Rare Ancient Caribbean Skull Shows Evidence Of Leprosy

Petite Mustique 1. A, norma frontalis. B, right norma lateralis (All photos by GCN). Credit: DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpp.2021.10.004

A skull unearthed on an uninhabited Caribbean island is a rare find: It’s one of just a few examples of leprosy identified on a skeleton in the western hemisphere.

And it’s the only one that’s been directly dated using radiocarbon, by analyzing a fragment of the skull itself rather than estimating an age using nearby artifacts or materials. The bones are from the late 18th or early 19th century, reports a team led by UO archaeologist Scott Fitzpatrick.

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Source: https://www.ancientpages.com/2021/11/29/rare-ancient-caribbean-skull-shows-evidence-of-leprosy/