Yorkshire Philosophical Society

Event Information

Lifeways and deathways of the first farmers in Europe
Dr Penny Bickle, Department of Archaeology, University of York

Alongside poorer health, longer working hours and the risk of famine, farming is also long thought to have brought about inequalities of different forms. This talk will draw on new evidence from the earliest farmers in Europe – from a period called the Neolithic – to rethink this claim. Bioarchaeological data can now tell us about the diversity of diet and health, and these aspects of people’s lives intersect with mobility. The burials of men and women can tell us about the sexed division of labour, as well as status differences between individuals. Together this analysis can help us approach to the question of, given all the negative impacts of farming, why did we bother at all?

This event will be held on Zoom and an invitation will be sent to YPS members a couple of days before the event.

Image: A reconstructed Neolithic longhouse, MAMUZ Museum, Austria.