湖北襄阳法龙付岗墓地发掘简报

本报道了湖北襄阳法龙村付岗墓地的9座墓葬及出土的32件陶器和7件铜器。该墓地的时代为战国晚期至西汉早期。发掘认为,付岗墓地可能是邹湾遗址的公共平民墓地。     

郑州四方汇泽清华·紫光园小区东周墓发掘简报

2009年7月-9月,郑州市文物考古研究院对河南四方汇泽清华.紫光园小区经济适用房项目工程内古文化遗迹进行了考古发掘,清理东周墓葬28座。墓葬均为长方形竖穴土坑墓,有棺椁,个别墓葬有头箱和腰坑。葬式以仰身直肢为主,另有仰身屈肢和俯身直肢葬。随葬器物组合为鬲、盂、豆、罐。对研究郑州地区东周墓葬形制具有重要价值。     

河南安阳市固岸墓地Ⅱ区51号东魏墓

2005～2007年,为配合南水北调工程。河南省文物考古研究所等对河南省安阳市固岸墓地进行了考古发掘,清理了一大批墓葬,其中以北朝晚期墓葬为主。截至2007年8月底,在固岸墓地共清理北魏墓葬近10座、东魏墓葬90多座、北齐墓葬60座。由于在此之前所发现的东魏墓葬较少,而且均为东魏皇室、贵族墓葬,而此次在固岸墓地所     

西司马墓地与殷遗民

西司马墓地中部偏西的82座墓葬,从出土器物、葬制葬俗来看,年代应为西周早期,最早可到武王时期,最晚不出成王时期,墓主应是殷遗民。其中西向墓和南向墓应分属两族,二者在墓葬形态和财富上有着较为明显的差异。西司马殷遗民墓地很可能就是武王时期迁徙殷遗民政策的结果。     

从顾家坡墓地的发掘看史前时代文化交叉地带的部落冲突

顾家坡墓地是湖北省第一次完整揭露的一处史前时代的墓地 ,共发现墓葬 2 37座 ,时代为大溪文化晚期到屈家岭文化时期 (距今约 5 30 0年～ 4 6 0 0年 )。通过研究作者注意到 :一定数量的多人二次合葬墓 ;6 0 %左右的男性随葬有石钺 ,有的还同时随葬有骨镞 ,却没有见到石质生产工具用于随葬的情形 ;有的人可能是弓箭的受害者 ;可能存在猎头的现象。综合以上现象 ,以及与周围地区大致同时代的墓地的对比 ,作者认为 ,部落冲突的现象在史前时代是确实存在的 ,而文化交叉地带的部落冲突又远远激烈于文化中心地带。     

Cold-worked and annealed bronze objects and relevant motif techniques in the Chinese Bronze Age: Analysis of bronze sheets found at Songjia cemetery in Shaanxi,China

Six thin Chinese bronze chariot accessory sheets from Songjia cemetery in Shaanxi province were dated to the late Western Zhou dynasty (ninth to eighth centuries bce ) and analysed for their elemental composition and motif techniques. The objects were cold worked and annealed with embossed motifs and carved lines. This is the only case of cold working and annealing with embossed motifs and carved lines in China; these techniques may have come from or been influenced by other cultures. These findings are important for revealing the development of the cold-working, annealing techniques and relevant motif techniques in China.     

A Note on the Demographic and Health Pattern of a Historical Sleeping Sickness Cemetery at Letsholathebe Memorial Hospital,Maun, Botswana

A part of a historical cemetery used to bury victims of sleeping sickness in Maun, Botswana, was recently uncovered by a water supply improvement construction project. The cemetery had become obliterated from the surface and from the memories of the people resulting in the use of the land for residential purposes. Twelve skeletons were excavated along the water supply trench and have since been buried at one of the new village cemeteries. There were eight males, two females and two individuals of unknown sex. They were young adults ranging in age from 18 to 35 years at the time of death. Dental modifications were used to estimate the cultural identities of two individuals. Some of the remains had been buried with body clothing such as belts and necklaces. Poor dental health was most probably associated with poor nutrition and poor oral hygiene among the population. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Activity Reconstruction of Post‐Medieval Dutch Rural Villagers from Upper Limb Osteoarthritis and Entheseal Changes

The first objective of this study is to reconstruct levels and types of physical activity and associated sexual and social differences using human skeletal remains from the predominately 19th century Dutch cemetery of Middenbeemster. For most individuals, life in the Beemster centred around dairy farming and was heavily based on manual labor, with a purported higher class of wealthier individuals performing less manual labor. Two skeletal markers of activity are examined in the upper limb of late young adult and middle‐aged adults of both sexes (26–49 years, n = 69): osteoarthritis (OA) and entheseal changes (EC). Results support the hypothesis that the majority of the population engaged in high levels of physical activity; however, a group with a clearly lower or different pattern of activity, possibly representing a higher, less active class, was not discernible. This may be due to a low number of less active individuals in the analysed sample and/or the heterogeneity of occupations and activities. A gendered division of labour was evident in the EC data with males having more pronounced muscle attachments in almost all sites, especially the biceps brachii, used primarily in lifting. Females had more pronounced triceps brachii, which may be due to activities that required pushing or pulling with the elbow in a flexed position. The prevalence and severity of OA did not differ between the sexes. While this could be interpreted to indicate men and women engaged in a similar level of strenuous activity, hormonal and anatomical differences limit the strength of the comparison. The second objective of this study is to evaluate the concordance of OA and EC as activity markers. The correlation between OA and EC is very low, illustrating their variable and complex etiologies. Etiological factors need further research for OA and EC to become more reliable activity markers. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mandibular Fracture and Dislocation in a Case Study from the Jewish Cemetery of Lucena (CÓRDOBA), in South Iberian Peninsula (8th–12th ad)

The skeletal remains of an adult female have been exhumed in an 11th century tomb in the mediaeval Jewish cemetery of Ronda Sur, in the city of Lucena (Córdoba, Spain). Examination of the skull and mandible revealed evidences of bilateral condylar fracture and dislocation. Lesions were observed macroscopically and radiology was used as a complementary method of scrutiny, especially in cases of unclear observation. Irregular morphology of the condyles and coronoid processes, shallow glenoid fossa, altered and abnormal joint surfaces anterior to the glenoid fossa, and reduced height of both ascending rami were observed. Ante‐mortem tooth loss, slight wear of occlusal surface and asymmetrical occlusal deposit of dental calculus were found. Radiologically, degenerative changes in the condyles and reparative bone in both coronoid processes have been identified. Dislocation of the condyles and lack of adequate treatment probably led to disruption of masticatory patterns and related structures, such as muscle attachments, articular disc and ligaments. Bilateral remodelled fracture and the altered appearance of the joint structures could probably mean that the individual survived the injury by several years. This type of fracture could be the consequence of direct blow to the mental or submental region that was transmitted in a direction that raised the mandible, causing the condylar head to collide directly with the mandibular fossa. Very few mandibular fractures in ancient skulls have been described in Spain, and this case is the first example found in a Spanish archaeological skeletal assemblage. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.