Des anthropologues de l’université A&M du Texas, ont exhumé
deux squelettes retrouvés dans le site de la province du Henan, près de Sanmenxia, en Chine. Les vestiges dateraient d’il y a 2 300 à 2 500 ans, c’est-à-dire de l’époque de la dynastie Zhou de l’Est (771 et 256 av. JC).
Ils présentent des mutilations similaires au même endroit et sont amputés d’un pied d’une façon très précise. L’un du côté droit et l’autre du pied gauche. Les auteurs, dont l’étude est publiée dans la revue
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, suggèrent que ces individus auraient subi des tortures de leur vivant.
Référence
Surviving punishment by body reduction in a hierarchical society: A bioarcheological study of two punitive amputation cases in Eastern Zhou Dynasty (771–256 BCE) with references to the penal and medical systems of ancient China
10 March 2024 volume 16, article number 55, (2024)
Yawei Zhou and others
Abstract
Limb amputation is a surgical procedure used during a medical operation or to manage trauma. Besides its therapeutic potential, amputation is a cruel punishment, with punitive body reduction practiced in ancient societies and even some modern ones. Victims of punitive amputation would face impaired locomotion and public shame. In this study, two individuals with signs of lower limb amputation were excavated from the Xiagantang site in Sanmengxia, Henan Province, China. The two skeletons were studied using bioarcheological approaches to determine consequences of amputation, identify possible patient care, and reconstruct circumstances of the amputation events. M693 had a lower limb amputation on the left side, while M432 was amputated on the right. Macroscopic observations and image analyses indicated healing and functional adaptations. Grave goods and the isotopic analysis suggested that the amputees had relatively high socioeconomic status. It is postulated that M693 and M432 had punitive amputation for felonies; this bioarchaeological evidence corroborated with historic written records of law and punishment from the penal system of the Zhou Dynasty. Post-execution, the individuals were allowed to recover, and they continued to live for years. These cases enrich our understanding of the physical consequences of lower limb amputation and illuminate the social context of amputation during ancient times.
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