Search

Samples of the bones of 47 individuals from 46 Czech and Moravian ossuaries were dated by the 14C method and analyzed for the collagen isotopic composition of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N). Most of the data for the ages of the remains corresponded to the cooler and damper periods described over the past 1000 years. Of the studied samples, the greatest number of remains corresponded to the Spörer (1400–1570), Dalton (1790–1830) and Wolf minima (1280–1350). One sample studied falls within the Maunder minimum (1645–1715). It can be assumed that these minima are connected with a reduced production of food and fodder, that may have initiated famines, epidemics and armed conflicts. Individual climatic minima showed positive correlations between δ13C and δ15N values, indicating that the individuals studied consumed complementary plant or animal diets to different degrees. The elevated δ15N values in our studied samples compared to the skeletal compositions of the population of the La Tène period (380 – 150 BC) and Germanic inhabitants in the territory of Bohemia (5th–6th centuries AD) and Great Moravia (9th–early 10th centuries AD) might reflect the effect of greater consumption of animal proteins or the proteins of omnivorous animals and fish, which compensated for the lack of plant foodstuffs during the colder periods. The isotopic composition of carbon and nitrogen of the bone collagen for the Spörer and Dalton minima differs from the Wolf minimum. The younger minima show higher δ15N values for a given δ13C value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bronze Age of Eurasia (around 3000-1000 BC) was a period of major cultural changes. However, there is debate about whether these changes resulted from the circulation of ideas or from human migrations, potentially also facilitating the spread of languages and certain phenotypic traits. We investigated this by using new, improved methods to sequence low-coverage genomes from 101 ancient humans from across Eurasia. We show that the Bronze Age was a highly dynamic period involving large-scale population migrations and replacements, responsible for shaping major parts of present-day demographic structure in both Europe and Asia. Our findings are consistent with the hypothesized spread of Indo-European languages during the Early Bronze Age. We also demonstrate that light skin pigmentation in Europeans was already present at high frequency in the Bronze Age, but not lactose tolerance, indicating a more recent onset of positive selection on lactose tolerance than previously thought.

World War I was the first global war. In this war, 56 million men were called to arms and for 26 million of them the war meant disaster. We do not know exactly how many Czechs were fighting at the fronts of the World War I. Out of totally mobilized 8,420,000 soldiers of Austria-Hungary it was approximately 12-13% being some professions exempted. Over the first five months of the war the medical treatment continued in line with the rules of the Austrian military regulation U-16. This means that a division of 20,000 men was treated by approximately six doctors. This system did not work well. The geographic differences cannot be passed over. The war at the western front soon got position character whilst in the East this type of war came with a delay and manifested itself in the type of injuries. Face injuries were typical for the western front but for the eastern front, it was rather injuries of extremities. The rate of face injuries in the whole number was 5-6%, one third of it were complicated fractures of the jaw. These wounds were mostly caused also by splinters of shells. However, doctors lacked experience in treatment of such cases. A large portion of these wounded died in several days due to secondary bleeding and septic complications. These seriously wounded were limited to the nourishment with a probe and 10-20% of the face-wounded soldiers were threatened by the fate of permanent disfiguration. The difference compared with the previous wars consisted in introduction of a new way of combat with predominance of gun wounds. This is evident especially when compared with local wars with rifle wounds such as was the Russian-Japan war in 1904, Boer war in 1899-1902 and Balkan wars in 1912-1913. Rifle wounds with small-gauge bullets were clearly prevailing here forming 85% compared with gun wounds with 25%. The ratio became converted in the World War I. Fractures were the most frequent type of trauma during the starting period of the war. They were usually treated and blocked for transport by a plaster dressing. This method of treatment of fractures, especially of femoral ones, was possible only in the cases of non-infected wounds. In 1916, however, a solution also for infected fractures appeared. Dr. František Burian presented the possibility of treatment of these fractures by means of extension and healing of these fractures in comparatively short time of eight weeks. He designed an extension apparatus adapted directly to the military bunk. Burian's contribution consisted in promoting simultaneous surgical and rehabilitation treatment. He advocated the rule that "an orthopaedic (rehabilitation) ward and workshops producing splints and fixations shall be part of each large surgical army hospital". On January 2, 1917 the army had still 7,392 doctors in total, on January 15, 1918 only 5,399 and till the end of April 1918 their number decreased to 4,872. If we count with a strict demand of one doctor per each battalion of infantry, artillery group and each cavalry group -- then there was lack of 238 doctors at the field regiments. In the half of 1918, 2 million q flour and more than 11 million q fodder were lacking for the army therefore a soldier in the field was given daily by 164 g flour and a horse by 3.6 kg fodder less. Soldiers were usually 10-15 kg underweight. Both soldier and horse were insufficiently nourished, they yielded to diseases and their efficiency was decreasing. Supplies of cattle and meat dropped so much that the ration for a man did not exceed 100 g a day. We can see three phases of inflictions both in the soldiers in local wars and in the soldiers and civilians in the global war. The first phase is characteristic by coming of the trauma, in large quantities. This is called traumatic epidemic, named by Pirogov. After several months of war, when the state of population immunity has decreased due to the stress, disturbed diet and further factors, the number of infections in wounded goes up and infectious epidemics, that by their number surpass the first traumatic epidemic, appear. All these factors reflect in the state of mind of the population which is more vulnerable than in the peace time. Mental disorders, psychic affections persist long time after, many years after the war. In consideration all the forms of affection of the organism from chronic progressive asthenia due to hunger and permanent chill up to the premature aging, but also the influence onto the whole population which war was having and may have. Certainly this is the issue of general principle which can be followed in the reports of Czech doctors from the Balkan wars 1912-1913 same as in the first global war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During an archaeological investigation of the Žuráň barrow (Moravia, Czech Republic) in the field campaign 1948-1950 a burial chamber was uncovered and labelled No. II. Even though the grave was spoilt by the construction of a great barrow being built above it, a very rich inventory containing pieces of an ivory pyxis, ivory plates, gold fibres, glass receptacles, silver spikes and more artefacts was found. The artefacts discovered were dated to the 5th and 6th century AD. Within the grave a buried female was found. Judging by the richness of the accompanying artefacts the buried woman was a member of the nobility of certain German tribes who had settled in Moravia at this time. Anthropological exploration of her skeletal remains found her left pelvic bone had a very strange quadratic perforation in the centre of left acetabulum. Assessing the acetabular defect by CT screening and by histological exploration of bone tissue showed changes in bone tissue (sclerosis) at the margins of this defect caused by the healing process that had just started. Histological assessment showed just formed healing process connected with formation of granulated tissue interrupted by inflammation process. It meant -- that the woman survived a short time after the accident causing the injury. The origin of the injury is not known, it was probably caused by an accident or by some kind of violent attack. Origination of the injury is subject of further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to describe the pattern of cranial injuries at the Slavic site Pohansko near Břeclav (from the 6th to the first half of the 10th century) and try to identify differences between social ranks. 39 (11%) of the total sample of 360 individuals exhibit at least one cranial injury. Altogether 51 cranial injuries were found. In 7 cases, the individual suffered more than one cranial injury; all individuals were males. A comparison of lower and higher social ranks did not show any statistically significant differences. Cranial injuries in our sample were mainly comprised of non-lethal and healed nasal fractures in males. Statistically significant differences between males and females in the occurrence of non-healed cranial injuries were found. All non-healed cranial injuries occurred among males and most often in the age group between 30 and 39 years of age, which supports the presumption that injured males were mostly warriors in their productive age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes trauma, particularly weapon injuries, noted on the skeletal remains of two individuals from the cemeteries in Rusovce-Gerulata II and Abrahám (Slovakia), which are dated to the Roman Period and the next horizon. Multiple wounds were recorded as well as single occurring injuries, inflicted on the skull and postcranial skeleton. Despite a quantitatively small sample, the numbers of criteria partially allow a broader interpretation of the position and pattern of trauma within their archaeological context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the author's views on development of weapons and related war injuries. The increase in wars origin injuries can be observed in some of the Eneolithic Age cultures. In the late Iron Age, warriors had a bronze or iron sword. Some warriors also had protective means like breastplate and a helmet.

In this study, we analyzed the osteological material from the Migration Period site Lužice (the end of the 5th century AD till 1st half of the 6th century AD), one of the biggest Migration Period cemeteries in the Czech Republic, where 120 graves were excavated. We have found one clear case of posttraumatic change of bone which was probably the result of fight with another individual. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]