Archaeological and palaeopathological study on the third/second century BC grave from Turfan, China: Individual health history and regional implications

Abstract

This paper presents an archaeological–palaeopathological case study from Turfan (western China). Although this area is located outside of the two focus regions of the special issue (Baikal and Hokkaido), it once belonged to the same cultural sphere and experienced intensive contacts and exchanges with the neighbouring regions. The case study presented here combines detailed palaeopathological analysis of human skeletal remains with precise age determination and archaeological and regional contexts, demonstrating the high potential of such studies in arid and semi-arid China. The current paper also presents an unusual early case of prosthetic leg use from western China. The skeleton of a 50–65-year-old man and his wooden leg prosthesis discovered in a tomb in Shengjindian graveyard (Turfan, China) have been examined. Macroscopic lesions observed on ribs two to eleven, between the fifth and sixth cervical vertebra, and on the left knee joint are probably due to tuberculosis infection. The inflammatory process led to osseous ankylosis of the knee, fixing it at 135° flexion and 11° internal rotation, making walking impossible. The lost mobility of the disabled shank was regained by using an externally fitted wooden prosthesis which consists of thigh stabilizer, peg, leather straps, sheep/goat horn reinforcement of the peg tip, and horse/Asiatic ass hoof as sink resistance. Heavy traces of wear and absence of muscle atrophy indicate long-term use of the prosthesis. Ten radiocarbon dates on the prosthesis, human bones and wood pieces from the same grave suggest the most probable age of the burial is about 300–200 BC (68% confidence interval), thus introducing the oldest functional leg prosthesis known to date. The results provide some support for a DNA-based hypothesis that the spread of tuberculosis in Asia was related to intensified inter-regional contacts and higher residential mobility during the first millennium BC.