He died 12,000 years ago – hit by an exotic arrow that broke him an “extra” rib

About 12,000 years ago, a man was hit by an arrow with an exotic stone tip, in the territory that is currently Vietnam. He survived for several months to the initial injury, but probably succumbed to an infection, suggests a new analysis of his remains.

The well -preserved skeleton of a man, nicknamed Tbh1may be the oldest evidence of violence in Southeast Asia, say the authors of a new study, published on Wednesday in the magazine Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

In the study, the researchers analyzed the man’s skeleton, which would have about 35 years when he diedat least 12,000 years ago, during the end of the Pleistocene season, 126,000 to 11,700 years ago.

The skeleton was originally excavated in 2018, on Thung Binh 1, a cave in the landscape complex of Tràng An in northern Vietname. Had been buried in fetal position, with his face supported in his hands.

Although TBH1’s skull had been crushed, the investigators managed to rebuild it. A first analysis suggested that, in addition to having a smaller ankle wound, The man was in good health when he died.

But a more thorough analysis of the man’s skeleton revealed an anatomical anomaly: An additional rib.

Although most people have 24 ribs, 0.2% to 1% of people have a Extra rib, called supranumerary ribwrote the researchers in the study.

The extra rib of this man, who It was near the neckwas fractured and showed signs of infection “More concretely, an opening in the bone, from where the pus would have drained.”

“TBH1 lived several months after the injury occurred“The authors of the study wrote.” Without effective treatment of fracture, but they will probably have emerged bacterial infections and other forms of infection, leading to death in the weeks or months following the wound. “

Near the extra infected rib, the researchers discovered a small quartz triangular fragment that described as a “microponta“.

To Ponta, who mediates near 1.8 centimeters in length, It had evidence of carvings. This suggests that The tip was used as a barbst like a dart or arrow, it says Christopher Stimpsonco -author of the study and zooarqueologist of the Museum of Natural History of London, to.

“The tip is especially intriguing“, it says Benjamin UttingCo -author of the study and archaeologist of the National Museum of Natural History of Smithsonian. “It does not correspond to any other Thung Bunh 1 stone tool or nearby sites, raising questions about who made it and where it came from“.

A Micropon combination near the neck of TBH1, the infected rib of man and the exotic nature of quartz suggests that the man may have been the victim of interpersonal violence -Which would extend the evidence of violence between groups of hunter-gatherer in East Asia in various millennia.

“This is a new exciting report of an era and place where we have very few well -preserved skeletons to study, ”he says Michael RiveraBioarqueologist at the University of Hong Kong, who was not involved in the study.

“This quartz projectile It could have been the culprit that led to an infected rib, but whether or not this was an act of violence or an accidental injury vanishingin my opinion, ”he accesses.

TBH1 was probably cared for by your communityRivera says, since she survived her initial wound – and was carefully buried in the cave.