Cannibalism at James Fort, Jamestown, Virginia: The Bone Evidence
Author(s): Douglas Owsley; Karin Bruwelheide
Year: 2014
Summary
Excavation of a cellar during Jamestown Rediscovery’s 2012 field season produced an unusual find ‘ a partial human skull and leg bone. They were among discarded butchered animal bones and artifacts dating to the ‘starving time’ winter of 1609-1610. Multiple methodologies were used in studying the bones including computed tomography, bone chemistry, and stereozoom and scanning electron microscopy. Unlike skeletal injuries related to the cause of death, the bones of this English girl, about 14 years of age, have marks reflecting a deliberate attempt to open the skull and remove tissues, including the brain. The pattern and types of sharp cuts, chops and punctures on the remains supports historic accounts of cannibalism in the early Jamestown colony.
Cite this Record
Cannibalism at James Fort, Jamestown, Virginia: The Bone Evidence. Douglas Owsley, Karin Bruwelheide. Presented at Society for Historical Archaeology, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. 2014 ( tDAR id: 437166)
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Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology
Record Identifiers
PaperId(s): SYM-62,02