the people at sharm: an analysis of the archaeological human skeletal remains

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Page 1: The people at Sharm: An analysis of the archaeological human skeletal remains

A d . nrdr rpig. 1999: 10: 190-204 Printed in Emmark. AU rights d

Copvripht 0 Munksprord 1999

The people at Sharm: An analysis of the archaeological human skeletal remains WREN BLAU University of Sydney/Australian National University

As with any examination of skeletal collec- tions, one of the predominant aims is to as- certain an understanding of the numbers as well as the ratios of the age and sex of the individuals buried. Such information is important in terms of attempting to under- stand past lifestyles. All skeletal remains recovered from Sham were recorded ac- cording to their location within arbitrary 1x1-metre squares and on removal, placed in paper bags. Because of time restrictions cleaning and analysis codd not take place during the time of excavation. The bags of remains were transported to Australia for analysis by the author.

Assessment of the remains took place be- tween 10* and 16* June 1997. Each bag of remains had to be cleaned by dry-brushing and then sorted as both faunal remains and shell fragments were mixed in with the human remains. The human skeletal ma- terial was then sorted into elements which are diagnostic (ie. an element which can be identified and assigned a side and/or age and sex) and non-diagnostic (ie. an element which is too badly preserved to identdy and be assigned a side, age and/or sex, and about which little or nothing can be said). Based on published standards for the analysis of human skdetal remains (l), various details about each individual skel-

etal element were recorded. The inventory criteria included scores describing com- pleteness, condition, age, sex and patholog- ical alterations (Table 1). This information was then entered into a spreadsheet using Microsoft Excel.

Assessment of bone preservation and completeness A total of 2,989 individual postcranial and cranial elements was recorded (2). The skeletal remains varied in preser- vation from being complete to tiny frag- meiLts of bone, with the majority (62.1%) being assigned a completeness score of 3 (<25 % present). Although the bones we? predominantly fragmentary., the ac- tual condition of the bones’ surface was in general excellent. The majority (43.5%) of bones (n=2,989) were given a score for condition of 1 (excellent). There was no evidence of burning or root activity in, for example, the medullary cavities of long bones. Despite the fact that dentition usually survives in the archaeological record (because of the high degree of mineralisation), very few teeth were re- covered from Sharm. Only fifty complete teeth and nine tooth and root fragments were recovered.

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THE PEOPLE AT SHARh4: THE HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS

Table 1. Standards used to record skeletal remains. Element Diagnostic Side

Completeness

Condition

Sex

Pathology

Comment

e.g.: Right proximal humerus e.g: proximal e.g: right

eg.: 1=>75% present 2=25-75% present

eg.: 1 =excellent 2=fair 3 = p r

e.g.: O=foetal l=infants (birth4 years) 2=childnm (5-9 years) 3=adolescent (10-19 years) 4=young adult (20-34 years) 5=mature adult (35-49 years) 6-old adult (50 + years) 7=sub-adult - age indeterminable 8=adult - age indeterminable 9=age indeterminable

O=Indeterminable l=Female 2=hbable Female 3=hbiguous Sex 4=Prpbable Male 5=Male Description of any abnormalities to the bone Additional information such as con- dition of the bone

3=<z% plVS3lt

Age determination Although broad age ranges are fairly typical when discussing skeletal collec- tions, the poor preservation of the majority of human remains from Sharm made ageing particularly difficult. Table 3 illus- trates that the majority (98.8%) of remains (n=2,989) could only be said to have be- longed to adults.

Sex determination As with age determination, sex determi- nation for such poorly-preserved remains was limited. Based on examination of gross morphology which takes into account the relative differences between males and fe- males (5), and on the use of callipers to take measurements to compare with a publi- cised index of dimensions (6), only a small percentage of the remains could be as- signed a sex. A total of 307 adult diagnostic skeletal elements was recovered from the

Table 2. Comparison of the MNI at Sharm based on different elements.

Assessment of numbexs of individuals Because no articulated burials were recov- ered from Sharm it was only possible to de- termine a minimum number of individuals (MNI). Based on the left talus an MNI of 71 was established. Although the talus is not a bone which is traditionally used to estimate the MNI in burial collections (3), the robust nature of this skeletal element means it has a high probability of sur- viving in archaeological contexts. Further- more, it should be noted that the talus has in fact been used to estimate an MNI at other sites in the U.A.E. (4). Interestingly, compared to other elements the talus pro- duced a considerably higher MNI (Table 2).

Element Diagnostic Side MNI TalUS N/A Left 71 ulna Proximal Left 43 Humerus Distal Right 26 Patella N/A Left 38 Crania PetmusPortion Left 30

Table 3. Distribution of age in the Sham population.

Age Ranges (n = 2989) Foetal (<birth) 0 Infants (birth-3 years) 0.14 Children (4-9 years) 0.1 Adolescents (10-19 years) 0.03 Young Adult (20-34 years) 0.33 Middle Adult (35-49 years) 0 Old Adult (5O+years) 0

Age indeterminable 0

YO at Sham

Sub-adult (Age indeterminable) 0.6 Adult (Age indeterminable) 98.8

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tomb at Sharm (Table 4). One per cent was determined to be female, 1.6% possibly fe- male, 3.9% ambiguous, 1.6% possibly male and 1% male. However, the majority of these remains could not be assigned a sex.

Pathological alterations All the skeletal remains from Sharm were examined for any indication of features which could be deemed to be 'abnormal'. The categories of pathology which may po- tentially affect bone include the following: - Various dental diseases (wear, caries, en-

amel defects, calculus, malpositioning of teeth, ante-mortem tooth loss, peri- odontal disease and abscesses)

- Trauma - Congenital disease - Jointdisease - Occupational stress - Infectious disease - Metabolic disease - Neoplastic disease

Dental pathology Most teeth showed some degree of dental attrition which, although it is not a path- ological condition, can be useful in helping to understand the habits and diets of the group under study (7). Although the small sample size restricted the formation of any conclusive statements, it was noted that the two incisors recovered (a right mandibular first incisor and a maxillary left second in- cisor) both exhibited high degrees of at- trition, whereas the molar teeth (both

maxillary and mandibular - combined n= 23) exhibited relatively little wear, ie. the highest score of attrition was 14 (maximum score being 40).

Of the teeth examined from Sharm (n= 50), 24% were affected by caries. Maxillary teeth were more affected than mandibular teeth, with 33.3% of maxillary first molars (n=6), 27.3% of maxillary third molars (n= ll), 66.7yo of maxillary first premolars (n= 3) and 33.3% of maxillary second pre- molars (n=6) being affected, while 33.3% of mandibular first molars (n=3) and 40% of mandibular second molars (n=5) were affected.

Evidence of linear hypoplasia was ob- served on 8% of teeth (n=50) with more mandibular (13.6%, n=22) being affected than maxillary teeth (3.6%, n=28). Of the mandibular teeth only premolars were affected, with 28.6% of first premolars (n= 7) and 33.3% of second premolars (n=3) showing evidence of enamel hypoplasia. Of the maxillary teeth, only the third mo- lars (n=ll) were affected with 9.1% showing signs of linear enamel hypoplasia.

Only 2% of the teeth exhibited evidence of wrinkled and/or pitted enamel, perhaps indicative of fluorosis. Evidence of dental calculus was observed on only one tooth. No mandibular teeth were affected while 16.7% of maxillary second premolars (n=6) had evidence of calculus. The only re- corded evidence of calculus at Sharm oc- curred on the hgual/mesial and distal surface of a second premolar, and was only given a low severity score of 1.

A total of eighty-one mandible frag- ments was recovered from Sharm, seven of

Table 4. Number of diagnostic skeletal elements recovered from Sharm (complete and fragmentary combined) for

Proximal Proximal Proximal Pelvic Cranial Radius Humerus Femur Fragments Fragments Total

Sharm 10 7 36 86 168 307

determining sex.

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THE PEOPLE AT SHARM: THE HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS

Fig. 1. Percentage of mandibular teeth lost ante- and post-mortem.

which were sub-adult and showed no signs of ante-mortem tooth loss (AMTL), and fif- teen of which were too poorly preserved to examine. Of the fifty-nine adult mandible body fragments recovered, 69.5% had evi- dence of AMTL of one or more teeth. A total of eleven maxillary pieces was recov- ered, one of which was sub-adult (and showed no evidence of AMTL). In contrast to the mandibles affected, only 30% of the maxillae adult body fragments recovered from Sharm (n=10) had evidence of AMTL. Evaluation of the frequency at which AMTL occurred on a particular side of the mandible or maxilla was not con- sidered relevant as the majority of these skeletal elements were fragmentary. As it is a random sample, by not considering side one avoids any bias in the interpretation of results.

The frequency of individual mandibular and maxillary teeth lost ante-mortem (AM) (regardless of side) were also compared with the frequency of mandibular and maxillary teeth present or lost post-mortem (PM). While AMTL was observed in all areas of the mouth, most mandibular tooth loss prior to death occurred in the molar region (Fig. 1).

Of the maxillary teeth, the first molars

and then the first premolars were most affected by AMTL, while none of the an- terior teeth were affected (Fig. 2). However, because no second or third maxillary mo- lars were recovered and because of the relatively small sample size of each tooth class, such a result should be treated with caution.

No evidence of dental abscesses, defined as ‘a collection of pus, surrounded by denser tissue, and within a cavity of the body’ (8), was observed among the man- dibles studied (n=81). Of the maxillae examined (n= ll), only one had evidence of a dental abscess. The one example ob- served was external draining (c.10.3X7 mm) in the canine region.

Skeletal pathology Very few skeletal alterations were observed in the collection from Sharm. Only 0.07% of the remains (n=2,989) showed evidence of trauma. A raised bony outgrowth (c.6X4.3 mm) on the anterior surface of a mid-shaft of an unsided proximal first foot phalange (n=4), as well as a small exos- tosis on the inferior surface of the proximal articular surface of a proximal phalange (n=153), were a e only examples of poss-

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Fig. 2. Percentage of maxillary teeth lost ante- and post-mortem.

ible evidence of trauma from Sharm. It is possible that this was caused by a heavy object falling on the foot.

Only three examples of osteophytic for- mations were observed on vertebrae from Sharm: one smal l (grade 1) osteophyte on a thoracic body (n=16), one on an unknown vertebral body (n=48) and one inter- mediate (grade 2) osteophyte on a lumbar body (n=13). No examples of osteophytes were observed on any of the other skeletal elements.

Only two examples of possible activity- related skeletal alterations were recorded from S h m . Prominent muscle attach- ments (linear aspera) were identified on 5.9% of adult mid-right femur (n=17) and so-called squatting facets were identified on 12.5% of adult distal right tibiae (n=12).

Such facets are th ught to indicate that a particular posture, such as squatting, was frequently assumed, perhaps in order to carry out some kind of activity (9).

Only one possible example of bone infec- tion was observed. This manifested itself in the form of pitting around the superior area of one external auditory meatus on a left temporal bone (n=30). Although no ac- tual torus was observed, this pitting may have been the initial stages of the develop- ment of an auditory torus. Such formations have been explained as indicating the re- sult of long-term diving for marine or fresh water resources (10).

Only two examples of lesions affecting the orbit suggesting the metabolic disease cribra orbitalia were recorded from Sharm. Scores of 2 (scattered-like foramina) and 4

Table 5. Stature estimates.

ID Element Diagnostic Side Sex Estimated Stature (an) 02-16/4 (8.9-8.7) Humerus Distal Left ? 169 (M)/166 (F) 01-17/4 (8.M.7) Humerus Distal Left ? 176 (M)/173 (8 o(F08/4(8.8-8.7) Humerus Distal Left ? 180 (M)/178 (F) W 5 / 6 (8.6-8.5) Humerus Distal Left ? 161 (M)/156 (F) 02-15/4 (8.9-8.7) Radius Proximal Left F? 149 01-06/3 (9.0-8.8) Radius Proximal Right F? 167 01-U6/6 (8.6-8.5) Radius proximal Left ? 159 (M)/155 (F)

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THE PEOPLE AT SHARM: THE HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS

Table 6. Wadi Suq sites in the U.A.E. where skeletal remains have been recovered. COASTAL

Bones/ Dentition

Tomb Type Location Date MNI Studied References Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

(Khatt type)

(Khatt type)

type)

(Shimal-type)

Shimal-type (Single chambered) Wadi Suq (Cirmlar)

Wadi Suq (Shimal-type) Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

(Semi-sub.)

(Ghalilah-type)

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq (Shimal-type)

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq (Ghalilah-type)

(SM-type)

Shimal-like

Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq

(semi-sub.)

(U-ShaPed)

Al-Qusais - Area A (Dubai) Al-Qusais - Area B (Dubai)

Sh. 99 Central Shimal (Rasal-Khaimah)

Sh. 600 Shimal South (Ras al-Khaimah) Tomb N, Shimal (RasalKhaimah)

Sh. 100 Central Shimal (Ras al-Khaimah)

Dhayah 1 (Ras al-Khaimah)

Dhayah 2 (Ras al-Khaimah)

Dhayah 3 ( R a s d - W ) Tomb K3 - Kalba (Shajah) Khor Fakkan - Tomb 22 (Sharlah) Bidya 1 (Fujairah)

Shimal-Site 1 shimal south (Ras al-Khaimah)

Sh. 103 Central Shimal (Ras al-Khaimah)

Sh. 102 Central Shimal (RasalKhaimah)

Sh. 602 (Ras al-Khaimah)

Qidfa (Fujairah) Bidva 5 - Tomb C

c.2OOo-1300 BC (17)

c.2OOo-1300 BC (19)

c.2000 Bc

c.2000 Bc

c.2000 Bc

c.2000 BC (reused in the sasanian period) c.2OOO-1500 BC (26)

c.2OOO-1500 BC (28)

c.2000 Bc

c.2OOo-1300 Bc

c.2ooo-1200 Bc

c.1800 BC (33) (K used in the Hellenistic

Period (34) 1800-1000 BC (36)

c.1800 BC

c.1500-1000 BC (41) (NB: reused during the

hl Age (42) c. 1500 Bc (45)

c.1500 BC (47) (reused during the Iron Age)

Wadi Suq (49)

? No

? No

at least 40 Yes (21)

could be 200 In process

15

9

at least 13

at least 10

?

6

2

12?

at least 28 but perhaps aSIlliUlyaS

40 (37)

50 (39)

at least 140; (43)

1S17

?

?

Yes

YeS

YeS

YeS

YeS

YeS

YeS

YeS

Yes

YeS

YeS

YeS

No

No (Circular;Oblong) (Fujairah) Table 6. Cont.

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Table 6. Continued. Wadi Ghalilah - Site 6

(long chambered)

DFSF,RT/OASIS Wadi Suq

Wadi Suq (Khatt type) (Dubai)

PIEDMONT Wadi Suq Wa'ab 1-3,

Wadi Suq

Suq/Iron Age (Ras al-Khaimah)

AlQusais - Area A

AlQusais - Area B type) @ubai)

(Khatt type) Ras al-Khaimah

(Clover-type) (Shajah) Jebel Buhais (Site 66)

Wadi Wa'ab 4 Suq/Iron Age (Rectangular Subter.)

Wadi Fashgha 2 (Site 11) Suq/Iron Age Wadi alQawr (Ring chambered) (Ras al-Khaimah) MOUNTAIN (WADI) Wadi Suq (Disk) Asimah 15

Wadi Suq Bithnah (Tshaped) (Fujairah)

(Ras al-Khaimah)

Wadi-Suq IN3 - Idhn semi-sub. cist mal-Khaimah)

1200-800 BC (51)

c .2m1300 Bc (53)

c .2m1300 Bc (55)

early Wadi Suq (57)

2000-1300 Bc (reused in the Iron Age - c.1OOO

Bc) (59) Late Wadi Suq/Early

Iron Age (61)

Late Wadi Suq/Iron Age - 1 1 / 1 ~ BC

(63)

c.2Ooo Bc

c.200&1200 Bc (reused in the Iron Age and LatePre- Islamic Period) (66)

c.2OOo-1200 BC

?

?

?

?

30

?

?

?

14

12 (68)

No

NO

No

In Process

Yes

YeS/In P-S

In m e s s

No

?

In P-

(foramina linked into a trabecular struc- ture) were assigned to two separate adult frontal bones (n=56) representing the se- verity of the condition (11).

Cribra orbitalia has been seen to occur with pitting and/or thickening of the outer table of the skull (12). Although it was not possible to join the fragmentary pieces of cranium it is worth noting that pitting was observed on 17% of left occipital fragments (n=6) and 29% of right parietal pieces (n= 7). Furthermore, one left frontal fragment (not the piece with cribra orbitalia) was also observed to be unusually thick (although the inner and outer tables were still intact).

196

An assessment of stature Stature (an individual's height) determined from skeletal remains is usually predicted by taking measurements of bones using an osteometric measuring board (although a ruler, digitiser or calliper can also be used depending on the measurements required). Long bones (such as the humerus, radius, ulna, femur, tibia or fibula) provide the best estimates of stature, but because no com- plete long bones survived in the collection from Sharm estimates of stature were greatly hindered. While it is possible to esti- mate stature from fragmentary long bones, it is not as accurate as for complete bones.

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THE PEOPLE AT SHAFW: THE HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS

This is because sex cannot usually be as- signed to a single bone with any precision, and this in turn affects the regression table employed to estimate stature. Despite these limitations, stature estimates for other second-millennium BC sites are provided in the literature. For this reason, attempts were made to estimate stature from Sharm so that a comparison (although cautious) could be made (see below). Based on work by Miiller (13) the fol-

lowing statures were estimated for Sharm (Table 5) (14).

Discussion Although results from an analysis of a skel- etal population such as Sham are rela- tively limited because of the poor preser- vation, it may be that they become more meaningful when assessing a comparison of results from analyses of other contem- porary populations.

A number of tombs dating to the Wadi Suq period have been excavated in the U.A.E. (15), many of which contained pre- served human skeletal remains (Table 6). Unfortunately, relatively little has been published about these remains, despite the

fact that the '2nd millennium B.C. is, by now, the best studied Pre-Islamic period in the United Arab Emirates and the Sul- tanate of Oman' (16), making detailed com- parison limited.

The majority of comparative data comes from sites on the west coast, all in the Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, with no com- parable information available from the east coast. Assessment of the minimum number of individuals (MNI) for each of these tombs in relation to, for example, tomb size (Fig. 3), shows no association, as might be expected, between size and the number of people interred.

Although this lack of correlation may be a reality, it is more than likely that reuse also played a role in this result. The problem of dating the use of these struc- tures must therefore be considered (70). At present, no absolute dates are available. Relative dates based on evidence such as the stylistic assessment of ceramics, sug- gest that tombs such as Sh. 102 and Sham (where the MNI are noticeably larger) were both reused in later periods (71). Such reuse (quite apart from plundering in the past) would undoubtedly distort assess- ments of the MNI. Examples of cases in

90, I 80

% 70 n

i: x 40' 6 3 0

B lo

5 20

a 0 Bldyal CIhay.1 Sh.602 TocrbN SRel sh.103 Sharm Sh.102

2nd Yknnlum BC Tombr and MNI (in Brrckob)

(12) (13) (14) (1 5) (28) (50) (71 1 (140)

Fig. 3. Comparison of size of second-millennium BC tombs and h4NI.

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which plundering more than likely affected the MNI can be seen at Bidya 1 which, with dimensions of 30x2 m, contained only twelve individuals (72). It appears that both women and men, as well as adults and children, were buried in all the Wadi Suq tombs with no particular distinctive ratios.

The majority of reports on skeletal ma- terial from Wadi Suq provide stature esti- mates which suggest that there was a marked difference in height between men and women (73). Although the majority of these estimates were based on the femur head curvature (lower limbs believed to provide a more accurate estimation) (74), estimations at Sharm were made using dif- ferent methodology and using any pre- served fragment of the body which could be measured. In all examples, as in the case of Sharm, sample size is problematic, the largest being 11 from Sh. 99 (75). Further- more, as stated above, sexing using com- mingled remains is problematic and the majority of stature estimates for Sharm (and Sh. 602) are for bones which could not be provided a sex. Thus comparison of stat- ures with other Wadi Suq sites is difficult.

Assessment of the skeletal material from Sharm showed only a few skeletal alter- ations. These include pathologies affecting the dentition including ante-mortem (ie. during life) tooth loss, caries and enamel hypoplasia, trauma, evidence of possible occupational stress, osteophytic formations ('lipping' of the bone), metabolic disorders and possible infection.

Although dental attrition is only de- scribed at Site 1 and Sh. 602, the relative heavier anterior attrition observed on the teeth from Sharm concurs with these pub- lished results. Dental attrition is described in the literature only at Site 1 where it was said 'the degree of attrition was slight, ... but with a tendency for the dental attrition to be disproportionately heavy on the in-

cisors and canines as compared with the molars, usually with the cusps lightly worn down' (76). This is a very similar result to that observed at Sh. 602 (77).

The especially heavy wear observed on the anterior teeth relative to the molar teeth during the Wadi Suq period may suggest that teeth were used to be larger extent as tools during this period (78). Such patterns, however, may also be explained by the in- crease in the number of premolar and molar alveoli affected by ante-mortem tooth loss (AMTL). Dentition from the ma- jority of Wadi Suq sites including sh. 102 (79), Sh. 103 (80) and Sh. 602 (81) (except Sharm, which may be because it was re- used during the Iron Age), showed an in- crease from the third millennium BC in the number of premolar-molar alveoli affected by AMTL. Once the premolars and molars were lost, anterior teeth may have been re- quired to assist in breaking up food as well as possibly acting as some kind of tool, whether vice, clamp or pliers (82).

Perhaps the most notable pathology ob- served in the Sharm collection was AMTL on the mandibles and maxillae. AMTL may also be a result of caries leading to pulp involvement, periodontal disease, at- trition, trauma, ablation and congenital ab- sence or impaction, or merely alveolar re- sorbtion due to old age (in which case it cannot be considered pathological) (83). It is often impossible to determine the exact aetiology of AMTL observed in archae- ological samples.

Much of the data on AMTL was not as- sessed in the same detail between sites. For example, at some sites such as Sh. 103, the frequency of AMTL was scored in relation to the number of observed alveoli without consideration of the jaw involved, while at other sites such as Sh. 100, no total of ob- served alveoli is provided. Nevertheless, similar results between the sites were ob- served. AMTL was observed on 15.8% of

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THE PEOPLE AT SHARM: THE HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS

all alveoli (n=82) from Tomb N (84) and 29% from Sh. 102 (total alveoli not pro- vided) (85). More detail is provided for Site 1, where 16.7% of possible maxillary alveoli (n=24) and 40.7% of mandibular alveoli (n=86) were reported lost ante-mortem (86). When converted into a percentage of all alveoli observed, 35.5% of teeth (n=110) were lost ante-mortem at Site 1. Of all ob- served alveoli from Sh. 103 (no total pro- vided) (87) and Dhayah 2 (n=40) (88), 21.9% and 30% of teeth were lost ante- mortem respectively. Only three cases of AMTL were reported from Sh. 100 (89), but no other details were provided making this result incomparable.

The high frequency of tooth loss has been explained by some investigators as re- sulting from heavy carious infection (90). Published information about the frequency of caries during the second millennium BC is minimal. Thus, from Sh. 102 (91) and Tomb N (92) we are told only that very little caries was observed. Two cases were reported on lower molars from Dhayah 2 (93) and four cases from Sh. 100 (94). More detail is available from Site 1, where only 4.7”/0 of all teeth (n=43) were affected by caries. In contrast 24% of all teeth (n=50) were affected by caries at Sharm. Given the above results, it would appear that a lack, or low frequency, of caries among Wadi Suq populations was normal. Given that the diet shifted to what appears to be a heavy reliance on marine resources (as in- dicated by the archaeological evidence), such results are not surprising. Apart from the obvious difference in location of Sharm from other sites dated to the second millen- nium Bc, the anomalous results from Shann may reflect the fact that the collec- tions included later Iron Age material.

Comparing the frequency of other dental defects such as calculus and enamel hypo- plasia is also difficult as most of the reports from other Wadi Suq sites fail to provide

sufficient detail. Thus, from Sh. 102 (95) and Tomb N (96) we are told that few examples of calculus were observed on the teeth. Calculus is not described at all (pre- sumably meaning that it did not occur or that it had been broken off post-mortem and was therefore not visible) at Site 1,

(n=38) from Sh. 602 were affected by cal- culus, and the fact that no calculus was ob- served on the remains from Sharm suggest that this pathology was rare in the second millennium Bc.

The presence of enamel hypoplasia ‘on several incisors, canines and molars’ (97) was reported at Site 1 and in two cases from Sh. 100 (98) but no total numbers are provided. Unfortunately only one site, Sh. 602, provides evidence comparable to that at Sharm. only 5.3% of teeth (n=38) from Sh. 602 were affected by enamel hypo- plasia. Similarly, only 4.3% of all teeth (n= 46) from Sharm showed evidence of en- amel hypoplasia, suggesting that such de- fects may have been minimal in the Wadi Suq period.

The formation of abscesses is usually the result of association with other general dental conditions such as periodontal in- fection, considerable tooth wear, caries or traumatic injury (99). While the abscess re- corded on the maxilla was not associated with ante-mortem tooth Ioss or caries, as all the associated teeth in this maxilla were lost post-mortem the exact aetiology of this abscess is difficult to ascertain.

Very few sites dating to the second mil- lennium BC have revealed examples of evi- dence of trauma. Apart from the examples observed at Sharm, the only other alter- ations attributed to some kind of trauma come from Sh. 602. These include the distal head of a metatarsal which appeared ‘squashed’, as well as a possible case of os- teochondritis dissecans (100). Other alter- ations which perhaps indicate a more vi-

Dhayah 2 and Sh. 100. Only 7.9% of teeth

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olent type of trauma included two de- pression fractures on two parietal bones from Sh. 602.

Evidence of the formation of osteophytes is reported at only three sites, Tomb N (101), Site 1 (102) and Sh. 602 (103). As is the case at Sharm, only one or two skeletal elements (usually vertebrae) exhibited these bony changes. While the formation of osteophytes indicates evidence of the de- generative joint disease osteoarthritis (the most common form of arthritis), the fact that these osteophytic formations were nei- ther severe nor o c m d in high frequen- cies probably means that osteoarthritis was not prevalent among the people living in the second millennium BC.

Although parts of the temporal bones were used to estimate the MNI from sites such as Sh. 103 and Sh. 102, no mention is made in the literature of any pitting on these bones as observed on one of the tem- poral bones from Sharm.

Evidence of porotic hyperostosis was ob- served at Sharm, Sh. 602 (104) and Site 1 (105), and in all cases was associated with thickened crania. Cribra orbitalia (often as- sociated with porotic hyperostosis) was ob- served at Sh. 602, Sharm and Sh. 103 (106), as well as on the remains of an infant from the unusual clover-shaped tomb (site 66) recently excavated at Jebel Buhais, Sharjah (107). Cribra orbitalia is thought to repre- sent an anaemic response. It is not possible to distinguish the exact aetiology of the an- aemia, but metabolic conditions such as iron deficiency., and genetic disorders such as thalassaemia or sickle cell anaemia can produce these skeletal alterations (108).

Although a number of different cate- gories of skeletal alterations were observed in the Sharm collection, it should be em- phasised that because of the low frequency of occurrence of these changes (which may indicate that either such pathologies were in fact minimal in this population, or that

as a result of the fragmentary nature of the bone it is impossible to detect the true fre- quencies of such alterations), little can be said about their sigruficance in terms of im- pact on the community.

Discussion and conclusion Although poor preservation hindered a de- tailed understanding of age and sex ratios at Sharm, it is clear that both sexes were represented, but with no obvious grouping within the tomb. While comparison of stature was problematic, in terms of path- ological alterations, Sharm also appeared to show no dramatic differences from other second-millennium BC sites, except for the frequency of caries. The frequency of AMTL was high, while those of calculus and enamel hypoplasia were minimal. Al- though the high rate of AMTL may be ex- plained by alveolar infection, perhaps a re- sponse to poor oral hygiene, given that the presence of calculus usually indicates a lack of oral hygiene, it is interesting that evidence of calculus is minimal among second-millennium BC sites. This may, however, be explained by post-mortem/ta- phonomic alterations.

The presence of enamel hypoplasia sug- gests that some kind of periodic stress (re- lated either to malnutrition or diseases such as cribra orbitalia) was experienced at Sham and other Wadi-Suq sites. The low frequency of diseases such as enamel hypo- plasia perhaps indicates that such events were only transitory, but poor preservation may have significantly altered the sample size, thus distorting results. The sigrufi- cantly higher percentage of caries observed at Sharm compared to other sites is more than likely a reflection on the discrepancies associated with dating the tomb.

Other skeletal pathological alterations including examples of trauma, joint disease and metabolic diseases have been noted in

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most of the Wadi Suq populations studied including Sharm. In the majority of cases small sample sizes resulted in an inability to draw substantive conclusions. Even when general comparison of diseases af- fecting these different communities can be made, rigorous comparisons are impeded because of the lack of detail provided in the literature concerning the methodology employed to reach conclusions. Such re- sults necessitate the need for stricter meth- odological recording of commingled re- mains so commonly recovered in the U.A.E. (109).

Acknowledgements I would like to thank Lloyd Weeks and Melissa Riley for their assistance in cleaning the human skeletal ma- terial from Sharm.

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Address: Soren Blau Division of Archaeology and Natural History Reseafih school of Pacific and Asian Studies Australian National University Canberra A.C.T. 0200 Australia e d . [email protected]

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