1. An Infant Femur Bearing Cut Marks from Roman Hambleden, England.
- Author
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Mays, S., Robson‐Brown, K., Vincent, S., Eyers, J., King, H., and Roberts, A.
- Subjects
FEMUR injuries ,COMPUTED tomography ,NEONATAL diseases ,BREECH delivery ,OBSTETRICS ,PALEOPATHOLOGY - Abstract
ABSTRACT A perinatal infant skeleton from the first-fourth century AD Roman villa site at Hambleden, England, shows what appear to be cut marks on the proximal part of the right femur. Gross, microscopic and micro-computed tomography evaluations suggest that they occurred perimortem and were probably caused by a non-serrated blade. The reason for the cuts is uncertain, but their location is consistent with the practice of embryotomy, as described in classical sources for obstructed labour due to a dead or dying foetus in a breech or leg presentation. If this interpretation is correct, this case represents a rare example of embryotomy in the palaeopathological record. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2014
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