'Civil War' skull from Gettysburg that was nearly auctioned off is actually more than 700 years old

Daily Mail (UK) ^ | Sunday, February 8, 2015 | Belinda Robinson

[SunkenCiv]

A skull that was thought to have belonged to a Civil War soldier killed at Gettysburg is actually more than 700 years old and from the Southwest, say experts.

The National Park Service has revealed that forensic anthropologists determined that the skull is from the late 1200s and belonged to a Native American man in his early-to-mid 20s.

That's nearly 300 years before Christopher Columbus sailed to the New World and 400 years before the first settlement of English in the United States.

The company that nearly auctioned the skull last year said notarized documents had showed it was discovered on a Gettysburg farm, not the Southwestern US, according to NBC 4.

The firm - Estate Auction Company - was set to auction off the skull in Hagerstown, Maryland in June but canceled after members of the public complained.

They then donated the skull to the Parks Service.

[SunkenCiv]

full title, "Revealed: 'Civil War' skull from Gettysburg that was nearly auctioned off is actually more than 700 years old".

Skull: The National Parks Service said that forensic anthropologists determined the skull is from the late 1200s and belonged to a Native American man in his early-to-mid 20s

[SunkenCiv]

[Sacajaweau]

A native American.....Really??

[SWAMPSNIPER]

[golux]

The late 1200s were a good time, actually. Free enterprise, strong families, freedom of expression, love and respect for nature, and really, the federal government had no power at all. Homosexuality? Most folks thought it was a waste of time. Then again, all things considered, the modern left would have called us “cave-men.”

[rhinohunter]

So does that make it more or less valuable?

[Larry Lucido]

Oldest known Civil War veteran?

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

A 700 year old Indian fighting at Gettysburg? There’s at least an ABC sitcom to that story.

[central_va]

Ask Brian Williams he was there.

[JW1949]

Brian Williams witnessed the tragic death...........

[JW1949]

You beat me to it....*LOL*

[mass55th]

"Ask Brian Williams he was there. "

I was going to say it was Brian Williams' skull from when he was a youth.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

The company that nearly auctioned the skull last year said notarized documents had showed it was discovered on a Gettysburg farm, not the Southwestern US, according to NBC 4.

Paper will lie still and let you put anything on it.

[SunkenCiv]

Another tragic time-travel accident.

[SunkenCiv]

The mystery is, why would anyone be digging for veteran graves to auction off the craniums?

[Verginius Rufus]

Maybe it is the skull of a Viking.

How do they know the person was from the Southwest? Traces of peyote in the bone?

Maybe it was a Viking on the way back from a trip to the Southwest to gather peyote, killed on his way back to Greenland. Denmark can sue for reparations as soon as they determine what tribe was living in Gettysburg in the 13th century.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Yes that is kind of strange.

[Mercat]

LOL, you’ve been watching way too much on the Discovery/History Channel.

[SunkenCiv]

Must have been a skull missing in the SW. ;’)

[UnwashedPeasant]

How old does a grave have to be before you can dig it up and auction the body parts?