Krapina 3: Cut Marks and Ritual Behavior?

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Issue Date
2006-08Author
Frayer, David W.
Orschiedt, Jörg
Cook, Jill
Russell, Mary Doria
Radovčić, Jakov
Publisher
Croatian Society of Natural Sciences
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, publisher version
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Incisions on the frontal of the Krapina 3 cranium differ from other cut
marks from the site. Thirty-five, mostly parallel marks course up the frontal
from right of the midline, just posterior to the supraorbitale point to left of
the midline, slightly anterior to bregma. They are angled mostly perpendicular
to the midsagittal plane, averaging 5.2 mm in length and are on average
1.2 mm apart. The marks' characteristics are not consistent with scalping,
cannibalism, defleshing or other perimortem activities described for
Neandertals or modern groups. These marks represent a type of funereal behavior
yet to be documented in Neandertals and suggest a kind of ritual
treatment of the deceased.
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Citation
2006f Krapina 3: Cut marks and ritual behavior? (with J. Orschiedt, J. Cook, M.D. Russell and J. Radovčić.) Periodicum biologorum 108: 519-524.
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