Citation

Bridges PS. Int. J. Osteoarchaeol. 1996; 6(1): 66-75.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1996, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/(SICI)1099-1212(199601)6:1<66::AID-OA243>3.0.CO;2-J

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Koger's Island, a late prehistoric agricultural community in the southeastern USA, is the site of a cemetery containing four mass graves of individuals with perimortem trauma and scalping cutmarks. Although the site as a whole has a demographic profile typical for a society of this kind (with high infant mortality), the mass graves contain relatively few infants or children, and an abundance of adult males. It is suggested that the skeletons found in the multiple burials represent the victims of raiding or warfare. The disproportionate number of males in the mass graves may be related to the fact that relatively few males at the site are older than 50 years, presumably because they are dying at an early age from violence.

Language: en