Abstract
The remains of 61 individuals buried in the cemetery of Jebel Sahaba (site 117) offer unique and substantial evidence to the emergence of violence in the Nile Valley at the end of the Late Pleistocene. Excavated and assessed in the 1960s, some of the original findings and interpretations are disputed. A full reanalysis of the timing, nature and extent of the violence was conducted through the microscopic characterization of the nature of each osseous lesion, and the reassessment of the archaeological data. Over 100 previously undocumented healed and unhealed lesions were identified on both new and/or previously identified victims, including several embedded lithic artefacts. Most trauma appears to be the result of projectile weapons and new analyses confirm for the first time the repetitive nature of the interpersonal acts of violence. Indeed, a quarter of the skeletons with lesions exhibit both healed and unhealed trauma. We dismiss the hypothesis that Jebel Sahaba reflects a single warfare event, with the new data supporting sporadic and recurrent episodes of inter-personal violence, probably triggered by major climatic and environmental changes. At least 13.4 ka old, Jebel Sahaba is one of the earliest sites displaying interpersonal violence in the world.
Highlights
The end of the Late Pleistocene and the beginning of the Holocene were marked by major climatic changes whose impact on human populations is still poorly understood (1–3; cf. Supplementary Text S1)
A further 106 previously unidentified lesions were observed, including 52 that can be interpreted as Projectile Impact Marks (PIMs)
Our analyses show that out of these sixty-one individual, 26.2% (n = 16) had signs of perimortem traumas, and 62.3% (n = 38) displayed healed and/ or unhealed traumas
Summary
The end of the Late Pleistocene and the beginning of the Holocene were marked by major climatic changes whose impact on human populations is still poorly understood (1–3; cf. Supplementary Text S1). Different lithic industries have been identified with sites associated to the end of the Late Pleistocene e.g.13–17 These occur in restricted geographical areas along the Nile, mainly in Upper Egypt. Abundant lithic artefacts from the Qadan industry were discovered within the physical space of the bodies, where the soft tissues would have once been, or directly embedded in the bones[23] Given their position, these lithic artefacts cannot be considered to be grave goods, nor can the Jebel Sahaba individuals be referred to as belonging to a Qadan population, as other cultural entities are present in Lower Nubia during the same p eriod[17]. A reassessment of the lithic assemblage would further our understanding of the site
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