A case of decapitation in Canosa, South Italy (5th–6th century a.d.)

The authors present the case of an adult male (20–25 years) with a stature of 175 cm and a body mass of 68 kg, showing many wounds caused by both stabbing and cutting weapons. The subject was found in a tomb in the archeological area on the hill of San Pietro (Canosa, Bari), where there is a Paleo-Christian site dating back to the 6th–7th century a.d. The skeleton shows clear signs of decapitation, due not to an execution but to a fight during a battle.