Rationale Strontium isotope analysis can be applied to the calcined human otic capsule in the petrous part (pars petrosa ossis temporalis; PP) to gain information on childhood mobility in... Show moreRationale Strontium isotope analysis can be applied to the calcined human otic capsule in the petrous part (pars petrosa ossis temporalis; PP) to gain information on childhood mobility in archaeological and forensic contexts. However, only a thin layer of the otic capsule, the inner cortex, demonstrates virtually no remodelling. This paper proposes an improved sampling method for the accurate sampling of the inner cortex of the otic capsule to ensure that Sr-87/Sr-86 ratios related to early childhood are obtained.Methods Calcined rib and diaphyseal fragments and PP from ten cremation deposits are sampled for strontium isotope analysis, whereby our improved sampling strategy is applied to sample the inner cortex of the otic capsule. This allows inter- and intraskeletal Sr-87/Sr-86 comparison within an Iron Age collection from Oss, The Netherlands.Results Forty percent (4/10) of the calcined PP that were evaluated for this study show marked differences in Sr-87/Sr-86 (0.00035-0.00065) between the inner cortex and the bone sample surrounding this layer, the external cortex that has higher remodelling rates. Differences in Sr-87/Sr-86 between various skeletal elements also aided in the identification of the minimum number of individuals.Conclusions Our study demonstrates the problematic nature of the external cortex and stresses the need for a precise sampling method of the correct areas of the otic capsule. This can only be obtained by cutting the calcined PP midmodiolarly to enable adequate combustion degree assessment, and the correct identification and sampling of the inner cortex of the otic capsule. Show less
Vitamin D deficiency is generally associated with the consequences of the Industrial Revolution, such as tall densely-packed buildings and air pollution blocking sunlight. Dermal synthesis of... Show moreVitamin D deficiency is generally associated with the consequences of the Industrial Revolution, such as tall densely-packed buildings and air pollution blocking sunlight. Dermal synthesis of vitamin D under the influence of UVB radiation is important for a healthy skeleton and a deficiency may lead to pathological bowing of bones. The Netherlands did not experience the Industrial Revolution as many other European countries did and vitamin D deficiency was expected to be (nearly) absent in Dutch communities. To test this, six 17th - 19th century human skeletal collections from rural and small urban centres were analysed for vitamin D deficiency (N = 632 individuals). Regardless of geographic location, community size, daily activities, and socioeconomic status, all evaluated communities experienced vitamin D deficiency in childhood. Sociocultural practices, such as gender-related activities, as opposed to classic factors, are suggested to have been main etiological agents in the development of vitamin D deficiency. Application of newly developed methods for identification of this disease in teeth, showed vitamin D deficiency to be recurrent and often seasonal. This study stresses the importance of investigating vitamin D deficiency in every community to better understand the deteriorating effect that sociocultural practices may have had on health. Show less
The most common cause of vitamin D deficiency is inadequate dermal exposure to sunlight. Residual rickets is nonadult vitamin D deficiency still evident in an adult individual, whereas osteomalacia... Show moreThe most common cause of vitamin D deficiency is inadequate dermal exposure to sunlight. Residual rickets is nonadult vitamin D deficiency still evident in an adult individual, whereas osteomalacia occurs in adulthood. Previous research on the Beemster population, a 19th century rural community in the Netherlands, identified rickets in 30.4% of the nonadults between the ages of two and four years (n =7/23). Because the sex of these nonadults was not known it was not possible to determine if there were differences between boys and girls. To overcome this gap in our knowledge, the aim of this paper is to determine if there are gender related differences in vitamin D deficiency in the Beemster skeletal collection, based on adults with residual rickets and osteomalacia. Out of 200 adults (100 females; 100 males) no cases of osteomalacia were detected. However, there were 29 cases of residual rickets (14.5%), with 21 of those cases in females (21.0%; 21/100). A complex interplay of multiple factors is proposed to have affected vitamin D levels in nonadults, including sociocultural variables such as gender-based labour norms. This research highlights the importance of continuing to explore gender-based health differences in past populations. Show less
In 1956 and 1957 prof. A.E. van Giffen, the nestor of Dutch Archaeology, excavated two burial mounds near Oostwoud, on a parcel named ‘Tuithoorn’ in de province of Noord-Holland. These mounds... Show moreIn 1956 and 1957 prof. A.E. van Giffen, the nestor of Dutch Archaeology, excavated two burial mounds near Oostwoud, on a parcel named ‘Tuithoorn’ in de province of Noord-Holland. These mounds appeared to have been erected in the Late Neolithic between 2500 and 1900 cal BC. They contained at least 12 well preserved skeletons dating to the Late Neolithic and the Early Bronze Age. Until today these are the only burial mounds from that period in West-Frisia, moreover, they contained the only skeletons from that period in the area. Yet, apart from a few brief overviews the data have not been published. The present article is an attempt to re-analyse the data of the investigations by Van Giffen, but also of later research by M. de Weerd in 1963 and 1966, and by J.D. Van der Waals in 1977 and J.N. Lanting in 1978 in the same mounds. In the framework of the NWO-project Farmers of the Coast, the first author undertook the task to collect the dispersed data and to try to unravel the sequences of burial. Aided by the Leiden University Bakels fund, and a fund of the Province of Noord-Halland, we also had the opportunity to sample the bones for DNA and isotopes, and to study the pathology of the skeletons. Some of the analyses are not yet finished, but here we publish the excavation data using the original field drawings and day notes, and much of the original photography. We have done this in some detail because the site is one of the most important in its kind in the Netherlands and because it will play an important role in the discussion about Bell Beaker mobility and genetics in the near future. We used already some of the skeletal and DNA data in this article, but more detailed studies are following. Show less
Lauwers, B.; Veselka, B.; Strydonck, M. van; Boudin, M. 2016
