Plague continued to afflict Europe for more than five centuries after the Black Death. Yet, by the 17th century, the dynamics of plague had changed, leading to its slow decline in Western Europe over the subsequent 200 y, a period for which only one genome was previously available. Using a multidisciplinary approach, combining genomic and historical data, we assembled Y. pestis genomes from nine individuals covering four Eurasian sites and placed them into an historical context within the established phylogeny. CHE1 (Chechnya, Russia, 18th century) is now the latest Second Plague Pandemic genome and the first non-European sample in the post-Black Death lineage. Its placement in the phylogeny and our synthesis point toward the existence of an extra-European reservoir feeding plague into Western Europe in multiple waves. By considering socioeconomic, ecological, and climatic factors we highlight the importance of a noneurocentric approach for the discussion on Second Plague Pandemic dynamics in Europe.

In a medieval population of Stockholm only three cases of maternal deaths were proved out of 330 burials of adult females, and only in one of the cases was a contracted pelvis found. However, life table analysis indicates a shorter life expectancy of females in the reproductive ages. This suggests a higher maternal mortality in the Middle Ages than in the 18th and 19th centuries in Sweden.

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The osteological remains from Frösö Church, Jämtland, have been re-analysed in order to understand the Viking Age rituals at the site and to study the blót, the Old Norse sacrifice and feast. Radiocarbon analyses of ani- mal and human bones date the rituals to the late Viking Age. A taphonomic study shows that especially brown bear and pig were of importance in the rituals. Butcher- ing marks reveal the processing of the carcasses as well as feasting. Further, bones and not whole carcasses seem to have been deposited on the ground. Human remains have been treated differently from the animal bones and may represent disturbed burials rather than sacrifices. Seasonal analysis indicates that the rituals took place in late autumn, early spring, and possibly around the summer solstice. The results of the osteological analy- ses are also discussed in relation to the written sources about the Old Norse blót.

The paper discusses both the background and future of the Swedish discipline historical osteology. Teaching as well as research is considered. A summary of the most important contributions within human and animal osteology during 1986-1990 is given. The selection is based on personal judgement as to the interest, value and quality of the papers.