Biological Homogeneity and Familial Segregation in the Iron Age Population of Alfedena (Abruzzo,Italy), Based on Cranial Discrete Traits Analysis

The Iron Age necropolis of Alfedena has been well-known since the last century. In this study 10 non-continuous traits of the cranial skeleton are examined in a series of 94 adult individuals (54 males and 40 females). The division of the Alfedena necropolis into tomb circles has permitted the investigation of the possible existence of familial segregation. Our analysis has shown us that the individuals inhumated in the different tomb circles have a common genetic substrate probably attributable to the strong endogamy present in this population.     

Ancestry Estimation Based on Morphoscopic Traits in a Sample of African Slaves from Lagos,Portugal (15th–17th Centuries)

In 2009, a skeletal collection of 158 individuals was excavated in Valle da Gafaria, Lagos, Portugal. These individuals were buried in an unusual way, having been discarded in an urban dump located outside the medieval city walls, dated from the 15th–17th centuries. Lagos was, at the time, an important slave trade harbour, and during the excavation, the morphological appearance of the skulls and the presence of intentionally modified teeth in some individuals raised suspicion that they were African slaves. Despite the extensive historical information about the Atlantic slave trade, so far, skeletal remains identified as slaves were scarce, especially in Europe. The aim of the present study is to estimate the ancestry of a sample of 33 adult individuals (28 women and 5 men) recovered in the Valle da Gafaria applying eleven morphological characteristics using the naïve Bayes classifier. When comparing the individuals with four groups of classification (European, African, American Indian and Asian), 24 (72.7%) specimens were classified as Africans with a posterior probability greater than 0.90. When only two groups were considered (the African and the European), 31 (93.9%) individuals were classified as Africans with a posterior probability greater than 0.90. These results are in accordance with the historical record and previous genetic studies, suggesting that this sample represents a rare archaeological sample of great interest to the history of the Atlantic slave trade, that is, the Lagos individuals were probably of African ancestry. Although the ancestry is a parameter of the biological profile mainly estimated in forensic Anthropology, this study confirms the importance of its investigation in past populations. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The population of East Sicily during the second and first millennium BC: the problem of the Greek colonies

Knowledge of Sicilian biology during the past is very important in understanding the complex processes that characterized the population of the Mediterranean Basin. The problem of the first Greek settlement in Sicily is essential in understanding and reconstructing the indigenous biological tissue of an island that was and still is a fundamental crossroads for migratory strategies. In this research we studied ten Sicilian series chronologically attributed to the second and first millennium BC , using discrete cranial traits. The results show that the first biologically significant Greek presence in eastern Sicily could go back to the Bronze Age, while the cosmopolitan Hellenistic city of Syracuse showed the nature of the biological pattern during the first millennium BC . Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

苏州木版画的种类和特色

苏州木版画内容以山水、人物、动植物为主体,并兼顾市民趣味与人趣味。     

汉画像石文字考释

本文对汉代画像石文字中的通借字、异体字作了介绍和探讨,对某些疑难字作了具体辨识,为了解、研究汉代文字面貌及增补《碑别字新编》等工具书提供了新的资料。     

Dental Remains from the Middle Paleolithic Layers of Altai Cave Sites*

Two Middle Paleolithic cave sites in the Altai – Okladnikov and Chagyrskaya – have yielded dental remains (mostly isolated teeth) of individuals of various ages. A newly discovered mandibular fragment with teeth from Chagyrskaya Cave reveals a Neanderthal trait combination: anterior fossa and epicristid (midtrigonid crest) on molars, metaconid and crest on premolars. The totality of dental traits support the conclusion previously drawn on the basis of postcranial characters: Altai Neanderthals appear to be intermediate between other Eurasian Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans.     

Etruscan biology: the Tarquinian population,seventh to second century BC (Southern Etruria,Italy)

The aim of this study was the anthropological analysis of an ancient Etruscan population from Tarquinia (Viterbo, Latium, Italy). The chronological period is the seventh to second century BC. Nine discrete traits were scored. The results show the complex situation of the Etruscan sample compared to some coeval Mediterranean populations. A strong endogamy probably existed within the upper levels of the Tarquinian society, and there was probably a biological continuity with the present Tuscans. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

试论中国新兴的人工旅游资源

以1958年美国兴建洛杉矶迪尼斯乐园为标帜,国际上人工旅游资源正迅速崛起。近十年来我国新兴的人工旅游资源不断涌现,主要有:(1)微缩景观公园;(2)影视拍摄基地;(3)游乐园及野生动物园;(4)仿古街及仿古园林;(5)专题博物馆与碑林;(6)旅游节日等。我国新兴的人工旅游资源在地理分布上集中在东部沿海地区,具有求知、求新、求乐、求奇的时代特征,意味着我国旅游形式从单纯的游览观光开始向游客参与和消遣型转变。一些人工旅游资源如深圳"锦绣中华"公园,无锡"唐城"、北京世界公园、哈尔滨冰灯艺术节等取得良好的社会效益和经济效益。今后对人工旅游资源的发展应保持宏观控制与正确引导。     

An exploration of character traits and linear measurements for sexing mountain gazelle (Gazella gazella) skeletons

The skeletal elements of mountain gazelle (Gazella gazella) have proven difficult to sex with statistical confidence due to wide overlap in the body size of the two sexes. We studied a sample of 53 modern mountain gazelle skeletons to determine which character traits and metric measurements best predict sex. The success of the character traits was determined using blind tests while the metrics were examined using discriminant function analysis. The most useful elements include the previously identified horn core, pubis and atlas, but also some new bone portions that preserve well in the archaeological record (e.g., distal tibia, distal metacarpal and metatarsal, and second phalanx). Surprisingly, two elements commonly used in sexing analyses (distal humerus and astragalus) were not among the most effective elements. Although cutting points and discriminant functions for sexing gazelle bone portions are presented here, they do not account for potential body size change and thus are not suited for direct application to archaeological assemblages. Instead, we provide guidelines for application to archaeological gazelle assemblages, most importantly a regression analysis that considers the sex ratios obtained from multiple measurements to predict the sex ratio of archaeological gazelle populations.     

Evidence for temporal and social differences in cranial dimensions in Edo‐period Japanese

This study examined the craniometric traits of the Edo‐period (AD1603–1867) human skeletons from the Hitotsubashi site in Tokyo, compared them with temporally and socially various populations, and attempted to detect the morphological differentiation patterns that the Edo‐period Japanese exhibited over time and under those social/environmental conditions. The materials measured here were the townsmen's crania from the Hitotsubashi site, which were dated back to the early half of the Edo period. The observations revealed that the Hitotsubashi samples were more dolichocephalic than any other Edo series and were different from subsequent Edo series in terms of larger maximum cranial length and smaller maximum cranial breadth. The Hitotsubashi samples were definitely in contrast with those of Tentokuji and Shirogane, both of which included a samurai (warrior) class of the late to final Edo period and exhibited the most brachycephalic crania. It is reasonable to assume that the temporal and social situations were possibly related to the observed cranial variation and that the temporal changes in cranial dimensions in pre‐modern Japan might have reflected the nutritional and environmental conditions. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.