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Continuity or colonization in Anglo-Saxon England? Isotope evidence for mobility, subsistence practice, and status at West Heslerton

Montgomery, J.; Evans, J.; Powlesland, D.; Roberts, C.A.

Continuity or colonization in Anglo-Saxon England? Isotope evidence for mobility, subsistence practice, and status at West Heslerton Thumbnail


Authors

J. Evans

D. Powlesland



Abstract

The adventus Saxonum is a crucial event in English protohistory. Scholars from a range of disciplines dispute the scale and demographic profile of the purported colonizing population. The 5th-7th century burial ground at West Heslerton, North Yorkshire, is one of the few Anglian cemeteries where an associated settlement site has been identified and subjected to extensive multidisciplinary postexcavation study. Skeletal and grave good evidence has been used to indicate the presence of Scandinavian settlers. A small, preliminary study using lead and strontium isotope analysis of tooth enamel, mineralized in early childhood, from Neolithic/Early Bronze Age (n = 8), Iron Age (n = 2), and Early Anglo-Saxon (n = 32) skeletons, was carried out to directly investigate this hypothesis. Results suggest that lead provides dissimilar types of information in different time periods. In post-Roman England, it appears to reflect the level of exposure to circulated anthropogenic rather than natural geological lead, thus being a cultural rather than geographical marker. Consequently, only strontium provides mobility evidence among the Anglian population, whereas both isotope systems do so in pre-Roman periods. Strontium data imply the presence of two groups: one of local and one of nonlocal origin, but more work is required to define the limits of local variation and identify immigrants with confidence. Correlations with traditional archaeological evidence are inconclusive. While the majority of juveniles and prehistoric individuals fall within the local group, both groups contain juveniles, and adults of both sexes. There is thus no clear support for the exclusively male, military-elite invasion model at this site.

Citation

Montgomery, J., Evans, J., Powlesland, D., & Roberts, C. (2005). Continuity or colonization in Anglo-Saxon England? Isotope evidence for mobility, subsistence practice, and status at West Heslerton. American journal of physical anthropology, 126(2), 123-138. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.20111

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Feb 1, 2005
Deposit Date Jul 27, 2009
Publicly Available Date Dec 17, 2013
Journal American Journal of Physical Anthropology
Print ISSN 0002-9483
Electronic ISSN 1096-8644
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 126
Issue 2
Pages 123-138
DOI https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.20111
Keywords Anglian cemetery, Migration Period, Enamel, Strontium, Lead, Isotope analysis, TIMS.

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Copyright Statement
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Montgomery, J., Evans, J. A., Powlesland, D. and Roberts, C. A. (2005), Continuity or colonization in Anglo-Saxon England? Isotope evidence for mobility, subsistence practice, and status at West Heslerton. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 126 (2): 123–138, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.20111. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.





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