Cannibalism in the linear pottery culture : the human remains from Herxheim

The Herxheim enclosure, located in the German region of Palatinate, is one of the major discoveries of the last two decades regarding the Linear Pottery Culture, and probably one of the most significant in advancing understanding of how this culture ended. The spectacular deposits, mostly composed of human remains, recovered on the occasion of the two excavation campaigns carried out on the site, grabbed people’s attention and at the same time raised several questions regarding their interpretation, which had so far mostly hesitated between peculiar funerary practices, war and cannibalism. The authors provide here the first extensive study of the human remains found at Herxheim, focusing mainly on those recovered during the 2005–2010 excavation campaign. They first examine the field data in order to reconstruct at best the modalities of deposition of these remains. Next, from the quantitative analyses and those of the bone modifications, they describe the treatments of the dead, showing that they actually were the victims of cannibalistic practices. The nature of this cannibalism is then discussed on the basis of biological, palaeodemographic and isotopic studies, and concludes that an exocannibalism existed linked to armed violence. Finally, the human remains are placed in both their local and chronocultural contexts, and a general interpretation is proposed of the events that unfolded in Herxheim and of the reasons for the social crisis at the end of the Linear Pottery culture in which they took place. Cover 1 Title page 3 Copyright page 4 List of Figures 8 Foreword 11 Introduction: recalling Herxheim’s general context 13 General aspects of methods and material 15 Preparation of the remains and general approach to their study 15 Preparation of the remains 15 General study procedure of the human remains 15 The human remains from the 2005–2010 excavations: general structure 18 Modalities of deposition and burial of the human remains 21 Data and methods 21 The excavation: organisation and methodology 21 Spatial information 23 The limitations of observations in the field and their consequences 23 Incompleteness of spatial information 23 Problems related to stratigraphic units 24 Results 25 Frequency of relationships 25 Deposits and their spatial relations 27 The problem of initial identification of concentrations 27 Redefinition of the deposits 29 Spatial relationships 34 Modalities of deposition and burial 37 The unfragmented individuals 39 Quantitative analysis of the human remains 41 Quantification of elements 41 Methods 41 Number of specimens 44 Mass 45 Percentage of representation 48 Synthesis 50 Representation of parts of elements 53 Methods 53 Large long bones and clavicle 53 Metacarpals, metatarsals and phalanges 55 Carpals, tarsals and patella 56 Vertebrae and ribs 57 Results of the quantitative analysis 60 General study of bone modifications 63 Fracturing 63 General methodology 63 Large long bones 63 Length of shaft fragments 63 Shaft fragmentation 63 Attributes of fractures 66 Impact points 68 Cranial vault 69 Other parts of the skeleton 70 Cutting up 71 General methodology 71 Cutmarks 72 Scrape marks 74 Polish 75 Heat-related modifications 77 General methodology 77 Results for the whole assemblage 77 Results for the facial skeleton 78 Chewing marks 82 General methodology 82 Results 86 Results of the general study of bone modifications 89 Anatomical study 91 Preamble 91 Skull 91 Cranium 91 Exposure to fire 91 Cutting up 91 Fracturing 95 Mandible 97 Exposure to fire 97 Cutting up 97 Fracturing 99 Trunk and girdles 100 Vertebrae 100 Cutting up 100 Fracturing 100 Ribs 101 Cutting up 101 Fracturing 101 Clavicles 102 Cutting up 102 Fracturing 103 Scapulae 103 Cutting up 103 Fracturing 105 Coxal bones 108 Cutting up 108 Fracturing 108 Large long bones 108 Cutting up 108 Fracturing 110 Other modifications 110 Hands and feet 111 Cutting up 111 Fracturing 112 Other modifications 112 Other elements 112 Number of individuals, biology and demography 113 Number of individuals 113 Preamble 113 Results 113 Sex and age at death 114 General methodology 114 Sex 116 Age at death of immature individuals 116 Palaeodemographic analysis 118 Principles and methods 118 Mortality table derived from raw data 120 Demographic anomalies 121 Interpretations 123 Synthesis and general discussion 127 Interpretation, counter-interpretation 127 Summary of the facts 127 The funerary question 128 How to classify cannibalism at Herxheim? 131 Classifying cannibalism in general 131 The question of ‘war’ in prehistoric societies 133 The nature of cannibalism at Herxheim 134 Conclusion: putting flesh on the bones... 137 The human beings 137 The site 138 The general context at the end of the Linear Pottery period 139 The Herxheim events in the context of the end of the Linear Pottery Culture 141 Why? 143 Bibliography 147 Figure 1. Geographic location of the Herxheim site. 13 Figure 2. General plan of the excavation. 14 Figure 3. Identifying and sorting the human remains. 16 Figure 4. Database entry form. 17 Figure 5. Various techniques of excavation. 22 Figure 6. 3D representation of the human remains and their relationships using ArcScene®. 23 Figure 7. Examples of relationships between concentrations and stratigraphical units identified during the excavation. 25 Figure 8. Distribution of refits, by elements or type of elements 26 Figure 9. Almost complete refitted cranium from concentration 9. 27 Figure 10. Examples of vertebral connections. 27 Figure 11. Relationships between conjoined human specimens coordinated in a section of the internal ditch (side projection). 28 Figure 12. Relationship between concentrations 2 and 4 (side projection). 29 Figure 13. List of the concentrations identified during the excavation and their related redefined deposits. 30 Figure 14. List of the redefined deposits and their related original concentrations. 31 Figure 15. Plan of the 2005-2010 excavation area pinpointing the concentrations identified during the excavation (top) and the redefined deposits (bottom). 32 Figure 16. Maps of the human remains from deposit F, indicating the bone relationships. 33 Figure 17. List of links between deposits. 34 Figure 18. Side projection of the northern end of the internal ditch. 35 Figure 19. Collection of skull caps in deposit K (concentration 16). 37 Figure 20. Examples of temporoparietal connections on skull cups. 38 Figure 21. Close-up of deposit F showing the presence of fragments pressed against the sides of the pit. 38 Figure 22. Deposit P, articulated one or two-week old neonate. 39 Figure 23. Deposit B, details of the articulated left leg and foot of the adolescent. 39 Figure 24. Values of the quantification units for the human assemblage from the 2005-2010 excavations. 42 Figure 25. Values of the quantification units for deposit K. 43 Figure 26. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in %NISP for the adults. 44 Figure 27. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in %NISP for the juveniles (except perinates and neonates). 45 Figure 28. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements for all the determined remains between Herxheim, les Perrats and the Anasazi sites from the Southwest of the United States. 46 Figure 29. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in mass for the adults. 47 Figure 30. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in mass for the juveniles (except perinates and neonates). 47 Figure 31. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in PR for the adults, between deposit K and some funerary ensembles. 48 Figure 32. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in PR for the adults, between deposit K and some scavenged assemblages. 49 Figure 33. Comparison of the representation of the skeleton elements in PR for the adults and the juveniles (except perinates and neonates), between deposit K, some cannibalised assemblages and West Tenter Street. 50 Figure 34. Representation of the different morphotypes of adult large long bones and clavicle. 54 Figure 35. Representation of the different portions of adult large long bones. 54 Figure 36. Proximal ends of ulnae from deposit F. 55 Figure 37. Representation of the different morphotypes of adult metacarpals, metatarsals and phalanges. 56 Figure 38. Deposit F: subassemblages of metacarpals and hand phalanges (top) and metatarsals and foot phalanges (bottom). 57 Figure 39. Representation of the different morphotypes of adult carpal and tarsal bones and patella. 58 Figure 40: Deposit F: subassemblage of the calcanei. 58 Figure 41. Representation of the different morphotypes of adult free vertebrae. 59 Figure 42. Deposit F: subassemblage of the free vertebrae. 59 Figure 43. Representation of the different morphotypes of adult ribs. 60 Figure 44. Deposit F: subassemblage of the adult ribs. 61 Figure 45. Dorsal view of the rib cage and plan view of the costovertebral joints, with an indication of the course of the cutting up during the removal of the spine. 61 Figure 46. Compared length of determinate shaft fragments of adult large long bones (deposits C and F). 64 Figure 47. Distribution of the determinate fragments of adult large long bones according to the length (SL) and the circumference (SC) of the shaft (deposits C and F). 64 Figure 48. Compared distribution of the determined fragments of the adult large long bones according to the shaft length (SL) and circumference (SC) (deposits C and F). 64 Figure 49. Distribution of the determinate fragments of adult large long bones by elements, according to the length (SL) and the circumference (SC) of the shaft (deposits C and F). 65 Figure 50. Deposit F: subassemblage of the humeri (left) and radii (right). 66 Figure 51. Comparison of the attributes of the fractures of extremities for shaft fragments from adult large long bones between Herxheim (deposit F), Fontbrégoua, Bezouce and Sarrians. 66 Figure 52. Comparison of the shapes of the fractures of the edges for shaft fragments from adult large long bones between Herxheim (deposit F), les Perrats and Saint-Martial. 67 Figure 53. Comparison of the angle and texture of the fractures of the edges for shaft fragments from adult large long bones between Herxheim (deposit F), Les Perrats and Saint-Martial. 67 Figure 54. Modifications at the impact points. 68 Figure 55. Modifications at the impact points on the fragments of the determinate adult large long bones (deposits C and F). 69 Figure 56. Modifications at the impact points on the fragments of cranial vault (deposits C and F). 70 Figure 57. Examples of impact points on the cranial vault. 70 Figure 58. Peeling on a scapula (A) and a coxal bone (B). 71 Figure 59. Distribution of peelings and crushings, by elements (deposits C and F). 72 Figure 60. Examples of cutmarks. 73 Figure 61. Comparisons of the frequency of specimens displaying cutmarks in various human assemblage. 74 Figure 62. Frequency of cutmarks and scrape marks by element for deposits C and F (adults and juveniles except perinates). 75 Figure 63. Examples of scrape marks. 76 Figure 64. Tool made from a section of human femur’s shaft. 77 Figure 65. Fragments of severed metatarsal(s). 77 Figure 66. Comparisons of the frequency of specimens with thermal damage in various human assemblages. 78 Figure 67. Comparison of the frequency of specimens with thermal damage, by deposit. 79 Figure 68. First and secondary stages of burning on the mandible. 79 Figure 69. Examples of maxillae with grilled teeth (anterior view). 80 Figure 70. Example of maxilla with grilled teeth (ventral view). 80 Figure 71. Frequency curves of grilled teeth for the permanent dentition. 81 Figure 72. Dogs’ hemimandibles with grilled teeth. 81 Figure 73. Distribution of chewing marks by element in deposit F. 87 Figure 74. Details of chewing marks on the proximal end of an ulna from deposit F. 88 Figure 75. Gathering of four uncut and unfashioned craniums in deposit H. 92 Figure 76. Cumulative pattern of butchery marks on craniums from deposits C and F. 93 Figure 77. Examples of skinning marks on the cranial vault. 94 Figure 78. Examples of butchery marks on the face. 94 Figure 79. Map of the outlines of the skull cup edges in deposit C and F. 95 Figure 80. Variability of the skull cups. 96 Figure 81. Examples of skull cups displaying the ‘soft-boiled egg’ technique. 96 Figure 82. Upper face showing the fashioning technique for the skull cups. 97 Figure 83. Opening at the cranial base and removal of the face. 97 Figure 84. Cumulative pattern of butchery marks on the mandibles from deposits C and F. 98 Figure 85. Examples of butchery marks on the mandible. 98 Figure 86. Scrape marks made after the fracture of the mandible. 99 Figure 87. Examples of fractures of the mandible. 100 Figure 88. Cutmarks on the ventral surface of the body of a seventh cervical vertebra. 100 Figure 89. Examples of butchery marks on the ribs. 101 Figure 90. Examples of rib segments. 102 Figure 91. Cumulative pattern of cutmarks on the clavicles from deposits C and F. 102 Figure 92. Cumulative pattern of peelings on the clavicles from deposits C and F. 102 Figure 93. Fractures of the acromial end of the clavicles. 103 Figure 94. Cumulative pattern of butchery marks on the scapulae from deposits C and F. 103 Figure 95. Examples of butchery marks on the scapulae. 104 Figure 96. Cumulative pattern of the modifications due to the fracture of the scapulae from deposits C and F. 104 Figure 97. Aspects of scapulae fracturing. 105 Figure 98. Indication of the destroyed portions of clavicles and scapulae in anatomical situation. 105 Figure 99. Subassemblage of the coxal bones from deposit F. 106 Figure 100. Cumulative pattern of the butchery marks on the large long bones from deposits C and F. 107 Figure 101. Examples of cutmarks attributed to disarticulation. 108 Figure 102. Cutmarks on ulna shaft. 108 Figure 103. Examples of ladder-rung series. 109 Figure 104. Scrape marks on the dorsal surface of a femoral neck. 109 Figure 105. Topography of the impact points on the large long bones from deposits C and F. 110 Figure 106. Examples of disarticulation marks on the talus. 111 Figure 107. Examples of cutmarks on the metacarpals. 111 Figure 108. Examples of cutmarks on the metatarsals. 111 Figure 109. Total count, and count by major age categories, based on skull. 114 Figure 110. Frontal bone discovered in a pit from the Late Linear Band pottery period, south-west of the enclosure. 115 Figure 111. Sex determination based on the coxal bone. 116 Figure 112. Age at death for immatures under one year. 116 Figure 113. Age at death of the immatures over one year, represented by the maxillae and mandibles. 117 Figure 114. Initial distribution of the ages at death for the subjects found during the second excavation campaign, represented by the facial skeleton. 118 Figure 115. Values of the mortality rates and of the ratios of deceased individuals for the adopted model life tables and entries. 120 Figure 116. More accurate distributions of the ages at death for the subjects found during the second excavation campaign, represented by the facial skeleton, and values of the mortality rates and of the ratios of deceased individuals. 121 Figure 117. Curves of mortality rates of the non-adult subjects for the best two distributions of age at death, compared with reference tables. 122 Figure 118. Distribution of the ages at death in a theoretical population undergoing natural mortality using the 20q0 = 0,458 parameter, with 39 adults and 33 non-adults. 123 Figure 119. Examples of curves of mortality rates for non-adults in plague epidemics cemeteries, compared with reference tables. 124 Figure 120. Curves of mortality rates for non-adults: comparison between Herxheim, Talheim and data simulated from the age pyramid. 124 Figure 121. Curves of mortality rates for non-adults in Aiterhofen-Ödmühle Recent/Late Linear Pottery Culture cemetery, compared with reference tables. 125 Figure 122. Distribution of values for the strontium 87Sr/86Sr isotopic ratio of the first permanent molars or the second deciduous molar, for 74 individuals. 134 Figure 123. Possible circulation patterns of non-local individuals. 138 Figure 124. Deposit of small carnivores’ mandibles from the internal ditch 139 Figure 125. Regions of origin of the exogenous ceramic styles present at Herxheim. 139 Figure 126. Examples of rare ceramics found with the human remains. 140 Figure 127. Map of the sites mentioned in the text and which yielded unusually treated human remains. 141 Herxheim,Linear Pottery Culture,cannibalism