First Seminar: Dr John McNabb
The inaugural seminar of this year’s CAHO seminar series will be presented by our very own Dr John McNabb (Mac).
“Piltdown; Nationalism, Human Origins and the Faking of the Earliest Englishman”
This year sees the centenary of the Piltdown man. In December 1912 a tremendous discovery was announced. A fossilised human ancestor which perfectly fitted the prevailing expectations of evolutionary theory, and it was found in Sussex. What could have been more appropriate, unless it was the discovery of an ancient cricket bat – and the forger even provided that as well. This talk will concentrate on a much neglected aspect of the Piltdown forgery – the material culture. This is usually side lined in favour of the more dramatic human remains. However the bogus tools that were planted by the forger have important insights to offer into the practice of anthropology and archaeology in the post-Edwardian era.
The seminar will take place on Friday, 26th October, at 5pm in the Wymer Lab (building 65a), Avenue Campus, University of Southampton.