Bioarchaeological Approaches to Activity Reconstruction

Schrader, Sarah

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-02544-1_3

Cited by 8 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 270 publications

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“…The distinctiveness of bony muscle attachments presents high variability both among and within individuals of a species, with the areas of some entheses being more distinguishable than others (Foster et al, 2014;Schrader, 2019). In this study, we selected three entheses which were clearly defined and directly homologous across the femora of all 15 subjects (see examples in Fig.…”

Section: Entheseal Measurements and Statistical Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Muscle attachment scars (entheses) comprise the areas of the bone where muscles or ligaments attach (Benjamin et al, 1986). In paleontological and bioarchaeological sciences, they are frequently utilized as a basis for reconstructing habitual physical activity patterns among past populations (Foster et al, 2014;Schrader, 2019). Previous research has focused either on morphological changes within entheseal surface areas (osteophytic or osteolytic traits; e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, most of the previous methods for analyzing entheses have been associated with either low or untested measuring precision (for entheseal changes, see Davis et al, 2013;Wilczak et al, 2017;Villotte et al, 2016; for overall 3D morphology, see Noldner and Edgar, 2013), absence of multivariate statistical procedures (see Milella et al, 2015;Karakostis and Lorenzo, 2016;Karakostis et al, 2017Karakostis et al, , 2018a and inadequate consideration of other factors affecting entheseal form such as age and body size (e.g. Williams-Hatala et al, 2016; see also Foster et al, 2014;Henderson et al, 2017;Schrader, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, we proposed a new approach for analyzing entheses that is based on precise 3D measuring protocols (Karakostis and Lorenzo, 2016;Karakostis et al, 2017). This approach strives to control for the complex factors of inter-individual entheseal variation (see Foster et al, 2014;Schrader, 2019) by focusing on the multivariate proportions among attachments within each individual, rather than comparing single entheseal structures across individuals with distinct characteristics. It was recently applied on a unique human skeletal sample (the Basel-Spitalfriedhof collection) with detailed lifelong occupational documentation (exact jobs, positions and durations documented for each individual) as well as life histories (genealogical data, official medical records, socioeconomic details and more) (Hotz and Steinke, 2012), and a clear separation was found across individuals with distinct occupational characteristics (Karakostis et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Experimental evidence that physical activity affects the multivariate associations among muscle attachments (entheses)

Karakostis

Wallace

Konow

et al. 2019

Journal of Experimental Biology

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The morphology of entheses (muscle/tendon attachment sites) on bones is routinely used in paleontological and bioarcheological studies to infer the physical activity patterns of ancient vertebrate species including hominins. However, such inferences have often been disputed due to limitations of the quantitative methods commonly employed and a lack of experimental evidence demonstrating direct effects of physical activity on entheseal morphology. Recently, we introduced a new and improved method of quantifying and analyzing entheseal morphology that involves repeatable three-dimensional measurements combined with multivariate statistics focused on associations among multiple entheses. Here, to assess the validity of our method for investigating variation in entheseal morphology related to physical activity patterns, we analyzed femora of growing turkeys that were experimentally exercised for 10 weeks on either an inclined or declined treadmill or served as controls (n= 15 specimens, 5/group). Our multivariate approach identified certain patterns involving three different entheses (associated with muscles gluteus primus, medial gastrocnemius, vastus medialis and adductor magnus) that clearly differentiated controls from runners. Importantly, these differences were not observable when comparing groups within each of the three entheseal structures separately. Body mass was not correlated with the resulting multivariate patterns. These results provide the first experimental evidence that variation in physical activity patterns has a direct influence on entheseal morphology. Moreover, our findings highlight the promise of our newly-developed quantitative methods for analyzing the morphology of entheses to reconstruct the behavior of extinct vertebrate species based on their skeletal remains.

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Section: Entheseal Measurements and Statistical Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Experimental evidence that physical activity affects the multivariate associations among muscle attachments (entheses)

Karakostis

Wallace

Konow

et al. 2019

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…The studies on activity patterns have contributed to our knowledge about the socioeconomic organization of human populations by addressing anthropological issues such as the sexual division of labor or the rise of food production (e.g., Henderson et al, 2018; Jurmain et al, 2012; Mazza, 2019; Schrader, 2019). Particularly, one of the most frequently researched issues is the change from a hunter‐gatherer lifestyle toward a more sedentary life, related to the incorporation of an agricultural subsistence strategy and possible segregation of activities according to sex (e.g., Eshed et al, 2004; Henderson, 2013; Santana‐Cabrera et al, 2015; Schrader, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring physical activity in Central Chile during the Early Ceramic Period and Late Intermediate Period (200–1450 CE)

Abarca-Labra

Herrera-Soto

Flores‐Alvarado

et al. 2021

American Journal of Biological Anthropology

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Objectives We explore physical activity in early farming societies of Central Chile during the Early Ceramic and Late Intermediate Periods (200–1450 CE), a time of technological changes and intensification of food production. The existence of differences in entheseal changes (EC) between females and males is evaluated in two periods with different subsistence strategies. Material and methods EC were recorded with method in the upper and lower limbs of 56 male and female adult individuals from the Early Ceramic Period (ECP) and Late Intermediate Period (LIP). Hierarchical multiple factor analysis and hierarchical clustering on principal components were performed using an exploratory approach. Results In all the analyzed limbs, the EC scores are higher in males than females, which may be explained by sexual dimorphism. A constant overlap in the variability of the EC among males and females is observed. However, the EC scores show a different pattern of variability when comparing ECP females with LIP females. The results show that the scores increase in the latter. In contrast, when comparing ECP males with LIP males scores decrease in the later period. Discussion Physical activity in the societies of Central Chile with incipient agriculture did not vary by sex or during the timeframe studied. Nevertheless, the interaction between sex‐period and the variability pattern of the EC from one period to another suggests different ways of doing similar physical activities or different emphases for similar biomechanical actions.

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Multivariate assessments of activity‐related skeletal changes: Interpreting Bell Beaker specialized male archery and social organization in Central Europe

Ryan‐Despraz

Villotte

Desideri

et al. 2023

American Journal of Biological Anthropology

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ObjectivesThe Bell Beaker period witnessed the rise of individual inhumations with “wealthy” burial contexts containing archery‐related grave goods, leading archaeologists to label the individuals in these tombs as “archers.” This study looks to (1) compare the skeletons from male “archer” burials with those from male “non‐archer” burials—those not having archery‐related grave goods—in order to assess a possible link between burial context and physical activity, and (2) apply a biomechanics profile to evaluate whether the individuals associated with these “archer” burials practiced specialized archer activity.Materials and MethodsThe corpus (males only) included 46 “archers” and 40 “non‐archers” from Bell Beaker individual inhumations. Osteological data included measurements, scores of entheseal changes, and a diagnosis of certain pathologies. Data analyses involved visual observations, hypothesis tests, dimension reduction, and MANOVA, with approaches aimed at exploring the treatment of data missingness.ResultsMeasurement data revealed no differences between the two groups. Evaluations of entheseal changes found that “non‐archers” had consistently more instances of bone surface modifications than “archers.” Individual assessments of specialized archer occupation identified 11 possible specialized archers.DiscussionThese findings indicate a possible labor differentiation represented through the presence of a probably prestigious “archer” burial context. This suggests a link between grave good presence and labor, but not between a Bell Beaker archery occupation and an “archer” burial context. Data analyses support the application of biomechanics to osteological analyses in order to assess specialized activity on the skeleton.

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Bioarchaeological Approaches to Activity Reconstruction

Cited by 8 publications

References 270 publications

Experimental evidence that physical activity affects the multivariate associations among muscle attachments (entheses)

Experimental evidence that physical activity affects the multivariate associations among muscle attachments (entheses)

Exploring physical activity in Central Chile during the Early Ceramic Period and Late Intermediate Period (200–1450 CE)

Multivariate assessments of activity‐related skeletal changes: Interpreting Bell Beaker specialized male archery and social organization in Central Europe

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