Ancestors: A History of Britain in Seven Burials
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An extraordinary exploration of the ancestry of Britain through seven burial sites. By using new advances in genetics and taking us through important archaeological discoveries, Professor Alice Roberts helps us better understand life today. 'This is a terrific, timely and transporting book - taking us heart, body and mind beyond history, to the fascinating truth of the prehistoric past and the present' Bettany Hughes We often think of Britain springing from nowhere with the arrival of the Romans. But in Ancestors, pre-eminent archaeologist, broadcaster and academic Professor Alice Roberts explores what we can learn about the very earliest Britons, from burial sites and by using new technology to analyse ancient DNA. Told through seven fascinating burial sites, this groundbreaking prehistory of Britain teaches us more about ourselves and our history: how people came and went and how we came to be on this island. It explores forgotten journeys and memories of migrations long ago, written into genes and preserved in the ground for thousands of years. This is a book about belonging: about walking in ancient places, in the footsteps of the ancestors. It explores our interconnected global ancestry, and the human experience that binds us all together. It's about reaching back in time, to find ourselves, and our place in the world.
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While this was a very interesting read, I have a few reservations with some of the thoughts of the author.
First, we cannot place modern strictures on the past. While we see something as racist today, it was not then - and she refers to things often in one of her chapters - but as a historian, we cannot and should not place our modern rules on the past. We have to look at the way things were then. Second, she goes off on a rant on women's rights, different genders, etc. I passed over some of her rant, as - it really didn't have a bearing on this book at all.
Overall, taking out the things above, this was an interesting read. I enjoyed the details of the grave sites, and the items that were found within. There is much that we can learn from the past by looking in the graves (again, not placing modern strictures), and learning more about the peoples that were in our past. I really liked the descriptions of the goods that were found, and the condition of some of the bones that were described throughout. Brings some interesting theories on some of the pieces that were found.
