Toppled tree turns up medieval skeleton of violently-killed man

For those who have declared, “It’s not like men grow on trees,” Ireland might’ve just proved you wrong—because when a 215-year-old beech tree ripped out of the ground during a spring storm, a man’s skeleton was found in the roots.

“The upper part of the skeleton was raised into the air trapped within the root system,” archaeologist Marion Dowd of Sligo-Leitrim Archaeological Services, the team who investigated the discovery, said on Facebook.

“The lower leg bones, however, remained intact in the ground. Effectively as the tree collapsed, it snapped the skeleton in two.”

leg bones tree skeleton

Analysis indicates that the skeleton is early medieval—carbon dating places him between 1030 and 1200 C.E. The man was between 17 and 20 years old, and most likely from a local Gaelic family in what became Sligo County. He seems to have been some sort of physical laborer (judging by a mild spinal joint disease found in the skeleton), and was 5’10” tall—significantly taller than the 5’5” average for medieval men.

The young man also seems to have died violently, as stab wounds probably made by a knife were found on his ribs and left hand. It appears he was fleeing his attacker when he was killed.

“Whether he died in battle or was killed during a personal dispute, we will never know for sure,” said Dowd.

However he died, though, it appears he was given a formal Christian burial. “He was placed in a grave in an east-west position, hands folded over pelvix [sic] region,” explained Dowd. “So his family or community extended a formal Christian burial to him.”

Nineteenth century records indicate that a church and graveyard existed in the area, but as of yet no evidence of either has been found. “So we don’t know was he buried in a graveyard or as an isolated burial,” said Dowd.

However, the find is still exciting. “This burial gives us an insight into the life and tragic death of a young man in medieval Sligo.”

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Feature Image: Sligo-Leitrim Archaeological Services

Story Image: Sligo-Leitrim Archaeological Services/Thorsten Kahlert