Maureen Mason Student no: 27001084 Assignment no 1, Book Review: The Celts:Search for a civilization. Word count: 1,224 STUDIA CELTICA, (2020) The Celts: Search for a Civilization Roberts, Alice Heron Books, London, 2015. pp320 £20 (hardback), £4.99 (Kindle Edition) ISBN: 978 1 78429 332 1 MAUREEN A. MASON University of Wales Trinity Saint David for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies Alice Roberts is an osteoarchaeologist and anthropologist. As well as this she is an anatomist, palaeopathologist and television presenter. She writes her 2015 book entitled, The Celts: Search For A Civilization, from multiple perspectives concentrating mainly on historical and archaeological records available. She views the topic according to her professional status and capability as an extraordinary scholar in the field. Roberts traces the Celts from antiquity to the present day and covers a large area geographically when attempting to track them down. She also includes times of precise events regarding Celts, captivating us throughout the book with dates and facts from the past. Roberts is one of many attempting to trace the roots of the Celts. Among them are writers, such as Barry Cunliffe who wrote The Ancient Celts, 1999; The Celts, Peter Beresford Ellis, 1998 and Geddes & Grosset's, The Celts Of The British Isles, 2004, for example. I would not argue with Cunliffe's theory that “Our concepts of identity are always changing” (2015, p.273). People are culturally diverse hence differences in beliefs for example, occur within their societies. Cunliffe made this comment in response to Roberts' theory that ancient societies were similar to those of modern days. Ultimately, it is impossible to know. A relatively new and not universally accepted perspective of the 'Celtic from the West' is that of John Koch, who is of the belief, as is Cunliffe also, that there is a link between language and 'Celticity' and that ancient languages originated in the West. Despite Koch's claim Roberts rejects his hypothesis and believes that ancient languages originated in the East (2015, p.259). No evidence of such an ideal exists but what is evident is that the old languages were spoken in Cornwall, Wales, Scotland and Ireland since the Iron Age. Fundamentally, it is a crucial aspect of cultural identity. Regardless, there is no evidence as Lhuyd suggested (2015, p.25), in the early eighteenth century, that the Celtic language originally emerged from the East. However due to a lack of evidence of population movements, tracing the Celts to what Roberts refers to as a 'neat package' is impossible. I am inclined to agree with her theory that future ancient DNA analysis may provide answers regarding the populations movement and the 'spread of ideas'. The Celtic language and culture prove to be the main body of evidence when searching for our Celticity. These are the two definite things that we can identify Celtic civilization with. Interestingly, we are told how Wales shares commonality of their language with few others geographically. Roberts is found commenting on some similarities that are enough to identify them as being of Celtic origin. Perhaps these are the only answers that Alice Roberts will find for now. However, future finds may evidence more information regarding the Celts and she may yet discover answers to her questions which are currently unanswered. It is possible that potentially, in future, archaeologists may find material culture or DNA, for example, which could lead us to a civilization that Roberts herself claims she shares ancestry with, The Celts. Roberts attempts to paint a picture of how life in Celtic civilization would have functioned. However, she appears to have missed a vital link regarding linguistics and the Celts. She mentions Barry Cunliffe in her book, yet unlike him she fails to connect the shared culture that the Gauls, Galatians and Celts had via their language. [Cunliffe connects the Galatians to Celtic ethnicity through the language] (2015, p.158). When speculating in regards to the areas that Celts occupied, Roberts agrees with Greek Antiquarian Tacitus, in so much that the shared language and religious beliefs between the people of the past in Ireland and Britain linked them as having a cultural identity known as Celtic (2015, p.38). She continues to educate us historically by giving us a timeline of between the 8th century to the 1st century B.C. as a guide in this case. Regarding cultural identity it is the Celtic language that is flagged up as being a major link. Known then as 'Leptonic', it is believed to be an Indo-European language. Roberts has traced it back to the 6th century B.C. as being of early Celtic origin (2015, p.232). By the way, she points out how Celticity is largely identified via language in the present day amongst the Irish, Scots, Welsh and Britons [The Cornish were also linked until recently]. According to Roberts , it is a connection that we have all inherited from our ancestors. She informs us that whilst Latin may have been dominating society via the Roman's at one point, the Celtic language, Brittonic, was also rife. It is her belief that Brittonic evolved into Breton, Cornish and Welsh. Incidentally, Celtic culture remained and is remembered by it's tales, myths and legends which interpret the cultural beliefs. Searching for Celticity Roberts later comments on how “We're all genetic mongrels” (2015, p.268). Elaborating on the complexities of genetics regarding ethnicity she makes an excellent point. Heritage is culturally diverse. However, Roberts bravely attempts to open a window into the past in order to connect us to what she believes to be Celts. When discussing the story of who was discovered in an iron age burial mound, we are presented with a peek into the culture and beliefs of the Celts. Roberts informs us of the two gold earrings and two gold fibula found in the mound allowing us a sense of the wealth involved. She also demonstrates her osteoarchaeological expertise when describing human remains found in situ. However, educating us once again, she is captivating when telling of the osteoarchaeological facts. Roberts expertly identifies the human remains as being female and from dendrochronological evidence a precise date for the burial mound is given (2015, p.73). Telling us stories of finds and their discoveries she weaves interesting tales about what she believes to be Celticity. She gives more fascinating facts allowing us a window into the past regarding the Greeks, who tell us of invasions by the Celts (2015, p.140). These notes from antiquity appear to be Roberts main source of secure historical accounts. She also believes that rituals and religious beliefs have much to do with grave goods and the graves which she had encountered. She appears quite convinced that the Celts buried their dead with grave goods. From Torcs to earrings, which she claims the Celts believed accompanied their dead into the next life. Predictably, she is using her archaeological knowledge to cement her beliefs. However, she has been quite thorough when researching as she has even traced a famous 'Welsh Torc' (2015, p.99). This find identifies Wales as a place which was definitely roamed by, what we consider as authentic Celts, hence proving linguistics linked to Wales as being ancient. Conclusion Along with Alice Roberts the reader is prompted to ask the question 'Who were the Celts'? Where is the evidence to answer that question? Roberts undeniably gives her readers plenty of food for thought. Unfortunately, there is very little concrete evidence to tell us much that is solid fact regarding the origins of the Celts.