Mineralogical and compositional changes in bones exposed on soil surfaces in Amboseli National Park, Kenya: diagenetic mechanisms and the role of sediment pore fluids

The biomineral component of bones and teeth is synthesized within the body, under direct physiological control, and therefore the chemistry of bone (including the trace element chemistry) reflects aspects of the animal’s biology, particularly the trace metal load, but also the state of metabolism of specific trace metals. Bone mineral is relatively reactive due principally to its small crystal size, and consequently bone is unstable once removed from the body. Bone undergoes a complex set of diagenetic processes post mortem, which generally lead to dissolution, however bones and teeth are relatively common components in (post-Ordovician) rocks. The trace element content of bone is susceptible to alteration immediately upon exposure, and while these changes reduce the usefulness of ancient bone as a monitor of the physiology or diet of ancient animals the trace element composition of ancient bone can yield useful paleoenvironmental information. This chapter is concerned principally with archaeological and geological applications of trace element chemistry of bone, rather than physiological or medical implications.

The inorganic (mineral) component of bone is carbonated calcium phosphate (Ca10(CO3,PO4)6(OH)2), similar to the mineral dahllite. The calcium phosphates form the vast majority of all vertebrate hard tissues (Young and Brown 1982), and exhibit a very wide range of physical and chemical properties. Stoichiometric hydroxyapatite is not known biologically, and is only produced artificially or geologically at high temperature and pressure. The mineralogy of bone, dentine, and enamel is reviewed in Elliott (this volume). Kohn and Cerling (this volume) highlight the fact that apatite crystal size and shape varies between bone and enamel, and point out that variations in crystal size are in part responsible for the greater diagenetic susceptibility of bone compared to enamel.

Bone crystallites are essentially plate-shaped, with average dimensions of 350–400 A × …

Trace elements in recent and fossil bone apatite

Bodies intrigue us They promise windows into the past that other archaeological finds cannot by bringing us literally face to face with history Yet ‘the body’ is also highly contested Archaeological bodies are studied through two contrasting perspectives that sit on different sides of a disciplinary divide On one hand lie science-based osteoarchaeological approaches On the other lie understandings derived from recent developments in social theory that increasingly view the body as a social construction Through a close examination of disciplinary practice, Joanna Sofaer highlights the tensions and possibilities offered by one particular kind of archaeological body, the human skeleton, with particular regard to the study of gender and age Using a range of examples, she argues for reassessment of the role of the skeletal body in archaeological practice, and develops a theoretical framework for bioarchaeology based on the materiality and historicity of human remains • Investigates one of the most intriguing aspects of archaeology, archaeological remains • Bridges the two traditionally distinct and separate approaches to the subject, namely the scientific approach and the social theoretical approach • Presents a significant new model for the study of the subject which merges the two distinct approaches

The Body as Material Culture: A Theoretical Osteoarchaeology

The publication of The Osteological Paradox (Wood et al., 1992, Current Anthropology, 33:343–370) a decade ago sparked debate about the methods and conclusions drawn from bioarchaeological research. Wood et al. (1992, Current Anthropology, 33:343–370) highlighted the problematic issues of selective mortality and hidden heterogeneity in frailty (susceptibility to illness), and argued that the interpretation of population health status from skeletal remains is not straightforward. Progress in bioarchaeology over the last few years has led to the development of tools that will help us grapple with the issues of this “osteological paradox.” This paper provides a review of recent literature on age and sex estimation, paleodemography, biodistance, growth disruption, paleopathology, and paleodiet. We consider how these advances may help us address the implications of hidden heterogeneity in frailty and selective mortality for studies of health and adaptation in past societies.

Recent Progress in Bioarchaeology: Approaches to the Osteological Paradox

As a discipline that bridges the biological and social sciences, bioarchaeology has much to contribute to a contextualized and theoretically sophisticated understanding of social identities. Here, we discuss the growing methodological sophistication of bioarchaeology and highlight new developments in osteological age and sex estimation, paleodemography, biodistance analysis, biogeochemistry, and taphonomy, particularly anthropologie de terrain. We then discuss how these methodological developments, when united with social theory, can elucidate social identities. More specifically, we highlight past and future bioarchaeological work on disability and impairment, gender identity, identities of age and the life course, social identity and body modification, embodiment, and ethnic and community identities.

New Directions in Bioarchaeology: Recent Contributions to the Study of Human Social Identities

Discriminant functions have long been used to classify individuals into groups according to the dimensions of their bones. Although lengths, widths, and diameters have been extensively used, the circumferences have not been adequately validated. In this work, the importance that the circumferences of long bones can have in assigning the sex of ancient human remains is demonstrated. The functions produced by using just one circumference achieved accuracies higher than 80%, and circumference at the radial tuberosity of the radius is able to classify 92.8% of skeletons from the Late Roman site of Mas Rimbau/Mas Mallol (Spain). When functions are produced by using more than one circumference, they can achieve the uppermost classification attained in this sample. The functions also showed that the arm circumference functions are more useful than those of the leg, probably because male individuals of the population had greater mechanical stress than did females. The classification percentages, as well as other statistical values for the functions, demonstrated the great ability of long bone circumferences in helping to classify the sex of individuals of other sites of the Mediterranean area besides the ones examined in this study.

Sex assessment on the basis of long bone circumference.

Prehistoric cases of maternal and fetal death during labour are difficult to document. However, this must have been a frequent cause of death among young women who lived in hard circumstances and precarious health conditions. In this paper, a case of a Bronze Age woman who probably died during childbirth due to unavoidable reasons is presented: her baby was lying transversely with the right fetal arm protracted. Death of both mother and child was inevitable. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A dystocic childbirth in the Spanish Bronze Age

The main aim of this study is to try to see if, despite the diagenetic changes undergone by the fossil bones buried in Venta Micena (Orce, Spain), the concentration of trace elements permits the differentiation of particular groups. It is possible that some chemical elements allow us to identify different dietary groups in accord with their archaeological context. Different multivariant methods—correlation, principal component analysis and cluster analysis—were applied to the data, and in all cases the results show that two elements (Ba and Zn) seem able to discriminate between groups with different diets. In this sense, diagenesis cannot explain all the variability found in the concentrations of trace elements in fossils from the Orce region. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Can trace elements in fossils provide information about palaeodiet

Propuesta de protocolo de valoración de parámetros en paleodontología

With ihe excavations and the work laboraiory we l'ound news perspectives about the child burial in the SE and East Recient Prehistory because we round similar and and peculiar child burial ritual.

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S. Safont

Papers

Sex assessment on the basis of long bone circumference.

A dystocic childbirth in the Spanish Bronze Age

Can trace elements in fossils provide information about palaeodiet

Propuesta de protocolo de valoración de parámetros en paleodontología

Los enterramientos infantiles en la prehistoria reciente del levante y sureste peninsular