- 【Preface】
In 1920, a male skeleton was excavated from the ruins of the Tsukumo cemetery near the Seto Inland Sea in Okayama, Japan.
The researchers determined by radiocarbon isotope dating that the man should have lived in Japan's Neolithic period more than 3,000 years ago. That is to say, he was a fly literati around 1370 BC.
But to the researchers' confusion, the man's bones were covered with nearly 800 scars, of varying sizes and shapes, mostly in jagged shapes.
What is even more puzzling is that the man buried in the family cemetery has no left hand, even his right leg is missing, and his left leg is placed on the top of his body in an upside-down position.
Suddenly, the cause of the man's death became a mystery, confusing countless researchers. Until June 2021, two British researchers unveiled the secret of this century-old skeleton:
This is the body of a man who was bitten 800 times by a shark three thousand years ago...
This conclusion has caused great controversy in society. What kind of shark can bite out nearly 800 wounds on a person's body and still eat a person? What happened to the man before he died? What kind of mystery does he have in him?
- [A 3,000-year-old bone covered with scars]
On June 23, 2021, researchers J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom came to Japan to investigate evidence of violent trauma on the bones of prehistoric hunter-gatherers at Kyoto University.
On this day, J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting found the remains of a man named No. 24 at Kyoto University. They found that the incomplete remains were very well preserved. The two professors were immediately intrigued by the remains, especially after seeing the wounds that were strewn through The 24th.
We will next refer to this body as: No. 24.
Subsequently, J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting investigated the remains, and they learned that the remains were found in Japan in 1920 near the Seto Inland Sea, a Neolithic fly literati, who was tentatively determined to have died between 1370 and 1010 BC.
In other words, the remains are about 3,000 years old.
Having learned all this, the most interesting and most puzzling thing about 24 was the 800 scars on the skeleton that were most interesting and most confusing to Professor J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting.
As experts in bone trauma, they wondered why a person who was just over 5 feet tall, or 1.5 meters, left nearly 800 wounds on his body.
In search of answers, Professors J. Alyssa White and Rick Schulting eagerly began their research on the remains of No. 24.
The injuries on No. 24's body were mainly concentrated in the arms, legs, chest, and abdomen, and the wounds did not show any signs of healing. In other words, the 3,000-year-old man was likely to die directly after being injured, so that the wound did not have any signs of healing.
Because the man's remains were buried in the family tomb, when determining the cause of his death, J. Alyssa White and Professors Rick Schulting's initial thought was that he had been killed.
So, who was the killer of Man 24?
If it is the work of wild beasts, generally speaking, there are no bones left, and it is impossible for the family to collect the body and bury it in the family tomb. But apparently he was not killed by man, and the nearly 800 scars on his bones were jagged, and it was difficult for humans to make such scars, even if they borrowed tools.
Assuming that No. 24 was killed by man, then he must have suffered great torture before he died, and the murderer would only do this cruel hand if he hated him to the bone. But if this is the case, then why was Man No. 24, who was "tortured" before his death, buried in the family tomb?
It can be inferred that Man No. 24 was not killed by man.
Subsequently, J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting wondered whether Man No. 24 had fought with the beast before he died.
Immediately afterward, the two professors compared the wounds on No. 24's body with the wounds caused by the land beasts, and found that they did not match them at all. Therefore, the 24th did not fight with the land beasts before his death.
The professor learned that 3,000 years ago, the Japanese archipelago was inhabited by fishing and hunting tribes, mainly fishing for a living, and man No. 24 lived in this period. Could it be that Man 24 fought against creatures living in the ocean?
To this end, the two professors set their sights on scavengers who often clashed with humans, but this possibility was quickly ruled out.
So, who is the real culprit?
- [Who is the real culprit?] 】
After several failed investigations, J. Alyssa White and Professor Rick Schulting decided to find foreign aid, collaborated with experts George Burgess, honorary director of the Florida Shark Research Program, and formed an international team to study 24.
Through research, it was found that the wounds on No. 24's body were very similar to the scars left by humans after being attacked by sharks. But in archaeology, cases of humans being killed by shark attacks are extremely rare. Therefore, the international team decided to start with the shark attack case and wanted to find clues from inside.
They re-combed the clues on the remains, mapping the scars on No. 24's body to a three-dimensional model of the human skeleton, re-establishing the pattern of these scars.
Through a study of the pattern and distribution of the scars on No. 24's body, they found that the wounds on No. 24's body completely coincided with the wounds of the shark attack. It can also be speculated that when Man No. 24 was attacked by a shark, he was most likely still alive and later died of excessive blood loss.
After drawing these conclusions, they immediately reconstructed the situation at that time:
On the day of the accident, Man No. 24 was fishing with his people. While fishing, they were suddenly attacked by sharks, and the 24th fell into the shark's mouth. In the process, No. 24 desperately resisted, his left hand is likely to be bitten off by a shark during the defense, and his leg is likely to disappear in this way.
After No. 24 was injured, the shark did not choose to eat it, after which No. 24 may have died of excessive blood loss. After his death on the 24th, his body was found by the tribesmen and buried in the family's tomb.
In this way, all the mysteries on The 24 can be explained relatively.
Subsequently, researchers discovered shark teeth that lived here during archaeological activities in the area. At this point, the researchers' conjectures were more confirmed.
Regarding the death of No. 24, the researchers said in the report: "Although many blood vessels and organs will be affected, at least his larger lower extremity arteries may have been severed early in the attack." This will lead to his rapid death from hypovolemic shock. ”
After studying the truth of the 24th death, the researchers once again analyzed the shark species that attacked the 24th. By analyzing the scars on the remains of No. 24, it was concluded that No. 24 was most likely attacked by tiger sharks or white sharks.
But what researchers have never figured out is whether No. 24 was attacked by sharks while fishing, or whether he was counterattacked by sharks while catching sharks.
If it's the first, it might be a coincidence; if it's the second, it means that sharks were killed thousands of years ago, and the meaning of the two is completely different.
The mystery has not been solved, and he only hopes that one day someone will be able to unveil his mystery again.
In 2021, a team of scientists led by scientists at the University of Oxford published a study in the journal Archaeological Science, which said that No. 24 is the world's oldest recorded case of a human conflict with a shark. At the same time, No. 24 is also the first human to be recorded being attacked by sharks.
Mark Hudson, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute in Germany, co-author of the study, said: "In any case, this discovery not only provides a new perspective on ancient Japan, but also a rare example of archaeologists being able to reconstruct dramatic events in the life of a prehistoric community. ”
As an important cultural undertaking, archaeological research work is a meaningful work that enables people to understand the lives of people hundreds of millions of years ago and brings dawn to the inheritance of human history.
Like this one is the best proof.
In fact, there are many such examples, and they have made no small contribution to the inheritance of our history.
- 【Archaeology's Inheritance of Historical Civilization】
Known as the "Eighth Wonder of the World" and "one of the World's Top Ten Ancient Tombs and Treasures", the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shi Huang was also discovered by chance. Its discovery can be said to be the first miracle in human history...
In 1974, there was a drought in the northwest of the mainland, and for the sake of the crops in the field, people had to dig their own wells to save the crops in the fields.
Xiyang Village, located at the foot of Lishan Mountain, also began to dig a well due to lack of water. The villagers carefully selected the place to dig the well, but when they dug for a while, they suddenly dug out a clay figurine. Soon, more and more pottery figurines appeared in front of people.
At this point, they did not dare to continue, so they reported the matter. Soon experts came to investigate, and after careful inspection, they confirmed what was hidden under the land. This incident attracted the attention of the government, and then the Shaanxi Provincial Archaeological Team immediately rushed to Xiyang Village to prepare for archaeological excavations in this area.
Before the archaeological work began, the Shaanxi Provincial Archaeological Team carefully planned the excavation work, but even so, the excavation work was still very difficult. With the continuous increase of archaeological work, the team of archaeological teams has grown again, and conservation and restoration personnel have appeared to restore them on a large scale.
Under the efforts of archaeologists for many years, the terracotta warriors and horses, which have been hidden for thousands of years, have finally reappeared in the sky, and those lifelike clay figurines and exquisite bronzes are the testimony of the spirit of the ancient working people on the mainland.
Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors and Horses were excavated, people felt the charm of China's ancient civilization, and now, every year, people will go to the Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum to witness the inheritance of ancient civilization, which is not a cultural inheritance and development?
Qin Terracotta Warriors
The Western Han Dynasty straight-sleeved plain gauze clothes excavated from the Mawangdui Han Tomb are believed to have all heard of it, and it is known as a first-class cultural relic of our country. Its emergence is also closely related to archaeological research work.
In December 1971, migrant workers digging air raid shelters at Changsha 366 Hospital discovered that the soil had suddenly changed during excavation, so they dug out three Han tombs in Mawangdui.
After the archaeological team excavated the Mawangdui Han tomb for several months, a huge coffin appeared in front of the people, which was the tomb of Xin Chai, the wife of Hou Licang, the minister of the Western Han Dynasty, and it was here that the straight-sleeved plain gauze was found.
After its appearance, it instantly became the focus of attention at home and abroad, the straight-sleeved plain gauze jacket is 128 cm long, the sleeve length is 195 cm, and the common material is about 2.6 square meters, but its weight is only 49 grams, and the workmanship is fine, the color is bright, the ornamentation is gorgeous, and it is as thin as a cicada wing. Its appearance reflects the exquisite weaving technology of the ancient people of the mainland.
Straight-sleeved plain gauze is the earliest surviving, most complete and most exquisitely crafted piece of clothing in mainland China. Mainland researchers have also tried to imitate it, and it took 13 years to finally make a replica, but the weight of this imitation is 0.5 grams heavier than that of plain gauze cuffs, which shows the superb skills of the ancient people of the mainland.
As one of the ancient civilizations in the world, the archaeological research work of the mainland is of great significance. Through the efforts of several generations, the archaeological work of the mainland has made great achievements, which have greatly restored history and presented the treasures of history in front of us.
One of the most important reasons why our country's civilization can continue to be inherited and developed is our country's inheritance of history and China's excellent traditional culture.
Therefore, it is imperative to carry out archaeological research work!