Rate My Professor Andrew Nelson

Andrew Nelson is Professor of Archaeology and Biological Anthropology and Department Chair in the Department of Anthropology within Western University's Faculty of Social Science. He holds a PhD in Anthropology from the University of California, Los Angeles (1995), an MA in Paleopathology and Funerary Archaeology from the University of Sheffield (1985), and a BSc in Anthropology and Biology (joint honors) from Trent University (1984). Nelson joined Western University as Assistant Professor in 1994, was promoted to Associate Professor in 1999 and full Professor in 2018, and assumed the role of Department Chair in 2020. He previously served as Associate Dean for Research in the Faculty of Social Science from 2010 to 2015, Graduate Chair in Anthropology from 2002 to 2007 and in 2009, and holds a cross-appointment as Research Associate at the Royal Ontario Museum.

Nelson's research centers on paleoimaging, employing non-destructive techniques such as radiography, computed tomography (CT), multi-detector CT (MDCT), and micro-CT to analyze human skeletal remains, Egyptian and Peruvian mummies, and archaeological artifacts. He directs the SSHRC-funded project 'Mummies as Microcosms,' investigating mummy bundles from Peru's Central Coast sites including Pachacamac to reconstruct mortuary rituals, health, and disease patterns from the Middle Horizon to Late Horizon. His Peruvian bioarchaeology work focuses on North Coast sites in the Jequetepeque Valley (Pacatnamu, San José de Moro, Farfán), exploring biocultural changes, cranial modification, and diet. Additional interests include hominid growth, development, and body size evolution. As principal investigator or co-investigator, he has secured over $1.2 million in funding, including multiple SSHRC grants. Notable publications include co-editing Case Studies for Advances in Paleoimaging and Other Non-Clinical Applications (CRC Press, 2021), co-authoring Life, Death and Burial Practices During the Inca Occupation of Farfán, on Perú’s North Coast (Andean Past Monograph, 2020), and articles such as 'Correlative tomography and authentication features of a shrunken head (tsantsa)' (PLOS One, 2022), 'Evisceration and excerebration in the Egyptian mummification tradition' (Journal of Archaeological Science, 2013), and contributions to the HORUS study on atherosclerosis in ancient mummies. Awards include the Dean’s Award of Excellence (2020-2021) and Faculty Scholar designations (2000/2001, 2007/08, 2009/10). His work, cited over 1,600 times, advances interdisciplinary bioarchaeology through museum collaborations and public outreach.