Historical and archaeogenomic identification of high-status Englishmen at Jamestown, Virginia
Ancient DNA (aDNA) data are reported for two human skeletons buried within the chancel of the 1608-1616 church at the North American colonial settlement of Jamestown, Virginia. The men are suspected kinsmen of the colony's first Governor, Thomas West, 3<sup>rd</sup> Baron De La Warr based on archaeological, osteological, and documentary evidence. Genomic analyses of these men, Sir Ferdinando Wenman and Captain William West, identify a shared mitochondrial haplogroup, H10e, inferring maternal relatedness. In this unusual case, aDNA prompted further historical research that led to the discovery of illegitimacy, an aspect of identity omitted, likely intentionally, from genealogical records.
Authors
- Nadin Rohland (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8112-9601)
- David Reich (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7037-5292)
- Douglas W. Owsley (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5071-6910)
- Kristin Stewardson
- David Givens (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-2531-2573)
- Swapan Mallick (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6851-5022)
- Michael Lavin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-1106-0962)
- Íñigo Olalde (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2660-6807)
- Karin S. Bruwelheide (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1708-2845)
- Jonas Oppenheimer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7973-6173)
- Vicki E. Simon
- Jamie E. May
- Matthew Ferry (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7319-0085)
- Fatma Zalzala (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8981-1277)
- Éadaoin Harney (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9385-7297)
- William M. Kelso
- Kathryn G. Barca
- Ann Marie Lawson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0990-2329)
- Nasreen Broomandkhoshbacht (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5350-1608)
- Megan Michel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5484-7974)
- Deborah A. Hull-Walski
- A. Ramsey
Institutions
- Smithsonian Institution (US)
- Broad Institute (US)
- Ikerbasque (ES)
- National Museum of Natural History (US)
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (US)
- Harvard University (US)
- University of the Basque Country (ES)
- Preservation Virginia (US)
- Evolutionary Genomics (United States) (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Antiquity
- Published
- 2024-08-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.75
- Primary Topic
- Forensic and Genetic Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute
- Smithsonian Institution
- John Templeton Foundation
- Paul G. Allen Family Foundation
- Jamestowne Society
- National Institutes of Health
- Museum Conservation Institute