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A new study has confirmed saltwater drowning as the cause of death for a Neolithic man whose remains were found in a mass grave on the coast of Northern Chile. The method developed to solve the 5,000 year-old cold case opens up new possibilities for assessing the remains of our prehistoric ancestors.
The scientists believe it will help archaeologists understand more about past civilisations in coastal regions and the human stories behind the remains they discover.
Modern forensics can confirm drowning as the cause of death in recent victims by testing for diatoms inside the bones of the victims. Diatoms are a group of algae found in oceans, freshwater and soils. If they are found inside the bones of victims' bodies, it is likely that they drowned. This is because if they had died before entering the water, they would not have swallowed any saltwater. The test has never been successfully tried to determine drowning in saltwater on prehistoric human remains, until now.
In addition to the diatom test, the research team, led by the University of Southampton, carried out a wide-ranging microscopic analysis of bone marrow extracted from a man found in a 5,000 year old mass burial site. This allowed them to search for a greater range of microscopic particles that could provide more insight into the cause of his death.
The results, published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, found a variety of marine particles that suggested he drowned in saltwater. These particles included fossilized algae, parasite eggs and sediment, which would not have been detected by the standard diatom test.
