Industry is the process by which natural raw materials are processed to manufacture goods required by a population. Mining industries widely practiced in past populations include digging for flint and construction stone in the Neolithic (Bostyn 2023; Teather et al. 2019), as well as mining salt, copper, tin, and iron ore in the Bronze and Iron Ages (Aslihan 2021; Harding 2013; Pare 2025). Other industries included preparing animal skins, weaving, metalworking, manufacturing ceramics, and fishing (Ferro et al. 2009; Knapp 2018; Randsborg 2011; Wood 1990). Archaeological evidence for such activity includes waste from flint knapping, slag from metalworking, and fish bones in middens. However, finding evidence for industrial accidents sustained by those people engaging in these activities is often challenging. Many different activities might lead to the same changes to bone during life, and fractures or other injuries can have plenty of different causes. This means working backwards from changes to skeletal remains to what caused them generally needs a well-defined, plausible context. One context where industrial accidents commonly occur today is the process of mining (Ismail et al. 2021). If not properly supported, the roofs of mine tunnels can collapse, crushing those below or trapping those further down the tunnel until they suffocate. On other occasions, flammable gases can seep out from seams of coal, and if ignited by a spark, then an explosion can ensue (Cheng 2018). Ancient examples where miners have been found trapped in collapsed tunnels include the Iron Age mines of Dürrnberg-bei-Hallein in Austria (Stöllner et al. 2003), the Chehrabad salt mines in Iran, which were in use from 500 ce (Nasab et al. 2019), and the copper mine of Chuquicamata in Chile, dating from around 600 ce (Bird 1979). Working animals too might be involved in mining accidents, as known from recent direct records (Moore 1931) and also suggested by osteoarchaeological findings (Diedrich 2017). In this issue of the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, Morales and Garrido present their study of a naturally mummified body interred around 900–1000 ce. It was recovered from the immediate proximity of a turquoise mine in the Indio Muerto mountain in the Atacama Desert in Chile (Morales and Garrido 2026). Turquoise is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminum admired for its vivid blue color and was used for ritual and religious purposes and ornaments such as jewelry (Harbottle and Weigland 1992; López et al. 2018). The man's skeleton shows evidence for multiple perimortem fractures to the ribs, clavicles, scapulae, an open fracture to the tibia, and multilevel fractures to the thoracic region of the spine. This pattern of injuries would indicate high energy trauma, and the most plausible cause at that time would have been the nearby mine. As most of his injuries were to the left side of the body, it is likely this side bore the brunt of the impact. The fact that he was buried in a cemetery just outside the mine would suggest that after the mine collapse his body was dug out by others and taken to the local burial ground. As turquoise seems to have been primarily used for jewelry and religious artifacts in the ancient Americas, this miner paid a high price for the human passion for this shiny stone. The authors declare no conflicts of interest. Data sharing not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or analyzed during the current study.
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