Scurvy is being increasingly identified in deep antiquity in the tropics of the Asia-Pacific region. We report a case of scurvy in a young adult male from Metal Period (~2000–1800 bp) northern Philippines who lived with previously identified at least partial immobility due to left hip ankylosis that likely formed in adulthood. Our follow up paleopathological examination of the complete skeleton identified symmetrical and discrete new bone and/or cortical porosity on the cranium and mandible highly consistent with scurvy. Given vitamin C deficiency disrupts collagen synthesis and thus normal remodeling, our scurvy findings could relate to bone remodeling issues in this individual previously evidenced from histology and chemical analyses and linked to the hip ankylosis. The lack of postcranial lesions may be related to this individual's pseudoparalysis, exacerbating relative immobility as an adult. We emphasize the importance of considering nutritional deficiencies alongside skeletal evidence for physical impairment to ensure a holistic bioarchaeology of care model.
This study aims to identify lesions confined to the internal structures of bones. A radiographic analysis was performed on 219 archaeological, historical period skeletons from southern Finland. Although the study examines nearly all preserved skeletal elements using plain radiographs, it does not incorporate computed tomography. Notably, 17 individuals (7.8%) were preliminarily diagnosed with neoplastic lesions. The 7.8% prevalence of neoplasia includes benign lesions, malignant lesions, and some lesions where there was uncertainty as to whether they were neoplasia or other diagnoses. We observed lesions that are not detectable on the bone surface. In addition, we identified lesions that had been previously overlooked in the macroscopic analysis, or initially interpreted as taphonomic alterations. However, upon re-evaluation with X-ray imaging, these are now considered indicative of tumors. In previous macroscopic analyses, only benign neoplastic lesions were identified. These findings highlight the significance of comprehensive radiological examination of skeletal remains in advancing the understanding of the historical prevalence and development of bone neoplastic formations.
This study presents a palaeoepidemiological analysis of edentulism in an early medieval population from northern Serbia, using the Kennedy Classification system as a diagnostic tool. Drawing on data from three necropolises, Site 40—Potes Gornje Sajlovo, Čik, and Pionirska Ulica, located in the Bačka district and dated between the 6th and 9th centuries ad during Avar dominance, this study explores edentulism, not only as a dental condition but also as a possible proxy for dietary habits, disease risk, and potential patterns of ancient dental practices. A total of 159 individuals were analyzed, with 141 maxillae (75.2%) and 156 mandibles (83.1%) examined. Edentulism in at least one jaw was identified in 82 individuals (51.6%). Statistical analysis revealed a clear age-related increase in edentulism for both jaws. In the maxilla, significant differences were observed between young and mature adults (p < 0.001), young and old adults (p < 0.001), as well as between middle and older age cohorts. Similar patterns were identified in the mandible, suggesting that age was a key factor in tooth loss. Notably, a lower frequency of Kennedy Class III edentulism, typically associated with carious lesions, may imply a lower prevalence of caries in this population. The presence of well-healed alveolar ridges, with no signs of complications, could suggest that tooth extractions were often conducted with care and possibly by skilled individuals. This study contributes to the growing understanding of oral health in past populations and raises questions about the intersection of biology and culture in shaping dental status. Future research will further explore edentulism as a bio-cultural phenomenon, focusing on healthcare, dietary patterns, and social determinants of tooth loss in early medieval contexts.
In this work, we focus on art featuring woolly rhinoceroses from the Eurasian continent. We will provide an overview of cave paintings, engravings, and other evidence of art in terms of (i) geographic scope, (ii) chronology, (iii) representation, (iv) associated fauna, (v) material and technique used, and (vi) creator. Since rhinoceros and birds presently constitute a shared landscape, we examined the links between fossil rhinos and birds and other animals in the evidence of Paleolithic art. We found that rhinoceroses make a minor contribution (2.6%) to Paleolithic art. Evidence comes from France, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Slovakia, Spain, Romania, and Russia and is attributed to the Aurignacian, Gravettian, Solutrean, and Magdalenian cultures. The animal is usually shown alone or co-occurring with woolly mammoths and other fauna. The depictions are not juxtaposed with birds, contrary to the present state of affairs. This is due to the presence of fur on the rhinoceros and the climatic demands of birds. The rhinoceroses are shown superficially as an outline and in detail with a hump, with a black stripe, bleeding, or fighting one. These paintings woolly rhinoceroses can be linked to modern humans who used charcoal, ochre and manganese oxides to represent them in the artworks. Engravings of woolly rhinoceroses also occur on mobile objects such as reindeer antlers and rock slabs.
The re-association of skeletal remains has been one of the core challenges for anthropological studies of commingled skeletal elements. However, there has been a lack of methodologies focusing on the re-association of fragmented remains. This work proposes a novel method for the screening of fragmented long bone diaphysis, based on the geometric properties of their 20% and 80% diaphyseal cross-sections and utilizing support vector machine models. The sample consisted of 3D long bone models from 396 femora, 422 tibiae, and 415 humeri from the modern Athens Collection. The proposed algorithm was further evaluated on an archaeological and historical sample of Greek and British ancestry. The yielded true negative rate values on the reference sample were promising, ranging from 30% (femur) to over 60% (humerus sample). The total accuracy values, calculated for the top five most probable pairs, followed a similar trend (≈30% for humeri, ≈16% for femora). In all three bone sets, however, the rates were notably higher than the respective random expectation (calculated as 5 over the number of possible pairs). The evaluation on the archaeological and historical dataset showed that the algorithm performed generally better on the tibiae, while further examination of the results indicated that its performance differed based on the sample size. Based on these results, this approach has potential as a screening method for commingled assemblages, contributing to narrowing down the potential matches in larger assemblages. Furthermore, it fills the existing gap in literature, as there is a lack of similar methods in the field. However, further optimization and evaluation on different samples is important, as well as other follow-up analyses.
Despite a growing recognition of the valuable information that detailed analyses of burned bone can provide in archaeological contexts, relatively few studies have investigated the relationship between the spatial distribution of burning marks and cooking behaviors. This study addresses this gap by applying Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to record thermal alterations on bone surfaces and to conduct a kernel density analysis of a 5500-year-old aurochs assemblage from Houtaomuga, northeast China. Results show that burning occurs significantly more often on bone shafts than on epiphyses. The clustered pattern of burn marks on bone shafts indicate that most heat alteration was unlikely to result from accidental fire contact but instead from pre-treatment prior to bone breakage. We further compared bone survivorship patterns of aurochs limb bones from Houtaomuga with several experimentally modified bone assemblages. GIS-generated models reveal that preservation patterns at Houtaomuga closely resemble those from experimental assemblages produced during marrow extraction by humans. These findings provide the first evidence of heat being used as a pretreatment for bone breaking in Neolithic China and highlight the potential of geospatial methods for interpreting thermal modifications in faunal remains.
The mummified remains of a middle-aged adult male were discovered in the Church of Saint Joseph of the Carpenters in Lisbon, Portugal. Likely dating to the 18th century, the body was naturally mummified, richly clothed, and buried within a church—an honor typically reserved for elite individuals. Radiographic analysis revealed classic signs of Diffuse Idiopathic Skeletal Hyperostosis (DISH), a condition marked by flowing ossification along thoracic vertebrae commonly described as having a candlewax appearance. Although DISH has often been discussed in association with wealth and lifestyle factors, current evidence emphasizes its multifactorial nature, involving biological, metabolic, genetic, and possibly mechanical components. Additional findings included early osteoarthritis, dental wear, trauma, and residual Harris lines, suggesting past physiological stress during youth. The individual's preserved garments, postmortem care, and church burial reinforce interpretations of elevated social standing. However, while the presence of DISH in this individual coincides with other markers of privilege, it should not be regarded as an exclusive indicator of elite status but rather as a reflection of intersecting intrinsic and extrinsic factors influencing health. This case exemplifies how diseases like DISH can inform on health, inequality, and embodiment in historical populations. Therefore, DISH is interpreted here as both a biological condition and a culturally situated manifestation within the broader context of early modern European society.
Community ethics and cultural attitudes vary across contexts in which professionals work with human remains. Southeast Asia is home to millions; thus, there are challenges when attempting to understand and articulate the diversity in cultures, ideologies, and ethics surrounding the dead. Our semi-autoethnographic and qualitative research addresses these challenges through a critical self-examination of how we conduct our work with human remains, engaging with diverse communities around us. Our approach combines insights from osteologists, which provide both culturally informed personal perspectives (emic) and professional views of ethical issues surrounding work with human remains (etic). Thematic analysis returned three main themes: (a) we in Southeast Asia, who work directly with the dead, are influenced heavily by the social and ideological norms we operate within; (b) community attitudes towards our professions are diverse and interesting to consider in and of themselves; (c) it is important to put efforts into public engagement on science and ethics, particularly with local community members and government authorities, and influence others in society to adopt or further a dynamic, non-monolithic culture of respect towards human remains. We hope this study adds to the growing literature on ethics in the biological, archaeological, and forensic sciences.
This case study addresses the interpretive intricacies of establishing a cause-and-effect relationship between organic microremains and extramasticatory use of the dentition as a “third hand,” particularly in the context of prehistoric thread-making activities. The evidence derives from an occlusal groove on the mandibular right central incisor (Tooth 41) of a juvenile female (16–20 age-at-death) from Burial 117 at Castellón Alto, an Argaric Bronze Age site (1951–1703 cal bce) in southeast Iberia (Granada, Spain). Analytical methods included scanning electron microscopy (SEM), backscattered electron (BSE) imaging, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Morphological traits, including fibrous and flexible appearance, and elemental composition—elevated carbon levels with detectable amounts of nitrogen, potassium, and sulfur—suggest a probable vegetal origin. This interpretation is further supported by the contrast between the Ca/P atomic ratio of the dental enamel (≈2.04), consistent with hydroxyapatite structure, and the elemental profile of the residues, which lack this mineral signature and instead display a dominant organic composition. Variability in particle morphology is consistent with differential stages of degradation, despite the favorable preservation conditions at the site. Interpretations remain tentative due to several limiting factors, including potential contamination, postmortem alteration, the absence of taxonomically diagnostic features, and a lack of comparative reference collections. Nonetheless, the spatial distribution, physical features, and chemical profiles of the residues are consistent with the incorporation of plant-derived material during repeated contact between fibers and tooth enamel. These findings underscore the value of microanalytical techniques in assessing occupational markers of human dentition, while also exposing the methodological and interpretative limitations that currently hinder conclusive identification of past behaviors. Occlusal grooves hold potential as indicators of habitual activities, but their interpretive utility depends on integrated analytical strategies and expanded datasets. Further research is required to refine criteria for distinguishing anthropogenic residues from taphonomic noise in archaeological dental contexts.
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