Skulls from Gough's Cave

[Rich West]

Use of human skulls as drinking vessels.
Could this catch on in the Hunters?
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026

 

[Burt]

Saw this on points west this morning.

Is it just me or is anyone else skeptical about human cannibalism? It seems to me that certain commmercial self publicists want to beleive in cannibalism. The vast amount of evidence found in prehistoric burials has the dead being honoured, buried with their chattels etc but not scoffed by their relatives.

 

[graham]

Burt

It is worth reading the substantive paper that Rich gave the link for. In the case of the LUP at Gough's there does seem to be evidence that certain skeletal parts of both humans and prey animals were processed in exactly the same way, for such purposes as bone marrow removal.

Edit:

It is also the case that cannibalism may be carried out as a means of honouring the deceased of course.

 

[Rich West]

Burt - I take it you havn't bothered to read the article - or are you seriously implying that the authors from  the Department of Palaentology at the Natural History Museum and The Institute of Archaeology are "commercial self publicists" ?

 

[graham]

Burt - I take it you havn't bothered to read the article - or are you seriously implying that the authors from  the Department of Palaentology at the Natural History Museum and The Institute of Archaeology are "commercial self publicists" ?

Rich, you know that Chris Stringer, never out of Hello magazine these days.

 

[graham]

Chris has asked me to point out that the substantive paper is available on free access so people really should read it.

 

[Roger W]

Is it just me or is anyone else skeptical about human cannibalism? It seems to me that certain commmercial self publicists want to beleive in cannibalism. The vast amount of evidence found in prehistoric burials has the dead being honoured, buried with their chattels etc but not scoffed by their relatives.

Some long while ago there was a programme on the box about cannibalism in PNG.  IIRC, the relatives of the deceased had a duty to honour the dead, this being done by eating the corpse.  the problem was that it resulted in the spread of Creutzfeldt?Jakob disease.  For this reason the government banned the practice, but they had one old boy on the programme who - it was claimed - had participated in such funeral feasts in his younger days.  When asked what human flesh tasted like, his reply was "very sweet."  Of course, he might only have been an actor speaking lines written for him by the producers of the programme...

Regarding the business of cutting the tops of people's heads off to make drinking vessels, there was an interesting case where a hundred and twenty mutilated heads turned up in Gansu Province, China, back in 2006.  It seems that certain criminal elements had been raiding disused graveyards, digging up the bodies and making off with the heads.  They then sawed off the tops of the skulls - presumably to make drinking cups out of - and left the unwanted bits in the forest.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2006-04/13/content_566977.htm

I suppose our(?) ancestors on Mendip could have been doing the same sort of thing a few generations ago.

 

[graham]

Roger

IIRC there are a number of different circumstances in which cannibalism took place in PNG. The specific one that you are referring to took place amongst a people called the Fore where, yes, it was a ritual thing and took place within kinship groups. the problem was that as the disease, like CJD, may stay dormant for decades before becoming symptomatic it was very difficult for the Fore to realise the link between the practice and the disease.

It is worth noting that although the practice had ceased by 1960, the last incidence of the disease, kuru, as they called it, emerged as recently as 2006.

Scary!

 

[owd git]

Oooh you omnivores, its only eating another mammal variety. your so picky!. :tease: :tease: :tease:
O,.G. (veggie!)

 

[Peter Burgess]

Hey, O.G. - Give peas a chance! All we are saying......

 

[graham]

O,.G. (chicken abuser!)

 

[Roger W]

Roger

IIRC there are a number of different circumstances in which cannibalism took place in PNG....  It is worth noting that although the practice had ceased by 1960, the last incidence of the disease, kuru, as they called it, emerged as recently as 2006.

Scary!

Correct, Graham.  One may eat people for various reasons, in PNG or in the vicinity of Gough's Cave.  To honour your relatives and "keep them in the community," to show scorn and disdain for your defeated enemies, to absorb and acquire spiritual power or whatever from the late lamented, or maybe because you were just plain hungry.  (burp!)

But, to reassure Burt - or not, as the case may be - there does seem to be plenty of evidence around to suggest that cannibalism really did (does?) take place.

 

[graham]

But, to reassure Burt - or not, as the case may be - there does seem to be plenty of evidence around to suggest that cannibalism really did (does?) take place.

I seriously doubt that Burt is in any real danger of being eaten by his fellows.

But then again ... no best not tell that story on here, the guy was seriously upset by it. Buy me a few beers and I might tell it in private.