Two ancient skeletons, each missing a part of the lower leg, recovered from graves in China were of elite individuals whose legs were amputated as punishment around 2,500 years ago, during the Eastern Zhou dynasty, a new study suggests.
Related: Ancient Chinese burials with swords and chariot cast light on violent 'Warring States' period Both individuals were missing the bottom fifth of one of their legs; one skeleton was missing part of the left leg, and the other was missing part of the right. The lower ends of the remaining lower-leg bones showed signs of healing and bore no cut marks. These findings hint at deliberate and skilled slicing and proper wound care, according to the study.
An analysis of the bones' isotopes, or variations of elements that have a different number of neutrons in their nuclei, revealed that both men had diets rich in proteins and a type of carbon seen in plants like millet, which matched diets known for the Eastern Zhou aristocratic class. Based on the men's social status and the Zhou penal code, the researchers suggested that the most plausible explanation for the missing legs was the yue punishment method. The team ruled out other causes, like congenital absence of limbs, diseases necessitating amputation and sacrificial amputation.
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