High status 'Iron Bangle Lady' was rom Africa (From The Northern Echo)

High status 'Iron Bangle Lady' was rom Africa

8:43am Friday 26th February 2010 in

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STARTLING breakthroughs in forensics have proved that multi-cultural Britain is nothing new.

A scientific study has shown that high-status Africans were living in York as far back as the fourth century.

The new evidence contradicts the established view that African immigrants in Roman Britain were of low-status, male and likely to have been slaves.

And it has caused a ripple of excitement in the archaeological world for proving that Roman York had people of North African descent moving in the highest social circles.

The research was conducted by the University of Reading’s Department of Archaeology, working with the collections of the Yorkshire Museum, in York.

They studied remains found in York, particularly the “Iron Bangle Lady” who was buried in what is now the Sycamore Terrace area of the city in the latter half of the fourth century and who was found in 1901.

Her name came from the grave goods found with her, which indicated her wealth and high status.

However the new research used modern forensic ancestry assessment and isotope analysis to show it was likely that she was of North African descent, and may have migrated to York from somewhere warmer.

Senior lecturer Dr Hella Eckardt said: “Up until now, we have had to rely on evidence of such foreigners in Roman Britain from inscriptions.

“However, by analysing the facial features of the Ivory Bangle Lady and measuring her skull compared to reference populations, analysing the chemical signature of the food and drink she consumed, as well as evaluating the evidence from the burial site, we are now able to establish a clear profile of her ancestry and social status.”

She added: “It helps paint a picture of a Roman York that was hugely diverse and which included among its population, men, women and children of high status from Romanised North Africa and the Mediterranean.”

York, known to the Romans as Eboracum, was both a legionary fortress and civilian settlement, and ultimately became the capital of what was then known as Britannia Inferior.

The city was also visited by two Emperors, the North- African-born Septimius Severus, and later Constantius I – both of whom died there.

The experts believe all those factors provide potential circumstances for immigration to the area – and for the foundation of a multi-cultural community.

■ The skeleton and grave goods will be included in the Yorkshire Museum’s new exhibition Roman York: Meet the People of the Empire, which will open in August following a £2m refurbishment of the museum.