The discovery of 4,000-year-old human remains at Charterhouse Warren in Somerset has unveiled a harrowing chapter of British prehistory. The analysis of over 3,000 bone fragments belonging to at least 37 individuals, ranging from newborns to adults, has indicated an unprecedented level of violence. The findings, published in Antiquity, revealed evidence of scalping, decapitation, defleshing, tongue removal, evisceration, and signs of cannibalism. Researchers have suggested that these acts represent a dark episode of social and political violence in the Early Bronze Age, estimated between 2200 and 2000 B.C.
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Evidence of Brutality
As per reports, the bone analysis conducted by Rick Schulting, an archaeologist at the University of Oxford, and his colleagues, highlighted violent deaths, with 30 percent of skulls showing fractures sustained around the time of death. Approximately 20 percent of the bones bore cut marks inflicted by stone tools, indicating post-mortem actions. Decapitation was confirmed in six individuals based on damage to cervical vertebrae, while marks on jawbones and ribs suggested tongue removal and evisceration. Evidence of crushing fractures on small bones pointed to human chewing.
Unclear Motivations Behind the Violence
According to the research team, these actions do not align with any known Bronze Age funerary practices. The scale of violence and the number of victims suggest a massacre. The study speculated that the brutality could have been retaliatory or related to violations of social norms, possibly reflecting intense political motives. Anna Osterholtz, bioarchaeologist at Mississippi State University, remarked in an email to Live Science that violence of this nature often served a social function, influencing group identity and relationships.
Possible Connection to Disease
Teeth from two child victims contained traces of Yersinia pestis, the bacterium responsible for the plague. This discovery has led researchers to propose that fear linked to illness may have played a role in escalating tensions within the community. Work on the remains continues, with researchers aiming to further unravel the events surrounding this grim episode of British prehistory.
