Beachy Head Lady
| Beachy Head Lady | |
|---|---|
| Discovered | c. 1950s Beachy Head, East Sussex, England |
| Present location | Eastbourne Museums |
| Identification | MES33810 |
| Period | 2nd or 3rd century AD, 1,780 to 1,899 years ago (Roman) |
| Lua error in Module:Infobox_mapframe at line 51: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
The Beachy Head Lady or Beachy Head Woman is an ancient skeleton discovered at Beachy Head, East Sussex, England. The Beachy Head Lady lived during the Roman period, around 125 to 245 AD.[1][2]
Remains and investigation
[edit | edit source]As part of the Eastbourne Ancestors project, over 300 sets of human remains excavated from Anglo-Saxon cemeteries were re-examined in 2012.[3] Heritage Officer Jo Seaman and his team found two boxes at Eastbourne Town Hall labelled "Beachy Head, something to do with 1956 or 1959".[4] Inside was a very well-preserved human skeleton.[5] The Beachy Head Lady is the most complete skeleton in the collection.[2]
Examination revealed that Beachy Head Lady was aged around 22 to 25 when she died, and was between 4 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 1 inch (1.45 m and 1.55 m) tall.[2] Radiocarbon dating suggested a date range of 125 to 245 AD for the remains, and isotope analysis indicated that the Beachy Head Lady was born and grew up in south-east England.[2] In 2025 advanced DNA analysis confirmed this account of her origins, putting to rest the various alternative theories referred to below.[1][4][6]
Initially, and erroneously, the skull shape led to an assessment that the woman had originated from Sub-Saharan Africa,[7] leading to claims that she was the earliest known person of Black African origin in Britain.[8] This was undermined in 2023 by analysis of a very partial DNA sample which, still inaccurately, placed her ancestry in Southern Europe,[5] resulting in the removal of a plaque commemorating her as “the first black Briton."[9]
The remains were exhibited to the public for the first time at the Eastbourne Redoubt in 2014.[10] In 2021, the remains were moved to the newly-refurbished "Beachy Head Story" visitor centre, closer to where they were found.[11]
See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b c d Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).