Spanish archaeologists have made a gruesome discovery in the Atapuerca mountains that reveals violent conflict among prehistoric communities.
Researchers examining 650 bone fragments from El Mirador cave have identified remains belonging to eleven individuals who were systematically butchered and eaten approximately 5,700 years ago.
The victims, who included children, showed evidence of what scientists describe as "extreme exploitation" of their bodies.
IPHES-CERCA
|Bone fragments were found belonging to individuals who were systematically butchered and eaten approximately 5,700 years ago
Analysis of the bones revealed methodical processing techniques that went far beyond simple killing.
The findings emerged from excavations in Burgos, northern Spain, where teams from the Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES) have been investigating Neolithic burial practices.
Their research, recently published in Scientific Reports, provides insights into prehistoric warfare as skeletal evidence paints a picture of systematic brutality.
Stone tools had been used to remove skin from the bones, leaving distinctive chop marks across the remains, while some bones appeared translucent with smoothed edges, indicating they had been boiled for consumption.
IPHES-CERCA
|PICTURED: The main authors of the study (from left to right): Palmira Saladie, Antonio Rodriguez-Hidalgo and Francesc Marginedas
Longer bones showed signs of deliberate fracturing using stones to access the nutrient-rich marrow inside, and smaller bones, including ribs and foot bones, bore unmistakable human teeth marks.
One particularly disturbing find involved a child's thighbone that had been expertly struck to extract the marrow.
The precision of these butchering techniques demonstrated both skill and experience in processing human remains for consumption.
Antonio Rodriguez-Hidalgo from the Institute of Archaeology-Merida, who co-authored the research, believes this represents warfare-related cannibalism rather than survival necessity.
IPHES-CERCA
|PICTURED: A human child's femur with impacts to extract the bone marrow
He explained: "If you're eating someone from your own group, you usually take only what's needed to survive."
The simultaneous deaths of all eleven individuals eliminates the possibility of funeral practices, whilst the absence of famine or severe weather conditions rules out desperation-driven cannibalism.
Researchers interpret the thorough consumption as an attempt to completely annihilate enemies, both physically and spiritually.
Ancient peoples believed that consuming an adversary's flesh would destroy their soul entirely.
IPHES-CERCA
|PICTURED: Cut marks on a bone found in El Mirador
The findings challenge previous assumptions about Neolithic communities being predominantly peaceful agricultural societies, revealing they also "resolved conflicts violently".
The Atapuerca archaeological complex has emerged as the global focal point for studying prehistoric anthropophagy over the past thirty years.
Rodriquez-Hidalgo said that from a scientific perspective, "Atapuerca is as if it were the capital of cannibalism".