A case of decapitation in Canosa, South Italy (5th-6th century A.D.)

Forensic Sci Int. 2008 Apr 7;176(2-3):e11-6. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2007.07.015. Epub 2007 Sep 19.

Abstract

The authors present the case of an adult male (20-25 years) with a stature of 175 cm and a body mass of 68 kg, showing many wounds caused by both stabbing and cutting weapons. The subject was found in a tomb in the archeological area on the hill of San Pietro (Canosa, Bari), where there is a Paleo-Christian site dating back to the 6th-7th century a.d. The skeleton shows clear signs of decapitation, due not to an execution but to a fight during a battle.

Publication types

  • Historical Article

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cervical Vertebrae / pathology
  • Decapitation / history*
  • Forensic Anthropology
  • History, Ancient
  • Humans
  • Italy
  • Male
  • Paleopathology
  • Radius / pathology
  • Skull / pathology
  • Tibia / pathology
  • Ulna / pathology