Estrategias alternas para la valoración histomorfológica de la edad a la muerte en restos esqueléticos deteriorados : Aplicaciones en la bioarqueología del área maya

Nuestro trabajo se enfoca en el potencial de asignar rangos de edades a la muerte a partir de la micrometamorfosis del tejido óseo en secciones diagenéticamente alteradas. Para ello elaboramos estándares para la contabilización parcial de las microestructuras y la evaluación cualitativa del tejido histológico no descalcificado. Mostramos su potencial en tres estudios ejemplares de secciones obtenidas de los restos de tres dignatarios mayas que vivieron durante el primer milenio de nuestra era. En el primer caso, los acercamientos histológicos robustecen la aproximación macroscópica original. Por otra parte, la discrepancia entre los diferentes resultados conduce a una discusión sobre las condiciones patológicas en el Caso 2. En el Caso 3 obtuvimos resultados macroscópicos y microscópicos similares, con lo cual mejoramos la aproximación cronovital global. Concluimos el presente ensayo discutiendo el potencial de la evaluación histomorfológica (y sus diferentes protocolos) en la asignación de la edad a la muerte de series óseas arqueológicas deterioradas.Our study focuses on the histological assignation of age-at-death ranges to diagenetically deteriorated skeletal remains. To this end, we review age-related microscopic metamorphoses in thin sections of undecalcified bone in order to generate selective counts of microstructures and a qualitative assessment of histological tissue. In this essay, we evaluate the potential of these standards in three case studies on the deteriorated skeletal remains of three Mayan dignitaries from the first millennium CE. In the first case, the macroscopic approximation is confirmed by histologic scrutiny, while in the second case contradicting results lead to a discussion of the individual’s pathological conditions that could explain the discrepancy in specific lines of evidence. In the third specimen, the combination of macroscopic and microscopic results improved chrono-vital assignation. We conclude our work with a discussion of the potential that histomorphological evaluation (and its different protocols) holds in age-range assignment in deteriorated skeletal remains from archaeological contexts.Dossier: Los estudios de histología ósea en Antropología BiológicaAsociación de Antropología Biológica de la República Argentina (AABRA

Estrategias alternas para la valoración histomorfológica de la edad a la muerte en restos esqueléticos deteriorados : Aplicaciones en la bioarqueología del área maya

Nuestro trabajo se enfoca en el potencial de asignar rangos de edades a la muerte a partir de la micrometamorfosis del tejido óseo en secciones diagenéticamente alteradas. Para ello elaboramos estándares para la contabilización parcial de las microestructuras y la evaluación cualitativa del tejido histológico no descalcificado. Mostramos su potencial en tres estudios ejemplares de secciones obtenidas de los restos de tres dignatarios mayas que vivieron durante el primer milenio de nuestra era. En el primer caso, los acercamientos histológicos robustecen la aproximación macroscópica original. Por otra parte, la discrepancia entre los diferentes resultados conduce a una discusión sobre las condiciones patológicas en el Caso 2. En el Caso 3 obtuvimos resultados macroscópicos y microscópicos similares, con lo cual mejoramos la aproximación cronovital global. Concluimos el presente ensayo discutiendo el potencial de la evaluación histomorfológica (y sus diferentes protocolos) en la asignación de la edad a la muerte de series óseas arqueológicas deterioradas.Our study focuses on the histological assignation of age-at-death ranges to diagenetically deteriorated skeletal remains. To this end, we review age-related microscopic metamorphoses in thin sections of undecalcified bone in order to generate selective counts of microstructures and a qualitative assessment of histological tissue. In this essay, we evaluate the potential of these standards in three case studies on the deteriorated skeletal remains of three Mayan dignitaries from the first millennium CE. In the first case, the macroscopic approximation is confirmed by histologic scrutiny, while in the second case contradicting results lead to a discussion of the individual’s pathological conditions that could explain the discrepancy in specific lines of evidence. In the third specimen, the combination of macroscopic and microscopic results improved chrono-vital assignation. We conclude our work with a discussion of the potential that histomorphological evaluation (and its different protocols) holds in age-range assignment in deteriorated skeletal remains from archaeological contexts.Dossier: Los estudios de histología ósea en Antropología BiológicaAsociación de Antropología Biológica de la República Argentina (AABRA

Before Kukulkán

This volume illuminates human lifeways in the northern Maya lowlands prior to the rise of Chichén Itzá. This period and area have been poorly understood on their own terms, obscured by scholarly focus on the central lowland Maya kingdoms. "Before Kukulkán" is anchored in three decades of interdisciplinary research at the Classic Maya capital of Yaxuná, located at a contentious crossroads of the northern Maya lowlands. Using bioarchaeology, mortuary archaeology, and culturally sensitive mainstream archaeology, the authors create an in-depth regional understanding while also laying out broader ways of learning about the Maya past. Part 1 examines ancient lifeways among the Maya at Yaxuná, while part 2 explores different meanings of dying and cycling at the settlement and beyond: ancestral practices, royal entombment and desecration, and human sacrifice. The authors close with a discussion of the last years of occupation at Yaxuná and the role of Chichén Itzá in the abandonment of this urban center. "Before Kukulkán" provides a cohesive synthesis of the evolving roles and collective identities of locals and foreigners at the settlement and their involvement in the region’s trajectory. Theoretically informed and contextualized discussions offer unique glimpses of everyday life and death in the socially fluid Maya city. These findings, in conjunction with other documented series of skeletal remains from this region, provide a nuanced picture of the social and biocultural dynamics that operated successfully for centuries before the arrival of the Itzá

Comparison of two ancient DNA extraction protocols for skeletal remains from tropical environments

Objectives The tropics harbor a large part of the world\u27s biodiversity and have a long history of human habitation. However, paleogenomics research in these climates has been constrained so far by poor ancient DNA yields. Here we compare the performance of two DNA extraction methods on ancient samples of teeth and petrous portions excavated from tropical and semi‐tropical sites in Tanzania, Mexico, and Puerto Rico (N = 12). Materials and Methods All samples were extracted twice, built into double‐stranded sequencing libraries, and shotgun sequenced on the Illumina HiSeq 2500. The first extraction protocol, Method D, was previously designed for recovery of ultrashort DNA fragments from skeletal remains. The second, Method H, modifies the first by adding an initial EDTA wash and an extended digestion and decalcification step. Results No significant difference was found in overall ancient DNA yields or post‐mortem damage patterns recovered from samples extracted with either method, irrespective of tissue type. However, Method H samples had higher endogenous content and more mapped reads after quality‐filtering, but also higher clonality. In contrast, samples extracted with Method D had shorter average DNA fragments. Discussion Both methods successfully recovered endogenous ancient DNA. But, since surviving DNA in ancient or historic remains from tropical contexts is extremely fragmented, our results suggest that Method D is the optimal choice for working with samples from warm and humid environments. Additional optimization of extraction conditions and further testing of Method H with different types of samples may allow for improvement of this protocol in the future

What Can Bones Really Tell Us? The Study of Human Skeletal Remains from Cenotes

Cave archaeology in the New World, now a focus of intense research, was still a peripheral area of inquiry just fifteen years ago. Stone Houses and Earth Lords is the first volume dedicated exclusively to the use of caves in the Maya Lowlands, covering primarily Classic Period archaeology from A.D. 100 through the Spaniards\u27 arrival. Although the caves that riddled the lowlands show no signs of habitation, most contain evidence of human use - evidence that suggests that they functioned as ritual spaces. Demonstrating the importance of these subterranean spaces to Maya archaeology, contributors provide interpretations of archaeological remains that yield insights into Maya ritual and cosmology. Compiling the best current scholarship in this fast-growing area of research, Stone Houses and Earth Lords is a vital reference for Mayanists, Mesoamerican specialists, and others interested in the human use of caves in the New World

Estrategias alternas para la valoración histomorfológica de la edad a la muerte en restos esqueléticos deteriorados. Aplicaciones en la bioarqueología del área maya/Alternative strategies for conducting histomorphological evaluation of age at death in det

Nuestro trabajo se enfoca en el potencial de asignar rangos de edades a la muerte a partir de la micrometamorfosis del tejido óseo en secciones diagenéticamente alteradas. Para ello elaboramos estándares para la contabilización parcial de las microestructuras y la evaluación cualitativa del tejido histológico no descalcificado. Mostramos su potencial en tres estudios ejemplares de secciones obtenidas de los restos de tres dignatarios mayas que vivieron durante el primer milenio de nuestra era. En el primer caso, los acercamientos histológicos robustecen la aproximación macroscópica original. Por otra parte, la discrepancia entre los diferentes resultados conduce a una discusión sobre las condiciones patológicas en el Caso 2. En el Caso 3 obtuvimos resultados macroscópicos y microscópicos similares, con lo cual mejoramos la aproximación cronovital global. Concluimos el presente ensayo discutiendo el potencial de la evaluación histomorfológica (y sus diferentes protocolos) en la asignación de la edad a la muerte de series óseas arqueológicas deterioradas. PALABRAS CLAVE evaluación microscópica; métodos de estimación de edad a la muerte; osteología; diagénesis   Our study focuses on the histological assignation of age-at-death ranges to diagenetically deteriorated skeletal remains. To this end, we review age-related microscopic metamorphoses in thin sections of undecalcified bone in order to generate selective counts of microstructures and a qualitative assessment of histological tissue. In this essay, we evaluate the potential of these standards in three case studies on the deteriorated skeletal remains of three Mayan dignitaries from the first millennium CE. In the first case, the macroscopic approximation is confirmed by histologic scrutiny, while in the second case contradicting results lead to a discussion of the individual’s pathological conditions that could explain the discrepancy in specific lines of evidence. In the third specimen, the combination of macroscopic and microscopic results improved chrono-vital assignation. We conclude our work with a discussion of the potential that histomorphological evaluation (and its different protocols) holds in age-range assignment in deteriorated skeletal remains from archaeological contexts. KEY WORDS microscopic evaluation; age estimation methods; osteology; diagenesi

El esqueleto muerto y vivo. Algunas consideraciones para la evaluación de restos humanos como parte del contexto arqueológico

"El que realmente quiere encontrar la verdad de las cosas no debe consagrarse a una sola ciencia, puesto que todas las partes de las ciencias guardan una relación de mutua dependencia."René Descartes (1596-1650) El desarrollo sociocultural del hombre siempre ha estado indisolublemente vinculado con sus propiedades biológicas, expresadas en la evolución humana y en sus características físicas actuales. Siendo así, y aunque la ciencia distingue entre el concepto biológico "organismo" y el de la..