The Radziwiłł Mausoleum
in Nesvizh.
Research

The story of our life can be discerned in our body. Psychological and emotional stress that we experience, microorganisms surrounding us which are invisible to a naked eye – all that information is “recorded” in our bodies. And not only in the living body. A unique life story of each individual leaves traces on his skeleton too. It becomes an “archive” for getting to know the past. Historians read and analyse written texts, whereas bioarchaeologists deal with human skeletons.

Bioarchaeology seeks to reveal the lifestyle, diet, migration, illnesses and dramas in the relationship between the people of the past. It is done with the help of the analysis of biological, cultural and environmental interactions. Bioarchaeologists pay more attention to the “silent” part of society – an ordinary urban or rural resident who is scantily “reflected” in written sources but who left another document after his/her death – the body. The investigations of the remains of the noblemen who belonged to the elite and held the highest positions in society are not a novelty either. Their lifestyle, everyday habits, political strife and love affairs are described in historical sources quite accurately; however, some parts of their stories might still be shrouded in secrecy.

For example, bioarchaeological investigations of the remains of the Medici family, Grand Dukes of Florence (the 16th-18th centuries), made it possible to determine at what age the representatives of that powerful family died and the causes of their death, to trace the diseases they suffered from. For example, it was ascertained that Francesco I de’Medici (born in 1541), the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and his second wife Bianca Capello (born in 1548) died of malaria rather than of the poison prepared by their rivals¹Gino Fornaciari, et al., “Plasmodium Falciparum Immunodetection in Bone Remains of Members of the Renaissance Medici Family (Florence, Italy, Sixteenth Century)”, Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 2010, vol. 104, p. 583-587.. The couple died in 1587, after 11 days of agony. The analysis of the remains of the children of the Medici family revealed the vulnerability of the noblemen: wealth and privileges failed to protect the little descendants of the rulers of Florence from rickets, a disease more prevalent among the poor. Even six of nine children had clear symptoms of the disease caused by vitamin D deficiency: an oddly shaped skull and bowlegs²Valentina Giuffra, et al., “Rickets in a High Social Class of Renaissance Italy: The Medici Children”, International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 2013, vol. 25, p. 608-624..

Bioarchaeologists also revealed the details of the death of Richard III (1452-1485), famous King of England, who received two fatal blows on the head during the Battle of Bosworth, the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses in 1485: the first crushing blow on his head cut off half of his occiput opening the cerebrum, and the second one split his head. Bioarchaeologists make it clear that the King was not wearing a helmet during the battle, and serious injuries in the pelvis could have been inflicted after his death³Jo Appleby , et al., “Perimortem Trauma in King Richard III: A Skeletal Analysis”, The Lancet, 2015, vol. 385, p. 253-259..

The end of the life of Eric IX of Sweden, King of Sweden, who later was canonised (lived around 1120) was surrounded by myths and legends for a long time. One legend has it that in 1160 he was attacked by jealous and impatient Magnus. However, the ruler’s remains discovered testified to a different, no less dramatic cause of the death: he died of injuries received in the battlefield. Slashed wounds were visible on the tibiae of both legs, and the neck vertebra was completely cut off⁴Av Sabine Sten, et al., “Erik den heliges skelett“, Fornvännen, 2016, vol. 111, p. 27-40..

Justina Kozakaitė