diff --git a/core/rawdb/freezer.go b/core/rawdb/freezer.go
index 26899fbe73b..9ed0fc356b1 100644
--- a/core/rawdb/freezer.go
+++ b/core/rawdb/freezer.go
@@ -306,6 +306,13 @@ func (f *Freezer) TruncateHead(items uint64) (uint64, error) {
 			return 0, err
 		}
 	}
+	// Truncating a table that holds nothing below the new head realigns its tail
+	// down as well, so pull the cached group tails along with it.
+	for _, cached := range f.tails {
+		if cached.Load() > items {
+			cached.Store(items)
+		}
+	}
 	f.head.Store(items)
 	return oitems, nil
 }
diff --git a/core/rawdb/freezer_table.go b/core/rawdb/freezer_table.go
index d18b75c2f71..1868d14c760 100644
--- a/core/rawdb/freezer_table.go
+++ b/core/rawdb/freezer_table.go
@@ -615,9 +615,11 @@ func (t *freezerTable) truncateHead(items uint64) error {
 	hidden := t.itemHidden.Load()
 
 	if items < hidden {
-		if existing == hidden {
-			// Empty table means that it is newly added. Its tail would be
-			// at the head, so we have to align the table down to the new head.
+		// A table whose tail sits exactly at its first stored item has never had
+		// anything pruned away: its tail is the alignment point assigned when the
+		// table was added to an existing store. Realigning it down to the new head
+		// discards nothing that was not already being discarded.
+		if t.itemOffset.Load() == hidden {
 			return t.resetTo(items)
 		}
 		return errors.New("truncation below tail")
diff --git a/core/rawdb/freezer_test.go b/core/rawdb/freezer_test.go
index 2197a297723..59897512d9a 100644
--- a/core/rawdb/freezer_test.go
+++ b/core/rawdb/freezer_test.go
@@ -496,6 +496,28 @@ func TestChainFreezerBALAlignment(t *testing.T) {
 	if !bytes.Equal(got, balPayload) {
 		t.Fatalf("BAL[%d]: got %x, want %x", items, got, balPayload)
 	}
+	// Rewinding below the aligned tail must be permitted: the BAL table holds
+	// nothing down there, so dropping it is lossless. Rejecting it would abort
+	// the rewind, and because the other tables are truncated first, the freezer
+	// would be left inconsistent and fail to open again.
+	rewind := items / 2
+	if _, err := f.TruncateHead(rewind); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("truncate head to %d: %v", rewind, err)
+	}
+	if tail, err := f.Tail(ChainFreezerBALGroup); err != nil || tail != rewind {
+		t.Fatalf("BAL tail after rewind: got %d (err %v), want %d", tail, err, rewind)
+	}
+	require.NoError(t, f.Close())
+
+	reopened, err := NewFreezer(dir, "", false, 2049, chainFreezerTableConfigs)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("can't re-open freezer after rewind: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer reopened.Close()
+
+	if got, _ := reopened.Ancients(); got != rewind {
+		t.Fatalf("head after re-open: got %d, want %d", got, rewind)
+	}
 }
 
 func TestFreezerCloseSync(t *testing.T) {