Staff profile

After reading physics at Sussex University Ian Bailiff joined the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art at Oxford as a postgraduate student and subsequently submitted a research MSc on the development of new luminescence dating techniques. Following a further year working on an instrument development project he came to Durham in 1979 as a research assistant on a pottery dating project; following a series of appointments as a Research Fellow he was awarded an SERC Advanced Fellowship, and in 1991 was appointed a Lecturer. He was Head of Department between 2001 and 2004.

 

He has developed a luminescence dating laboratory with the capability to support both dating and methodological investigation, and his research has included the study of the luminescence properties of minerals, their application to dating and also to radiation dosimetry. Currently the primary materials of interest are sediments from prehistoric sites and ceramic materials from medieval buildings and structures. Recent work on the dating of brick from medieval buildings of known age has shown that luminescence is capable of providing reliable and accurate results. The work on medieval buildings, combined with an interest in instrumentation, has included collaborative work on the application of infrared thermography to the structural analysis of medieval buildings with Prof. Danny Donoghue in the Geography Department.

 

Ian’s research students have worked on various aspects of the application of luminescence to the dating of structures and archaeological deposits.  Two recent theses have focused on the application of OSL to the dating of medieval buildings; Sophie Blain (now a postdoc at the University of Liege) investigated the use of brick in early medieval buildings in SE England and Normandy (Dual PhD with Univ. Bordeaux III), Tom Gurling (now at the Royal Museums Greenwich) on the dating of brick in medieval and early modern buildings in Essex (an AHRC Collaborative Award with English Heritage), paying particular attention to the reuse of brick. Gillian Hutton’s thesis on roads and routeways in County Durham included exploratory work on the dating of road surfaces. In collaborative work with statistical specialists (Andrew Millard and Michael Goldstein) Bayesian analysis has been applied to the calculation and analysis of luminescence ages and Jeremy Disley is currently developing further the work completed by Alicia Huntriss (EPSRC CASE studentship with English Heritage). Active areas of research in which potential doctoral projects can be defined include the dating of:  irrigation systems in arid regions; upland Palaeolithic sites in Southern Britain; coastal sites with preserved aeolian deposits; the construction of early medieval buildings.

 

Long term collaboration developed with the Maison d’Archaeologie, Bordeaux III on brick dating led to the development of a research network (GdRE) supported by CNRS, Ceramic Building Materials and New Dating Methods which is in its second term and the laboratory is keen to further develop collaborative projects of this type.

 

Ian is Joint Editor-in-Chief of the journal Radiation Measurements which, within its broad remit of radiation-related research, includes luminescence and ESR dating. This journal is the primary source of information for physics related aspects of these two methods, and since 1984, the journal has included Special Issues devoted to the papers of the International Conference on Luminescence and ESR Dating.

 

The experimental techniques developed for dating can also be applied to the measurement of radiation dose in the environment using ceramic materials, a field in which the laboratory has developed world-leading expertise. A current doctoral project (with the Department of Physics and the Health Protection Agency) is investigating the properties of ceramic chips in mobile phones that can be used to measure radiation dose in the event of a radiological incident. He coordinated a series of international projects on the development of retrospective dosimetry techniques applied to ceramic materials for application to the reconstruction of radiation dose in areas downwind of the Chernobyl power station and the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site. He was a member of the Report Committee for Report 68 of the International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements (Retrospective Assessment of Exposures to Ionising Radiation).

• Luminescence techniques for the dating of ceramics and sediments, measurement techniques, instrumentation development and retrospective dosimetry techniques.
• Application to the dating of archaeological contexts from the Palaeolithic to the Late Medieval, e.g., unheated sediments and lithics, masonry and ceramic buildings materials, irrigation features, and more generally the elucidation of site formation proce
• The development of new techniques for the deployment of dosimetry in radiological emergencies.

• 2022: Consulting Editor, Radiation Measurements:
• 2014: Co-Editor in Chief, Radiation Measurements (3rd term):
• 2014: Managing Guest Editor, 14th Int. Conf. on Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating, Montreal, Canada:
• 2013: Guest Lecturer, Summer School on Solid State Dosimetry, Recife, Brazil:
• 2011: Co-Editor in Chief, Radiation Measurements (2nd term):
• 2011: Managing Guest Editor, 13th Int. Conf. on Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating, Torun, Poland: 13th International Conference on Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating, 10–14 July, 2011, Toruń, Poland
• 2009: Co-Editor in Chief, Radiation Measurements:
• 2008: Managing Guest Editor, 12th Int. Conf. on Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating, Beijing, China: 12th International Conference on Luminescence and Electron
  Spin Resonance Dating, Beijing, China, 18–22 September, 2008
• 2008: British Archaeological Awards: Best Archaeological Innovation. Runner-up. Methodological developments in the dating of brick
• 2006: ESF Pool of Reviewers: Member of Reviewer Pool, European Science Foundation

Chapter in book

• Snape, L., & Bailiff, I. (2020). Luminescence dating and micromorphological assessment. In E. Sauer, L. Chologauri, A. Gabunia, K. Hopper, D. Lawrence, E. MacDonald, M. Mashkour, F. Mowat, D. Naskidashvili, K. Pitskelauri, S. Priestman, L. Shumilovkikh, S. &. Simpson, A. Tiliakou, & et al. (Eds.), Dariali: the ‘Caspian Gates’ in the Caucasus from Antiquity to the Age of the Huns and the Middle Ages. The joint Georgian-British Dariali Gorge excavations & surveys 2013-2016 (845-854). Oxbow Books
• Bailiff, I. (2013). Luminescence dating of brick from Brixworth Church- re-resting by the Durham Laboratory. In D. Parsons, & D. Sutherland (Eds.), The Anglo-Saxon Church of All Saints, Brixworth, Northamptonshire (243-250). Oxbow Books
• Bailiff, I., & Tooley, M. (2000). Luminescence dating of fine-grain Holocene sediments from a coastal setting. In I. Shennan, & J. Andrews (Eds.), Holocene land-ocean interaction and environmental change around the North Sea (55-67). The Geological Society
• Bailiff, I. (1991). Pre-dose dating. In H. Göksu, M. Oberhofer, & D. Regulia (Eds.), Scientific dating methods (155-174). Kluwer Academic Publishers

Conference Paper

• Bailiff, I. K. (2008, December). New developments in the scientific dating of brick. Presented at Medieval Brick Architecture in Flanders and Northern Europe : the Question of Cistercian Origin, Koksijde, Belgium

Journal Article

• García Sanjuán, L., Rivera-Jiménez, T., Díaz-Guardamino, M., Wheatley, D., Lozano Rodríguez, J. A., Donaire Romero, T., González-García, A. C., Montero Artús, R., Ruiz Flores, J., Bermejo Meléndez, J., Rogerio-Candelera, M. Á., Ling, J., Andrieux, E., & Bailiff, I. (2025). Shedding new light on the context and temporality of Iberian warrior stelae: The Cañaveral de León 2 Stela and Las Capellanías burial complex (Huelva, SW Spain). PLoS ONE, 20(4), Article e0321080. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0321080
• Bailiff, I., Andrieux, E., Díaz-Guardamino, M., Alves, L., Comendador Rey, B., García Sanjuán, L., & Martín Seijo, M. (2024). Dating the setting of a late prehistoric statue-menhir at Cruz de Cepos, NE Portugal. Quaternary Geochronology, 83, Article 101569. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2024.101569
• Forlin, P., Reicherter, K., Gerrard, C. M., Bailiff, I., & García Porras, A. (2024). Recovering a lost seismic disaster. The destruction of El Castillejo and the discovery of the earliest historic earthquake affecting the Granada region (Spain). PLoS ONE, 19(4), Article e0300549. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0300549
• Yukihara, E. G., McKeever, S. W., Andersen, C. E., Bos, A. J., Bailiff, I. K., Yoshimura, E. M., Sawakuchi, G. O., Bossin, L., & Christensen, J. B. (2022). Luminescence dosimetry. Nature Reviews Methods Primers, 2(1), https://doi.org/10.1038/s43586-022-00102-0
• Bailiff, I., Bridgland, D., & Cunha, P. P. (2021). Extending the range of optically stimulated luminescence using vein quartz and quartzite sedimentary pebbles. Quaternary Geochronology, 65, Article 101180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2021.101180
• Bossin, L., Bailiff, I., & Terry, I. (2020). Radiological emergency dosimetry – The use of luminescent mineral fillers in polymer-based fabrics. Radiation Measurements, 134, Article 106318. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2020.106318
• Bailiff, I. (2019). An examination of beta dose attenuation effects in coarse grains located in sliced samples. Radiation Measurements, 120, 188-194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2018.07.015
• Bailiff, I., Jankowski, N., Gerrard, C., Gutiérrez, A., & Wilkinson, K. (2019). Luminescence dating of sediment mounds: associated with shaft and gallery irrigation systems. Journal of Arid Environments, 165, 34-45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2019.02.004
• Bossin, L., Bailiff, I. K., & Terry, I. (2018). Phototransferred TL properties of alumina substrates. Radiation Measurements, 120, 41-46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2018.07.018
• Bailiff, I., Jankowski, N., Snape, L., Gerrard, C., Gutiérrez, A., & Wilkinson, K. (2018). Luminescence dating of qanat technology: prospects for further development. Water History, 10(1), 73-84. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12685-018-0213-x
• Bossin, L., Bailiff, I. K., & Terry, I. (2017). Luminescence characteristics of some common polyester fabrics: Application to emergency dosimetry. Radiation Measurements, 106, 436-442. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2017.05.017
• Bailiff, I., Sholom, S., & McKeever, S. (2016). Retrospective and emergency dosimetry in response to radiological incidents and nuclear mass-casualty events: A review. Radiation Measurements, 94, 83-139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2016.09.004
• Bailiff, I., Gerrard, C., Gutiérrez, A., Snape-Kennedy, L., & Wilkinson, K. (2015). Luminescence dating of irrigation systems: Application to a qanat in Aragon, Spain. Quaternary Geochronology, 14(B), 459-459. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2015.02.016
• Bailiff, I., Scarre, C., & French, C. (2014). Application of luminescence dating and geomorphological analysis to the study of landscape evolution, settlement and climate change on the Channel Island of Herm. Journal of Archaeological Science, 41, 890-903. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2013.10.014
• Bailiff, I., Lewis, S., Drinkall, H., & White, M. (2013). Luminescence dating of sediments from a Palaeolithic site associated with a solution feature on the North Downs of Kent, UK. Quaternary Geochronology, 18, 135-148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2013.04.001
• Bailiff, I., Lacey, H., Coningham, R., Gunawardhana, P., Adikari, G., Davis, C., Manuel, M., & Strickland, K. (2013). Luminescence dating of brick stupas: an application to the hinterland of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. Antiquity, 87(335), 189-201. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00048717
• Bailiff, I., Adamiec, G., Bluszcz, A., Bos, A., Chen, R., Chruscinska, A., & Duller, G. (2012). 13th International Conference on Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating, 10–14 July, 2011, Toruń, Poland. Radiation Measurements, 47(9), 649-651. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2012.05.007
• Blain, .., Bailiff, I., Guibert, P., Bouvier, A., & Baylé, M. (2010). An intercomparison study of luminescence dating protocols and techniques applied to medieval brick samples from Normandy (France). Quaternary Geochronology, 5(2-3), 311-316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2009.02.016
• Bailiff, I., Blain, S., Graves, C., Gurling, T., & Semple, S. (2010). Uses and recycling of brick in medieval and Tudor English buildings: insights from the application of luminescence dating and new avenues for further research. Archaeological Journal, 167(1), 165-196. https://doi.org/10.1080/00665983.2010.11020796
• Bailiff, I., Chen, R., Jain, M., Li, S., & Wallinga, J. (2009). 12th International Conference on Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating, Beijing, China, 18–22 September, 2008. Radiation Measurements, 44(5-6), Article 415-416. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2009.07.001
• Guibert, P., Bailiff, I., Blain, S., Gueli, A., Martini, M., Sibilia, E., Stella, G., & Troja, S. (2009). Luminescence dating of architectural ceramics from an early medieval abbey: The St Philbert Intercomparison (Loire Atlantique, France). Radiation Measurements, 44(5-6), 488-493. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2009.06.006
• Bailiff, I. (2007). Methodological developments in the luminescence dating of brick from English late medieval and post medieval buildings. Archaeometry, 49(4), 827-851. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4754.2007.00338.x
• Bailiff, I. (2006). Development of single grain OSL dating of ceramic materials: Spatially resolved measurement of absorbed dose. Radiation Measurements, 41(7-8), 744-749. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2006.04.012
• Wilkinson, K., Gerrard, C., Aguilera, I., Bailiff, I., & Pope, R. (2005). Prehistoric and Historic Landscape Change in Aragón, Spain: Some Results from the Moncayo Archaeological Survey. Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology, 18(1), 31-54
• Bailiff, I., Stepanenko, V., Göksu, H., Jungner, H., Balmukhanov, S., Balmukhanov, T., Khamidova, L., Kisilev, V., Kolyado, I., Kolizshenkov, T., Shoikhet, Y., & Tsyb, A. (2004). The application of retrospective luminescence dosimetry in areas affected by fallout from the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site: an evaluation of potential. Health Physics, 87(6), 625-641
• Bailiff, I., & Mikhailik, V. (2004). The use of calcium silicate bricks for retrospective dosimetry. Radiation Measurements, 38(1), 91-99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2003.07.004
• Mikhailik, V., Bailiff, I., Kraus, H., Rodnyi, P., & Ninkovic, J. (2004). Two-photon excitation and luminescence of a CaWO4 scintillator. Radiation Measurements, 38(4-6), 585-588. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2004.02.015
• Bailiff, I., & Mikhailik, V. (2003). Spatially-resolved measurement of optically stimulated luminescence and time-resolved luminescence. Radiation Measurements, 37(2), 151-159. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1350-4487%2802%2900187-7
• Bailiff, I. (2000). Characteristics of time-resolved luminescence in quartz. Radiation Measurements, 32, Article 401-405

Report

• Bailiff, I., Bayliss, A., Bridge, M., Bronk Ramsey, C., Cattell, J., Dunbar, E., & Tyers, C. (2017). St Giles House and the ‘Riding House’, Wimborne St Giles, Dorset: Scientific Dating and Bayesian Chronological Modelling. [No known commissioning body]