The skull of the octagon of Ephesus. – UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA
Jan. 10 () –
New anthropological analyzes have ruled out that a skull found in the ruins of Ephesus (Türkiye) in 1929 corresponded to the remains of Arsinoe IV, the sister of the famous Cleopatra.
An interdisciplinary research team led by anthropologist Gerhard Weber from the University of Vienna has shown that The remains are those of a child between 11 and 14 years old who suffered from pathological developmental disorders.. His genes point to an Italian or Sardinian origin. The results are published in Scientific Reports.
In 1929, Austrian archaeologist Josef Keil and his colleagues discovered a sarcophagus completely filled with water. in the ruins of the once magnificent “Octagon”, a splendid building on the main street of Ephesus. No significant grave goods were found there, but a complete skeleton was found. Josef Keil took the skull with him when researchers re-closed the tomb on the important Curetes Street.
After the first analysis in Greifswald (Germany), Keil assumed that she was a “very distinguished person” and probably a 20-year-old woman. Keil was unable to provide any concrete data and the skull traveled to Vienna in his luggage on the occasion of his new appointment at the University of Vienna.
In 1953, Josef Weninger, director of the Institute of Anthropology at the University of Vienna, finally published an article with photographs and measurements. He also concluded that the skull of the “Heroon” (Heroengrab), as described in a yellowish note accompanying the find, corresponded to a young woman of “refined and specialized type”which could indicate the high aristocracy of antiquity.
The rest of the skeleton was found in Ephesus during subsequent excavations in 1982, but this time not in the sarcophagus, but in a niche in an antechamber of the funerary chamber.
Due to the suspicion that the octagon was inspired by the Egyptian model of the “lighthouse of Alexandria” and the additional historical facts that Arsinoe IV was murdered in Ephesus around 41 BC. C. at the instigation of Mark Antony, Cleopatra’s lover, a hypothesis arose in 1990: Arsinoe IV could have found her final resting place in this magnificent tomb in Ephesus. Since then, numerous reports and publications have investigated this rumor.
The Department of Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Vienna has expanded considerably in recent years and now uses virtually all modern analysis methods available. Together with geneticists, dating specialists, orthodontists from the University of Vienna and archaeologists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences, scientific work on the skull began.
First, micro-computed tomography was performed to obtain a digital copy of the skull with a resolution of 80 micrometers. The scientists then took small samples on the order of milligrams from the base of the skull and inner ear to determine age and genetic status. The mass spectrometer data were compared to the most recent calibration curves, which even took into account the alleged food composition.
The skull dates from between 36 and 205 BC. C., which coincides with the traditional date of the death of Arsinoe IV in 41 BC. C. Geneticists also found a match between the skull and existing samples of the femur. Therefore, the skeleton that was later found in the anteroom of the octagon actually belonged to the same person as the skull that Josef Keil had removed from the sarcophagus in 1929.
“But then came the big surprise: in repeated tests, both the skull and the femur clearly showed the presence of a Y chromosome, i.e. a male,” explains Gerhard Weber. in a statement.
Morphological evaluation of the skull and micro-CT scan data revealed that the octagon boy was still in puberty and was between 11 and 14 years old. This is confirmed by high-resolution images of the tooth roots and the base of the skull, which was still developing. However, it was evident that he was suffering from overall pathological development. One of his cranial sutures, which normally only fuse at the age of 65, was already closed, which gave the skull a very asymmetrical shape.
However, the most striking feature was the underdeveloped upper jaw, which was unusually angled downwards and presumably caused great problems with chewing. This is also confirmed by the striking angles of the temporomandibular joints and the dental findings of two remaining teeth in the jaw.
The first permanent molar, the first tooth of the permanent dentition and therefore generally the one used the longest, showed no signs of wear. On the other hand, the first premolar, which appears a few years later in the dentition, was chewed and had obvious cracks, probably as a result of overload.
The researchers conclude that there was no regular contact between the teeth, a consequence of the abnormal growth of the jaws and face.
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