Projektleitung
Jessica Ryan-Despraz, Anthropologie, Institut für Rechtsmedizin, Universität Bern
Projektbeteiligte
PD Dr. rer. biol. hum. Sandra Lösch, Anthropologie, Institut für Rechtsmedizin, Universität Bern
Dr. Marco Milella, Anthropologie, Institut für Rechtsmedizin, Universität Bern
Dr. Patrick Semal, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, BE
Dr. Caroline Polet, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, BE
Dr. Zdeněk Tvrdý, Moravian Museum, CZ
Prof. Dr. Timothy Ryan, The Pennsylvania State University, USA
Projektdaten
Förderinstitution: Swiss National Science Foundation (Projekt-Nr. 225419)
Förderungsdauer: 01.09.2024 – 31.08.2025
Förderbeitrag: 123'970.- CHF
Abstract
Archaeological and anthropological research frequently utilize human osteological remains to reveal aspects of the daily lives, health, and social organization of past populations. This encompasses factors such as body size, nutrition, life expectancy, habitual activity, trauma, and disease. When contextualized within historical and archaeological frameworks, these data serve as valuable tools for understanding diverse behaviors and social conditions within and across communities. Given the profound impact of these analyses, the methods researchers use to analyze and interpret skeletal material are essential.
The most common methods of skeletal morphology analysis rely on visual, qualitative observations and macro-measurements. While these are useful for broad, categorical classifications such as age, sex, or pathology presence, they become problematic when applied to morphological analyses linked to biomechanical loading, most notably studies of entheseal changes (modifications at the bone insertions for muscles, tendons, and ligaments). These qualitative observations suffer from issues of reliability and repeatability and fail to describe adequately the complexity of bone morphology. Additionally, current research indicates that 1) trabecular micro-architecture is likely more indicative of biomechanical loading than entheses and 2) researchers still do not fully understand the relationship between the type and levels of loading and their influence on bone surface texture, morphology, and internal structure.
This ongoing Postdoc.Mobility project addresses these limitations through two methodological steps. Firstly, it defines and compares methods for quantifying bone surface texture and morphology using micro-CT imaging, optical profilometry, and 3D surface modeling. These methods reveal patterns and structures not discernable to the naked eye, providing quantitative topographical measurements that enable more robust assessments of bone surface variation. Secondly, the project applies these protocols to humeri from a documented skeletal collection (each individual has a documented age, sex, and occupation) and combines them with micro-CT data of the corresponding micro-architecture of the underlying trabecular bone. Integrating surface morphology data with the corresponding trabecular data will help identify correlations between these two types of bone development and help assess its links to factors such as age and occupation. Improving how anthropologists document and interpret bone morphology as a reflection of life processes will strengthen approaches to understanding past populations.
As a final step, this research applies these methods and findings to bioarchaeological investigations of two Bell Beaker cemeteries in Czechia (third millennium BCE). This period is culturally significant as it marks the transition from the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age, when metal technology emerged and prehistory began to shift into protohistory. The study focuses on individuals from the recently excavated Popůvky cemetery and the nearby Hoštice I za Hanou cemetery, two of the largest known Bell Beaker funerary sites. Enhanced surface analyses using 3D imaging technology will provide new insights into activity, health, and their connections to burial traditions. Analyzing these two cemeteries will also offer fresh perspectives concerning the social and biological conditions during this transitional period of prehistory.
