Beitrag
From the gallows to the grave – investigating the cause of death of seven skeletons from Renaissance Odense
Alexandersen, Mette; Bjerregaard, Mikael Manøe; Kelmelis, Kirsten Saige; Tarp, Peter
Anthropologischer Anzeiger Volume 76 No. 4 (2019), p. 305 - 317
veröffentlicht: Oct 30, 2019
Online veröffentlicht: Apr 26, 2019
Manuskript akzeptiert: Mar 2, 2019
Manuskript-Revision erhalten: Mar 2, 2019
Manuskript-Revision angefordert: Dec 7, 2018
Manuskript erhalten: Nov 2, 2018
DOI: 10.1127/anthranz/2019/0959
ArtNo. ESP140007604001, Preis: 29.00 €
Abstract
In 1982, archaeologists recovered seven skeletons at the site of Søndergade, OBM8230 in Odense, Denmark. The skeletons were isolated burials outside of cemetery context. This article examines the osteological and historical data of these seven skeletons and their burial location with the aim of examining the circumstances of their deaths. The chronological dating of the skeletons suggests that the seven individuals were buried around or after the Lutheran Reformation (AD 1536) up until the middle of the 17th century. From historical evidence, we can place the skeletons outside the western city gate, which is also where the wheel and gallows were located in Renaissance Odense. Based on the burial location and position in the grave of these skeletons, we hypothesize that the seven individuals were executed criminals. The results of the skeletal analysis show that all were young males. Two of the individuals have osteological evidence of decapitation. The remaining five individuals were most likely hanged based on historical and archaeological evidence, possibly for the crime of theft (Secher 1929). The historical, archeological and osteological analyses of these seven skeletons support the hypothesis that being buried in unconsecrated ground was a punishment in the form of expulsion of the community in death as the law indicates, rather than the absolution of the criminal’s sins in life.
Schlagworte
historical archaeology • post-Reformation Denmark • trauma • execution • paleopathology