Bioarchaeological evidence of violent deaths from medieval Prague

IF 1.3 3区地球科学 Q3 PALEONTOLOGY

International Journal of Paleopathology Pub Date : 2025-05-27 DOI:10.1016/j.ijpp.2025.05.001

Anna Pankowská , Petra Uhlík Spěváčková

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective

This study aims to investigate the relationship between patterns of violence-related trauma and social, chronological, and demographic variables using skeletal remains from historical Prague.

Materials

300 human skulls of adults from nine medieval cemeteries divided into three periods: Early Middle Ages (800–1200), High Middle Ages (1200–1500), and Modern Period (1500–1800).

Methods

All bones were examined macroscopically for trauma (timing, location, type of trauma). We adapted the criteria outlined in the Istanbul Protocol for the identification of violence-related trauma. We used binary logistic regression to assess the trauma frequency.

Results

The analysis revealed no statistically significant relationship between patterns of violence-related trauma and the examined parameters. This lack of variation across socio-demographic predictors may reflect methodological limitations or cultural preference in choosing how to bury the deceased, but it could also suggest that violence impacted individuals across all groups indiscriminately.

Conclusions

The frequency of violent trauma on human bones in historical Prague is similar to other parts of medieval Europe. The absence of a difference in the prevalence of violence-related trauma between subgroups may indicate cultural and methodological bias.

Significance

This research provides new insights into the bioarchaeology of violence in historical Prague and illuminates a hitherto understudied chapter of history.

Limitations

The study is limited to the territory of the capital and focuses exclusively on cranial remains.

Suggestions for further research

In the future, comparative research could also be conducted comparing Prague burial sites with those found in significant urban centres in the Czech lands.

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中世纪布拉格暴力死亡的生物考古证据

目的：本研究旨在利用布拉格历史上的遗骨，探讨暴力相关创伤模式与社会、时间和人口变量之间的关系。从9个中世纪墓地出土的300具成人头骨，分为三个时期：中世纪早期（800-1200）、中世纪鼎盛时期（1200-1500）和现代时期（1500-1800）。方法观察所有骨外伤（时间、部位、类型）。我们调整了《伊斯坦布尔议定书》中概述的识别与暴力有关的创伤的标准。我们使用二元逻辑回归来评估创伤频率。结果分析显示，暴力相关创伤模式与检查参数之间无统计学意义的关系。在社会人口预测指标中缺乏差异可能反映了方法上的局限性或选择如何埋葬死者的文化偏好，但它也可能表明暴力不分青红皂白地影响了所有群体的个人。结论历史上布拉格人类骨骼遭受暴力创伤的频率与中世纪欧洲其他地区相似。亚组之间暴力相关创伤发生率的差异可能表明文化和方法上的偏差。这项研究为历史上的布拉格暴力的生物考古学提供了新的见解，并阐明了迄今为止未被充分研究的历史篇章。局限性：这项研究仅限于首都地区，而且只关注头骨遗骸。对进一步研究的建议将来，还可以进行比较研究，将布拉格的墓地与在捷克土地上重要城市中心发现的墓地进行比较。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Journal of Paleopathology PALEONTOLOGY-PATHOLOGY

CiteScore

2.90

自引率

25.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： Paleopathology is the study and application of methods and techniques for investigating diseases and related conditions from skeletal and soft tissue remains. The International Journal of Paleopathology (IJPP) will publish original and significant articles on human and animal (including hominids) disease, based upon the study of physical remains, including osseous, dental, and preserved soft tissues at a range of methodological levels, from direct observation to molecular, chemical, histological and radiographic analysis. Discussion of ways in which these methods can be applied to the reconstruction of health, disease and life histories in the past is central to the discipline, so the journal would also encourage papers covering interpretive and theoretical issues, and those that place the study of disease at the centre of a bioarchaeological or biocultural approach. Papers dealing with historical evidence relating to disease in the past (rather than history of medicine) will also be published. The journal will also accept significant studies that applied previously developed techniques to new materials, setting the research in the context of current debates on past human and animal health.