Sally Foster

I am a Lecturer in Heritage and Conservation at the University of Stirling, part of the University of Stirling's History and Politics Division and Centre for Environment, Heritage and Policy. I studied Medieval Archaeology at University College London, did my PhD in Glasgow, and then worked in the heritage sector for over twenty years, first as in Investigator with the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, and then with the Ancient Monuments Inspectorate in Historic Scotland. I returned to academia in 2010 with archaeological lectureships in Glasgow and Aberdeen. I've held Honorary posts as Editor of the internationally peer-reviewed journal Medieval Archaeology, and as Secretary of the Medieval Europe Research Community. I am Chair of the National Committee on Carved Stones in Scotland.

Throughout my career I have been research active, and I look for ways to combine my interest in medieval archaeology, and carved stones of all periods, with critical heritage perspectives. My publications range from the bestseller Picts, Gaels and Scots to journal articles, edited volumes such as Able Minds and Practised Hands, and a co-authored monograph. In 2016, I led the production of Future Thinking on Carved Stones: A Research Framework (see https://www.scottishheritagehub.com/content/future-thinking-carved-stones-scotland). My present research focuses on issues of value, significance and authenticity in relation to historic replicas. My main lense is copies made of early medieval sculptures for museums and places since the early nineteenth century through to the present. The most recent project is Concrete and Non-concrete: an ethnographic study of the contemporary value and authenticity of historic replicas, where the case study is the 1970 concrete replica of the St John's Cross on Iona.