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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Photo: Earliest Known Nuclear Family Found; Died in Massacre?


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The oldest known burial of a nuclear family, which includes a mother, father, and two boys, has been unearthed in Germany (above, bottom).

The 4,600-year-old family, who may have died during a violent massacre, were buried together in a deliberate huddle (an artist's rendering, top)—perhaps "to tell us that these people belong together," one scientist said.

Image courtesy Karol Schauer and photograph courtesy Juraj Liptk, Landesamt fr Denkmalpflege und Archologie Sachsen-Anhalt" (State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt).