12,000-year-old shaman had a bizarre six-part funeral that involved a HUMAN foot, eagle's wing and 86 tortoises

A shaman who died there 12,000 years was treated to a bizarre funeral six parts, including being buried with 86 tortoises and human foot cut, archaeologists have revealed.

scientists have tried to unravel the mystery surrounding whose 4ft 9 shaman was put to rest after its discovery in a cave in northern Israel in 2005.

If their research is anything to go by, the prehistoric funeral for doctors of the Natufian period were a laborious ritual.

funeral agents ate turtle meat 55 pounds before leaving the remains on top of the body of the shaman at his funeral. Researchers believe that the bones of animals that adorn his grave (photo is a turtle shell) are evidence that they believed they could communicate with animal spirits

STRANGE SIX-STAGE FUNDERAL

1. Funeral fans marked an oval shape in the floor of the cave, then broke the rocks in pieces withsharp objects.

2. They covered the floor and walls of the pit with mud, adding layers of limestone and other sediments.

3. They lined the pit with limestone blocks and objects such as shells or gazelle horns before covering them with a layer of ash.

4. The body was placed in a crouching position with tortoise shells below the head and pelvis.

More limestone blocks and shells were placed on top of the corpse.

5. The attendants would sit down to a hearty meal, the remaining waste would be placed over the corpse.

In this case according to the party Grosman funeral ate 86 turtles, which is equivalent to 55 pounds of meat.

6. A large limestone rock would roll on the front of the grave.

Source: Natalie Munro, professor in the anthropology department at the University of Connecticut

team of the Institute of Archaeology of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem found that the shaman was put to rest in a six-step process, because of its respected position in society.

The 45-year-old was found with skulls marten, wild cow tail, wild boar forearm and a leopard pelvis, the wing of an eagle and more frighteningly, a human foot.

After the bones were placed around his body, the pit was made with shells, turtle shells, chalk and bony horn cores of gazelles.

Leore Grosman, a professor at the Institute of Archaeology of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem according to the bones proved that she was a witch as civilians believed they were able to talk to animals minds.

According to Grosman, agents had to get their hands mucky throughout the case.

“A huge effort was made to bring materials to the grave. There was a complex ritual based on the protocol, which is not easy, “she said.

Grosman’s team has worked a specific ritual six steps is detailed in Current Anthropology.

First, amateurs funeral marked an oval shape in the floor of the cave, then broke the rocks in pieces withsharp objects.

They covered the floor and walls of the pit with mud, adding layers of limestone and other sediments.

They then lined the pit with blocks and limestone objects like shells or gazelle horns, before covering them with a layer of ash.

The fourth step is to place the body in a crouched position with tortoise shells below the head and pelvis.

Even more limestone blocks and shells were placed on top of the corpse.

Finally, mourners sit down to a hearty meal, the remaining waste would be placed over the corpse.

scientists from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have discovered the remains in a tomb unearthed in 2005 in northern Israel. The tomb of the shaman is distinguished by the horn and tortoise shell decorations gazelle

Who were the Natufian?

The Natufian were living in the Levant Eastern Mediterranean 12500-9500 BC region.

Their direct descendants, known as pre -pottery name Neolithic were among the earliest farmers on the planet.

They are believed to have been hunter-gatherers who foraged for cereals, wheat, barley and almonds, as about education.

Discovery household tools Natufian suggest they cultivated barley and wheat into flour.

they also hunted gazelles, deer, cattle, horses, wild boar and creatures of the sea.

Natufians lived usually in larger communities in large stone houses for most of the year.

They are one of the first colonies to have buried their dead in cemeteries.

Grosman in this case according to the funeral party ate 86 turtles, which is equivalent to 55 pounds of meat.

To complete the funeral, a large limestone rock would roll on the front of the grave.

Despite its high esteem in society, the unidentified shaman shared his grave with 28 others during the last part of the Natufian period (15.000 to 11.500 BC) archaeologists from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem found.

But his grave was separated by a stone splitter with however clearly the objects carefully arranged around ,.

This last discovery, published in Current Anthopology, reveals the complexity and well thought-old graves had become the Natufian period.

This point in history is widely regarded as the turning point when humans started to build a society based on spiritual hierarchy.

“ritual practice plays key social roles in human societies by providing information on social status, calm tensions, and integration of communities,” Grosman said.

A corpse of a small woman believed to be a popular sorcerer during the Natufian period end was discovered in 2005 in northern Israel (photo above). Researchers have now recreated the steps of his ostentatious funeral, which hints at the sophistication of social celebrations at this point in history

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12,000-year-old shaman had a bizarre six-part funeral that involved a HUMAN foot, eagle's wing and 86 tortoises