Saturday, September 19, 2026
Science

Medieval Chinese skeleton may reveal first evidence of a brutal punishment

Ancient Chinese authorities used many creative ways to punish people, often with methods designed to mark them for life. One brutal example mentioned repeatedly in historical texts is cutting off a person's nose. However, archaeologists in China have never found skeletal evidence to prove that it oc...

Medieval Chinese skeleton may reveal first evidence of a brutal punishment
Image: Phys.org
Ancient Chinese authorities used many creative ways to punish people, often with methods designed to mark them for life. One brutal example mentioned repeatedly in historical texts is cutting off a person's nose. However, archaeologists in China have never found skeletal evidence to prove that it occurred. But that may have changed following the discovery of a skeleton of a woman who lived in China about 700 years ago.

Originally published at Phys.org

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