This project analyses the wounds sustained by those defending the Crusader castle of VadumIacob, which is to the north of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. To our knowledge this is the first Crusader castle garrison to be excavated and studied, and consequently gives unique information concerning medieval battle wounds. The Muslim forces of Saladin stormed the castle in August 1179. The skeletal remains of five of the garrison who were killed during the siege and the execution which followed have been studied, providing a vivid portrait of what it must have been like in the last hours as the castle surrendered. Multiple sword and arrow wounds were noted, and arrowheads were still in situ at the time of their deaths. All the soldiers appear to have been stripped of their armour and then dumped together with corpses of horses that died in the battle. We explore the nature and anatomical location of the wounds in the context of medieval Islamic weapons, battlefield tactics and the defensive armour of the Crusaders. Despite the limited number of soldiers discovered, the unique nature of this site makes the findings of great significance.

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Skeletons of dwarfs have been found in many archaeological sites from around the world. Nevertheless, their descriptions (morphologically and metrically) are very limited. We describe herein the skeleton of a male dwarf, approximately 35-50 years old, found in the Byzantine cemetery (5 th -8 th century CE) of Rehovot-inthe-Negev, southern Israel. Living stature was estimated at 120-125 cm. Detailed morphological skeletal descriptions and morphometric analysis, together with computed tomography (CT) observations, suggest a diagnosis of achondroplasia. The long bones anomalies, in tandem with other features such as hydrocephalus and spinal stenosis, are discussed in regard to their effect on the dwarf's daily life. The putative place of dwarfs in early Christian communities, compared with dwarfs from other times and places, will be addressed.

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