00:00 Britain hasn't always been all tea and crumpets.
00:03 Back in 2010, archaeologists in the UK made a disturbing discovery at a dig site in Dorset.
00:08 It was the skeleton of a young woman lying on top of a pile of animal bones.
00:12 She died in her late 20s around the year 350 BC.
00:16 That was during the so-called Iron Age, before Britain's conquest by the Roman Empire.
00:21 Now, Bournemouth University researchers have published a paper in the Antiquaries Journal
00:25 arguing that this woman may have been a human sacrifice.
00:28 They cite spinal degeneration indicating a life of hard labor,
00:31 a rib injury sustained weeks before her death,
00:34 and a stab wound in her neck which was likely what killed her.
00:37 The researchers' report notes that human sacrifice in the British Iron Age has been documented
00:41 but is rarely made manifest in archaeological evidence.
00:45 Co-author Martin Smith said, "The burials that get the most attention
00:48 tend to be those of higher-status, privileged people.
00:50 However, being able to humanize the story of this woman's life
00:53 has given us a valuable glimpse into the other side of Iron Age society."
00:57 Looks like it's not a side you'd want to be on.
Comments