History as Mystery
Purpose
This activity will show you the difference between learning history from a book, and actually being a historian. The study of history depends on forensics, a bit like the crime labs you see on television, because true historians don’t retell neatly written stories—they solve mysteries. Historians must use a variety of approaches and get input from a variety of experts to make sense of the past. This lesson illustrates the importance of using an interdisciplinary approach to solve a complex question, a process that’s very important in the Big History course.
Process
You’re going to think about how to solve the Mystery at York. Your clues: In 2004, 30 decapitated human skeletons, all male, were discovered in York, England. Scientists determined that the bones were from the third century CE. The heads of the decapitated bodies had been placed around the knees and feet. Eventually, about 80 male skeletons were unearthed. You’re going to think about the clues you’ve just been given, and then watch an excerpt from a video to see how researchers from different disciplines contributed to the development of a hypothesis for why these men were there, and why they were buried in the way that they were.
Part 1
Complete the Student Record sheet below (you have a copy on google classroom) recording your "hypothesis" for why these men are here.
Part 2:
Watch the 15 minute excerpt from the BBC video, "The Mystery of the Headless Romans". It is important that as you watch the clip, you try to notice:
1. How researchers from different disciplines contributed to the development of a hypothesis for why these men were there, and
2. Why they were buried in the way that they were.
After watching the video, respond to question 2 in your student record sheet - "Write down the disciplines of the experts who have been involved so far in determining the age of the bodies and what happened to them. Write a brief description of what they do."
