The research team took on the role of detectives and tried to solve an ancient crime. Scientists
During the study, scientists found newevidence of violence in prehistoric human societies. Mummified remains retain clues that are lost when only bones remain of the body. The authors of the study write that stab wounds, as well as rotational trauma of the cervical spine of a dislocated neck, would not have been detectable by traces on the skeletons. We need fabrics.
Image Credit: AM Begerock, R Loynes, OK Peschel, J Verano, R Bianucci, I Martinez Armijo, M Gonzalez, AG Nerlich
Human bodies can be naturallymummify in dry, cold or other extreme conditions as they interfere with the decomposition process that normally destroys soft tissues and organs. In this case, the researchers studied mummies preserved in the very arid conditions of South America and kept in museums in Germany and Switzerland.
Radiocarbon dating has shown that mummies- from 740 to 1120 years, that is, they are older than the colonial Spanish period. One male mummy probably belongs to the Arica culture. He was buried next to fishing tools, so scientists have suggested that the victim comes from a fishing community. The other two mummies, a man and a woman, probably came from the Arequipa region in what is now southwestern Peru. They were buried in materials made from cotton and llama or alpaca hair.
The researchers used computertomography (CT) to create virtual 3D reconstructions of the bodies that revealed previously hidden details of their deaths. While the woman died of natural causes, both men died as a result of the attack, according to the study.
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