Maria Castaneyra-Ruiz
Liverpool School of Art and Design
Faculty of Arts Professional and Social Studies
Email: M.CastaneyraRuiz@ljmu.ac.uk
Telephone: 0151 231 9605
Dr María Castañeyra Ruiz graduated in Art History from the University of La Laguna, Tenerife, in 2008. Shortly afterwards, she began her PhD in Physical Anthropology, in the Department of Ancient History and Anthropology and the Department of Anatomy, Pathology and Histology of the University of La Laguna, where her PhD thesis focused on the ancient aborigines of La Gomera. She obtained the highest degree of excellence with Cum Laude distinction in July 2015. She continued to work in the field of archaeology and anthropology, shortly before receiving the research grant from the Canary Islands 'Dr Manuel Morales Foundation', in 2017, she carried out postdoctoral studies in craniofacial reconstruction at the award winning Face Lab, Liverpool John Moores University.
In Face Lab, Maria was a co-investigator for the project "The Quest For Ancestral Faces" and performing 50 craniofacial depictions of Prehispanic Canarians, which were exhibited in the Museum of Gran Canaria. The exhibition was co-curated by Francesca Phillips and Prof Caroline Wilkinson. For more information on the project: https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/microsites/ancestral-faces-canary-islands. Maria was awarded The Selwyn Award 2020 from the Royal Photography Society for her research in this project.
Maria worked as a PDRA on a British Academy Knowledge Frontiers, Migrant Disaster Victim Identification (MDVI) project from 2019-2020. This project involved travel to the Canary Islands and Senegal to collect information and create a network. This project is the first attempt to address the MDVI problem in the Canary Islands and was focused on the identification of deceased people who attempted to cross the Atlantic from the West Coast of Africa to the Canary Islands. Maria is also leading on the establishment of a Face Lab branch in the Canary Islands and creating an international network for MDVI. For more information about the project: https://www.migrantsdvi.com/. Different outcomes resulted from the BAKF, such as the online MDVI Symposium 2022 organized by Maria.
Since then, she has been employed on a series of MDVI projects, including the QR-funded collaboration with the University of Thrace and the Platform for Missing Migrants in Greece, and a European-funded COST MDVI Action 2023-2027. Recently, this line of research received 'THE Award 2023' for 'Research Project of the Year in Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences'.
Maria is currently the Grant Holder Manager /Administrator and Grant Awarding Coordinator for the COST MDVI Action. The Action is to develop new practical ante-mortem and post-mortem data collection, analysis and reconciliation methods for the identification of deceased migrant disaster victims,
and to co-design a collaborative process between identification professionals and families of missing migrants for past, present and future migrant disaster. For more information and to join the action here: https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA22106/
Since 2019, Maria has been consistently working in Face Lab on producing archaeological facial reconstructions for public presentation in museums and the media.
Maria teaches on the Art & Foundation Year at the Liverpool School of Art & Design on the modules: 3101FNDLCP Preparing for Success Academic Skills, 3102FNDLCP Investigating Liverpool and 3001FNDLSA Exploring Materials Process and Practice.
Languages
Spanish; Castilian
English
French
Italian
Degrees
2015, Universidad de La Laguna, Spain, PhD Physical Anthropology
2011, Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia, Spain, MA Mediation and Heritage Management in Europe.
2008, Universidad de La Laguna, Spain, BA Arts History
Artefact
Liu C, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Greenway E, Wilkinson C. 2023. 3D Replica of a skull from Dalton Parlours, on display at Leeds City Museum
Castaneyra Ruiz M, Castaneyra-Ruiz M. Two Facial depictions of Guanche children from the summit of Tenerife (Canary Islands)
Journal article
Wilkinson CM, Castaneyra-Ruiz M. 2021. The current status of Migrant Disaster Victim Identification in the Canary Islands Journal of the British Academy, 9s8 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Diac MM, Earar K, Damian SI, Knieling A, Iov T, Shrimpton S, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Wilkinson C, Bulgaru Iliescu D. 2020. Facial Reconstruction: Anthropometric Studies Regarding the Morphology of the Nose for Romanian Adult Population I: Nose Width Applied Sciences, 10 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
González-Reimers E, González-Arnay E, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M. 2018. Identifying small pelvic inclusions through SEM technology International Journal of Paleopathology, :92-96 DOI Publisher Url
Camacho-Hernández CM, Perdigón-Alvarado E, Quintero-Platt G, Reyes-Suárez P, Vera-Delgado V, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Martín-González C, González-Reimers E. 2018. Digit ratios among the modern population of the Canary Islands European Journal of anatomy,
Gonzalez-Reimers E, Trujillo-Mederos A, C. Ordóñez A, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M. 2015. Sexual dimorphism: a comparative study between inhabitants from El Hierro and other populations of the Word. European Journal of Anatomy, 19 :59-64 Publisher Url Public Url
Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Trujillo-Mederos A, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M, González-Reimers E. 2014. Marked eburnation among prehispanic individuals from La Gomera (Canary Islands) Majorensis, Publisher Url Public Url
González-Reimers E, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Trujillo-Mederos2 A, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M. Differences in tibial shape among the Prehispanic inhabitants from Gomera, Punta Azul (El Hierro), and Gran Canaria (Canary Islands) Anthropologischer Anzeiger: Bericht uber die biologisch-anthropologische Literatur,
Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Trujillo-Mederos A, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M, González-Reimers E. Osteoarthritis among the prehispanic population from La Gomera and El Hierro (Canary Islands): a comparative study Anthropologischer Anzeiger: Bericht uber die biologisch-anthropologische Literatur, DOI Publisher Url
Arnay-de-la-Rosa M, González-Reimers E, Hernández-Marrero JC, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, Trujillo-Mederos A, González-Arnay E, Hernández-León CN. Cartilage-derived tumor in a prehispanic individual from La Gomera (Canary Islands) International Journal of Paleopathology, DOI Publisher Url
González-Reimers E, Trujillo-Mederos A, Machado-Calvo M, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, C. Ordónez A, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M. A skeletal case of hypertrophic osteoarthropathy from the Canary Islands dating from 1000 BP International Journal of Paleopathology, DOI Publisher Url
Trujillo-Mederos A, Arnay-de-la-Rosa M, González-Reimers E, Carmona-Calero E, González-Toledo JM, Castaneyra-Ruiz M, C. Ordóñez A, Castañeyra-Perdomo3 A. Tibial marks in bare tibiae: relationship with robusticity indices European Journal of Anatomy,
Castaneyra-Ruiz M, López Guerrero R. ARCHAEOLOGICAL APPROACH AND WORK PROPOSALS ON “LLANO DEL SOMBRERO” (BETANCURIA, FUERTEVENTURA) XX Coloquio de Historia Canario-Americana,
Exhibition
Phillips F, Wilkinson C, Castaneyra-Ruiz M. Canarii: The Quest for Ancient Faces
Phillips F, Wilkinson C, Castaneyra-Ruiz M. La Busqueda las Caras ancestrales -Canarii: The Quest for Acient faces Publisher Url
Highlighted activities
Award:
THE Award. Research Project of the Year: Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Times Higher Education, https://the-awards.co.uk/2023/en/page/archive-2023. 2023
The Selwyn Award, The Royal Photographic Society, https://rps.org/news/bristol/2020/october/rps-awards-2020/. 2020
Professional activities
Research Grants Awarded:
LJMU QR APSS, Capturing impact and public opinion: response to facial depictions of people from the past on display in GLAMs (2024), C. Y. Jessica Liu, Caroline Wilkinson, Sarah Shrimpton, Maria Castaneyra-Ruiz, Mark Roughley, Elysia Greenway, Thomas Dickinson, Viviana Conti, Grant value (£): 9,680.46, Duration of research project: 12 months. 2024
Conference presentation:
Migrant Disaster Victim Identification, 7th Conference of the European Division of the International Association for Identification 10th -12th June 2024, Barcelona/Spain, Poster presentation, https://www.theiaieu.org/annual-meeting/. 2024
Craniofacial Analysis for Migrants Disaster Victim Identification, Antrhopology and Geography: Dialogues past, present an Future”, On-line RAI, Oral presentation. 2023
Two Facial depictions of Guanche children from the summit of Tenerife (Canary Islands), 10th World Congress on Mummy Studies, Bolzano, Italy, Poster presentation. 2022
Case study: A comparison of predicted mandible of facial depiction of a Guanche child from the summit of Tenerife (Canary Islands), 19 Biennial Scientific Meeting of the International Association for Craniofacial Identification: Knowledge Transfer; presentation, ethics, bias, and expectation, Liverpool, Oral presentation. 2022
Craniofacial Analysis for Migrant Disaster Victim Identification, Migrant Disaster Victim Identification. On-line Symposium, On-line /Liverpool, Oral presentation. 2022
Craniofacial Analysis for Migrants Disaster Victim Identification, Race And Face International Association for Craniofacial Identification., Online Symposium:, Poster presentation. 2021
The Faces of the Canary Islands: Two populations that are Centuries Apart., International Association of Craniofacial Identification, Online Symposium, Oral presentation. 2019
Facial reconstructions of the mummy #6 of El Museo Canario, Athanatos: Extraordinary World Congress on Mummy., Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, Oral presentation. 2018
Other invited event:
Migrant Disaster Victim Identification, On-Line Staffordshire University, Masterclass in forensic science. Module mass death scenarios. 2024
Our Hour Episode#1 ICRC, On-line ICRC, Invited talk about Migrants Disasters Victim Identification. “Our Hour” is a one -hour webinar series hosted each month by the Missing Persons Global Community for its members. Every first Monday of the month, we invite one or more of our community members to showcase their work on the issue of the missing, separated families and the deceased.. 2022
Award:
THE Award. Research Project of the Year: Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Times Higher Education, https://the-awards.co.uk/2023/en/page/archive-2023. 2023
Liverpool John Moores University's Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence- Impact Story (2022) - Presented to Professor Caroline Wilkinson and the Face Lab team., Liverpool John Moores University. 2022
The Selwyn Award, The Royal Photographic Society, https://rps.org/news/bristol/2020/october/rps-awards-2020/. 2020
Research Team of the Year (awarded to Face Lab, LJMU) - Educate North Awards 2019, Educate North, https://www.educatenorth.co.uk/2019-winners. 2019
Other Professional Activity:
Public Engagement Event: Face Lab LJMU at Liverpool Museum for the Festival of Archaeology 26th July 2023 https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/whatson/museum-of-liverpool/event/face-lab. 2023
Introduction to Leadership and Management Programme. LJMU. 2021
Bereavement and Grief Counselling Diploma. 2020
Curso online de introducción a la Arqueología y Antropología Forense.Diploma IFPCF. 2015
II Curso de Disección Humana. Diploma ULL. 2014
Curso Técnicas en Disección Humana. Diploma ULL. 2014
V Curso Online en Osteología e Identificación en Antropología Física y Forense.Diploma IFPCF. 2014
Conference organisation:
The 19th Biennial meeting of the International Association for Craniofacial identification. ‘Knowledge Transfer; presentation, ethics, bias and expectation’, Host and organiser, http://www.craniofacial-id.org/next-meeting.html. 2022
Migrant Disaster Victim Identification. On-line Symposium. 2022
XXVI Congreso de la Sociedad Anatómica Española. 2013
Teaching qualification:
Acreditación a profesor ayudante doctor. 2015
CAP Spanish Teaching Certificate in Education. 2009