A crime has been solved after 4,000 years, as an arrowhead in a human rib confirmed the victim was shot in the back.
The discovery of the Early Bronze Age flint arrowhead suggests the victim was shot in the back by an angry archer around 4,000 years ago.
However, the victim survived the attack and lived the rest of their life with the flint arrow embedded in their rib.
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The remains were found at the Roc de les Orenetes burial site, a prehistoric cave located in the Eastern Pyrenees near Queralbs, Spain.
A team of archaeologists led by Dr. Carlos Tornero from the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona has been excavating the site, situated over 5,905 feet above sea level, since 2019.
The team said the victim’s rib showed signs of healing around the foreign object, suggesting they survived the attack and lived long enough for their body to regenerate around it.
Dr Miguel Angel Moreno, osteoarchaeologist at the University of Edinburgh, said: “The trajectory indicates that the shot was fired at the individual’s back.
“The point became embedded, and the bone began to regenerate around it.
“Now we can study the force of the impact, the type of weapon used, and the positions of the attacker and the victim.”
Using cutting-edge biochemical analysis and X-ray microtomography, scientists hope to learn more about the victim’s injury and how they survived it.
The Roc de les Orenetes burial site was used by a community of herders between 2200 to 2000 BC, as reported by Need To Know.
Scientists have unearthed over 6,000 bone fragments at the ancient site since its discovery in the 1960s, according to the Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution.
The flint arrowhead is the first evidence of a violent encounter among the ancient herders.
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