A 9,000 year-old case of human decapitation has been found in the rock shelter of Lapa do Santo in Brazil, according to a study published September 23, 2015 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by André Strauss from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary¹ Anthropology², Germany and colleagues. An archaeological site called Lapa do Santo, located in east-central Brazil, contains evidence of human occupation dating back to ~12,000 years ago. In 2007, researchers found fragments of a buried body, Burial 26, including a cranium, jaw³, the first six cervical vertebrae, and two severed⁴ hands at the site. They dated the remains⁵ back to ~9,000 years ago using accelerator mass spectrometry. The researchers found amputated hands laid over the face of the skull⁶ arranged opposite each other and observed v-shaped cut marks on the jaw and sixth cervical vertebra.

 

Based on strontium analysis comparing Burial 26's isotopic⁷ signature to other specimens⁸ from Lapa do Santo, the researchers suggest Burial 26 was likely a local member of the group. Additionally, the presentation of the remains, lead the authors to think that this was likely a ritualized decapitation instead of trophy-taking. If this is the case, these remains may demonstrate sophisticated mortuary rituals among hunter-gatherers in the Americas during this time period. The authors think this may be the oldest case of decapitation found in the New Word, leading to a re-evaluation of the previous interpretations⁹ of this practice, particularly with regards to its origins and geographic¹⁰ dispersion.

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