Cranio-facial trauma diagnosis using paleo-proteotyping of a blood sample from Robespierre (1794)

Abstract

Tradition has it that the politician Robespierre, a famous tribune of the French Revolution, was lying, wounded in the face by a bullet from a firearm, on an 18th century desk, and left a trace of blood there, before being guillotined the next day (1794). This piece of furniture is now kept in the National Archives (Paris, France). A paleo-proteomic study was carried out on several brown stains on the leather of the desk, which confirmed the human blood nature of the sample, but also identified the protein signature of different craniofacial organs. This confirms not only the historical anecdote surrounding this desk, but also the importance of contemporary ballistic lesions on the eve of Robespierre's death. This demonstrates the importance and precision of paleo-proteomics in paleopathology and for the examination and identification of the precise nature of stains and micro-traces on old samples.