Ph.D. student in Linked Open Data and AI for Archaeological Knowledge Representation - 3-year p[...]

European Commission; Deutschland; Vor Ort; EUR 36.000 - 45.000; Vollzeit

Zusammenfassung

Join the Institute for Digital Cultural Heritage Studies at LMU Munich as a Ph.D. student working on the EXCALIBUR project. This initiative focuses on integrating AI technologies to enhance research and understanding of cultural heritage, particularly in archaeological contexts. You will be part of a dynamic research team, contributing to groundbreaking developments in the field while enjoying opportunities for collaboration across various European institutions.

Leistungen

Training and development opportunities

Support for relocation to Munich

Dynamic work environment

Qualifikationen

• Master's degree in relevant field completed by October 1st.
• Strong interest in digital cultural heritage and semantic web technologies.
• Experience in digital archaeology is an asset.

Aufgaben

• Develop ontologies and knowledge graphs for the EXCALIBUR project.
• Design workflows using AI techniques for metadata generation.
• Present research findings at conferences.

Kenntnisse

Programming

Semantic web

Knowledge representation

Ausbildung

Master's degree in Computer Science

Master's degree in Digital Humanities

Master's degree in Digital Heritage

Tools

RDF

OWL

SPARQL

Jobbeschreibung

Institute for Digital Cultural Heritage Studies

Organisation/Company Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München Department Institute for Digital Cultural Heritage Studies Research Field Computer science » Modelling tools History » Archaeology Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Country Germany Application Deadline 27 Jul 2025 - 23:59 (Europe/Berlin) Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 40 Offer Starting Date 1 Oct 2025 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Horizon 2020 Reference Number 101233712 Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

About us:

As one of Europe’s leading research universities, LMU Munich (LMU) is committed to the highest international standards of excellence in research and teaching. Building on its more than 500-year-long tradition, LMU covers all areas of knowledge within its 18 Faculties, ranging from the humanities, law, economics, and social sciences to medicine and life sciences, computer science, and the natural sciences.

The Institute for Digital Cultural Heritage Studies (IDCHS) is a unique research and teaching unit within the European higher education landscape, dedicated to advancing transformative research on the ancient world through technology and digital engagement. Its mission is to address 21st-century societal challenges while expanding the frontiers of digital scholarship in Heritage Science and Archaeology.

We invite applications for a Ph.D. student (3-year contract as TVL-E13) to join our team and work on EXCALIBUR, a Horizon Europe-funded project focused on applying advanced AI technologies in the cultural heritage (CH) domain. EXCALIBUR utilizes the European Collaborative Cloud for Cultural Heritage (ECCCH) infrastructure to develop innovative tools and methods for creating digital twins (DTs) of cultural heritage objects from burial excavations and related documentation. These DTs enhance the study, conservation, and restoration of cultural heritage context held in European collections or museums. By bridging gaps in research, practice, and stakeholder engagement, EXCALIBUR transforms how bioarchaeological findings are studied and shared, connecting them with artefacts, sites, and burial traditions to deepen understanding of past populations and support the ECCCH’s vision.

Job Description:

The Ph.D.studentwill support our team’s core contributions to the EXCALIBUR project while also participating in interdisciplinary research at the IDCHS .

The Ph.D. student will contribute to the development of ontologies, knowledge graphs, and AI-driven enrichment tools. A key goal of this research is to explore how large language models (LLMs) can assist in the automatic generation and semantic annotation of cultural heritage data, bridging the gap between raw digital data and meaningful, machine-interpretable cultural narratives.

Key Responsibilities

• Model and represent archaeological knowledge, especially related to burials and ritual practices, using Linked Open Data principles, semantic ontologies, and knowledge graphs.
• Collaborate on the creation and population of knowledge graphs describing funerary material, associated objects, and contextual metadata.
• Design semi-automated or fully automated workflows that use LLMs and AI techniques to support metadata generation, enrichment, and cross-modal linking.
• Work closely with Co-Investigator Nicola Lercari, two postdoctoral researchers at the LMU IDCHS, and the wider EXCALIBUR consortium, comprising fourteen partners across six EU countries.
• Present research at conferences and contribute to academic publications.
• No teaching obligations are expected for the first two years; teaching may be arranged in the third year, depending on interest and institutional needs.

Where to apply

E-mail [e-mail]

Requirements

Research Field Computer science » Informatics Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Research Field History » Archaeology Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

• Master’s degree (completed by October 1st) in Computer Science, Digital Humanities, Digital Heritage, Statistics, Data Science, or a related field.
• Excellent written and spoken English communication skills.
• Demonstrated interest in the semantic web, knowledge representation, and digital cultural heritage.
• Proficiency in programming, with a preference for Python.
• Experience with RDF, OWL, SPARQL, and ontology development tools.
• Familiarity with cultural heritage digitization workflows and multimodal datasets.

Specific Requirements

• Experience with digital archaeology or material culture modelling.
• Familiarity with LOD vocabularies and standards like CIDOC-CRM, EDM, or others relevant to cultural heritage.
• Interest in artificial intelligence, with a focus on the application of large language models (LLMs) in cultural heritage research.

Languages ENGLISH Level Good

Research Field Computer science » Modelling toolsHistory » ArchaeologyMathematics » Statistics Years of Research Experience 1 - 4

Additional Information

• The opportunity to write your Ph.D. at the LMU IDCHS, a dynamic, internationally connected team working at the forefront of Heritage Science and technology.
• Work in close collaboration with the EXCALIBUR project partners, including renowned research centers, universities, and cultural institutions in Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, Cyprus, and Italy.
• The position and salary are based on a TV-L E13 position at 65% for a period of three years.
• Training and development opportunities.
• Our institute is located in the heart of the lively and globally diverse city of Munich with excellent public transportation connections.
• Support in relocating to Munich through the LMU Gateway office.

LMU Munich is an equal opportunity employer committed to excellence through diversity, and therefore explicitly encourages women to apply.

Eligibility criteria

• Master’s degree (completed by October 1st) in Computer Science, Digital Humanities, Digital Heritage, Statistics, Data Science, or a related field.

Selection process

Completed applications will include:

3) Research statement, or Ph.D. thesis exposé (max. 3 pages) describing your motivation and proposed direction for your Ph.D. project.

4) Names and contact information for three academic references.

5) Proof of academic degrees (e.g., diplomas, unofficial transcripts, etc.).

6) One writing sample or other relevant documents (e.g., M.A or M.Sc. thesis excerpt, published articles, or conference proceedings).

Additional comments

Submission:

Please submit your application comprising the documents listed below as a single PDF (up to 15 MB) via email only to [e-mail] , by 27 July 2025. For questions regarding the position, you may contact Prof. Nicola Lercari at [e-mail] .