Medieval prosthetic foot found in Austrian grave

In a grave in Hemmaberg, Austria, researchers discovered a full skeleton alongside a sword. That alone would have been interesting but not terribly exciting. However, upon a closer look, the researchers realized the skeleton had the scant remains of a wooden prosthetic foot and a ring made of iron that was used to keep it stable. The prosthetic is about 1500 years old, and is a rarity for managing to survive so long.

The skeleton and its prosthetic were discovered in a grave within a cemetery belonging to a medieval church. Whomever the skeleton belonged to managed to survive an amputation, something rare at the time. Studying the skeleton, researchers found the man had suffered from arthritis, had a rotator cuff disease, and had suffered a broke nose at some point.

Most notable, though, was the foot and left leg, which is missing the fibula and tibia and has marks indicating an infection had settled into the region. According to the researchers, the man survived long enough to use his amputated leg with the aid of the prosthetic, however.

Though it isn't clear how long the man lived nor the reason for the amputation, researchers believe the missing leg could have been due to some sort of trauma or injury. The non-amputated right leg is said to have shown signs of some sort of trauma of the blunt force variety, further indicating an accident had occurred.

VIA: Atlas Obscura, Forbes