A study reveals that a 30- to 40-year-old woman from the Mesolithic period was a gracile person with a height of about 1.55 m, which was typical for the era. Significantly, her skeleton lacked the strong muscle attachments, particularly on the lower extremities, that are commonly found in hunter-gatherer remains.⁠ ⁠ The woman had several congenital anomalies. At the base of her skull, a small constriction at the edge of the great occipital hole indicates an abnormally developed blood vessel. This corresponds with her first cervical vertebra, which was incompletely formed due to a growth defect, reaching only 40% of its arch. The re-discovery of her second cervical vertebra confirmed researchers' suspicions, as it also showed an anomaly—a protruding bone clasp.⁠ ⁠ _____⁠ ⁠ Researchers hypothesized that this unique combination of defects made a blockage of a blood vessel leading to the brain plausible. It's suggested this could have been caused intentionally by adopting a specific head p...