Project description
First contact: understanding timing, duration, geographical extent and lasting significance
The Norse were present in the Americas in 1021 CE, before Christopher Columbus. Filling in major gaps in our knowledge, the EU-funded CONTACT project will explore when, where and for how long Europeans went to the Americas prior to Columbus. It seeks to shed light on who they may have encountered and whether there were any lasting impacts of these first transatlantic connections. It will use the newly developed tools of spike radiocarbon dating and ancient DNA provenancing to test Norse transatlantic expansion. Project work will include a framework for reanalysing the earliest connections between the Old and the New Worlds.
Objective
For ten thousand years, the world was divided in two. Almost all human societies belonged to either the Old or the New Worlds. Amid this consummate isolation, the two worlds followed their own cultural and ecological trajectories. The loop was finally closed when the Norse arrived in the Americas in 1021 CE. However, the story of this closure ironically remains one of the most significant gaps in our knowledge of the past. This project addresses the timing, duration, geographical extent and lasting significance of this period of first contact. Using the newly developed tools of spike radiocarbon dating and ancient DNA provenancing, current understanding of the Norse transatlantic expansion will be both tested and extended. Data of unprecedented precision will cast the history of Greenland into sharp relief, allowing fresh insights to be gained on the role of conflict, climate and trade in the ultimate abandonment of the colony. Furthermore, by analysing artefacts on either side of the Atlantic, the true extent and temporality of the Norse presence in the New World will be unveiled. Drawing all the new evidence together, CONTACT will be able to trace the story of the period as it has oscillated down the centuries between fact and fiction. In so doing, it will establish a framework for reanalysing the earliest connections between the Old and the New Worlds.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
You need to log in or register to use this function
We are sorry... an unexpected error occurred during execution.
You need to be authenticated. Your session might have expired.
Thank you for your feedback. You will soon receive an email to confirm the submission. If you have selected to be notified about the reporting status, you will also be contacted when the reporting status will change.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2021-COG
See all projects funded under this callHost institution
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
9712CP Groningen
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.