Abydos Skulls Provide Evidence of Retainer Sacrifice, Study Finds

Forensic analysis of 5,000-year-old skulls from Abydos, Egypt, reveals that 39% of examined royal retainers sustained potentially fatal head trauma around the time of death.

Flinders Petrie excavated the graves in the 1920s. He noticed an unusually large number of people buried around the tombs of ancient Egypt’s first kings. He suspected these people were killed following their rulers’ deaths but could not find physical evidence of fatal injuries, according to ScienceDaily.

Dr. Roselyn Campbell of Purdue University led the research. A modern examination of 46 skulls from those subsidiary graves has identified cranial trauma in 18 of them. It was published in Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology.

“Retainer sacrifice is a type of human sacrifice where those close to a ruler are killed when the ruler dies,” Campbell explained, as reported by Scitechdaily.

The funerary complexes were constructed around 3000 BCE by the first kings of a unified Egypt.

Surrounding the main structures were numerous smaller graves containing people, some of whom had official titles that seem to refer to lower- or mid-level officials as well as artisans. Some people had a simple coffin. Most people had a few grave goods, like ceramic vessels, and many graves also included small objects like copper tools, projectile points, or small ivory figurines.

Campbell located 46 of the skulls in the Duckworth Collection at Cambridge University.

Using modern forensic knowledge, she identified linear fractures and sharp-force trauma, including a chopping injury to one person’s eye.

“The injuries on the preserved crania are generally linear fractures, which would likely cause rapid unconsciousness, internal bleeding, and death,” Campbell said.

Egyptian artwork frequently portrays kings striking enemies with maces.

Researchers said maces produce depressed fractures with bone pushed inward. The linear fractures identified in the study typically result from broad, flat objects or severe falls, though a fall severe enough to fracture the skull would likely have broken other bones not documented in excavation records.

“If I had unlimited resources, I would love to figure out where the bodies of these individuals might be and analyze them!” Campbell said.