your department chair). Judges will be present in person at the SAA meeting to evaluate posters and to ask students questions about their research. Prizes will be awarded at the SAA meeting following the end of the last poster session.

R. E. Taylor Student Poster Award Competition at the 45th International Symposium on Archaeometry

The Society for Archaeological Sciences invites applications for the R.E. Taylor Poster Award at the 45th International Symposium on Archaeometry in Turin, Italy. The award consists of $200 USD and a complimentary 2026 SAS membership. A runner-up prize will include $100 USD and SAS membership. Both winners are expected to provide the SAS with a ~500 word extended abstract based on their poster for publication on the SAS News webpage. The Society will further publicize the winners and their research via social media.

Entries will be judged on the signiﬁcance of the archaeological problem, appropriateness of the methods used, soundness of conclusions, quality of the poster display, and oral presentation of the poster by the student, who should be the ﬁrst author in order to be considered. Applicants must submit an email application to Tatsuya Murakami (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) by no later than Monday May 11th, 2026. Applications must include a PDF copy of the final poster that will be presented at the meeting, evidence that you have registered for the ISA meeting (receipt), and proof of your status as an undergraduate or graduate student (valid student ID or signed letter from your department chair). Judges will be present in person at the ISA meeting to evaluate posters and to ask students questions about their research. Prizes will be awarded at the ISA meeting following the end of the last poster session.

Good luck to everyone!

2026 R.E. Taylor Award Recipient: 91st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology in San Francisco, California

Jordan J. Thompson (Washington State University): Reexamining the Weitas Creek Site (10CW30): An Early Nimiipuu Hunting Camp

This project presents a reanalysis of the site through conventional archaeological methods and a collaborative, community-engaged framework. New research including fine-grained excavation, chronometric dating, geoarchaeological analysis, lithic technological analysis of new and archival materials, and geochemical sourcing of lithic artifacts are woven together through an ethnogeological storytelling approach. These analyses provide a refined understanding of the chronology of the Weitas Creek site, dating to at least 10,300 BP, and provide insight into Nimiipuu (Nez Perce) changing landscape adaptations within the context of social dynamics in a liminal territory. As people develop subsistence strategies to meet the needs of the local environment, they repeatedly make investments in the landscape, which impose structure and ideology onto landscapes, indicative of local ontology and placemaking. Broadly, this research investigates human-environment relationships by examining how land use relates to mobility, knowledge, and placemaking as part of landscape exploration and the establishment of the seasonal subsistence cycle among the Nimíipuu (Nez Perce) in the context of social and ecodynamics over time in the liminal territory of the Bitterroot Mountains.

Honorable Mention: Max Shachar (University of Missouri-Columbia, MURR Archaeometry Laboratory): Compositional analysis of post-Tiwanaku Sama-Cabuza sherds and clays from Los Batanes, Tacna, Peru (12th century)