The discovery of a skeleton in a Roman cemetery in York has provided the first archaeological evidence of gladiatorial combat between humans and lions. The bite marks found on the skeleton confirm that it was a gladiator who fought against a lion, providing a rare glimpse into the lives of these ancient fighters.

Malin Holst, a lecturer in Osteoarchaeology at the University of York, led the research team that made this groundbreaking discovery. She explained that the bite marks were likely made by a lion, which confirms that the skeletons buried at the cemetery were gladiators rather than soldiers or slaves.

“This is the final piece of evidence from work that began in 2004,” said Holst. “We have been excavating and analyzing human remains from the Roman cemetery on Driffield Terrace, and this discovery provides a unique insight into the lives of these ancient fighters.”

The skeleton was buried with two others, and overlaid with horse bones. In life, it appears to have had some issues with its spine that may have been caused by overloading to its back, inflammation of its lung and thigh, as well as malnutrition as a child, which he recovered from.

The lion bite wound — confirmed by comparing it to sample bites from a lion at a zoo — was not healed and is therefore likely to have been his cause of death. It is believed that the individual was decapitated after death, which appears to have been a ritual for some individuals in the Roman period, although the reasons for this remain unclear.

Analysis of the skeleton points towards this being a Bestarius, a gladiator role undertaken by volunteers or slaves.

The discovery has significant implications for our understanding of Roman entertainment culture. It was previously thought that gladiatorial combat only took place in major cities like Rome, but this find suggests that it was also practiced in smaller cities and towns throughout the empire.

“We often have a mental image of these combats occurring at the grand surroundings of the Colosseum in Rome,” said Holst, “but these latest findings show that these sporting events had a far reach, well beyond the centre of core Roman territories.”

York appears to have held gladiator arena events until as late as the fourth century AD. The presence of distinguished Roman leaders in York would have meant they required a lavish social life, and it is not surprising to see evidence of gladiator events, as well as such an extensive burial site for them.

The research team’s findings were published in the Journal of Science and Medical Research PLoS One, and are a collaboration between the University of York, Maynooth University, Cranfield University, Durham University, King’s College London, York Archaeology, and York Osteoarchaeology Ltd.

The study reveals that three consecutive years of drought contributed to the ‘Barbarian Conspiracy’, a pivotal moment in the history of Roman Britain. Researchers argue that peripheral tribes took advantage of famine and societal breakdown caused by an extreme period of drought to inflict crushing blows on weakened Roman defences in 367 CE.

The researchers used oak tree-ring records to reconstruct temperature and precipitation levels in southern Britain during and after the ‘Barbarian Conspiracy’. They found that southern Britain experienced an exceptional sequence of remarkably dry summers from 364 to 366 CE, with average monthly reconstructed rainfall in the main growing season (April-July) falling to just 29mm in 364 CE.

The drought-driven grain deficits would have reduced the grain supply to Hadrian’s Wall, providing a plausible motive for the rebellion there which allowed the Picts into northern Britain. The study suggests that given the crucial role of grain in the contract between soldiers and the army, grain deficits may have contributed to other desertions in this period.

The researchers argue that military and societal breakdown in Roman Britain provided an ideal opportunity for peripheral tribes, including the Picts, Scotti, and Saxons, to invade the province en masse with the intention of raiding rather than conquest. Their finding that the most severe conditions were restricted to southern Britain undermines the idea that famines in other provinces might have forced these tribes to invade.

Ultimately, the researchers argue that extreme climate conditions lead to hunger, which can lead to societal challenges, and eventually outright conflict. The relationship between climate and conflict is becoming increasingly clear in our own time, making these findings relevant not only for historians but also for policymakers and researchers today.

Archaeologists have uncovered a treasure trove of stone tools from a South African cave, dating back to around 20,000 years ago. By examining the tiny details on the chipped edges of these ancient blades and stones, researchers can determine how they were made. In a recent study published in the Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology, scientists analyzed these stone tools and discovered how different techniques used to make them reveal connections between prehistoric people.

“The findings from this study are an important insight into how people who lived in this region were living, hunting, and responding to their environment,” says Sara Watson, a postdoctoral scientist at the Field Museum’s Negaunee Integrative Research Center and lead author of the study. During the period when these blades were made, between 24,000 and 12,000 years ago, the Earth was nearing the end of the last major ice age. As a result, the sea level was lower, and the region that’s now the coast of South Africa was a few miles inland.

Watson explains that instead of being right on the water like they are today, these caves would have been near vast open plains with large game animals such as antelope. People hunted those animals using new tools and weapons developed specifically for this purpose.

The Robberg technocomplex, which includes the cave where the stone tools were found, has undergone significant changes over time. No longer do the caves overlook a plain; they’re now situated in a towering cliff face over a rocky beach. “It’s a 75-foot climb up to the cave from the shoreline,” says Watson. “We had safety ropes and a staircase made of sandbags, and we had to be harnessed in while doing the excavation.”

Every day, Watson and her colleagues made the climb with all their excavation and photography equipment weighing up to 50 pounds per person. “Since these are extremely old sites from before the end of the last ice age, we had to be very careful with our excavation,” says Watson.

Underneath ancient dust and dirt, Watson’s team found thousands of stone tools, including small sharp blades and larger pieces of rock from which these blades were chipped. The bigger rock that blades are made from is called a core. “When your average person thinks about stone tools, they probably focus on the detached pieces, the blades and flakes,” says Watson. “But the thing that is most interesting to me is the core because it shows us the particular methods and order of operations that people went through in order to make their tools.”

Watson and her colleagues observed several distinct patterns of how the cores had been broken into smaller blades. In many of these technologies, the core reduction is very specific, and it’s something that you are taught and learn, and that’s where the social information is,” says Watson.

If we see specific methods of core reduction at multiple sites across the landscape, as an archaeologist, it tells me that these people were sharing ideas with one another. For instance, one particular method of breaking tiny bladelets off of a core that Watson found in the Robberg caves is also found hundreds of miles away in places such as Namibia and Lesotho.

“Same core reduction pattern, same intended product,” says Watson. “The pattern is repeated over and over again, which indicates that it is intentional and shared, rather than just a chance similarity.”

Overall, Watson says that the study reveals how much there still is to learn about the Robberg caves and the people who used them thousands of years ago. “We have a very long and rich history as a species,” says Watson, “and humans go back a lot farther in time than most people realize.”

“People living around the last ice age were very similar to people today,” concludes Watson. This study is a testament to the importance of preserving and studying our ancient heritage.