Skeletal Biology 2 Flashcards
1
Q
bioarchaeology
A
- the study of human skeletal remains from archeological sites
- primary goal is to understand the lifeways of historic and prehistoric peoples through analysis of their skeletal remains
- PAST PEOPLE
2
Q
forensic anthropology
A
- the study of human skeletal remains during the course of legal investigations
- primary goal is to identify the individual and determine the circumstances surrounding their death
- DECEASED PEOPLE IN LEGAL CONTEXTS
3
Q
key bioarchaeological and forensic questions
A
- is it bone?
- is it human?
- how many individuals are represented?
- how long have they been deceased?
- then, biological profile/osteobiography of individuals
4
Q
is it bone?
A
- what does it look like?
5
Q
what are bones often confused with?
A
- wood (similar colour, softer, different layering)
- ceramic (decoration, temper components)
- stone or concrete (sometimes it looks porous, different internal structure, flakes in characteristic manner)
6
Q
is it human?
A
- what do you think?
- bone tissue (microscopic differences between taxa)
- clear examples (human vs fish)
- sometimes it isnt as clear (human vs rabbit, intermingling of human and animal remains)
7
Q
how many individuals are represented?
A
- burial variation
- minimum number of individuals (MNI)
- unpaired bones
- paired bones
- difficult when fragmentary
- bringing elements back together (some instances of identifying articulations, identifying damage, lab techniques)
8
Q
how long have they been deceased?
A
- clues in burial
- clues in skeleton
- destructive methods
9
Q
osteobiography for individual
A
- is their skeleton complete?
- how old are they?
- are they a typical male or female?
- did they have signs of stress and disease?
- can we learn more about their life and context?
10
Q
is there skeleton complete?
A
skeletal inventory
11
Q
how old are they
A
- developmental age
- chronological age
- skeletal growth maturation
- epiphyseal fusion
- skeletal growth maturation
- cranial suture closure
- dental maturation
- skeletal joint changes with age
- dental wear
12
Q
are they a typical male or female
A
- sexing
- sexual dimorphism
- sex vs. gender
- continous variation
- skull, feature scored from 1-5
- pelvis
- other factors/caveats (non-diagnostic features, forensic implications)
13
Q
can we learn about their life and context?
A
- estimating height and weight
- activities and specific indicators
- diet
- aDNA (autosomal DNA, Y chromosome DNA, mtDNA)
- try to work out relationships between individuals, or between populations
- population affinity- CAUTION
- FORDISC (categories)
14
Q
did they have signs of stress and disease?
A
- skeletal pathology and paleopathology
- trauma
15
Q
viking burial
A
- birka, sweden
- 10th century burial
- excavated in 1870s
- shields, sword, ax, spear, arrows, knife, two horses
- ideal viking warrior grave
- originally identidies as male
- kjellström (2016) identified as female based on morphology, controversal
- hedenstierna-jonson (2017) aDNA analysis of skeleton, “female viking warrior confirmed by genomics”, utility of using genetic and morphological analysis together
