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The team has found a Pictish weapons expert, who they hope can match weapons to the injuries. Paul McDonald recreates axes, swords and spears from images carved on Pictish stones. They want to show him the injuries detailed by Sue Black.
Okay, so Sue thinks this is the first one. And you can see it's come in and it's broken teeth and he's inhaled. It's like shock because he's got a tooth down here. Do you have any thoughts on what you think might have caused that?
So, the staff is one of our most ancient weapons there is, its a big stick.
So, the injuries you could deliver within the staff could be either concussive, striking injuries, or thrusting actions with the end going into the face.
So that's not a punch, that's something much sharper.
So, it would give a wider injury, wouldn't it, on the jaw there.
I think you're spot on, you're not going to get that penetrative action, smashing through bones with the point of a blunt stick.
So, the next marshal step up would be a spear, now the early spears had bronze points capable of penetrating and thrusting through softer tissue. It's going to cause a much wider injury, and you may even see evidence of the thinner section of the blade here, as well, and we don't see that there.
The other thing we're looking for is something that's circular in cross-section.
Well, there's a whole other side to the spear you can look at. This was another form of reinforcing the end of the spear and making it a weapon at the same time. And it happens to give us that rounded, tapered section for concentrated force.
That's starting to look like it to me.
Looks more like it.
So, what feels most natural to you, then?
Okay, he’s grabbed, he’s brought the back end of the spear in for the first strike, penetrating through, the second strike, either by the spear or by a second assailant coming in, which is getting the body down to the floor.
So we do know that he's on the ground because he hits his head at the back. So the next one, it comes in through the left and goes out through the right. So, it looks like it heads to one side.
And that's easily delivered from above.
So, the thing that's bothering me is some of the angles on these, because this fifth injury is at, the sort of, the back left-hand-side. And that looks really difficult to deliver if he's like that. So, I'm just wondering, Andrew are you okay with sitting up a bit?
Well, that final blow could have been a much more deliberate one in terms of well, he's out of it already but, get him up boys, for the finisher, crack.
Representation: www.josarsby.com/turi-king