The ‘caries correction factor’: A new method of calibrating dental caries rates to compensate for antemortem loss of teeth

Dental caries rates are frequently based exclusively upon the number of carious teeth observed in a human skeletal series. However, a portion of the teeth lost antemortem will be lost because of severe carious decay, a factor not considered by many investigators. This paper reviews and critiques earlier attempts to adjust dental caries rates to account for antemortem loss of teeth, and proposes a new ‘caries correction factor’ that is population specific, requires no assumptions, and is sensitive to the temporal and ecogeographical context of a skeletal series. An example of how to apply this caries correction factor is provided using new data from the Bronze Age site of Harappa in northern Pakistan. Its value in dental palaeopathology is reviewed with two recent studies of dental caries in the Arabian Gulf, and concludes with a consideration of its possible application to non-human primates.     

The distribution of osteoarthritis of the hands in a skeletal population

The distribution of osteoarthritis of the hands was studied in 101 skeletons from archaeological sites in England. The results are similar to those found in epidemiological studies of modern populations. Osteoarthritis of the hands was more common in females than in males, and in females tended to involve a greater number of joints. The distal and proximal interphalangeal joints were commonly affected, the former more frequently than the latter, but otherwise the disease was largely confined to the first ray of the hand, centred on the trapezium. It is concluded that the pattern of osteoarthritis in the hand has probably not changed greatly over several hundred years.     

Supra‐acetabular cysts in a medieval skeletal population

This study is an investigation of supra‐acetabular cysts in non‐arthrotic hips in a large Medieval British skeletal series. Lesions were found to occur in 10% of adult innominates, and were more common in males. Evidence is presented for an aetiology of trauma. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Spondylolysis in the lower thoracic–upper lumbar spine in a British medieval population

Spondylolysis is generally a condition of the lower lumbar spine, but occasionally it is observed at cranial to L4. It is generally agreed that spondylolysis in the lower lumbar spine represents fatigue failure of the neural arch. However, whether a biomechanical explanation is adequate to explain lesions cranial to L4 is disputed. Morphological aspects of spondylolysis at T12–L3 (five cases) are compared with those of lesions at L4–L6 (24 cases) in a mediaeval English skeletal series with the aim of shedding light upon any differences in aetiology of lesions at the two sites. It was found that spondylolysis at T12–L3 was more often unilateral than in L4–L6. In T12–L3, clefts more often took an angulated, dog‐leg course across the pars interarticularis, whereas most in L4–L6 were fairly straight and had an oblique orientation. In T12–L3, clefts often had facetted opposing surfaces suggestive of a diarthrodial joint, but this was only seen once in L4–L6. It is suggested on morphological grounds that facetted defects are more likely congenital than acquired. The need for consideration of factors in addition to activity regimes when interpreting spondylolysis in earlier populations is emphasised. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Virtue Ethic Difference in the Just War Discourse of James Turner Johnson and Catholic Social Teaching

Abstract

In this article, I investigate how incorporating virtue ethics into the process of interpreting and responding to conflict re-shapes the understanding and application of just war theory. More specifically, I analyze James Turner Johnson's idea of just war and the implications of Thomistic virtue ethics. My argument in this article is that Johnson's rule-based idea of just war theory lacks the more integrated virtue ethic, which we find in Thomas and in the re-appropriation of Thomistic virtue ethics in contemporary Catholic Social Teaching's discourse on just war. This contributes to Johnson's idea of just war being inconsistent with the direction of contemporary Catholic Social Teaching on just war theory, particularly regarding the presumption against war. His lack of a virtue ethic also contributes to an inadequate understanding, development, and application of basic just war criteria, particularly from a Catholic perspective.     

Palaeopathology at the Khan-el-Ahmar site: Health and disease in a Byzantine monastery in the Judean Desert,Israel

The present study describes the skeletal material that was uncovered at the crypt of the monastery of St Euthymius at Khan-el-Ahmar, in the Judean Desert, near Jerusalem. Comparative morphometric analysis with contemporaneous populations and the palaeodemographic and palaeopathological data disprove many historians' well accepted notions regarding early Christians in the Judean Desert. In the present paper we suggest that the majority of people who were buried at the Khan-el-Ahmar monastery derived mainly from the autochthonous population of the region and were not migrants or fugitives from surrounding countries. It appears that this community of monks lived in a rather protected environment despite their desert surroundings. In the monastery, they maintained a high level of personal hygiene, had adequate food supplies and were not subjected to repeated acts of violence from their neighbours.     

The occurrence and implications of post-mortem ‘pink teeth’ in forensic and archaeological cases

On sectioning six of eight externally well-preserved teeth taken from four skeletons from Medieval Chichester they displayed a superficial similarity to teeth described in the forensic literature as ‘pink teeth’. This article reviews the occurrence of ‘pink teeth’ in forensic specimens and describes the teeth from Chichester using a variety of analytical techniques. We conclude that, despite the similarities, the pink coloration in the archaeological specimens has a different cause from the forensic samples, and that in archaeological contexts the pinkness is probably related to post-mortem change brought about by saprophytic fungi. However, the exact cause of the coloration remains unexplained. We discuss briefly the implications of this observation for dental ageing techniques and other studies of archaeological teeth.     

Analysis of enamel ultrastructure in archaeology: The identification of Ovis aries and Capra hircus dental remains

Ultrastructural features of deep, intermediate and superficial enamel were quantitatively assessed for the mandibular first permanent molars of 10 specimens each of the domestic sheep (Ovis aries) and goat (Capra hircus). The means of a number of variables differed interspecifically at high levels of statistical significance, especially with regard to the enamel of intermediate depth. A canonical discriminant function analysis employing nine variables at all three enamel depths resulted in the correct taxonomic assignment of 95% of the specimens comprising the present sample. These results, coupled with the simple preparative and analytical methods presented here, may enable archaeozoologists to utilize enamel ultrastructure in order to discriminate between fragmentary dental remains of these caprine species.     

Tracing population mobility in the Aegean using isotope geochemistry: a first map of local biologically available Sr/Sr signatures

Strontium isotope ratio (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) analysis of archaeological human skeletal remains is an efficient method of investigating past population movement and residential mobility by determining probable geographical origins for the individuals examined. For this to be achieved, however, a map of biologically available ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr signatures across the region investigated is needed. This paper presents a first such map for the Aegean, based on ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values recovered mainly from archaeological animal dental enamel and modern snail shells from sites largely distributed in the southern part of this region. Although not exhaustive, this comprehensive dataset of local biologically available ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr signatures shows a marked difference between Mainland sites of the Pindos and Parnassos zones and the islands of south-eastern Aegean crossed by the Sub-Pelagonian zone (0.70808–0.70869), and sites in the central Cyclades and the north-eastern Aegean islands falling into the Attic-Cycladic metamorphic belt and the Vardar zone, respectively (0.70926–0.71187). Biologically available ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values from sites on central Euboea in the Pelagonian zone, south-eastern Attica and the western Cyclades in the Attic-Cycladic metamorphic belt, and on Crete in the Gavrovo zone are also relatively high (0.70853–0.70931), but lower than those recorded for the central Cyclades and the north-eastern Aegean.     

Dental calculus and other dental disease in a human skeleton of the Okhotsk Culture unearthed at Hamanaka-2 site,Rebun-Island,Hokkaido, Japan

A human skeleton of the Okhotsk Culture from the Hamanaka-2 site of Rebun Island, northern part of Hokkaido, was found with abnormally large deposits of dental calculus, especially on the right upper 2nd and 3rd molars. This may relate to the early loss of the corresponding right lower molars. Root apex cementum hyperplasia and resorption of alveolar bone due to periodontal disease were also observed; these may have been associated with the calculus. The severe dental calculus and other diseases observed appear to have nothing to do with the subsistence pattern and ethnological background of the Okhotsk Culture, but rather with the individual's poor oral hygiene and digestive dysfunction.     

A longitudinal study of tooth growth in a single individual based on long- and short-period incremental markings in dentine and enamel

Ground sections of teeth from a single individual revealed approximately 30 fluorescent lines in the dentine resulting from successive courses of tetracycline antibiotics given over a period of approximately 12 years. In addition, many teeth showed long-period incremental markings in the dentine. Short-period daily cross-striations in the enamel were used to calculate the periodicity of the long-period incremental lines in both enamel and dentine. The incremental markings in the dentine were then used to calibrate the time of administration of each of the courses of tetracycline antibiotics. Enlarged micrographs of the teeth, constructed using fluorescence microscopy, were used to measure the increase in height of different teeth throughout the growth period on each occasion the tetracycline antibiotics were given. The times of initial mineralization of the teeth and the duration of crown formation were also determined for each tooth section. Line plots of tooth height against age were computed and used to calculate the rate of increase in tooth height during crown and root formation for one example of each tooth type. Initial rates of increase in height during enamel apposition and coronal dentine formation were fast, between 10 μm and 14 μm per day. During the latter phase of crown formation and during early root formation, tooth height increased at a slower rate of between 4 μm and 6 μm per day. Rates of increase in tooth height then rose to between 13 μm and 26 μm per day during the second half of root formation before falling off to a rate of approximately 4 μm per day during root completion (as the root apex formed). The times of initial crown mineralization and the total crown formation times estimated in this individual were all within the range known for modern humans but there was comparatively early mineralization of the third permanent molar. These findings are discussed in the context of other studies on human dental development.     

Strontium isotope evidence of migration and diet in relation to ritual tooth ablation: a case study from the Inariyama Jomon site,Japan

Ritual tooth ablation was extensively practiced among Jomon (Japanese Neolithic) societies in their final phase (ca. 3000-2300 BP). This tradition includes two different tooth ablation patterns, type 4I and type 2C, referring to extraction of the mandibular incisors and canines, respectively. However, the reason for this difference is unclear. Previous carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis of human remains from the Inariyama shell mound revealed that type 4I individuals were more dependent on terrestrial resources and type 2C individuals on marine resources. To test this hypothesis, we performed strontium (Sr) isotope (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) analyses on the same skeletal remains and on modern plants around the site. Because Sr isotope ratios of plants differ according to the local geology and seawater has a consistent Sr isotope ratio, the Sr isotope ratios of tooth enamel can reveal both migration and diet. Comparing Sr isotope ratios in plants and seawater with those of tooth enamel, we identified four possible immigrants. Type 4I locals had significantly higher Sr isotope ratios than type 2C locals. The ratios of the type 4I and type 2C locals were close to those of terrestrial plants and seawater, respectively, suggesting that type 4I locals had incorporated much Sr from terrestrial resources and type 2C locals from marine resources. These results support the hypothesis that ritual tooth ablation reflects dietary differences throughout an individual’s life, and they suggest possible occupational differentiation among the Jomon people.     

Radiographic analysis of dental development used in age determination of infant and juvenile skulls from a medieval archaeological site in Norway

Age determination based on radiographic examination of teeth and tooth development stages was performed on the infant and juvenile skeletons from St Olav's churchyard in Trondheim. All the 248 skulls with jaws and teeth were radiographed. Based on the apical closure of the second molar, 198 skulls were determined to be older than 15 years. In 38 of the remaining skulls the age could be determined radiographically based on tooth development stages. The age was below 8 years in 25 individuals (66 per cent). The correlation between the radiographic and a direct inspection age determination method was 0.969. The greatest discrepancies between the two methods were found in the age group 12–15 years.     

In Praise of the Ordinary Man: Popular Media,Social Hierarchy and Identity in a North Indian Text

This article recounts a story found in a popular genre of religious literature known as vrat katha[ritual storytelling]. The narrative is of an “ordinary” low-caste man and his everyday struggles. It tells of the social and economic suffering experienced by the poor man upon encountering god (called Trilokinath/Vishnu) and receiving his blessing, mediated through a series of miraculous events. However, the transformative power of the events and fortunes that follow is undermined by a Brahmin who refuses to acknowledge the poor devotee, rebuffing his ritual gift [prasad] as polluted and considering him untouchable. The ambiguous nature of the gift and the ideology and practice of devotion [Bhakti] present an intriguing and complex picture of Hinduism, revealed in the multiple social roles and social contexts in which subalterns operate in the course of their day-to-day lives.

?I offer a critical reading of this fascinating story. What seems like a straightforward, standardised ritual text is analysed in terms of its competing and sometimes subversive views of “dominant” Hinduism. By examining the tensions and ambivalence in the text I argue for a more nuanced rendition of subaltern power and agency which cannot be reduced to that of resistance and opposition alone.     

Bighorn hunting,resource depression,and rock art in the Coso Range,eastern California: a computer simulation model

The extraordinary record of prehistoric rock art depicting tens of thousands of animal images in the Coso Range of eastern California provides an opportunity to study the relationship between aboriginal hunting, forager ecology, bighorn prey population levels, and the production of rock art. We review archaeofaunal evidence that the Coso desert bighorn sheep population was strongly depleted during the Newberry era after 1500 B.C. We discuss the dating of the rock art and show a correlation between bighorn depletion and increased rock art production. These data are consistent with the arrival of Numic foragers ca. A.D. 600 who competed with the Coso Pre-Numics and eventually terminated the Coso rock art tradition. An ecological predator-prey computer simulation of the human populations (Numic and Pre-Numics), the sheep population, and the rock art “population”, demonstrates these proposed interconnections and gives a reasonable fit to the observed rock art production rate.     

Stable isotopic evidence for diet in a Roman and Late Roman population from Leptiminus,Tunisia

This study investigates the diet of the Roman and Late Roman population of Leptiminus on the Mediterranean coast of Tunisia. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of human bone collagen and carbonate samples obtained from individuals buried in four cemeteries at Leptiminus was conducted in order to reconstruct the diet of the population, investigate the relative importance of marine vs. terrestrial resources, explore sex-, age-, and status-based variations in diet, examine temporal changes in the types of foods consumed, and compare the diet at Leptiminus with that of other Roman populations. The results of this study indicate that the residents of Leptiminus consumed a diet that was heavily reliant on terrestrial plant resources with the addition of a significant amount of marine resources. There were no significant sex differences in isotope values. In contrast, distinct dietary differences were seen between the adults and children. Nitrogen isotope values suggest that weaning began before the age of two and was completed by about 3 years of age, a finding consistent with previous isotopic studies of Roman samples. A temporal shift in diet is suggested by the nitrogen isotope values measured in samples from the most recent cemetery. A comparison of the data from Leptiminus with that derived from other Roman sites indicates that regional variability in diet existed within the Empire.     

Oxygen isotopic evidence of residence and migration in a Greek colonial population on the Black Sea

Oxygen isotope analysis was performed on the enamel of the first and third permanent molars of 60 individuals excavated from the Kalfata-Budjaka necropolis associated with the ancient Greek colony of Apollonia Pontica (5th–3rd centuries BC) on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria. The objective of this study was to examine the geographic origins and residential histories of these individuals and to compare the isotopic data with archaeological evidence derived from the burials in an attempt to distinguish ‘locals’ from ‘non-locals’. The analysis revealed that 55 of the 60 individuals sampled were either locally born or came from areas outside of Apollonia with isotopically similar δ¹⁸O values. Five individuals were identified as ‘non-local’, and their isotope values suggest that they originated from areas with higher δ¹⁸O_w of precipitation, most likely the Aegean region. Unfortunately, the archaeological evidence associated with these five skeletons provides no clues as to their place of origin.     

A strontium and oxygen isotope assessment of a possible fourth century immigrant population in a Hampshire cemetery,southern England

The aim of the project was to test the hypothesis, using oxygen and strontium isotopes, that a group of burials in the Late Roman cemetery of Lankhills, Winchester, southern England, were migrants from the Danube region of central Europe. The method assumes that the oxygen isotope composition of immigrants from this locale would be significantly more depleted that any one British origin and that the restricted range in Sr isotope compositions produced by chalk in the overlying biosphere of southern England would discriminate between the local population and settlers from elsewhere. As a control for the immigrant group a sample of Romano-British individuals were examined to provide a comparative data set. The results showed that the majority of the individuals used to define the “local” control group plotted in a restricted field of strontium and oxygen isotope composition that was consistent with the values expected for the Hampshire area of southern England. By contrast, the “exotic”, putatively immigrant population generated a much more dispersed field including four with δ¹⁸O drinking water values of −10‰ or less, which supports a non-British origin for these individuals. The study shows that the archaeological data suggesting that there is an exotic population buried at the Lankhills cemetery is generally supported by the isotope work, although the “exotic” group appears to a rather dispersed set of individuals rather than a single population from a restricted overseas location.     

The prevalence of,and the relationship between some spinal diseases in a human skeletal population from London

The prevalence of osteoarthritis, osteophytosis, intervertebral disc disease and diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) was determined in a group of skeletons excavated from the crypt of Christ Church, Spitalfields. Age-specific prevalence rates were calculated from the group of skeletons for which age at death was known from intact coffin plates. Osteoarthritis of the facet joints occurred most frequently in the cervical and upper thoracic regions and was also common in the lower lumbar spine. The disease was more frequently bilateral in the lumbar spine than in upper regions. Osteophytes were common in the thoracic and lumbar spines, whereas intervertebral disc disease was confined almost completely to the cervical region. Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis seemed to be underrepresented in this group, but was more common in males than in females. Age correlated significantly with all the conditions except DISH. Multiple regression analysis was carried out using each of the conditions as the dependent variable in turn. Age accounted for more of the variance than any of the other conditions added as independent variables.