All of our lectures are live streamed and are open to anyone to join us online, Fellows and Non-Fellows.
To view any of our past lectures please visit our YouTube channel.
To view any of our past lectures please visit our YouTube channel.
Lunchtime Lecture
Genetic Histories of Kinship and Ancestry in Roman Britain by Dr Marina Soares da Silva
The genetic impact of the Roman Empire in Britain has been hypothesised to be low, especially in rural regions, with the bulk of ancestry likely deriving from the preceding Iron Age. This lecture will focus on how a multidisciplinary approach, combining multiple strands of evidence (e.g. aDNA, osteological assessment, radiocarbon dating, isotope analysis), has contributed to illuminate social practices within small and rural communities and uncover life histories of single individuals and family groups in Roman Britain. It will focus on two examples: 1) the life history of long-distance mobility of a male individual in an isolated inhumation in Cambridgeshire, who did not carry traceable ancestry related to local populations in Britain and was instead genetically closer to Caucasus and Sarmatian groups; and 2) the reconstruction of family trees spanning up to four generations in a small rural cemetery in Childrey Warren, Oxfordshire.
Dr Marina Soares da Silva is a postdoctoral researcher in the Crick Institute’s Ancient Genomics Group, where she develops interdisciplinary research at the intersection of genetics, archaeology and history. She uses ancient DNA recovered from skeletal remains from diverse archaeological contexts to study the genetics of past human populations in Britain. Previously, she obtained her PhD in the Archaeogenetics Research Group at the University of Huddersfield, researching the genetics of the Bronze Age transition in Eurasia with a particular focus on the Iberian Peninsula.
This event will be both in person at Burlington House and online. Please select the appropriate ticket below.
Attendance at Burlington House:
Open to anyone to attend.
The event begins at 1pm in the Meeting Room, please arrive with enough time beforehand.
Attendance online:
The event will be live-streamed on Zoom (if you register) and recorded on our YouTube channel.
The event will begin at 1pm.
You will receive an email reminder with the link to join the day of the lecture.
If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected].
