Study Identifies Woman Who Survived Nose Amputation

ZHENGZHOU, CHINA—Phys.org reports that analysis of a 700-year-old skull recovered from a cemetery in eastern China suggests that the woman had undergone a punitive nose amputation—a practice previously known only through ancient texts. Yawei Zhou of Zhengzhou University said that out of the more than 200 burials unearthed at Sanzhiyuan Cemetery, this woman was the only one who had been buried in a prone position. Her facial bones had also clearly been damaged. Examination and radiocarbon dating of the bones showed that she was between the ages of 40 and 45 when she died, sometime between A.D. 1298 and 1404. CT scans of her skull revealed that her nasal bones, and structures inside the nose, had been removed without harming her front teeth, thus ruling out a bad fall. The bones also showed signs of healing. Chemical analysis of the bones indicates that she ate a diet based on millet with little animal protein. Zhou and his colleagues concluded that the woman had undergone a nose amputation, but had received life-saving medical care that allowed her to survive for several more years. To read about excavations of the Chinese medieval capital of Kaifeng, go to "Bridge to the Past."