Scientists at the University of Bordeaux 1 in France have recently discovered remains of mass cannibalism at the remains of a village now known as Herxheim. Though they say that it is difficult to confirm if there were any ritual sacrifices revolving around these deaths, but they confirm from the skeletal markings that these human beings were "butchered like animals" with markings indicated that the flesh was stripped from the bone.
Such an account is extraordinary because it represents a rare example of cannibalism amongst Neolithic humans. Previous to this finding, the only such case only existed in a French cave where six 6,000 year old skeletons were found butchered and buried alongside with the skeletons of animals.
Some evidence reported on the skeletons include incisions from primitive tools, primarily to accomplish gruesome tasks like separating the ribs from the spine. heads were also skinned, and muscles removed from the brain to best extract the skullcap. Incisions and scrapes on jaw bones indicate that tongues were also cut out. Similar markings on bones indicate the marrow being removed.
Though these pieces of evidence only support this hypothesis and don't prove it indirectly, scientists are still studying these remains.
12 comments:
Many parts of this review are well presented. One that stands out the most is the fact that scientists have been able to study the remains of these humans and discover that they have been “butchered like animals” which is disturbing. A second aspect is that these remains show that the incisions were very precise and thought out due to the cuts on the bones. Another remarkable part of this review is that this is not the first time. There were also remains found in a French cave of six 6,000 years old Neolithic skeletons that were buried next to animal remains.
One suggestion I have for this article is to go more into what allowed the scientists to come up with the hypothesis that these humans were butchered due to cannibalism. Another suggestion is to explain what forensic practices were used in analyzing these bones. And also, what major marks were on the bones that lead the scientists to believe that these humans were butchered.
From this article I learned that there were many different gruesome things done to the bodies found by the scientists. Also, in times around the Neolithic Age, humans had the ability to separate the certain tissues and make certain incisions. Mainly I would really like to know why these humans were killed, was it religious or was it for food in desperate times or something else.
Three things I liked
3. I like how this article described that the people found were "butchered like animals"
2. I liked how the article goes in depth about the cannibalism
1. I Like how they found the age of some of the skeletons present at this place.
2 Suggestions:
2. I would suggest that the article would describe as to why this may have happened.
1. I would suggest that this article gave more evidence to support their hypothesis.
1 thing I liked:
I really liked how the article explained what may have led these people to be cannibals.
The aspects of this review that were well presented were how he did say there was doubt about whether or not it actually was cannibalism, his description of its affect on history, and how he described the evidence that shows that it may be a case of cannibalism. Two ways to improve this article would be to go more in depth on other hypothesis about this situation, and perhaps include a direct quote from one of the scientists on site. From this review, I learned that although it hasn’t been proven, if it was cannibalism, it would be the only case of its kind.
This is probably the most interesting review I have read thus far in this blog. I was intrigued by the science-like approach that these neolithic humans used to eat their prey (other humans). Although today it may seem weird, to them it was just like eating cattle. It was also interesting that these forensic analysts were able to learn so much from bones and other remains. One thing you could add is how exactly they found out that certain parts of the body were tampered with to make it easier to eat. Other than that this review was very well written and I was fascinated that this was not the only case of cannibalism which was identified by analysts.
I enjoyed the main topic of this article because cannibalism isn’t something you hear about every day; I also liked the fact about the use of primitive tools used for incisions. The removal of tongues as well as the removal of muscles from the brain was very interesting. However, this article could have given reasons for this mass cannibalism, it also did not mention which people were victims. Prior to this article I had no idea that there was any mass cannibalism in France at all, I also learned that certain parts of the body such as the tongue were removed.
I enjoyed the originality of this topic. Cannibalism is not something that you hear of every day, and is something that should be looked upon more often/ Also, I liked how the article described the various tools used, and how scientists have been able to study the remains of the humans and discover so much. Another thing, is that it showed that this had happened in the past. About the cave in France with neolithic skeletons buried next to animals. This article could have given reasons for this mass execution, and how these scientists came up with the decisions to declare it cannibalism. Tt also did not mention what kind of people were victims, be they poor or the rich. This was very interesting because i did not know that there was cannibalism in such big number around the world, and that humans during that time period were able to separate and make incisions with precise ability.
One of the things that i found interesting about this article is that there was doubt if it was cannibalism or not. Another thing that shocked me was that they were able to determine that the people were butchered like animals which is just wrong. Somethign i found interesting was that they took out thetongues and removed muscles from the brain.
One thing the article could have done is maybe given a reason or guess to why there was such a gastly act commited. Also they could have specified what forensic techniques they used to determine what happened to these bones.
I found this article very interesting because i never knew, or maybe anyone knew before this article, that cannibalism was ever committed on such a large scale.
This was one of the most interesting forensic stories I have read. It was well presented, and it stated what kind of evidence the scientists used to reach the hypothesis of cannibalism. I find it fascinating that forensic evidence can be used to deduce the cause of death of remains that are 6000 years old.
A suggestion I have is to mention what other hypotheses exist concerning the reason for these people's deaths, and to go into more detail about why these people were performing cannibalism- were they hungry or just savages?
One thing I would like to know is how exactly the scientists determine what incisions are made and by what tool.
-Luke Nichols
This was a very intriguing article, possibly one of the most interesting on the blog. The review was well presented, leaving both sides of the argument. (doubts on cannibalism). I commend Kuba, on his inclusion of information from past cases and how this newly found discovery affect those. There are but a few ways to improve on such a review. One provide more of a detailed hypothesis about the situation aswell as what will become of these found remains after they have been examined. This article taught me that there still could be alot of history that we have yet to discover.
Current Events Khendum Namgyal
Three aspects that were well presented:
The ways in which the skeletons were treated was explained well in this review, the quote was utilized well “butchered like animals” creates some gruesome imagery, and it was also interesting to draw upon the other Neolithic act cannibalism, which personally I was unaware of.
Two suggestions:
It could have been interesting to learn what type of tests were used in the analysis of the remains and maybe an example of what type of ritual could involve human sacrifice.
One aspect that impressed/was unaware of:
I had no idea that the humans of the Neolithic times supported cannibalistic acts and was very surprised when I read this review, the discovery and the way in which the scientists were able to identify what the scrapes and incisions on the skeleton were from was impressive to say the least.
Three aspects that were well presented:
The ways in which the skeletons were treated was explained well in this review, the quote was utilized well “butchered like animals” creates some gruesome imagery, and it was also interesting to draw upon the other Neolithic act cannibalism, which personally I was unaware of.
Two suggestions:
It could have been interesting to learn what type of tests were used in the analysis of the remains and maybe an example of what type of ritual could involve human sacrifice.
One aspect that impressed/was unaware of:
I had no idea that the humans of the Neolithic times supported cannibalistic acts and was very surprised when I read this review, the discovery and the way in which the scientists were able to identify what the scrapes and incisions on the skeleton were from was impressive to say the least.
Three things I liked
3. I like how this article described that the people found were "butchered like animals"
2. I liked how the article goes in depth about the cannibalism
1. I Like how they found the age of some of the skeletons present at this place.
2 Suggestions:
2. I would suggest that the article would describe as to why this may have happened.
1. I would suggest that this article gave more evidence to support their hypothesis.
1 thing I liked:
I really liked how the article explained what may have led these people to be cannibals.
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