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Cited by 57Archaeological and Geological StudiesArchaeology and ancient environmental studiesForensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies

A massacre of early Neolithic farmers in the high Pyrenees at Els Trocs, Spain

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Alt, Kurt W., Tejedor Rodríguez, Cristina, Nicklisch, Nicole, Roth, David, Szécsényi Nagy, Anna, Knipper, Corina, Lindauer, Susanne, Held, Petra +19 more·2020·Scientific Reports
DOI 10.1038/s41598-020-58483-9PMC PMC7005801
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Abstract

Violence seems deeply rooted in human nature and an endemic potential for such is today frequently associated with differing ethnic, religious or socio-economic backgrounds. Ethnic nepotism is believed to be one of the main causes of inter-group violence in multi-ethnic societies. At the site of Els Trocs in the Spanish Pyrenees, rivalling groups of either migrating early farmers or farmers and indigenous hunter-gatherers collided violently around 5300 BCE. This clash apparently resulted in a massacre of the Els Trocs farmers. The overkill reaction was possibly triggered by xenophobia or massive disputes over resources or privileges. In the present, violence and xenophobia are controlled and sanctioned through social codes of conduct and institutions. So that, rather than representing an insurmountable evolutionary inheritance, violence and ethnic nepotism can be overcome and a sustainable future achieved through mutual respect, tolerance and openness to multi-ethnic societies.

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  • Epidemic or conflict-related stressors often result in high, age-nonspecific mortality, frequently including large numbers of subadults.

    “Recent paleodemographic studies, such as those on the Nordic Corded Ware population, have shown that epidemic or conflict-related stressors often result in high, age-nonspecific mortality, frequently including large numbers of subadults61.”

    From Evidence of neolithic cannibalism among farming communities at El Mirador cave, Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain (2025) · cites this paper as [61]

    The Osteologic data section (page not provided) reports four subadults and five adults among nine victims at Els Trocs; the trauma section reports perimortem violence in all nine. This supports a conflict-related event involving children and adults, but the paper does not establish that such mortality is often age-nonspecific, address epidemics, or study a Nordic Corded Ware population. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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Authors
Alt, K. W., Tejedor Rodríguez, C., Nicklisch, N., Roth, D., Szécsényi Nagy, A., Knipper, C., Lindauer, S., Held, P., de Lagrán, Í. G. M., Schulz, G., Schuerch, T., Thieringer, F., Brantner, P., Brandt, G., Israel, N., Arcusa Magallón, H., Meyer, C., Mende, B. G., Enzmann, F., Dresely, V., Ramsthaler, F., Guillén, J. I. R., Scheurer, E., López Montalvo, E., Garrido Pena, R., Pichler, S. L., & Guerra, M. A. R.
Affiliations
  • Danube Private University (AT)
  • University of Basel (CH)
  • Curt Engelhorn Centre Archaeometry (DE)
  • Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (DE)
  • Universität Greifswald (DE)
  • Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (DE)
  • Saarland University (DE)
  • Gobierno de Aragón (ES)
Corresponding author
Alt, Kurt W.
ORCID
Venue
Scientific Reports
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2020-02-07
Volume
10
Issue
1
Pages
2131-2131
ISSN
2045-2322 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1038/s41598-020-58483-9
PMC
PMC7005801
OpenAlex
W3005249221
Cited by
57
References
2
Citations by year
2026: 16 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 3
FWCI
33.14
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Scientific Reports (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Biblos-e Archivo (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid) (submittedVersion, public-domain)
  • Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida) (submittedVersion)
  • HAL (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • DIGITAL.CSIC (Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
  • edoc (University of Basel) (submittedVersion)
  • Hispana (submittedVersion)
  • MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Funders
  • Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (/14-1)
  • Spanish National Plan for Scientific and Technical Research and Innovation
  • FP7 Ideas: European Research Council (230561)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Archaeological and Geological Studies
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Archaeology and ancient environmental studies
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies
Keywords
hunter-gatherers, massacres, xenophobia, overkill hypothesis, resource conflicts, migration, multiethnic society
MeSH terms
Farmers, Adult, Agriculture, Archaeology, Child, Child, Preschool, Ethnicity, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Spain, Violence, Human Migration, Xenophobia

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