Difficult human childbirth is often explained to be the outcome of long term evolutionary hanges in the genus Homo resulting in an‘obstetrical dilemma,’defined as the compromise between the need for a large pelvis in birthing large brained babies and a narrow pelvis for the mechanics of bipedal locomotion (Washburn, 1960). The ‘obstetrical dilemma’ is argued to result in the risk of cephalopelvic disproportion and injury (Washburn, 1960). Current research challenges the premise of the obstetrical dilemma by considering the effects ecological factors have on the growth of the bony human pelvis (Wells et al., 2012; Wells, 2015, Stone, 2016; Wells, 2017). This thesis tests Wells et al.’s (2012) assertion that environmental factors, such as agricultural diets, compromise pelvic size and morphology and potentially affect human childbirth. The skeletal samples examined in this study are from medieval English populations with long established agricultural diets. Bony pelvic metrics analyzed are from the St. Mary Spital assemblage, and demographic and pathological data from St. Mary Spital were compared to the East Smithfield Black Death cemetery assemblage. The results show that there is some evidence for a relationship between chronic stress and compromised pelvic shape and size in both men and women, however the evidence is not conclusive that younger women with compromised pelvic dimensions were at an increased risk of obstructed labour and maternal mortality during childbirth. This suggests that childbirth was not likely a significantly elevated cause of death among younger women in medieval London as a result of cephalopelvic disproportion. The concept of a single obstetrical dilemma is flawed, as multiple obstetrical dilemmas other than cephalopelvic disproportion through pelvic capacity constrains are present, including ecological and nutritional stressors, childbirth practices and technologies, sanitation ractices, and social and gender inequality / Graduate

The Avar were nomadic people from Central Asia who migrated into the Carpathian Basin in Central-Eastern Europe during the mid to late Migration Period (AD 568 - 895). Archaeological evaluation of grave goods and documentation of mortuary practices have been the primary means of understanding the Avar. However, this approach has largely neglected skeletal and biochemical analysis, in particular as these approaches relate to the biological variation, ancestry, and dietary patterns of the Avar. There remains debate as to whether disparities existed among the socially stratified Avar population of ancient Hungary. It is argued by some that these disparities existed and were the result of differential access to nutritional resources. This hypothesis was tested using the unique properties of isotopes and their chemical signatures. In so doing, the qualitative work on the grave goods was augmented by an additional, quantifiable line of evidence. To investigate social stratification among the Avar population, the techniques of chemical multi-isotope and osteological analysis were employed. Multi-isotopic analyses can be done on stable isotopes (carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen) and on the heavy isotopes (strontium and lead). The particular stable isotopes examined were carbon (δ13C), nitrogen (δ15 N), and oxygen (δ18O). The heavy isotopes analyzed were strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and lead (206Pb/204Pb). Stable isotope analysis as well as ratio analysis of the heavy isotopes strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and lead (206Pb/204Pb) are well-established analytical chemistry methods for examining diverse aspects of diet and mobility through specific geographic regions. The analysis was performed on samples derived from well-preserved tooth enamel and bones. Reconstructing migration and dietary patterns at the Sajópetri cemetery site has helped estimate variability among social groups and between sexes in this population at the time of the Migration Period. Results of the heavy isotope analysis revealed that the Avar population were non-locals to the region, and the stable isotope analysis demonstrated that there was little variation between social groups with slightly higher variation between sexes. This research provides an empirical and analytical framework for further research into migration patterns and social class dynamics of late prehistoric Hungry. This study also adds existing research possibilities to the on-going biogeochemical studies conducted throughout Europe.

Historic-archaeological research on the Alamanni, an early medieval population in the periphery of the Frankish Empire, primarily focuses on themes such as their military character or issues of ethnicity, while the actual functioning of Alamannic societies remains conjectural. Aiming at presenting an integrated approach to the concepts of social organisation and social identities in Alamannic populations, this study examines and defines Alamannic identity and society by creating a dialogue between the disciplines of archaeology, biological anthropology and socio-cultural sciences. A bioarchaeology of identity explores the Alamanni of Pleidelsheim and Neresheim via their funerary and skeletal evidence, allowing for the factor of different environments that influence the interactions of a community. A key theme is the investigation of indicators for biological and social 'status', by direct association of bioanthropological with funerary archaeological data, as well as by evaluation of present interpretations made from material culture in the light of bioanthropological analysis as a paramount focus. The results are interpreted in terms of social status and the perception of certain social parameters, exploring interrelations between factors such as sex and gender, age, status and activity for the entirety of a society. This research offers new perspectives on Alamannic societies and helps to comprehend Alamannic social organisation as a multi-layered phenomenon, emphasizing the importance of a biocultural approach. Beyond common perceptions, this study forms the basis for a new understanding of the Alamanni, as the results reveal a society that was complex and diverse, displaying its own characteristics in the Merovingian world.

The hair shaft has increasing importance in bioarchaeology, since it is now possible to retrieve detailed biomolecular information on recent life history using individual fibres (e.g., on diet, drug use and DNA). Data on hair condition is an important cornerstone to ensuring that reliable information is obtained. The following study defines morphological features of degradative change in human terminal scalp hair using different microscopy techniques. Evidence of degradative change is translated into a ranked histology for assessing hair sample condition. The approach is applied to samples of cut modern scalp hair subjected to degradation under soil burial/simulated grave conditions.

Considering all the developments and dynamics spanning the Andean cultural history, contact between Andeans and Europeans in the sixteenth century was unprecedented in terms of scope, impact and violence. Paradoxically, it is a time period that has received little archaeological attention. Historic Peru has almost always been studied through the ethnohistorical sources, revealing incomplete and often distorted by layers of European ethnocentrism and behavioral misperception of Andean cultures. Often, the very lives of people and the nuanced experiences of native cultures have remained unknown, obscured by a lack of data and wide range of assumptions about the colonial society that emerged in the wake of the conquest. This article applies bioarchaeological perspectives in the study of colonial Central Andes. The excavations in the village of Mórrope, Lambayeque Valley (northern Peru) allows us to integrate multiple independent lines of ethnohistoric, archaeological, and biological data to examine two central issues: (1) How did conquest impact patterns of pre-Hispanic health, diet, and physical activity? (2) What do burial patterns reveal about parallel processes of native cultural change and identity in colonial Peru? / Considerando la totalidad de los desarrollos y dinamicas culturales que abarca la historia andina, el contacto entre los andinos y los europeos a partir del siglo XVI no tiene precedentes en terminos de su alcance, impacto y violencia. Paradojicamente, es la epoca que ha recibido poca atencion arqueologica. El Peru historico, casi siempre, ha sido estudiado a traves de las fuentes etnohistoricas que son reveladoras e incompletas, a menudo distorsionadas por capas de etnocentrismo europeo y percepcion erronea del comportamiento de las culturas andinas. A menudo, la vida misma y los matices de las experiencias vividas por las culturas nativas son desconocidos, y estan cubiertos de misterio y de una amplia gama de supuestos acerca de la sociedad colonial que surgio de la estela de la conquista. En este articulo, se aplican las perspectivas bioarqueologicas en el estudio de los Andes Centrales coloniales. Las excavaciones en el pueblo de Morrope, valle de Lambayeque (Costa Norte del Peru), nos permiten integrar multiples lineas de datos independientes etnohistoricos, arqueologicos y biologicos para examinar dos cuestiones centrales: 1) .Como impacto la conquista en los patrones de salud, actividad fisica y dieta prehispanicos? 2) .Que revelan los patrones de enterramiento como experiencias paralelas de cambio cultural e identidad nativa en el Peru colonial?

Pesquisas recentes apontam para o fenômeno construtivo de sambaquis fluviais na região do médio Vale do Ribeira de Iguape, São Paulo, mais precisamente em três regiões, Itaoca, bacia do rio Jacupiranguinha e bacia do Juquiá, durante, pelo menos, o período de 9000 anos. O presente trabalho tem por objetivo definir o perfil de um sambaqui fluvial, sítio Moraes (6000-4000 anos a.P.), no município de Miracatu, SP, com a finalidade de criar a compreensão intra-sítio dos processos formativos envolvidos para a elevação desta estrutura monticular, através de diferentes abordagens: distribuição espacial intra-sítio, tecnologia, subsistência, isótopos estáveis, estudo sedimentológico e análise de proporção componencial volumétrico. Os resultados destas análises associados aos dados advindos de outras pesquisas nos permitiram ampliar a discussão sobre o processo formativo do sítio Moraes e abordar a questão sobre as relações genética e cultural entre sambaquieiros fluviais e os demais grupos vizinhos. / Previous research at the Ribeira de Iguape valley, at the southern part of the State of São Paulo, Brasil, has revealed a long cultural sequence (ca. 11 to 1,2 kyBP) characterized by small shellmound sites generally designated as riverine, or fluvial, sambaquis. Besides the conspicuous presence of a terrestrial gastropod (Megalobulimus sp.) shells, these little mounds also share relevant amounts of human burials and similar technological patterns as regards lithic and bone industries, among other compositional elements. The principal aim of this thesis is to describe one of these mounds, Moraes, investigating the cultural and post-depositional formation processes implied on the long duration (6 to 4 kyBP) construction phase of such mound structure and after its abandonment, by means of zooarchaeological, technological, geochemical and isotopic analysis of its various deposits and cultural components therein, as well as their spatial distribution and articulation. This thesis also discusses the cultural and historical relationships of this fluvial shellmound culture with other cultural patterns and populations found at the same and nearby areas.

Esta dissertação de mestrado tem por objetivo principal estabelecer os perfis de ocorrência de estresse e mortalidade de dois diferentes grupos pré-históricos de São Paulo - os construtores do sambaqui fluvial Moraes e do sambaqui litorâneo Piaçaguera - relacionando-os com o estilo de vida e subsistência de cada um desses grupos. O período foco de interesse foi o infantil mesmo que os indivíduos adultos estivessem sendo analisados. Foram considerados para tanto 88 indivíduos de Piaçaguera e 55 de Moraes, todos eles analisados para o estabelecimento do perfil de mortalidade. Já para a análise de hipoplasias foram considerados, respectivamente 28 e 21 indivíduos, que cumpriram os critérios de inclusão definidos para a análise. Como resultado observou-se uma alta mortalidade na infância em ambas as séries, no entanto com diferenças entre os períodos mais afetados. A série de Piaçaguera apresentou maior risco de morrer em períodos mais tardios da infância enquanto que Moraes apresentou maior risco ainda no período neonatal. Já ao se considerar as hipoplasias lineares de esmalte, há uma sinalização no sentido da ocorrência de estresse relativamente contínuo durante toda a fase intermediária da infância em Moraes, que não apresentou picos de ocorrência de defeitos hipoplásicos. Já para Piaçaguera, os dados sugerem a ocorrência de um período de maior ocorrência/susceptibilidade ao estresse, o qual corresponde a um pico de prevalência de defeitos hipoplásicos entre 3 e 4 anos. / This dissertation has as main objective to establish the profiles of occurrence of stress and mortality on two different prehistoric groups from São Paulo State, Brazil - the builders of the riverine shellmound Moraes and the builders of the coastal shellmound Piaçaguera - relating them to the lifestyle and subsistency of each of these groups. The period focus of interest was the childhood, even if the adults were being analyzed. In order to establish the mortality profile were analized 88 individuals from Piaçaguera and 55 individuals from Moraes. For the analysis of hypoplasias were considered, respectively, 28 and 21 individuals which met the inclusion criteria defined for the analysis. There is possible to stabilish that if the child mortality is very high in both series, there are strong differences between the ages periods more affecteds. The Piaçaguera\'s skeletal serie showed a higher risk of dying in later periods of childhood while Moraes had a higher risk in the neonatal period. Considering the data obteined for linear enamel hypoplasia, there is a signal towards the occurrence of stress relatively continuous throughout the intermediate phase of childhood in Moraes. For this sample there are no peaks of occurrence of hypoplastic defects. In contrast, the data produced for Piaçaguera\'s sample suggest the occurrence of a period of higher incidence / susceptibility to stress, which corresponds to a peak prevalence of hypoplastic defects between 3 and 4 years old .

The target of this thesis was to identify mass graves in the cemetery around the former St. Benedict Church in Prague dated after 1635 and to determine, by means of dental epigenetic traits, if there is a biological relation among selected groups of mass graves and if they belong to one population. The analysis of the archaeology-anthropologic documentation was the essential part of this thesis. By this analysis it was possible to identify mass graves and to combine them to higher groups according to the following criteria: a location of the mass grave at the cemetery, a position of individual burials in the mass graves, the burial way and artefacts found. The previous research made by the French-Czech team, namely radiocarbon dating of several graves, was also supportive. The actual investigation of the biological relation (similarity) of individuals from mass graves was carried out by means of dental epigenetic traits. These traits were evaluated according to verbal description and plaster casts of teeth (Turner at al. 1991). The following statistical methods were used for the evaluation: a measure of divergence and the mean measure of divergence stating the unlikeness of probability occurrence of corresponding features. The relation of individuals, from mass graves, and French and Austro-Hungarian...

Avec les avancées des deux dernières décennies en matière d’analyses isotopiques, les chercheurs étudiant l’ère mayas ont conclu que les sociétés Précolombiennes étaient beaucoup plus mobiles qu’anticipées, bien qu’elles étaient des sociétés sédentaires agricoles avec de grands centres. Les études isotopiques, particulièrement le strontium et l’oxygène, nous permettent d’identifier la présence de migrants à l’aide de la signature géochimique des dents issues des sépultures retrouvées. Les isotopes de strontium présents dans l’environnement sont absorbés par le corps humain et reflètent la géologie particulière du lieu d’habitation d’un individu lors de l’enfance, alors que les isotopes d’oxygène en reflètent les précipitations. Le site archéologique d’Ucanal dans la région de Petén au Guatemala a révélé douze sépultures dans les saisons 2016 et 2017 de fouilles archéologiques. Sur les douze sépultures étudiées, trois individus se sont révélés être possiblement nés à l’extérieur du site. Ces individus mettent au jour deux moyens qu’ont les étrangers de s’impliquer dans leurs terres d’accueil. Ensemble, les analyses isotopiques, les restes humains et les traitements funéraires suggèrent un traitement hostile des étrangers, sous la forme du sacrifice humain et à l’opposé, un traitement particulier en lien avec le culte des ancêtres où les étrangers sont célébrés et commémorés comme fondateurs. / With the advances in isotopic analyses over the last two decades, scholars working in the Maya area have come to realize that Pre-Columbian people were much more mobile than previously considered, even though many were sedentary agriculturalists with large urban centers. Isotopic analysis of strontium and oxygen of human teeth enables us to identify the presence of migrants since they reflect geochemical and climatic variability of where a person lived as a child. Twelve burials from the archaeological site of Ucanal, in the Petén region of Guatemala, were analyzed for strontium and oxygen isotopes. In addition, a strontium baseline study of faunal remains was undertaken to identify typical values for the Ucanal region. Out of the twelve burials, three individuals were identified as likely foreign-born. Interestingly, they underscore two different ways in which foreigners were implicated in their newly founded homelands. Together with analyses of the human remains and burial contexts, the isotopic results highlight potentially hostile treatment in the form of human sacrifice or potentially reverential treatments in the form of a cult of the ancestors in which foreign peoples were remembered as important founding ancestors.

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