Transcript IBianchin, FCisilino - The origins of British culture

THE ORIGINS OF
BRITISH CULTURE
Liceo Scientifico A.Einstein
Class: 3^A
School year: 2012/2013
Students: Bianchin Ilaria, Cisilino
Francesca
WHO LIVED IN BRITAIN?
• The British Isles have been populated by human;
• were descendants of the first modern humans,
or Homo sapiens;
• The introduction of farming, is widely regarded
as one of the biggest changes in human history.
NEOLITHIC
• The change from a hunter-gatherer to a
farming way of life is what defines the start of
the Neolithic or New Stone Age;
• The arrival of farming is seen as a major and
rapid change sometimes called the 'Neolithic
revolution'.
BRONZE AGE
• The first bronzes appear before 2500 BC, start
date for the Bronze Age.
• The appearance of metal marks does not
seem to bring a big change in the way that
people lived their lives in the Early Bronze
Age.
• The Late Bronze Age saw the start of the socalled 'Celtic' way of life.
IRON AGE
• The Iron Age of the British Isles covers the
period from about 800 BC to the Roman
invasion of 43 AD, and follows on from the
Bronze Age.
• As the name implies, the Iron Age saw the
gradual introduction of iron working
technology;
• The best known and most visible remains of
the Iron Age are hill forts.
GROWING ROMAN INFLUENCE
• In the end of the second century BC, Romans
extended into the Britain;
• Rome appears to have established trade links
and diplomatic relations with a number of
tribes.
• After AD 43, all of Wales and England south of
the line of Hadrian's Wall became part of the
Roman empire.
STONEHENGE
• Stonehenge is a wonder of the ancient world. It also
provides us with an insight into the life and secrets of
Britain in 2500 BC.
• The great prehistoric monument was built in several phases
spanning hundreds of years, from around 3000 BC to 1600
BC.
• Hypothesis about function of Stonehenge:
– Holy place or a secular tool for calculating dates and a site of
healing.
– The whole purpose is that it was a prehistoric Lourdes.
– Offered a way to establish calendar dates when no other
method existed.
– The great standing stones inspire a religious reverence.
THE AMESBURY ARCHER, THE KING OF
STONEHENGE?
• The Amesbury Archer is type of jewellery may be the oldest type of gold
object made in Britain.
• Symbols of status
The bones of the man found inside showed that he was a strong
man, who had lived to be 35 to 45 years old.
At his death, his mourners buried him in the way that was typical of
the time, on his side and slightly curled up, as if he was asleep.
Some of the objects hint how he was dressed or adorned when
he was buried.
• King of Stonehenge?
The radiocarbon dates show that the Archer lived between 2,400
and 2,200 years BC.
In the past, burials of this date were considered rich if they
contained more than a handful of objects, especially if one of the
objects was of copper or bronze, or even gold.
FIRST PEOPLE
• Throughout prehistory there were myriad smallscale societies and many petty 'tribal' identities.
• Calling the British Iron Age 'Celtic' is so
misleading that it is best abandoned.
• 'Celtic' was soon extended to describe insular
monuments, art, culture and peoples, ancient
and modern: island 'Celtic' identity was born, like
Britishness, in the 18th century.
THE ROMANS
• The Roman conquest, illustrates the profound
cultural and political impact that small
numbers of people can have in some
circumstances;
• For the Romans did not colonise the islands of
Britain to any significant degree.