Chronocide by Science? Bioarchaeology and Archaeogenomics Rewrite Ancient History to Specification
Authors
-
Manousos E. Kambouris
Department of Pharmacy, University of Patras, Patras 26504, Greece
The Association of Historical Studies KORYVANTES, Florina 53100, Greece
-
Spyros Bakas
The Association of Historical Studies KORYVANTES, Florina 53100, Greece
-
Aristea Velegraki
Mycology Laboratory, BIOIATRIKE SA, Athens 11526, Greece
-
George P. Patrinos
Department of Pharmacy, University of Patras, Patras 26504, Greece
Department of Genetics and Genomics, Zayed Center for Health Sciences & College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al-Ain 15551, United Arab Emirates
Department of Immunology, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens 11521, Greece
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55121/cci.v3i1.1051Abstract
The Cultural Warfare goes back many millennia and strives to weaken an enemy and to make a subject docile. Assimilation derails the future of a culture by diverting the population in the future to other practices. The Chronocide, a rather modern concept as a term, attacks the Past, so that the manipulation within the Future of an orphaned population is much easier and without any potential for recurrence. A new iteration seems to emerge, using multi-domain scientific methods to perform such tasks and abusing the notion of evidence-based research: biomedical technology for analyzing human remains requires the fusion of scholarship and experimentation. The combination of Isotopic Analysis/Bioarchaeology and Archaeogenomics was used to a small sample of human remains from a grave site near the ancient battle site of Himera to track the lineage of deceased individuals. The suggested high percentage of alien adult males to natives for burials of 480 BC opposed to natives-only burials of 409 BC, led researchers to revise Ancient Greek military practices of the 5th century BC. Foreign mercenaries, many from East Europe, are supposed to have played prominent, hitherto shushed, role, within the ancient Greek world. The discrepancy of this theory with the own findings, which do not prove or suggest such association, would suggest that a flawed interpretation was expanded first to a fact and then to a paradigm, to promote politicized agendas. Whether this constitutes Chronocide or not is debatable.
Keywords
Biomolecular Archaeology, Archaeological Science, Chronocide, Archaeogenomics, Isotopic Analysis, Evidence-Based Research, Historical RevisionismReferences
[1] Lagarias, A., 2021. Defense against Chronocide. East European Film Bulletin. 116, 1–3.
[2] Buyan-Erdene, M., 2025. The Cultural Dimension of Hybrid Warfare: The Case of Russia–Ukraine War. Journal of International Studies. 48(118), 65–84. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5564/jis.v48i118.4570
[3] Richardson, W.C., 2011. Culture Warfare: A War against Culture. Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC): Fort Belvoir, VA, USA.
[4] Jones, D.M., Smith, M., 2022. The Strategy of the Mind: Maoism and Culture War in the West. Military Strategy Magazine. 8(1), 4–10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.64148/msm.v8i1.1
[5] Sánchez-Prieto, J.M., 2023. Culture Wars and Nationalism. Religions. 14(7), 898. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14070898
[6] Békés, M., 2022. Cultural Warfare: The Theory and Practice of Cultural Power. Public Foundation for Research on Central and Eastern European History and Society: Budapest, Hungary.
[7] Hoffman, F.G., 2007. Conflict in the 21st Century: The Rise of Hybrid Wars. Potomac Institute for Policy Studies: Arlington, VA, USA.
[8] Kambouris, M.E., 2024. Preface. In Hybrid Warfare 2.2: Where Biothreats Meet Irregular Operations and Cyber Warriors in the 21st Century. Springer Nature: Cham, Switzerland. pp. ix–x.
[9] Kipp, J., 2012. Russian Sixth Generation Warfare and Recent Developments. Eurasia Daily Monitor. 9(17). Available from: https://jamestown.org/russian-sixth-generation-warfare-and-recent-developments/
[10] Brown, B., Schleifer, R., 2013. Cultural Warfare: Secularization Defense Initiative. In: Schleifer, R. (Ed.). Perspectives of Psychological Operations (PSYOP) in Contemporary: Conflicts: Essays in Winning Hearts and Minds. Liverpool University Press: Liverpool, UK. pp. 117–146.
[11] Spencer, E., 2009. It's All About the People: Cultural Intelligence (CQ) as a Force Multiplier in the Contemporary Operating Environment. Journal of Conflict Studies. 29. Available from: https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/JCS/article/view/15235
[12] Puddu, M., 2025. Semiotic Identities in Archaeology: The Politics of Interpretation Introduction to Archaeological Identitiscapes: A Semiotic Stance. Cambridge Archaeological Journal. 36(1), 1–9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0959774325100139
[13] Mastnak, T., 2019. Europa: The Politics of Mythology. Filozofski Vestnik. 40(2), 7–58.
[14] Blakey, M., 2020. On the Biodeterministic Imagination. Archaeological Dialogues. 27(1), 1–16. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1380203820000021
[15] Viva, S., Lonoce, N., Vincenti, G., et al., 2020. The Mass Burials from the Western Necropolis of the Greek Colony of Himera (Sicily) Related to the Battles of 480 and 409 BCE. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology. 30(3), 307–317. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/oa.2858
[16] Bertolino, F., Alaimo, F., Vassallo, S., 2015. Battles of Himera (480 and 409 b.c.): Analysis of Biological Finds and Historical Interpretation. Experiences of Restoration in the Ruins of Himera 2008–2010. Conservation Science in Cultural Heritage. 15(2), 27–40. DOI: https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1973-9494/7115
[17] Reinberger, K.L., Reitsema, L.J., Kyle, B., et al., 2021. Isotopic Evidence for Geographic Heterogeneity in Ancient Greek Military Forces. PLoS One. 16(5), e0248803. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248803
[18] Reitsema, L.J., Mittnik, A., Kyle, B., et al., 2022. The Diverse Genetic Origins of a Classical Period Greek Army. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 119(41), e2205272119. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2205272119
[19] Crellin, R., Harris, O., 2020. Beyond Binaries: Interrogating Ancient DNA. Archaeological Dialogues. 27(1), 37–56. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1380203820000082
[20] Lonoce, N., Viva, S., Fabbri, P., et al., 2023. The Practice of Cremation in the Western Necropolis (7th–5th cent. B.C.) of the Greek Colony of Himera (Sicily, Italy). In: Guggisberg, M.A., Billo-Imbach, M. (Eds.). Burial Taphonomy and Post-Funeral Practices in Pre-Roman Italy: Problems and Perspectives. Propylaeum: Heidelberg, Germany. pp. 129–142. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11588/propylaeum.1211.c16920
[21] Renfrew, C., 1979. Before Civilization. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK.
[22] Robinson, K.A., Brunnhuber, K., Ciliska, D., et al., 2021. Evidence-Based Research Series-Paper 1: What Evidence-Based Research Is and Why Is It Important? Journal of Clinical Epidemiology. 129, 151–157. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2020.07.020
[23] Buikstra, J.E., 1977. Biocultural Dimensions of Archaeological Study: A Regional Perspective. In: Blakely, R.L. (Ed.). Biocultural Adaptation in Prehistoric America. University of Georgia Press: Athens, GA, USA. pp. 67–84.
[24] Lidén, K., Eriksson, G., 2013. Archaeology vs. Archaeological Science: Do We Have a Case? Current Swedish Archaeology. 21(1), 11–20. DOI: https://doi.org/10.37718/CSA.2013.01
[25] Kinti, M., Margariti, C., Arabatzis, M., et al., 2012. SEM and FTIR Analyses Combined with Sequence-Based Direct Identification of Deterioration-Associated Fungi Enhances Identification of Excavated 5th c. BC Palaiotextile Samples. Mycoses. 55(4), 246.
[26] Colonese, A.C., Winter, R., Brandi, R., et al., 2020. Stable Isotope Evidence for Dietary Diversification in the Pre-Columbian Amazon. Scientific Reports. 10, 16560. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-73540-z
[27] Brück, J., 2021. Ancient DNA, Kinship and Relational Identities in Bronze Age Britain. Antiquity. 95(379), 228–237. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2020.216
[28] Malyarchuk, A.B., Andreeva, T.V., Kuznetsova, I.L., et al., 2022. Genomics of Ancient Pathogens: First Advances and Prospects. Biochemistry (Moscow). 87(3), 242–258. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0006297922030051
[29] Gaeta, R., 2021. Ancient DNA and Paleogenetics: Risks and Potentiality. Pathologica. 113(2), 141–146. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32074/1591-951X-146
[30] Hofman, C.A., Rick, T.C., Fleischer, R.C., et al., 2015. Conservation Archaeogenomics: Ancient DNA and Biodiversity in the Anthropocene. Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 30(9), 540–549. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2015.06.008
[31] Fox, C., 2018. A Brief History of Palaeogenomics: How a Young Discipline Revolutionised the Study of the Past. Mètode Science Studies Journal. 8, 90–97.
[32] Callaway, E., 2018. Divided by DNA: The Uneasy Relationship between Archaeology and Ancient Genomics. Nature. 555, 573–576. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-03773-6
[33] Kambouris, M.E., Patrinos, G.P., Velegraki, A., et al., 2023. Historical Microbiology: Researching Past Bioevents by Integrating Scholarship (Re)sources with Paleomicrobiology Assets. Future Microbiology. 18(10), 681–693. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2217/fmb-2023-0031
[34] Clemente, F., Unterländer, M., Dolgova, O., et al., 2021. The Genomic History of the Aegean Palatial Civilizations. Cell. 184(10), 2565–2586. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2021.03.039
[35] Burleigh, R., 1974. Radiocarbon Dating: Some Practical Considerations for the Archaeologist. Journal of Archaeological Science. 1(1), 69–87. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-4403(74)90018-1
[36] van der Plicht, J., Ramsey, C.B., Heaton, T.J., et al., 2020. Recent Developments in Calibration for Archaeological and Environmental Samples. Radiocarbon. 62(4), 1095–1117.
[37] Krasner, B., 2019. Historical Revisionism. Greenhaven Publishing LLC: New York, NY, USA.
[38] Taylor, M.J., 2019. Tactical Reform in the Late Roman Republic: The View From Italy. Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte. 68(1), 76–94. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25162/historia-2019-0004
[39] Chengdan, Q., 2010. Transformation of European States: From Feudal to Modern. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences. 2(5), 6683–6691. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.05.013
[40] Bijos, L., de Souza, R., 2020. Private Military Companies and the Outsourcing of War: A Spark of Destabilisation to the Global Security. Annales de la Faculté de Droit d'Istanbul. 69, 87–118.
[41] Loh, S.H., 2022. The Continued Relevance of Multiculturalism: Dissecting Interculturalism and Transculturalism. Ethnic and Racial Studies. 45(3), 385–406. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2021.1963459
[42] Gražulis, V., Mockiene, L., 2017. Multiculturalism through the Prism of History: Experiences and Perspectives and Lessons to Learn. Human Resources Management & Erergonomics. 11, 33–49.
[43] Trundle, M., 2005. Ancient Greek Mercenaries (664–250 BCE). History Compass. 3(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1478-0542.2005.00116.x
[44] Nehlich, O., 2015. The Application of Sulphur Isotope Analyses in Archaeological Research: A Review. Earth-Science Reviews. 142, 1–17. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2014.12.002
[45] Roberts, P., 2022. Isotope Analysis in Archaeology Grand Challenge. Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology. 1, 988656. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fearc.2022.988656
[46] Václav, S., Antónia, M., Markéta, S., 2009. The Dietary Trends and Social Relations in the Migration Period. Acta Universitatis Carolinae Medica. Monographia. 156, 73–90.
[47] Patrinos, G.P., 2006. National and Ethnic Mutation Databases: Recording Populations' Genography. Human Mutation. 27(9), 879–877. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/humu.20376
[48] Rickard, J., 2012. Naval Battle of Cumae, 474 BC. Available from: https://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_cumae_474.html (cited 10 November 2020).
[49] Kambouris, M., 2022. The Greek Victories and the Persian Ebb 480–479 BC: The Battles of Salamis, Plataea, Mycale, 1st ed. Pen and Sword Military: Barnsley, UK.
[50] Starr, C.G., 2024. Peisistratus. Available from: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Peisistratus (cited 10 November 2024).
[51] Minasyan, S., 2017. Scythian Archers in Ancient Attic Vase Painting: Their Identity and Function. International Hellenic University: Thermi, Greece.
[52] Shapiro, H.A., 1983. Amazons, Thracians, and Scythians. Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies. 24(2), 105–114.
[53] Hammond, N., 1980. The Extent of Persian Occupation in Thrace. Chiron. 10, 53–62.
[54] Pritchard, D.M., 2018. The Archers of Classical Athens. Greece and Rome. 65(1), 86–102. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0017383517000237
[55] Lonoce, N., Palma, M., Viva, S., et al., 2018. The Western (Buonfornello) Necropolis (7th to 5th BC) of the Greek Colony of Himera (Sicily, Italy): Site-Specific Discriminant Functions for Sex Determination in the Common Burials Resulting from the Battle of Himera (ca. 480 BC). International Journal of Osteoarchaeology. 28(6), 766–774. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/oa.2702
[56] Raffield, B., 2024. Raiding, Warfare, and the Viking Threat: Tracing the Emergence of Predatory Landscapes in Western Europe during the Ninth Century CE. In: Bowser, B.J., Cameron, C.M. (Eds.). Landscapes of Movement and Predation: Perspectives from Archaeology, History, and Anthropology. University of Arizona Press: Tucson, AZ, USA. pp. 133–162.
[57] Arnaoutoglou, I., 2007. Fear of Slaves in Ancient Greek Legal Texts. In Fear of Slaves, Fear of Enslavement in the Ancient Mediterranean (Discourse, Representations, Practices). Presses Universitaires de Franche-Comté: Besançon, France. pp. 133–144.
[58] Evans, J.A.S., 1968. Father of History or Father of Lies; The Reputation of Herodotus. The Classical Journal. 64(1), 11–17.
[59] Van Rookhuijzen, J.Z., 2019. Herodotus and the Topography of Xerxes’ Invasion: Place and Memory in Greece and Anatolia. De Gruyter: Berlin, Germany. pp. 290–308.
[60] Stilz, A., 2009. Civic Nationalism and Language Policy. Philosophy & Public Affairs. 37(3), 257–292. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1088-4963.2009.01160.x
[61] Van Der Vliet, E.C.L., 2003. The Romans and Us: Strabo's Geography and the Construction of Ethnicity. Mnemosyne. 56(3), 257–272. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/156852503768181031
[62] Tan, Z.M., 2014. Subversive Geography in Tacitus' Germania. Journal of Roman Studies. 104, 181–204. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0075435814000021
[63] Killgrove, K., Montgomery, J., 2016. All Roads Lead to Rome: Exploring Human Migration to the Eternal City through Biochemistry of Skeletons from Two Imperial-Era Cemeteries (1st–3rd c AD). PLoS One. 11(2), e0147585. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0147585
[64] Kambouris, M., 2022. The Rise of Persia and the First Greco-Persian Wars: The Expansion of the Achaemenid Empire and the Battle of Marathon, 1st ed. Pen and Sword Military: Barnsley, UK.
[65] Brinkerhoff, T.J., 2016. Reexamining the Lore of the "Archetypal Conquistador": Hernán Cortés and the Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire, 1519–1521. The History Teacher. 49(2), 169–187.
[66] Meyers, E.M., 1992. The Challenge of Hellenism for Early Judaism and Christianity. The Biblical Archaeologist. 55(2), 84–91. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3210348
[67] Cinelli, M., De Francisci Morales, G., Galeazzi, A., et al., 2021. The Echo Chamber Effect on Social Media. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 118(9), e2023301118. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2023301118
[68] Snodgrass, A.M., 1965. The Hoplite Reform and History. The Journal of Hellenic Studies. 85, 110–122. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/628813
[69] Matthew, C.A., 2009. When Push Comes to Shove: What Was the Othismos of Hoplite Combat? Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte. 58(4), 395–415. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25162/historia-2009-0026
Downloads
How to Cite
Copyright & License
Copyright (c) 2026 Manousos E. Kambouris, Spyros Bakas, Aristea Velegraki, George P. Patrinos
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Submit Manuscript