Skull found in Ephesus in 1929 is not that of Cleopatra’s sister, but that of a child

Madrid. New anthropological analyzes rule out that a skull found in the ruins of Ephesus (Türkiye) in 1929 corresponded to the remains of Arsinoe IV, sister of Cleopatra.

An interdisciplinary research team led by anthropologist Gerhard Weber from the University of Vienna showed that the remains are those of a boy between 11 and 14 years old who suffered from pathological developmental disorders. His genes point to an Italian or Sardinian origin. The results are published in Scientific Reports.

In 1929, Austrian archaeologist Josef Keil and his colleagues discovered a sarcophagus completely filled with water in the ruins of the once magnificent Octagon, a splendid building on the main street of Ephesus. No significant grave goods were found there, but a complete skeleton was found. Josef Keil took the skull with him when researchers re-closed the tomb on the important Curetes Street.

After the first analysis in Greifswald (Germany), Keil assumed that it was a very distinguished personprobably from a 20-year-old woman. Keil was unable to provide any concrete information and the skull traveled to Vienna in his luggage on the occasion of his new appointment at the University of Vienna.

In 1953, Josef Weninger, director of the Institute of Anthropology at the University of Vienna, finally published an article with photographs and measurements. He also concluded that the skull of the Heroon (Heroengrab), as described in a yellowish note accompanying the discovery, corresponded to a young woman of refined and specialized typewhich could indicate the high aristocracy of antiquity.

The rest of the skeleton was found in Ephesus during subsequent excavations in 1982, but this time not in the sarcophagus, but in a niche in an antechamber of the funerary chamber.

Due to the suspicion that the Octagon was inspired by the Egyptian model of the lighthouse of Alexandria and the additional historical facts that Arsinoe IV was murdered in Ephesus around 41 BC at the instigation of Mark Antony, Cleopatra’s lover, a hypothesis: Arsinoe IV could have found his final resting place in this magnificent tomb in Ephesus. Reports and publications have since investigated this rumor.

The Department of Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Vienna has expanded considerably in recent years and now uses virtually all modern analysis methods available. Together with geneticists, dating specialists, orthodontists from the University of Vienna and archaeologists from the Austrian Academy of Sciences, scientific work on the skull began.

First, micro-computed tomography was performed to obtain a digital copy of the skull with a resolution of 80 micrometers. The scientists then took small samples on the order of milligrams from the base of the skull and inner ear to determine age and genetic status. The mass spectrometer data were compared with the most recent calibration curves, which even took into account the presumed food composition.

The skull dates to between 36 and 205 BC, which coincides with the traditional date of Arsinoe IV’s death in 41 BC. Geneticists also found a match between the skull and existing samples of the femur. Therefore, the skeleton that was later found in the anteroom of the Octagon actually belonged to the same person as the skull that Josef Keil had removed from the sarcophagus in 1929.

But then came the big surprise: in several tests the skull and femur clearly showed the presence of a Y chromosome, that is, a male.explains Gerhard Weber in a statement.

Morphological evaluation of the skull and micro-CT scan data revealed that the Octagon boy was still in puberty and between 11 and 14 years old. This is confirmed by high-resolution images of the tooth roots and the base of the skull, which was still developing. However, it was evident that he was suffering from overall pathological development. One of his cranial sutures, which normally only fuses at the age of 65, was already closed, giving the skull a very asymmetrical shape.

However, the most striking feature was the underdeveloped upper jaw, which was unusually angled downwards and presumably caused great problems with chewing. This is also confirmed by the striking angles of the temporomandibular joints and the dental findings of two remaining teeth in the jaw.

The first permanent molar, the first tooth of the permanent dentition and therefore the one used the longest, showed no signs of wear. On the other hand, the first premolar, which appears a few years later in the dentition, was chewed and had obvious cracks, probably as a result of overloading.

The researchers conclude that there was no regular contact between the teeth, a consequence of the abnormal growth of the jaws and face.