UNIVERSITE BORDEAUX MONTAIGNE

Their core work

Université Bordeaux Montaigne is a French humanities university based in Pessac (Bordeaux area) with deep expertise in archaeology, ancient history, and cultural heritage studies. Their research spans Roman-era economic geography, archaeometallurgy, and the material science of archaeological artefacts. More recently, they have expanded into digital heritage, e-learning for cultural education, and literary theory — particularly queer studies and French literature. They are a training hub for doctoral researchers in archaeological materials science through European networks.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 period (2015–2018), Bordeaux Montaigne focused squarely on classical archaeology and ancient history — Roman roads, imperial property geography, and prehistoric metallurgy — all through traditional humanities scholarship. From 2018 onward, their portfolio broadened significantly: they joined networks in archaeological materials science and digital heritage, embraced e-learning technologies (VR, gaming, informal education), and opened a new front in literary and queer theory. The shift signals a university moving from purely historical research toward interdisciplinary applications of digital tools and contemporary critical theory.

They are pivoting from traditional archaeological scholarship toward digitally enhanced heritage education and interdisciplinary cultural studies, making them increasingly relevant for projects combining humanities with technology.

How they like to work

Bordeaux Montaigne leads more often than it follows — 4 of 7 projects as coordinator, mostly MSCA individual fellowships and an ERC Starting Grant, which means they host and supervise visiting researchers rather than manage large consortia. Their participant roles tend to be in structured training networks (ITN, RISE), suggesting they are comfortable as training partners in doctoral programmes. With 31 unique partners across 11 countries, their network is moderately broad but not dense — typical of a humanities university that builds project-specific teams rather than maintaining a fixed industrial cluster.

They have collaborated with 31 distinct partners across 11 countries, reflecting a pan-European humanities research network. Their partnerships span doctoral training consortia and individual fellowship host arrangements rather than large industrial alliances.

What sets them apart

Bordeaux Montaigne occupies a distinctive niche at the intersection of Roman-era archaeology, heritage materials science, and emerging digital education technologies — a combination rarely found in a single institution. Their strength in hosting MSCA fellows and coordinating ERC research makes them an attractive base for early-career researchers needing a humanities-rich environment with growing digital capabilities. For consortium builders, they bring credible French humanities leadership and proven experience managing EU-funded researcher mobility.

Highlights from their portfolio

• PATRIMONIVM
  By far their largest project (EUR 1.49M ERC Starting Grant), mapping the geography and economy of imperial properties across the entire Roman world — a major multi-year research undertaking.
• xFORMAL
  Represents their strategic shift into digital education, combining VR/AR, gaming, and informal learning methods with cultural heritage — a bridge between humanities tradition and tech innovation.
• QUART
  An unusual topic for EU funding — queer rewritings of Proust — demonstrating the university's strength in critical literary theory and its ability to secure MSCA fellowships in niche humanities fields.