The results of the ancient DNA analysis of the "Upton Lovell Shaman," carried out by researchers at the Francis Crick Institute in London, break the previously held stereotype of Early Bronze Age women, according to a statement from the Wiltshire Museum, where the remains and grave goods are housed.
The nearly 4,000-year-old burial was unearthed in 1801 near the village of Upton Lovell, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) west of Stonehenge. The human remains were surrounded by an unusually rich tool kit containing stone axes, metalworking implements with traces of gold on them, a touchstone for testing metal purity by comparing streaks left by different metals, and pierced animal bones that were likely once sewn onto a garment as decorations, hinting at a ceremonial cloak.
William Cunnington, the English archaeologist who excavated the burial mound, known as a barrow, noted at the time that, "from the largeness of the bones," the burial "appeared to be a stout man," according to the statement. For the next two centuries, the individual's assumed sex was male, with its museum display depicting a bearded male figure.
Among the grave goods were four fossil sponges hollowed out into cups, hinting that their owner was once a crafter. (Image credit: Wiltshire Museum)Other clues in the skeleton revealed more details about the individual. She stood around 5 feet, 4 inches (165 centimeters), which was unusually tall for a Bronze Age woman, and died at about age 45. She was robustly built, with arthritis in her right wrist but not her left — a pattern that fits years of the repetitive work with metalworking tools, the statement reported.
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This is not the first time an ancient elite individual has been mistakenly identified as male. For instance, an elite person from Sweden's Viking Age who was buried with weapons and strategy games was thought to be male but was later verified to be female, and a high-ranking individual from Copper Age Spain was thought to be male until a DNA analysis showed they were female.
The findings will be unveiled Thursday (July 16) in a new exhibition on ancient DNA, "We Go Way Back," opening at the Francis Crick Institute.
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