Bone histology of prehistoric inhabitants of the Canary Islands: Comparison between El Hierro and Gran Canaria

Abstract

The trabecular bone mass (TBM) of the proximal epiphyses of right tibiae belonging to 273 prehispanic inhabitants of Gran Canaria (60. 81% males and 35.53% females) were assessed by histomorphometrical analysis of undecalcified samples and compared with that of 41 samples from El Hierro (52.63% males and 47.37% females). Among the prehispanic population of Gran Canaria 19.05% showed TBM values below 13.5% and 30.40% below 15%, although individual variability was high (range 6.71-35.4%). In sharp contrast with these results, only one case (2.44%) from El Hierro showed a TBM value below 15%, whereas mean TBM (23.50;+/- 5.60%) was significantly higher than that of the population of Gran Canaria (17.88 +/- 5.20%). The high prevalence of osteoporosis on Gran Canaria may reflect protein-calorie malnutrition. Prehistorically Gran Canaria exhibited a relatively high population density (30-40/km(2)) and a strong reliance on agriculture, in contrast with a lower population density (4/km(2)) on the island El Hierro, where the population consumed mainly marine products.

Double‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry in the diagnosis of osteopenia in ancient skeletal remains

“…In 27 cases, most of the remaining skeleton was preserved. The vast majority of these samples were included in a study comparing prevalence of osteoporosis between the prehistoric population of Gran Canaria and that of El Hierro (Velasco-Vá zquez et al, 1999). The samples were obtained from the following mass burials: Guayadeque (68 cases), Tifaracas (1 case), El Agujero (13 cases), Hormiguero (5 cases), Dragonal (1 case), Charquitos (1 case), Santa Lucía (1 case), Andén de Tabacalete (2 cases), Tejeda (2 cases), and Montañ a de Juan Tello (1 case) ( Fig.…”

“…In the 27 complete skeletons, sex was determined by inspection of the pelvis. In the remaining cases, sex was estimated by adapting the discriminant functions analysis of Iscan and Miller-Shaivitz (1984) to the population of Gran Canaria, as previously described (Velasco-Vá zquez et al, 1999). In total, 27 tibiae were classified as belonging to female individuals, and 65 to males.…”

“…These analyses include assessment of dental attrition and enamel hypoplasia (Powell, 1985;Corrucini et al, 1985), bone trace elements (Price and Kavanagh, 1982;Gilbert, 1985;Francalacci, 1989;Burton and Price, 1990), bone stable isotopes of carbon, nitrogen, and other elements (Schoeninger, 1983;Klepinger, 1984), and prevalence of osteopenia and/or osteoporosis (Huss-Ashmore, 1978;Martin et al, 1985), among others. The finding of a high prevalence of the latter entity in a population that is not comprised solely of aged individuals may be interpreted as an indicator of protein-calorie malnutrition (Huss-Ashmore, 1978;Velasco-Vá zquez et al, 1999).…”

Ribeiro's typology, genomes, and Spanish colonialism, as viewed from Gran Canaria and Colombia

“…The first inhabitants of these islands arrived around the middle of the second millennium BC, and anthropological studies indicate a close relationship between these early colonizers and the North African Berbers, although this aboriginal population was probably not a homogeneous group (Murdock, 1959;Schwidetzky, 1963;Velasco-Vásquez et al, 1999;Flores et al, 2003). Although the Greeks and Romans explored the Canary Islands (giving them that name), it was not until the 15th century that the archipelago was settled by Europeans, when it was incorporated into the expanding Spanish Empire.…”

Violence targeting children or violent society? Craniofacial injuries among the pre‐Hispanic subadult population of Gran Canaria (Canary Islands)

“…In this case, the greatest and most important difference resides in the marked hierarchy of the ancient Canarian society where inequalities were institutionalized imposing asymmetric access to the ownership of land, livestock, as well as to any other fundamental resource vital to survival. Such a scenario has been linked, among other issues, to a nutritional deficit affecting part of Gran Canaria's pre‐Hispanic population due to unequal access to food, and in particular to livestock (Delgado‐Darias, Velasco‐Vázquez, Arnay‐de‐la‐Rosa, Martín‐Rodríguez, & González‐Reimers, ; Velasco‐Vázquez et al, ). Therefore, if we add the interpersonal competition of political and social order to the conditions described above, it becomes simpler to explain a model of widespread physical violence extending to large sectors of the population, including subadults.…”