The osteological paradox addresses how well interpretations of past population health generated from human skeletal remains reflect the health of the living population from which they were drawn. Selective mortality and hidden heterogeneity in frailty are particularly relevant when assessing childhood health in the past, as subadults are the most vulnerable group in a population and are therefore less likely to fully represent the health of those who survived. The ability of subadults to represent the health of those who survived is tested here by directly comparing interpretations of childhood stress based on non-survivors (subadults aged 6-20,14 females and 9 males) to those based on retrospective analyses of survivors (adults aged 21-46, 26 females and 27 males). Non-survivors and survivors were directly matched by birth year, using the Coimbra Identified Skeletal Collection; therefore interpretations of childhood stress reflect a shared childhood. Long bone and vertebral canal growth, linear enamel hypoplasia, cribra orbitalia, porotic hyperostosis, scurvy indicators and periosteal bone reactions were assessed for both groups. Overall, long bone growth generates the same interpretation of health for both non-survivors and survivors, and both groups exhibit the same range of stress (mild to severe), but the pattern of stress experienced in childhood differs between the two groups. Female survivors reveal different timing of stress episodes and a higher degree of stress than female non-survivors. Male survivors exhibit less stress than male non-survivors. These different patterns suggest that interpretations based solely on non-survivors would under-represent the stress experienced by female survivors and over-represent the stress experienced by male survivors, further demonstrating the importance of addressing issues of selective mortality. In addition, these different patterns suggest that hidden heterogeneity of frailty may be sex specific where males are more vulnerable to stress and females more able to develop resistance to stress and survive.

The osteological paradox addresses how well interpretations of past population health generated from human skeletal remains reflect the health of the living population from which they were drawn. Selective mortality and hidden heterogeneity in frailty are particularly relevant when assessing childhood health in the past, as subadults are the most vulnerable group in a population and are therefore less likely to fully represent the health of those who survived. The ability of subadults to represent the health of those who survived is tested here by directly comparing interpretations of childhood stress based on non-survivors (subadults aged 6-20,14 females and 9 males) to those based on retrospective analyses of survivors (adults aged 21-46, 26 females and 27 males). Non-survivors and survivors were directly matched by birth year, using the Coimbra Identified Skeletal Collection; therefore interpretations of childhood stress reflect a shared childhood. Long bone and vertebral canal growth, linear enamel hypoplasia, cribra orbitalia, porotic hyperostosis, scurvy indicators and periosteal bone reactions were assessed for both groups. Overall, long bone growth generates the same interpretation of health for both non-survivors and survivors, and both groups exhibit the same range of stress (mild to severe), but the pattern of stress experienced in childhood differs between the two groups. Female survivors reveal different timing of stress episodes and a higher degree of stress than female non-survivors. Male survivors exhibit less stress than male non-survivors. These different patterns suggest that interpretations based solely on non-survivors would under-represent the stress experienced by female survivors and over-represent the stress experienced by male survivors, further demonstrating the importance of addressing issues of selective mortality. In addition, these different patterns suggest that hidden heterogeneity of frailty may be sex specific where males are more vulnerable to stress and females more able to develop resistance to stress and survive.

Denna uppsats är en empirisk studie av mänskligt skelettmaterial från en hällkistegravplats från Sundre, Gotland. Syftet med uppsatsen är att analysera materialet för att diskutera hälsan hos individerna. Analysen genomförs på det osteologiska materialet för att fastställa eventuella patologier och andra förändringar på skelettet. En diskussion om individernas hälsa framförs efter resultat från analyserna av de mänskliga kvarlevorna för att överlägga huruvida det är möjligt att avgöra hälsa genom enbart osteologiska material. Bronsålder är den huvudsakliga tidsperioden som diskuteras, men med 14C dateringar som gjorts på ett antal benfragment kan man se en kontinuerlig återanvändning av gravplatsen från senneolitikum till vikingatid. I materialet observeras både barn och vuxna i olika åldrar som diskuteras tillsammans med skeletala förändringar i form av aktivitet och sjukdom. Den huvudsakliga diskussionen om hälsa framförs baserat på detta och har resulterat i en slutsats om att hälsan var förhållandevis god under bronsåldern. / This paper is an empirical study of human skeletal material from a stone cist burial site from Sundre, Gotland. The purpose of the essay is to analyze the material to discuss the health of individuals. The analysis is carried out on osteological material to determine any pathologies and other changes on the skeleton. A discussion of the health of the individuals is presented following results from the analyzes of the human remains to consider whether it is possible to determine health through osteological materials alone. The Bronze Age is the main time period discussed, but with 14C dating made on a number of bone fragments, a continuous reuse of the burial site from the Late Neolithic to the Viking Age can be seen. In the material, both children and adults of different ages are observed, which are discussed together with skeletal changes in the form of activity and disease. The main discussion of health is advanced based on this and has resulted in the conclusion that health was relatively good during the Bronze Age.

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