A woman’s face, dubbed Hilda, was reconstructed from an ancient skull housed in The University of Edinburgh’s Anatomical Museum. Hilda lived between 55 BC and 400 AD and was of Celtic origin. She was probably more than 60 years old when she died, nearly double the life expectancy of the time, as a female’s life expectancy in her era was roughly 31 years. Having a long life during the Iron Age indicates a privileged background. Hilda’s was one of the six ‘Druids of the Hebrides’ skulls presented to the Edinburgh Phrenological Society in 1833. Therefore, Hilda was most likely a female druid. 

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://martinifisher.com/2022/01/13/the-secret-stories-of-the-ancient-poets-of-the-celts/