Journeys have become a huge topic in British archaeology and how we imagine our islands’ long history. Popular mythology tells of one invasion after another, at every turn bringing new peoples and ideas – a recent BBC film claimed to see “battles for Britain for millennia”. Archaeologists, however, had long played down the notion, preferring to see changes, from the origins of farming to the appearance of new beliefs or technologies, as choices made by insular, indigenous people. The debate has suddenly become more urgent. New sciences, notably isotope and ancient DNA studies, are revealing unimagined ancient journeys made by individuals and groups of people, as free travel, migration and refuge-seeking have become highly contentious issues in modern Britain. What happened in the past? And how does that affect our concepts of national identity?

The CBA’s new online lecture series will bring you a range of speakers from across archaeology and heritage. The lectures will be exploring a wide range of themes and ideas around the question, what is archaeology?

Speakers will draw on their own experiences, a range of sites, excavations, techniques, scientific approaches, and museum practice to bring you the latest in archaeological thinking and research.  

Collectively the lecture series will sit alongside existing CBA activity such as the Festival of Archaeology and the Archaeological Achievement Awards and contribute to a wider debate on the very nature of archaeology and how we can draw in new audiences and perceptions.

Find out what other lectures are taking place here.

Mike Pitts

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