CHENNAI: Hema Achyuthan, who currently working as a professor, department of Geology, Anna University did her PhD from Deccan College Post Graduate and Research Institute, Pune.
With more than 40 research papers and background in archaeology, she played a key role in this research by helping the team understand the geomorphology of the gravel bars along lake Turkana, Kenya in which the burials were found. Based on her earlier research work at Thar deserts at Rajasthan, India for several years, she was invited to the Cambridge University to present a lecture on ‘Past Climate Change’. Impressed by her expertise in geology and archaeology, the first author of the project, Mirazon Lahr, invited her to join the multi-institutional research.
Sharing her experience, Hema said, “From 2011, we started working on the remnants of a large lake which got dried and broke into different streams forming sand gravels.” Explaining her role as a geologist in this research, she said, “Since it is an archaeological research involving geological techniques, the excavation was time consuming. Also, some skeletons were fragmented. So, the key there was to use the right geological tool so that the evidences were recovered in tact” She had also helped the team in understanding the formation of gravel bars and their orientation along with identification of lake, gravel sediments.
Since the measurement of various parameters, including height, direction of water flow, involved actual field measurements along with GPS techniques, she said the process demanded a lot of patience and perseverance.
In all cases of cranial trauma, compression of bones localised and could not be explained by taphonomic forces as unaffected cranial elements retain the original size and shape around the fractured portions
What was found there?
Remains of a minimum of 27 individuals partly or completely exposed on the lake surface discovered
21 were adults (8 males, 8 females and 5 unknown)
The remains of a 6 to 9-month-old foetus were recovered from within the abdominal cavity of one of the adult females, representing the 28th individual
Partial remains of six children were found in close proximity to the remains of four adult women and none were near men
What were their features?
Ten of the 12 skeletons in site show evidence of major traumatic lesions that would have been lethal in the immediate to short time
Six out of this possibly were cases of sharp-force trauma to the head, neck probably associated with arrow wounds
Five cases of blunt-force trauma to the head and others were cases of bilateral fractured knees, ribs
Position of hands in two cases suggested they were bound at the time of death
What does it signify?
Radiocarbon dating process has estimated the age of these remains between 9,500 and 10,500 years old, i.e., just after the end of last Ice Age
Presence of projectile points embedded in skeletal remains or within body cavity considered diagnostic of inter-group conflict, while fractures resulting from blunt and sharp force trauma to head, neck, ribs are indicative of deliberate violent trauma