Day 100. Bare Bones

These bone fragments have all been found associated with the Romano-British community discussed over the past few days. They probably came from livestock reared  and slaughtered by this community.

Two thousand years ago, these people gathered around a fire and feasted on the fruits of their year's toil. Late autumn was the traditional time for slaughtering all livestock too weak to last the winter. And a final feast was held before the struggles of winter began. 

Our long-ago forebears laughed and chatted over a drink and roasted meat, and reinforced the bonds that would enable them to survive through the winter months. Friendship and community spirit epitomised this early culture. Life was hard, and without these bonds the settlement would crumble.

 

The discarded bones lay in the soil for hundreds of years. Above them, the descendants of that early community continued to plough and reap and sow as the seasons passed. And so they reached today.

The bones were brought to the surface by people from the village they helped forge, two thousand years earlier. And in that time, human nature hasn't changed. Community and friendship are valued as much today as they were in the distant past. We share a common bond with those first inhabitants, formed by more than the village we have all shared. The past has forged the present in more ways than one.

And this concludes these hundred days of history. If you've enjoyed reading these pages, Preston on Stour: A Two Thousand Year History, is available to order from bookshops or online, or contact me on lightonecandle339@gmail.com