Signs of trauma, whether accidental or deliberate (see Table 8.1) are commonly found on human remains. Fractures are the most frequent form of trauma found in assemblages recovered from urban or rural cemeteries. However, at certain times, evidence of wounding is quite common, and in later periods, signs of surgical or anatomical intervention may be apparent. Occasionally a skeleton with signs of hanging or beheading is uncovered, to the delight of all involved. Trauma may also be inflicted on the skeleton after it is buried. The weight of soil during burial will tend to flatten the skeleton so that the rib cage, the pelvic girdle and the skull may be fragmented. Further fragmentation or other damage may also occur at the hands of excavators, washers and – even dare one say – of palaeopathologists! It may be difficult to differentiate trauma that occurred at or around the time of death from that suffered after burial and there is no doubt that some peri-mortem trauma will not be recognised. Breaks to bones that occur during or after recovery should present no difficulty, however, as the broken surfaces will be of a much lighter colour than the rest of the skeleton.

In this chapter, broken and dislocated bones, wounding, some aspects of medical trauma, including trephination, and some special forms of trauma including spondylolysis and osteochondritis dissecans will be discussed.