Dr. Mariana Nabais is a Portuguese Palaeolithic archaeologist whose work brings the Ice Age vividly to life by focusing on the most down-to-earth clues of all: what people ate, hunted, gathered and carried home. She is currently principal investigator of two Foundation for Science and Technology–funded projects, PALAEO.WEST.IBERIA and PALAEO.ZOOARCH, which investigate Early, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic sites and long-term human-animal interactions in Portugal.

Trained at University College London, where she earned her PhD, Mariana has combined research with hands-on teaching for much of her career. Her field experience ranges from Iberian Palaeolithic to Roman period sites, leading excavations and training new archaeologists through the field school she founded and directs, South-West Archaeology Digs (SWAD). Her work has been featured widely in international media, including The New York Times, CNN and BBC News. When she is not in the lab or at a dig, she enjoys traveling and discovering different natural landscapes and cultural heritage sites.