Was it an axe or an adze? A cranial trauma case study from the Late Neolithic – Chalcolithic site of Cova Foradada (Calafell, Spain)

Objective: To reconstruct the etiology of a perimortem injury observed on a Neolithic – Chalcolithic cranium (5060 – 4400 yrs cal. BP). Materials: A cranium of an old adult male individual belonging to a collective burial from Cova Foradada site (Calafell, Tarragona, Spain). Methods: The cranium was analyzed macroscopically and microscopically using micro-CT scan. Results: The fracture on the right parietal bone presents characteristics of perimortem trauma. The morphology of the point of impact allows for the interpretation of this fracture as a result of impact by an object with a straight and sharp edge. In addition, the same cranium presents two healed antemortem injuries. Conclusions: The object that most likely caused the cranial fracture was a stone adze. The blow occurred from behind the individual, possibly by a right-handed attacker. Significance: The potential to link cranial fractures with specific tools increases our understanding of interpersonal violence during the Neolithic. Limitations: It is not possible to infer if this cranial injury was related to a large-scale intergroup confrontation or an intragroup violent event. Suggestions for further research: To investigate additional similar sites in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula to better characterize the fracture pattern caused by stone axes and adzes as well as other objects used as weapons during the Neolithic – Chalcolithic ages.
This work was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (FPU18-02291 scholar-ship); Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades/Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional [PGC2018-093925-B-C32]; Agència de Gestió d’Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca [SGR 2017-1040]; Departament de Cultura de la Generalitat de Catalunya [CLT009-18-00024]; and Universitat Rovira i Virgili, projects [2014, 2015 and 2016 PFR-URV-B2- 17] and [2018 PFR-URV-B2-91], framed in the Programa de Centros de Recerca de Catalunya (CERCA), Generalitat de Catalunya.