Timothy Insoll

Timothy Insoll
Insoll in Bahrain, November 2021
Born	1967 (age 56–57)
Nationality	British
Occupation	Archaeologist
Known for	Excavation and research in sub-Saharan Africa and Bahrain
Academic background
Alma mater	University of Sheffield St John's College, Cambridge
Thesis	Islam, archaeology and history, a complex relationship: the Gao Region (Mali) ca.AD 900–1250 (1995)
Academic work
Discipline	Archaeology
Sub-discipline	Archaeology of religions and rituals Archaeology of Islam in Africa African indigenous religions
Institutions	University of Cambridge University of Manchester University of Exeter

Timothy Insoll FSA FBA (born 1967) is a British archaeologist and Africanist and Islamic Studies scholar. Since 2016 he has been Al-Qasimi Professor of African and Islamic Archaeology at the University of Exeter. He is also founder and director of the Centre for Islamic Archaeology.^[1] Previously he was at the Department of Archaeology at the University of Manchester (1999–2016).^[2]

His primary research specialism is in the archaeology of Islam and indigenous religions in sub-Saharan Africa.^[2] His research has focused on the archaeological indicators of Islam, as well as indigenous beliefs associated with concepts such as ancestral veneration and sacrifice. He has engaged with STEM approaches throughout his research, and works closely with historical, ethnographic, and epigraphic materials. He has particular interests in the archaeological analysis of beads and bead materials.

He has curated several exhibitions and worked on theoretical approaches to the archaeological study of rituals and religions. He has also led research projects in Mali, Ghana, Ethiopia, and Bahrain, and completed other field and museum-based projects in Eritrea, India, Pemba Island, and Uganda.