BERLIN, GERMANY—Science Magazine reports that the remains of severed hands discovered in 2011 in northern Egypt at the site of the ancient capital city of Avaris may have been collected as battlefield trophies. The 12 hands, which have been dated to 1500 B.C., were found in pits dug outside the city’s palace walls. Eight of the hands were found together in one shallow pit, while the rest were uncovered in another pit about three feet away. Both pits would have been visible from the palace throne room, said Julia Gresky of the German Archaeological Institute. Egyptian texts describe a practice known as “gold of honor,” in which the hands of slain enemies could be presented to the Egyptian pharaoh in exchange for gold necklaces or pendants in the shape of flies. The lack of cut marks on these bones suggests that the hands had been carefully amputated, perhaps in a ritual. The tendons connecting the hands to arms were likely separated after death and after rigor mortis had passed, Gresky added, yet buried before the hand had decomposed and fallen apart. According to ancient Egyptian beliefs, she concluded, the slain enemy would have been barred from the afterlife because of the disfigurement. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Scientific Reports. To read about the discovery of Avaris, go to "The Rulers of Foreign Lands."
