Anthropology Commons^™

Skeletal Markers: Interpreting Trauma, Healing, And Survival Through Osteological Remains From Medieval Pomerania, Michael Mulliner-Szyndler

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Traditionally, studies in bioarcheology have cited the presence of individuals with evidence of healed traumatic injuries and certain pathologies as an indication of social care either at the time of the trauma or throughout the individual’s lifetime. Here, I present three case studies of individuals who present with signs of having survived traumatic injuries and related pathologies. These individuals are from a late medieval cemetery in Żelewo, in the historical region of Pomerania in present-day northwestern Poland. The site is associated with the nearby town of Kołbacz, which is home to the oldest Cistercian monastery in Pomerania. This study aims …

Non-Destructive Hhxrf Archaeometry For Grouping Individuals Via Trace Element Analysis Of Dental Remains, Griffon G. Binkowski

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Handheld X-ray fluorescence (HHXRF) spectrometry has been validated as an accurate, non-destructive method for analyzing archaeological osseous materials. This study utilizes HHXRF to address key bioarchaeological questions, including population differentiation, individuation, and the interpretation of bioaccumulated trace elements versus diagenetic impacts. Using dental enamel from the Maya site of Altun Ha, Belize (n=20) and several Roman-Christian sites in the Dakhleh Oasis in Egypt (n=6), the occlusal surface of molar crowns was assayed in air using a Bruker Tracer III- equipped with a 12 mil Al, 1 mil Ti, 6 mil Cu filter. Semi-quantitative trace element ratios (Sr/Ca, Fe/Ca, and Zn/Ca) …

Applicability Of Cementochronology To Estimate Season-Of-Death In Humans: Insights From Modern Documented Collections, Olga Ibarra-Sanchez

Theses and Dissertations

Dental cementum is characterized by lifelong deposition of alternating opaque annuli in fall/winter and translucent bands in spring/summer. This study aims to test the applicability of cementochronology to estimate season-of-death, by observing the properties of the last layer, with direct implications for forensic anthropology and bioarchaeology. The sample includes canine teeth from 146 adults (84 males, 62 females), age-at-death ranging from 20-97 years (mean=61.7 years, SD=18.6 years), from two contemporary skeletal collections. Of these individuals, 78 (53.4%) died in spring/summer and 68 (46.6%) died in fall/winter. Overall accuracy was low at 64.4% (94/146). Accuracy was higher for spring/summer deaths 100.0% …

Sociocultural And Environmental Changes And Their Biological Impact On Nonelite Polish Individuals, Paige A. Lynch

Anthropology ETDs

This dissertation integrates isotopic, biodistance, and skeletal stress data from cemeteries, Gać and Pień to study health and survival in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (PLC). The PLC (16th–18th centuries) in Poland was marked by religious migration, social inequality, and environmental change. Chapter 2 used a multiproxy approach to identify migrant status: most at Pień were local, about half at Gać were migrants, often biologically related to locals. Chapter 3 used stable isotope analyses to find minimal sex-based dietary differences, except for Pień females’ higher millet intake, and showed that market access and feudal systems influenced subsistence strategies. Chapter 4’s survival analyses …

Behind The Gens: A Bioarchaeological Study Of Kinship Structure And Social Change In Iron Age Latium, Italy, Andrea Noemí Acosta Caballero

Theses and Dissertations

The cemetery of Osteria dell’Osa is the only completely published Iron Age cemetery from Latium. Its research legacy continues as dietary, mobility, and biological affinity patterns were reconstructed through carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and strontium isotope analyses and biodistance analysis using bone and dental samples for this dissertation project. The main hypotheses tested are:

a) The diet of people buried at Osteria dell’Osa during the Iron Age likely consisted of mostly grains like wheat and barley, which may yield low carbon isotope signatures;

b) The protein consumption of the diet of people at Osteria dell’Osa was mainly composed of terrestrial protein …

Inside The Walls Of The Asylum: Exploring The Lives Of Individuals In The Mississippi State Asylum (1855-1935), Savannah V. Logan

Master's Theses

The Mississippi State Asylum (MSA), established in 1855, was the first such institution in but has been largely forgotten about since its closure in 1935. The cemetery associated with the facility, which is located on the University of Mississippi Medical Center campus, was recently rediscovered with new construction. As part of the Asylum Hill project, the remains of seven of the 7000 burials along with their mortuary artifacts were analyzed and allowed these forgotten individuals to once again regain their voice and tell a portion of their life story through osteobiographies.

The sample, dating to 1855-1899, included five males and …

Sex-Based Differences In Osteoarthritis In Early Medieval Spain: A Case Study From Visigoth And Carolingian Period Terrassa., Jordan Chatellier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Beginning in 1995, individuals from the Sant Pere church complex in Terrassa, Spain were exhumed. Using 21 biological females and 32 biological males collectively between the Visigoth (5^th – 8^th centuries) and Carolingian (9^th – 11^th centuries) periods from this collection, this research examined the difference in osteoarthritis between estimated phenotypic sexes. For osteoarthritis to be present, an individual needed to meet one of two criteria: 1. two or more of the following was present: macroporosity, sclerotic bone, joint deformation, and marginal osteophytes, or 2. eburnation had occurred. Through employing embodiment theory, along with gender and …

Mni - Patella, Lesley Gregoricka

Gregoricka et al. 2024 AAP

No abstract provided.

Mni - Petrous, Lesley Gregoricka

Gregoricka et al. 2024 AAP

No abstract provided.

Mni - Mandible, Lesley Gregoricka

Gregoricka et al. 2024 AAP

No abstract provided.

Social Identity And Personhood At An Early Byzantine Cemetery: Late Antique Child Burials At Syedra, Turkiye., Mekenzie Riley Davis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bioarchaeological studies of children in the past have proliferated in recent years and illustrate the informational depths accessible through investigations of mortality, age, and health and disease. Alongside analyses of childhood stress and mortality, the mortuary treatment of children provides critical insight into the social structures and identity formation processes that individuals or groups are subject to in life. This thesis will investigate the intersections of childhood, gender and sex, space, and mortuary treatment as seen in a Byzantine cemetery comprised primarily of children at the site of Syedra, Türkiye through bioarchaeological and proteomic analysis. Specifically, it seeks to explore …

The Osteobiography Of Human Remains From The Seaview And Indian Town Trail Archaeological Sites, Maggie M. Klemm

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

Extensive site surveys and excavations on the Island of Barbuda led by Sophia Perdikaris have identified over 62 sites spanning from the Archaic time period to Historic times. Over the last 18 years, these multidisciplinary teams have focused on mapping all sites and performing rescue excavations on sites threatened by sea level rise, erosion or development. Two such sites are the Saladoid site of Seaview (BA016) and the Troumassoid site of Indian Town Trail (BA01). The dunes surrounding the site of Seaview receive the brunt of storms and hurricanes. In 1998 hurricane Georges exposed skeletal material now part of the …

Paleodemographic Research In Ancient Túcume With A Focus On Infant Mortality, Tyler J. Pilarski

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This research analyzed bioarchaeological data from the Peruvian site of Túcume in an attempt to understand what the overall mortality profile may have been like, as well as what patterns may have been seen in juvenile and infant mortality. The primary data set, which consisted of estimated age-at-death values from previously excavated skeletal remains, was examined via three different models (Life Table, 5 Year Incremental, and Categorical), as well as compared to data from two other comparable sites (Pacatnamú and Farfán). It was found that individuals at Túcume were dying in unequal proportions across the age groups, ranging from newborn …

Handheld X-Ray Fluorescence (Hhxrf) As A Non-Destructive Method For Trace Element Analysis Of Ancient Maya (Pre-Conquest 800 Bc - Ad950) Teeth From Altun Ha, Belize, Griffon G. Binkowski

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In anthropology, elemental analysis of bone and teeth can provide significant details about an individual’s life history, such as diet, toxicity exposure, residency, and migration patterns. Intra-individual comparisons can help to gather information about a single individual’s life, while inter-individual comparisons can help illustrate a community’s life history during these periods. However, current methods of elemental analysis commonly involve the destruction of skeletal samples, which can damage a collection’s integrity and be perceived as disrespectful by descendant communities. Preliminary research has validated handheld x-ray fluorescence spectrometry (HHXRF) as an accurate and reliable method of analysis appropriate for determining the elemental …

The Effects Of Socioeconomic Status On Female Health At St. Benet Sherehog, Anastasia S. Slack

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the impacts of socioeconomic status on female health at three pre-industrial burial sites in London, England. The analysis compares the female skeletal sample from the parish burial of St. Benet Sherehog (SB), a high-status site, to the cemeteries at the ‘New Churchyard’ at Broadgate (BG) and St. Thomas Hospital (ST), both representing low-status sites during the 17th century. Data for St. Thomas Hospital was made available by the Museum of London’s Wellcome Osteological Research Database and was compared with published data for St. Benet Sherehog and Broadgate to test the hypothesis that women at St. Benet Sherehog …

Gendered Bodies, Engendered Lives: Bioarchaeological Exploration Of The Intersectionality Of Gender, Health, And Trauma At Turkey Creek Pueblo, Arizona (Ad 1225-1286), Claira Elizabeth Ralston

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation examines the relationships between sex, gender, and health at Turkey Creek Pueblo (AD 1225-1286), the earliest aggregated Pueblo community in the Point of Pines region of east central Arizona, to better understand their roles in producing differential health outcomes. To gain a view of these interactions, I use osteological, mortuary, and ethnohistoric data to explore how gender, as a social institution, informed divisions of labor and experiences with traumatic injury at Turkey Creek Pueblo, because this site was occupied during a socially dynamic and important period in the pre-contact American Southwest. Using these data, I explore how sex, …

Experiences Of Violence And Captivity: Labor Divisions At La Plata (Ad 600-1250), Kathleen D. Stansbury

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The La Plata Population represents a series of Ancestral Puebloan sites along the La Plata River outside Farmington, New Mexico dating from 600-1200 CE. Past research has argued that several captive females in this population experienced impairment due to illness or trauma. Entheseal changes can reflect experiences of hard labor, and so provide insight into adaptations to mobility impairments as well as the physical impacts of captive labor on the body (Henderson et al 2013). Measurement of entheseal changes utilizing the Coimbra method has demonstrated that sexual and class divisions of labor existed in the La Plata community, with captive …

Sex Differentials In Frailty In Medieval Ireland, Allison Claire Ham

Theses and Dissertations

Population sex differentials in morbidity and mortality are influenced by genetic, hormonal, behavioral, and environmental mechanisms, and in the majority of living human populations, females experience longer lifespans and lower mortality risks, but paradoxically, greater morbidities compared to males. This dissertation project explored sex differentials in frailty (i.e., relative risk of death compared to others in the population) in medieval Ireland to address the existing temporal and contextual limitations for interpreting how far back the modern female health-mortality paradox extends. The project had three main objectives: examine sex differentials in mortality risks between the early (500-1100 CE) and late medieval …

U2.38.70_Ta3 06.17.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.31.1038_Ta3 06.14.21 Prox. Humerus.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.31.106_Ta3 06.22.21 Dist. Humerus.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.38.60_Ta3 06.18.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.38.740_Ta3 06.18.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.31.338_Ta3 06.22.21 Dist. Humerus.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.38.54_Ta3 06.18.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.38.133_Ta3 06.17.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.38.615_Ta3 06.17.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U2.38.503_Ta3 06.17.21 Femora.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U1.31.213_Ta3 06.14.21 Prox. Humerus.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …

U1.31.301_Ta3 06.14.21 Prox. Humerus.Ta3, Alyssa Bolster, Hannah Jeanlouis

Bolster et al. 2024 AJBA

Objectives We estimate adult age distributions from Unar 1 and Unar 2, two late Umm an-Nar (2400-2100 BCE) tombs in the modern-day Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. These collective tombseach contained hundreds of skeletons in commingled, fragmented, and variably cremated states. Previous studies placed the vast majority of this mortuary community in a generalized “adult” category, as have most analyses of similar tombs from this period. We sought to test how adult age estimation methods compare in identifying young, middle, and old age individuals in commingled assemblages.

Materials and Methods We employed Transition Analysis 3 (TA3) and traditional …