Search

Using discriminant functions obtained from canine dimensions for sex estimation in human skeletons has frequently been proposed as a promising approach within assemblages, even when used in non-adult individuals. However, applicability of this method to adult and non-adult individuals from other assemblages was rarely investigated, probably due to frequently observed inter-population differences in tooth dimensions. In the present study, discriminant functions obtained for permanent canine dimensions at the cemento-enamel junction in a previous study of the early medieval assemblage from Greding, were applied to individuals from a late medieval Jewish cemetery at Erfurt, Germany. The results were validated by aDNA analyses. Prior to the application of the functions, canine dimensions of the assemblages were compared. The comparison showed largely corresponding canine dimensions between the two assemblages. The application of the formulae obtained on the early medieval assemblage to the late medieval assemblage at Erfurt revealed a 100 % correct classification rate in the adult individuals. In non-adults, the correct classification rate was poorer, with 7 of 9 (77.8 %) individuals correctly classified. The study showed that the application of discriminant functions for sex estimation from canine measurements to assemblages other than those for which the functions were developed can lead to high correct classification rates in adults if the average canine dimensions are similar in the respective assemblages. An application to non-adult individuals should only be made with caution as canine dimensions in the "non-survivors" can lead to an over-estimation of the proportion of female non-adults.

We report genome-wide data for 33 Ashkenazi Jews (AJ), dated to the 14th century, following a salvage excavation at the medieval Jewish cemetery of Erfurt, Germany. The Erfurt individuals are genetically similar to modern AJ and have substantial Southern European ancestry, but they show more variability in Eastern European-related ancestry than modern AJ. A third of the Erfurt individuals carried the same nearly-AJ-specific mitochondrial haplogroup and eight carried pathogenic variants known to affect AJ today. These observations, together with high levels of runs of homozygosity, suggest that the Erfurt community had already experienced the major reduction in size that affected modern AJ. However, the Erfurt bottleneck was more severe, implying substructure in medieval AJ. Together, our results suggest that the AJ founder event and the acquisition of the main sources of ancestry pre-dated the 14th century and highlight late medieval genetic heterogeneity no longer present in modern AJ.

We report genome-wide data from 33 Ashkenazi Jews (AJ), dated to the 14

Objective To evaluate processes causing two types of mastoid hypocellularity (Type 1 and Type 3), and to provide histomorphological criteria for a differential diagnosis in archaeological human bone. Materials and methods Eight human crania from the early medieval cemetery in Dirmstein (Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany) displaying secondary obliteration of mastoid air cells were analyzed using light-microscopy and backscattered electron imaging. Results In Type 1 hypocellularity, obliteration starts in the non-pneumatized portion of the mastoid process and extends into the pneumatized portion. The findings could represent a chronic, maybe recurrent condition related to a pathologically altered middle ear mucosa in early childhood. In Type 3, a sequence of resorptive and proliferative processes are present and are consistent with a healing stage of mastoiditis. Conclusions Using histomorphology, in vivo processes resulting in different types of mastoid hypocellularity can be assessed, even in bones that have undergone some degree of diagenesis. Significance The study provides methods to evaluate the etiology of histomorphological changes of the mastoid process, which potentially provides insight into the presence of infection and inflammation in past populations. Limitations Diagenetic modifications of archaeological bone can hinder assessment of histomorphological change, requiring careful evaluation during analysis. Suggestions for further research Including histomorphology in future studies on archaeological human crania can contribute to an improved differential diagnosis of pathological conditions in the middle ear region.

About 100 hominin bones were found during excavations at the Liang Bua cave on the island of Flores, Indonesia. More than 60 of them were assigned to the partial skeleton LB1 which was designated as the holotype of a new species, Homo floresiensis. Analyses of skeletal proportions of LB1 led to the conclusion that its foot was exceptionally long relative to femur and tibia, respectively. This ratio was considered a unique feature that contributes to the definition of the new species. The published illustrations of the in situ-situation and the published inventory of the bones suggest a high degree of commingling rather than the presence of larger anatomically joining units that was asserted in the publications on the findings. The available information further suggests that hand and foot bones of several individuals were found commingled as well. Here I argue, based on the published data, that certain problems exist regarding the correct anatomical identification of some of the phalangeal bones that contributed to the results on which the conclusions about skeletal proportions in LB1 were based. It is further suggested that the assignment of bones to specific individuals is debatable. Conclusions on the taxonomic status of the Liang Bua hominins and their pattern of bipedalism based on these data therefore need to be substantiated by further studies. Specifically, on the basis of the available information, a large relative foot length should no longer be claimed as a unique feature of the presumed new species H. floresiensis.

Hypertrophic osteoarthropathy (HOA) is rarely diagnosed in archaeological human skeletons. Here, we report on the well-preserved skeleton of a middle-adult man from the early Medieval settlement site of Lauchheim (Germany) that exhibits pronounced multi-layered shell-like periosteal new bone formation in a bilaterally symmetric fashion on the long bones, the skeletal elements of the pelvis and those of the pectoral girdle. In addition, the two distal phalanges recovered show signs of osteoclastic resorption on their distal tuberosities. The distribution and morphology of the observed lesions are consistent with a diagnosis of HOA. The adult age at death of the individual and the co-occurrence of "healed" and "active" lesions suggest a secondary form of HOA. Given that only skeletal remains were available for study, the underlying (pulmonary or non-pulmonary) primary disease cannot be definitively ascertained in the present case. No osseous changes were found on the ribs, but signs of osteoclastic resorption were observed on the dorsal surface of the sternal body, which might indicate a retrosternal or mediastinal location of the primary disease. Thus far, only a few archaeological case studies of secondary HOA reported signs of the presumed underlying primary disease, which was of a pulmonary nature in each of the individuals.

Anatomical textbooks describe the lesser trochanter in contemporary humans as being oriented posteromedially. In contrast, orientation of the lesser trochanter towards posterior was observed in some human femora from the Upper Paleolithic, including the femur of a young adult individual from Germany (Irlich 1), radiocarbon dated to 12,500 - 11,200 BP (calibrated AMS age). The present study analysed the orientation of the lesser trochanter in femora originating from an early medieval skeletal assemblage (Greding, Germany) and compared the results with those for the Irlich 1 femur. Eleven landmarks, four on the proximal femur, four on the mid-shaft and three on the distal femur, were recorded with a MicroScribe® digitizer, and analyzed using Auto-CAD® 2010 software. Seven angles and five distances were measured. In the Greding femora, significant differences (P < 0.05) between sexes were found for several linear measurements, while no significant sex-related differences existed for angular measurements. For some angular variables related to the orientation of the lesser trochanter, the values for the Irlich 1 femur lay outside the range of variation of the Greding specimens, reflecting the more posterior orientation of the lesser trochanter in the Irlich 1 femur. This posterior orientation of the lesser trochanter was not associated with a particularly low degree of femoral anteversion. It is hypothesized that the differences in orientation of the lesser trochanter between the Irlich 1 femur (and other femora of Upper Paleolithic individuals) and the femora from Greding could basically reflect differences in traction exercised by the iliopsoas muscle during infancy and childhood between the sedentary agricultural population from Greding and Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherers with a mobile lifestyle.

About 100 hominin bones were found during excavations at the Liang Bua cave on the island of Flores, Indonesia. More than 60 of them were assigned to the partial skeleton LB1 which was designated as the holotype of a new species

This paper reports a case of multiple osteochondromas affecting the antlers and the left zygomatic bone of a free-ranging adult white-tailed buck (Odocoileus virginianus) from Georgia, USA. Along with a few postcranial bones, the antlered cranium of the individual was found in a severely weathered condition and devoid of any soft tissue. The antlers exhibited five pedunculated exostoses that were composed of cancellous bone and, in their peripheral portions, also mineralized cartilage. The largest of the exostoses, located on the right antler, had a maximum circumference of 55 cm. The exostosis arising from the zygomatic bone was broad-based and much smaller than the exophytic outgrowths on the antlers. Diagnosis of the exostoses as osteochondromas was based on their overall morphology, the normal bone structure in their stalk regions, and the continuity of their spongiosa and cortex with the respective components of the parent bones. Antleromas, i.e., pathological outgrowths developing on antlers as a result of insufficient androgen production, were excluded in the differential diagnosis, based on (1) the apparent maturity and, except for the tumors, normal shape of the antlers and (2) the fact that exostosis formation had also affected the zygomatic bone. Previously only a single case of solitary osteochondroma of an antler has been described in the scientific literature. The case presented here is the first report of multiple osteochondromas in a deer. As antlers are regularly collected as trophies, and huge numbers of them are critically inspected each year, the fact that thus far only two cases of antler osteochondromas have been reported suggests that these tumors are very rare.

This study analyses changes in the region of the oval window suggestive of stapedial footplate fixation in archaeological human skeletal remains. We endoscopically investigated 621 temporal bones of 385 individuals from five medieval sites in Germany to identify fixations of the stapedial footplate. For differential diagnosis, four cases suspicious of representing stapes fixation or remnants of the fixed footplate were further investigated using microscopic techniques (brightfield and darkfield imaging, phase-contrast microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, CLSM, SEM-BSE imaging), and EDX-analysis, either alone or in combination. Our findings suggest that only two of the four cases represented an intravital fixation of the stapedial footplate. The first case was diagnosed as caused by sclerosis of the annular ligament, the second cases as representing an example of congenital footplate fixation. In a third case, structures that were initially diagnosed as remnants of the footplate were shown to be soil particles. In the fourth case the structures attached to the oval window were identified as apatitic deposits formed by diagenetic agents. Our findings highlight the need for microscopic analyses to distinguish intravital from postmortem changes in the region of the oval window and the differential diagnosis of intravital footplate fixations.

Ear ossicles have thus far received little attention in biological anthropology. For the use of these bones as a source of biological information, it is important to know how reproducibly they can be measured. We determined inter-observer errors for measurements recorded by two observers on mallei (N = 119) and incudes (N = 124) obtained from human skeletons recovered from an early medieval cemetery in southern Germany. Measurements were taken on-screen on images of the bones obtained with a digital microscope. In the case of separately acquired images, mean inter-observer error ranged between 0.50 and 9.59% (average: 2.63%) for malleus measurements and between 0.67 and 7.11% (average: 2.01%) for incus measurements. Coefficients of reliability ranged between 0.72 and 0.99 for the malleus measurements and between 0.61 and 0.98 for those of the incus. Except for one incus measurement, readings performed by the two observers on the same set of photographs produced lower inter-observer errors and higher coefficients of reliability than the method involving separate acquisition of images by the observers. Across all linear measurements, absolute inter-observer error was independent of the mean size of the measured variable for both bones. So far, studies on human ear ossicles have largely neglected the issue of measurement error and its potential implication for the interpretation of the data. Knowledge of measurement error is of special importance if results obtained by different researchers are combined into a single database. It is, therefore, suggested that the reproducibility of measurements should be addressed in all future studies of ear ossicles.

Since antibiotics have become available, mastoiditis has become a rare disease in modern Western societies. However, it is still common in developing countries. It can be hypothesized that in earlier historical and prehistoric times, mastoiditis must have posed a serious threat to people's lives, and that the prevalence of this disease is probably underrepresented in the paleopathological literature. The present study identifies pathological changes in the pneumatized cells of the mastoid process in human skeletal samples from two early medieval cemeteries from Germany (Dirmstein: n = 152 mastoids, Rhens: n = 71 mastoids), using macroscopic, endoscopic, low-power microscopic, scanning-electron and light microscopic techniques, and draws some epidemiological conclusions as to the frequency of the disease diagnosed in the archaeological samples. Osseous changes because of mastoiditis were diagnosed in 83.4% of the temporal bones. The frequency in the skeletal sample from Dirmstein was higher than in the sample from Rhens. In both populations, males were more often affected than females and older individuals more often than younger individuals. The high frequency of mastoiditis observed was most likely due to an accumulation of osseous changes during individual lifetimes and supports the hypothesis that mastoiditis was a serious health problem in pre-antibiotic times. It may be assumed that subclinical forms of mastoiditis and their osseous manifestations may even nowadays occur more often than was previously thought. It is suggested that the disease should be given more consideration in paleopathological investigations. Am J Phys Anthropol 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Mastoiditis is a disease that follows otitis media and may lead to severe endocranial complications. Most studies on mastoiditis and middle ear diseases in archaeological skeletal remains are based on radiological investigations. The following study describes the morphological changes in the pneumatised cells of the mastoid process due to mastoiditis in archaeological skeletal remains, based on macroscopic, endoscopic, light and scanning-electron microscopic investigations. For the purposes of this study, we used an early medieval Frankish population from Dirmstein, State of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The landscape at central Rhine and Mosel is one of the most famous archaeological sites in middle Europe. A layer of pumicetufa from the eruption of the lake Laacher volcano 13,000 years B.P. is an important mark which approximately divides the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic period. Although numerous excavations in this area have been carried out, quaternary hominid remains are quite rare. A few short notes from the early 1920s reports of human bones "below the pumice, in Weissenthurm, District Mayen-Koblenz, Rhineland-Palatinate". However, these remains were probably destroyed in the Second World War in Munich on April 25, 1944. Recently, some new information has appeared on the discovery and the whereabouts of these fragments. The chronological classification of the Weissenthurm-hominid into the Pleistocene based on this information remains uncertain.

In 1997 one of the authors (AvB) found three pieces of a calotte of a Neanderthal in a crater depression within the slag-cone volcanic-group called “Wannenkopfe” near the village of Ochtendung in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Three stone tools of the Mousterian culture were directly associated with the hominid fossil. The individual can be securely stratigraphically and absolutely chronologically placed within the early glacial phase of the second last glaciation, the Saale. A comparative-morphological analysis confirms earlier analyses that the remains were those of an adult male. The relatively old age establishes it as another important find of an early Neanderthal in Europe. In absolute years it dates roughly to the transitional time period of the latest EuropeanHomo erectus to the earliest Neanderthal. Morphological analysis confirms that the individual is close to a typical Neanderthal with also some additional erectoid characters. This observation supports the most widely accepted view that the Neanderthal of Europe evolved from an autochthonousHomo erectus group.

The following case report describes in detail a 57 years old (+/- 5 years) male individual from a Franconian graveyard in Insheim, Province of Rhineland-Palatinate, dating to between the 6th and 7th century A.D. The individual displays a number of unusual pathologies. The atlas shows a complete aplasia of the posterior arch, probably resulting in a torticollis. The changed static induced a massive spondylar-arthrotic degeneration of the cervical spine on the right-lateral portion. On the fronto-parietal section two fractures are visible which were caused by a sharp and violent force. The area in question measures 7 by 10 cm. It has healed in a dislocated position. The second location displays marks of a 6 cm long sword-cut which did strike the skull obtusely on the left parietal. In addition to the above the skull displays on its right side a great number of small circular hole defects which also appear on ribs, vertebrae, clavicula and the mandible. They present the typical picture of a plasmocytoma. As an expression of a secondary hyperparathyreoidism one can recognize ossifications of soft tissue on the calcaneus, tibia, fibula and patella as well as intravital loss of mandibular dentition. It is quite remarkable that the individual reached a relative old age despite of his numerous and serious physical encroachments due to the apparent and obvious intentions of his aggressive contemporaries to kill him.

The Bronze Age site in the Tollense valley, Germany, has yielded thousands of human and animal bones and a number of archaeological artifacts. Several of the human bones exhibit blunt and sharp force lesions, and the assemblage has been interpreted as representing victims of a large scale conflict. One of the earliest finds is a human humerus with an embedded flint arrowhead. Alleged signs of healing initially reported for this humerus based on clinical CT imaging were interpreted as evidence of an antemortem lesion. The present study, using micro-CT imaging, revealed that the arrowhead lesion in the humerus, contrary to the previous interpretation, shows no signs of healing. The structure previously assumed to represent a sclerotic margin around the wound canal was shown to actually represent compacted trabecular debris. Thus, our re-analysis of the specimen led to a re-classification of the arrow wound as a perimortem lesion. The findings of the present study demonstrate the value of micro-CT imaging as a non-destructive method for obtaining information on the nature of bone lesions and healing reactions critical for the reconstruction of interpersonal conflict scenarios in the past.

We present the case of a healed tibial fracture in a fossil bison (Bison menneri) from the late Early Pleistocene site of Untermassfeld. The tibia belonged to a large bull and was found as part of an articulated unit, including the lateral malleolus and the elements of the tarsus. A comminuted fracture had occurred in the midshaft region, with considerable overriding of the two main fragments. The fracture healed with shortening and angulation of the bone, and the misaligned fragments are firmly united by a thick bridging callus that exhibits a coarse surface structure. This indicates that the initial phases of fracture healing had been completed, but that the process had not appreciably progressed to the remodelling phase when the animal died. The trauma to the left hind leg and the shortening of the extremity certainly caused an impairment of locomotion. After surviving the initial phases of fracture healing, the bison may have fallen victim to one of the large predators present in the Untermassfeld fauna or it drowned in one of the high flood events that occurred in the valley of the Early Pleistocene Werra River and led to the accumulation of skeletal remains at the Untermassfeld site.

Mastoid hypocellularity is frequently used as an indicator of chronic otits media in paleopathological investigations. The condition can be caused by a poor development of air cells during infancy and early childhood (primary hypocellularity) or by obliteration of air cells with bone during later life (secondary hypocellularity). We performed a macroscopic, radiographic, and microscopic study of pneumatization patterns in 151 mastoid processes of individuals from an early-medieval cemetery in Germany, with emphasis on the architecture of the nonpneumatized portion of hypocellular mastoid processes. Two types of primary mastoid hypocellularity were distinguished. The first was characterized by a poorly defined boundary between the pneumatized portion and the nonpneumatized portion and a trabecular thickening in the spongy bone of the latter. The second showed a well-defined boundary between the pneumatized portion and the nonpneumatized portion and normal spongy bone architecture in the latter. The key feature for the diagnosis of secondary hypocellularity was the recognition of the walls of former air cells. Our observations closely match the histopathological findings by Wittmaack (Wittmaack: Uber die normale und die pathologische Pneumatisation des Schlafenbeins. Jena: Gustav Fischer [1918]), who developed a concept of the normal pneumatization process of the temporal bone and the pathogenesis of aberrant pneumatization. We agree with Wittmaack's view that two types of primary mastoid hypocellularity can be distinguished morphologically. Regarding the pathogenesis of these types, we, however, conclude that Wittmaack's concept needs to be revised and updated. Further studies are required to establish the relationship between morphological findings in cases of mastoid hypocellularity and the health status of individuals.

The landscape at central Rhine and Mosel is one of the most famous archaeological sites in middle Europe. A layer of pumicetufa from the eruption of the lake Laacher volcano 13,000 years B.P. is an important mark which approximately divides the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic period. Although numerous excavations in this area have been carried out, quaternary hominid remains are quite rare. A few short notes from the early 1920s reports of human bones "below the pumice, in Weissenthurm, District Mayen-Koblenz, Rhineland-Palatinate". However, these remains were probably destroyed in the Second World War in Munich on April 25, 1944. Recently, some new information has appeared on the discovery and the whereabouts of these fragments. The chronological classification of the Weissenthurm-hominid into the Pleistocene based on this information remains uncertain.

The following case report describes in detail a 57 years old (+/- 5 years) male individual from a Franconian graveyard in Insheim, Province of Rhineland-Palatinate, dating to between the 6th and 7th century A.D. The individual displays a number of unusual pathologies. The atlas shows a complete aplasia of the posterior arch, probably resulting in a torticollis. The changed static induced a massive spondylar-arthrotic degeneration of the cervical spine on the right-lateral portion. On the fronto-parietal section two fractures are visible which were caused by a sharp and violent force. The area in question measures 7 by 10 cm. It has healed in a dislocated position. The second location displays marks of a 6 cm long sword-cut which did strike the skull obtusely on the left parietal. In addition to the above the skull displays on its right side a great number of small circular hole defects which also appear on ribs, vertebrae, clavicula and the mandible. They present the typical picture of a plasmocytoma. As an expression of a secondary hyperparathyreoidism one can recognize ossifications of soft tissue on the calcaneus, tibia, fibula and patella as well as intravital loss of mandibular dentition. It is quite remarkable that the individual reached a relative old age despite of his numerous and serious physical encroachments due to the apparent and obvious intentions of his aggressive contemporaries to kill him.