Posted on 12/09/2021 8:09:12 AM PST by Red Badger
Skeleton 4926, the crucified man. (Albion Archaeology & Adam Williams)
Scientists say a skeleton found with a nail through its foot in England is rare evidence of a Roman crucifixion.
The skeleton was included in a recent report in British Archaeology magazine, which details findings from a dig of an ancient Roman settlement found in Fenstanton, Cambridgeshire, that dates back to the late first or early second century CE.
In one of the five cemeteries uncovered, a skeleton – thought to have been of a man around 25-35 years old at the time of his death – had a nail lodged through his heel.
"It stunned us, slightly," David Ingham, project manager at Albion Archaeology, which led the dig, told Insider. The group didn't discover the nail until they were back in the laboratory washing the bones.
A nail was found in the heel bone of an ancient skeleton in England. (Albion Archaeology)
The victim's feet were most likely "positioned on either side of the cross's upright post, the feet fastened by horizontal nails through the heels," Ingham and Corinne Duhig, an archaeologist at the University of Cambridge, wrote in the British Archaeology article.
After consulting a human bone specialist and ruling out several less-likely theories, the archaeologists concluded that the nail was forced through victim's foot during an ancient Roman crucifixion, making it the fourth-known such execution worldwide – and the best-preserved.
While crucifixion was believed to be relatively common in ancient Roman settlements, finding archaeological evidence of it is extremely rare.
The Cambridgeshire skeleton is only the second time physical evidence of crucifixion has been documented. Two of the four previously claimed executions – one in Italy and another in Egypt – had no nail associated with them.
A skeleton found in Jerusalem in 1968 had a similarly positioned nail in its heel, leading scientists to believe both were positioned similarly at the time of crucifixion, according to the British Archaeology report. In the recent discovery in Cambridgeshire, the nail was kept in the foot of the skeleton because it had bent and become fixed in the bone.
"Everyone knows about crucifixion through Christianity," Ingham said. "What people don't necessarily realize is that there were lots of different ways in which the Romans crucified people. So it's not just the classic image, up on the cross, arms out, spread, feet together."
Instead, people may have been tied to the cross rather than being nailed at all, Ingham explained.
(Albion Archaeology & Adam Williams)
Above: Scientists didn't find the nail in the crucified skeleton's foot until they were back in the laboratory.
When nails were used, they were usually removed from the body so they could be reused. Nailing feet to the cross wasn't necessarily done to affix the body to the structure. Instead, it may have immobilized people being crucified and kept them from using their feet to ease the position they were in.
"It was relatively common, but it was still reserved for the most serious crimes. Crimes that threaten the state, particularly sedition, witchcraft, that sort of thing," Ingham said, adding, "These were people who had seriously fallen out of favor with the state, to the extent that they'd been crucified."
Family and friends may have feared being associated with a persona non grata in local society, even a dead one, and failed to arrange a proper burial. Left above ground, decomposition would have destroyed evidence of the execution, Ingham explained.
The Cambridgeshire skeleton adds to evidence from historical texts on the Roman crucifixion and also hints at the political situation at that time of the victim's execution.
"It shows that Roman law was still applied even in the furthest provinces of the empire," Ingham said. "The extreme west of the empire – in Britain – which was a pretty disturbed place by the time that this person was living, in the third and fourth centuries. There was lots of political upheaval."
PinGGG!..................
Pretty smooth hole. Just saying.
Confusing dates in the article. First or second Century or third or fourth Century? One for the town, one for the skeleton?
I wonder if they could tell anything about where the nails were placed in the hands?
Cross your legs we only got one nail....
Hands weren’t necessarily nailed, as arms were also tied with rope. The nail thru the heel was most likely to prevent the victim from easing their suffering by lifting themselves up with their feet, to make breathing easier. The Romans were quite clever in means of suffering...........................
That is strange to find the author’s logo on the skeleton.
How do,they know he didn’t just step on a nail and die from shock?
Michael Savage’s brilliant tie of Bible truths to impeachment
“The Democrats and the deep state want to crucify Trump without a shred of evidence,” Savage wrote. “This is history repeating itself.”
“How do,they know he didn’t just step on a nail and die from shock?”
It’s hard to tell from the one photo, but the nail appears to come through from the top. I believe we are seeing the bottom of the foot. Also, having stepped on a much smaller, pointier nail with a bare foot...it stuck into the bone, but I stopped putting weight on it before it could have gone through. It took two men pulling to help me get the nail out: one on the board and one on my bent knee. Penetration into the bone was probably 1/8th inch or so, then about 1 3/4 of meat from bottom of foot to the bone.
Ouch..just looking at that makes me cringe.
Poor bastard.
Ouch! Nothing hurts quite like a bone Injury, except maybe tetanus shots lol (actually the shingles shot was no picnic either lol).
I was thinking more like falling on a nail. Ive put a couple of nails,nails, my feet over the years,, once I fell from about 2 feet or so into a nail once, right up through the foot it went, was in a pig pen, right in the slop area. A board had fallen off and was buried in the slop. I was climbing over the fence, and slipped off. It caused my first tetanus shot which I think hurt more than the nail did.
Yeah it does look like it goes through the top. Wonder if he was a masochist lol? but yeah likely crucified.
“They” say that Christ had the nails placed in his wrists, between the two arm bones and the hand bones, as the wrist would hold the weight better than the hands, but I think I read they also tied the arms too, or sometimes just tied the arms with no nails.
“After consulting a human bone specialist and ruling out several less-likely theories...”
Like what, a really clumsy roofer?
Maybe he worked construction and couldn’t afford safety boots.
Hi.
I know of a Hebrew guy the Romans did this to back about 2000 years ago. Matter of fact His birthday is coming up soon.
Oh, and when He comes back, He is going to be really pissed.
5.56mm
dates back to the late first or early second century A.D.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
