Was it an axe or an adze? A cranial trauma case study from the Late Neolithic - Chalcolithic site of Cova Foradada (Calafell, Spain)

Death in the high mountains: Evidence of interpersonal violence during Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age at Roc de les Orenetes (Eastern Pyrenees, Spain)

OBJECTIVES

To test a hypothesis on interpersonal violence events during the transition between Chalcolithic and Bronze Age in the Eastern Pyrenees, to contextualize it in Western Europe during that period, and to assess if these marks can be differentiated from secondary funerary treatment.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Metric and non-metric methods were used to estimate the age-at-death and sex of the skeletal remains. Perimortem injuries were observed and analyzed with stereomicroscopy and confocal microscopy.

RESULTS

Among the minimum of 51 individuals documented, at least six people showed evidence of perimortem trauma. All age groups and both sexes are represented in the skeletal sample, but those with violent injuries are predominantly males. Twenty-six bones had 49 injuries, 48 of which involved sharp force trauma on postcranial elements, and one example of blunt force trauma on a cranium. The wounds were mostly located on the upper extremities and ribs, anterior and posterior. Several antemortem lesions were also documented in the assemblage.

DISCUSSION

The perimortem lesions, together with direct dating, suggest that more than one episode of interpersonal violence took place between the Late Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze Age in northeastern Spain. The features of the sharp force trauma indicate that different weapons were used, including sharp metal objects and lithic projectiles. The Roc de les Orenetes assemblage represents a scenario of recurrent lethal confrontation in a high mountain geographic context, representing the evidence of inferred interpersonal violence located at the highest altitude settings in the Pyrenees, at 1836 meters above sea level.

A cranial injury from the earliest Gravettian at the Cro-Magnon rock shelter (Vézère Valley, Dordogne, southwest France)

Discovered over 150 years ago, the early Upper Paleolithic human remains from the Cro-Magnon rock shelter have an iconic status, but because of skeletal commingling after discovery, their bio-profiles remain incomplete and contentious. The defect on the frontal bone of the cranium known as Cro-Magnon 2 has been interpreted as both an antemortem injury and a postmortem (i.e., taphonomic) artifact previously. This contribution considers the cranium in order to clarify the status of the defect on the frontal bone and to situate these remains among others of Pleistocene date with similar types of lesions. The diagnostic criteria used to assess the cranium are drawn from recent publications of actualistic experimental studies of cranial trauma and from those associated with cranial trauma due to violence in forensic anthropological and bioarchaeological contexts. The appearance of the defect and comparison with more recent documented cases from the preantibiotic era suggest that the defect is a result of antemortem trauma with survival for a short period. The location of the lesion on the cranium provides growing evidence for interpersonal aggression in these early modern human groups, and the place of burial also provides insight into related mortuary behavior.

Two cases of pelvic trauma with survival in the necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa (Egypt)

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the presence of a trauma that results in pelvic ring disruption and its clinical implications in two individuals from ancient Egypt.

MATERIALS

Two complete skeletons of adult women, dated to the Middle Kingdom (c. 1980-1760 BCE), from two tombs in the necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa (Aswan, Egypt).

METHODS

The anatomical elements were examined macroscopically in Egypt.

RESULTS

Unilateral sacroiliac luxation with disruption of the pubic symphysis was detected in both individuals. The presence of an overlapped symphysis was evident in female QH34aa. A healed fracture of the iliopubic ramus are present in female QH122. Antemortem bone alterations in the pelvis demonstrate that they survived the trauma.

CONCLUSIONS

Pelvic trauma due to a lateral compression was detected in the os coxae. Both women survived but probably had severe sequelae that impaired their quality of life. At least one of them might have received some type of medical treatment.

SIGNIFICANCE

Both cases shed light on pelvic fractures, their mechanisms of production, and their effects on bone and its functionality, as well as revealing possible associated lesions of soft tissues and vital organs.

LIMITATIONS

The pelvis, or at least the pubic symphysis, must be well preserved to allow the correct diagnosis of this type of lesion.

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

Studies are warranted on the detection of this type of fracture, focusing on the subtle bone changes that indicate its presence. There is also a need to develop methodologies that combine the study of bone and soft tissue alterations.

Mass violence in Copper Age Europe: The massacre burial site from Potočani, Croatia

OBJECTIVES

To provide a comprehensive analysis of perimortem cranial injuries found on human remains from the Eneolithic (ca. 4200 BCE) mass grave discovered at Potočani, Croatia, to test if the assemblage is a result of a deliberate violent episode on a massive scale.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Standard bioarchaeological analysis, including inventory of the preserved elements, minimum number of individuals, sex determination, age at death, as well as pattern and distribution of trauma, was recorded.

RESULTS

A minimum of 41 people are present in the sample. Both sexes and almost all age groups are represented, with a prevalence of children and young adults. Four blunt force antemortem injuries are registered in three adult males and one subadult while perimortem injuries are recorded on 13 crania with a total of 28 injuries. The distribution of perimortem injuries is not patterned with age, sex, or siding, and their location is on lateral, posterior, or superior parts of the crania. No "defensive wounds" or other type of injuries are observed on postcranial elements.

DISCUSSION

The injuries, manner of disposal of the bodies, radiocarbon dates, and other available data strongly suggest that the Potočani sample represents a single episode of execution during which the Potočani people were unable to defend themselves. The Potočani massacre is the oldest such example in southeastern Europe and provides additional evidence that indiscriminate violence on a massive scale is not a product of modern societies.