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Rebay-Salisbury K, Janker L, Pany-Kucera D, Schuster D, Spannagl-Steiner M, Waltenberger L, Salisbury RB, Kanz F. Child murder in the Early Bronze Age: proteomic sex identification of a cold case from Schleinbach, Austria. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 2020; 12:265. [PMID: 33123298 PMCID: PMC7584537 DOI: 10.1007/s12520-020-01199-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2019] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
The identification of sex-specific peptides in human tooth enamel by nanoflow liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (nanoLC-MS/MS) represents a quantum leap for the study of childhood and social relations more generally. Determining sex-related differences in prehistoric child rearing and mortality has been hampered by the insufficient accuracy in determining the biological sex of juveniles. We conducted mass spectrometric analysis to identify sex-specific peptides in the dental enamel of a child from a settlement pit of the Early Bronze Age settlement of Schleinbach, Austria (c. 1950-1850 bc). Four perimortal impression fractures on the skull of a 5-6-year-old child indicate an intentional killing, with a co-buried loom weight as possible murder weapon. Proteomic analysis, conducted for the first time on prehistoric teeth in Austria, determined the child's sex as male. While we cannot conclusively determine whether the child was the victim of conflicts between village groups or was slain by members of his own community, we suggest that contextual evidence points to the latter. A possible trigger of violence was the follow-on effects of an uncontrolled middle ear infection revealed by an osteological analysis. The boy from Schleinbach highlights the potential for further investigation of gender-biased violence, infanticide and child murder based on the recently developed method of proteomic sex identification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Rebay-Salisbury
- Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Hollandstraße 11–13, 1020 Vienna, Austria
| | - Lukas Janker
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Währinger Straße 38, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Doris Pany-Kucera
- Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Hollandstraße 11–13, 1020 Vienna, Austria
- Department of Anthropology, Natural History Museum, Burgring 7, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Dina Schuster
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Währinger Straße 38, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Michaela Spannagl-Steiner
- Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Hollandstraße 11–13, 1020 Vienna, Austria
- Department of Anthropology, Natural History Museum, Burgring 7, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Lukas Waltenberger
- Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Hollandstraße 11–13, 1020 Vienna, Austria
| | - Roderick B. Salisbury
- Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Hollandstraße 11–13, 1020 Vienna, Austria
- Institute of Prehistoric and Historical Archaeology, University of Vienna, Franz-Klein-Gasse 1, 1190 Vienna, Austria
| | - Fabian Kanz
- Center for Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Sensengasse 2, 1090 Vienna, Austria
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