Premium
A yellow‐stained human femur from tell esh‐Shuqafiya, Egypt: Evidence of ancient trauma
Author(s) -
Jones Richard N.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
american journal of physical anthropology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.146
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1096-8644
pISSN - 0002-9483
DOI - 10.1002/ajpa.1330770112
Subject(s) - stain , femur , skeleton (computer programming) , medicine , anatomy , ancient history , pathology , surgery , staining , history
Excavation at Tell esh‐Shuqafiya, Egypt, during the 1982 season exposed several Ptolemaic Period burials. One of these, a young adult male, showed a bright yellow stain on the right femur. Analysis of the stain demonstrated it to be hematoidin, a degradation compound derived from hemoglobin associated with old hemorrhage. The specific location of the stain on the skeleton suggests death a few weeks after a severe injury to the thigh.