The Department of Anthropology drafts assessments for public prosecutor's offices, the police and archaeological services regarding skeletal findings. Assessments begin where the body was found and then continue at the laboratory. A basic examination is offered for identification purposes, whereby the biological age, sex, height and time since death (postmortem interval) are established. Assuming these are visible on the bones, any pathological findings and the potential cause of death are also assessed. In collaboration with other institutes, further investigations are conducted with a view to reconstructing people's nutritional habits and origins/migration patterns by means of stable isotope ratios, the Carbon 14 dating method and molecular genetics studies. The sampling and preparatory work involved takes place at this laboratory.
The Department of Anthropology now also writes assessments for image identification purposes in connection with offenses and crimes.
