Mass violence in Copper Age Europe: The massacre burial site from Potočani, Croatia.

OBJECTIVES To provide a comprehensive analysis of perimortem cranial injuries found on human remains from the Eneolithic (ca. 4200 BCE) mass grave discovered at Potocani, Croatia, to test if the assemblage is a result of a deliberate violent episode on a massive scale. MATERIALS AND METHODS Standard bioarchaeological analysis, including inventory of the preserved elements, minimum number of individuals, sex determination, age at death, as well as pattern and distribution of trauma, was recorded. RESULTS A minimum of 41 people are present in the sample. Both sexes and almost all age groups are represented, with a prevalence of children and young adults. Four blunt force antemortem injuries are registered in three adult males and one subadult while perimortem injuries are recorded on 13 crania with a total of 28 injuries. The distribution of perimortem injuries is not patterned with age, sex, or siding, and their location is on lateral, posterior, or superior parts of the crania. No "defensive wounds" or other type of injuries are observed on postcranial elements. DISCUSSION The injuries, manner of disposal of the bodies, radiocarbon dates, and other available data strongly suggest that the Potocani sample represents a single episode of execution during which the Potocani people were unable to defend themselves. The Potocani massacre is the oldest such example in southeastern Europe and provides additional evidence that indiscriminate violence on a massive scale is not a product of modern societies.