The crucifixion was one of the particularly cruel death sentences in the Roman Empire. So far, however, archaeological evidence for this ancient practice is rare. Now archaeologists have discovered the first evidence of a crucifixion in Roman Britain: an ancient corpse with an iron nail driven through the heel bone. Further nails in the grave and evidence of imprisonment before his death support the assumption of a death on the cross.
In Roman times, death by crucifixion was a common punishment, especially for slaves and non-Romans. For this, the victims were often first scourged and then taken to the place of execution. There her arms were tied or nailed to the crossbeam, then the feet were fastened with ropes or nails – at least that’s what historical records report. But archaeological evidence of this practice of execution is extremely rare.
Roman settlement with graves
Archaeologists may have discovered such a testimony during excavations on the ancient Roman road Via Devana between Cambridge and Godmanchester in England. In 2017, the relics of an ancient settlement stretching over six hectares were found near the town of Fenstanton. A team of scientists from Albion Archeology uncovered the remains of several large buildings, paved courtyards and paths and a kind of slaughterhouse with numerous split bovine bones. In a recent excavation, the team concentrated on a few areas on the edge of the former settlement.
There the archaeologists found five smaller cemeteries in which around 40 men, women and children had been buried between the second and fourth centuries. Grave goods such as coins, decorated ceramics and some enamelled brooches suggest that the inhabitants of this settlement from Roman times must have been wealthy. Nevertheless, the bones often showed traces of illnesses and injuries.
A dead man with a nail in his foot
However, one of the graves turned out to be unusual: the dead man, a 25 to 35 year old man, had been buried on a kind of wooden stretcher and around him were twelve long nails. When the osteoarchaeologist Corinne Duhig of the University of Cambridge was cleaning this skeleton of clinging earth, she discovered that another nail was piercing the dead man’s foot. The five centimeter long nail had been driven horizontally through the dead man’s heel bone. As the researcher explains, this nail must have been driven through the foot during the man’s lifetime. A small dent right next to the pierced area also indicates that a first attempt apparently failed.
According to Duhig and her colleagues, this indicates that this man was crucified. The nail alone is not irrefutable proof, but together with the rest of the circumstances, this is the most plausible explanation. Because injuries and a thinned structure of the leg bones of the deceased suggest that the man spent long periods of time tied up or in chains before his death. This makes the dead man from Fenstanton the first archaeological evidence of a crucifixion in Roman Britain. “Burial practices in Roman times varied greatly and mutilations have been found here – but never a crucifixion,” explains Kasia Gdaniec of Cambridgeshire County Council.
Archaeological rarity – and open questions
The crucified dead from Fenstanton is also only the fourth archaeological evidence of a crucifixion. Earlier finds include a skeleton discovered in Israel in 1968, which also had a nail stuck in the bone. Two other skeletons with holes possibly made by nails were found in Italy and Egypt. According to Duhig, the current find is the best-preserved evidence of this type of death so far. “The happy combination of a good state of preservation and this nail in the bone has produced this unique example – thousands of others have passed by lost,” says the osteoarchaeologist.
It is unclear, however, why the deceased was buried normally in the local cemetery after his crucifixion – this was unusual for those who were crucified in the Roman Empire. In addition, the nails of the crucifixion victims were usually removed again after their death. It has not yet been clarified why the dead man found in England was lying in the grave together with the nails.
Source: University of Cambridge, Albion Archeology, British Archeology