Mechanical stress in the urbanized Roman Phoenician coast

Mardini, Mahmoud; Badawi, Ali; Zaven, Tania; Gergian, Raffi; Nikita, Efthymia

doi:10.1016/j.ijpp.2023.09.008

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Activity‐related skeletal changes have been used extensively in bioarchaeology to investigate patterns of past occupations (Alioto, 2020; Henderson et al, 2013; Klaus et al, 2009; Mardini et al, 2023; Rhodes & Knüsel, 2005). The purpose of the current paper is to employ a wide range of such changes to examine occupational patterns between males and females in Hellenistic–early Roman Menainon, and test the sex‐related division of labor attested in historical sources for the Greco‐Roman world (e.g., Aristotle, Xenophon, and Hierocles).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex differences in mechanical stress and associated labor in Hellenistic–early Roman Menainon, Sicily

Caruso,

Nikita

2024

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

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This paper explores mechanical stress in the Hellenistic/early Roman community of Menainon (Sicily) to test the existence of sex‐based division of labor. For this purpose, human skeletal remains from 79 males and 65 females, dating to the 4th–1st ca. BCE, were examined for degenerative joint disease, intervertebral disc disease, cross‐sectional geometric properties, and entheseal changes. Our findings support an equal share of workload between males and females, who appeared to have experienced similar mechanical stress levels. In contrast, they do not support a systematically greater mechanical load among males, as would have been expected if females had been restricted indoors taking care of domestic tasks only, while men had dealt with most physically demanding outdoor activities. The patterns identified in the current study agree with a scenario where agriculture was a prominent subsistence activity (as attested historically for this region) and most members of this rural community engaged in agricultural tasks irrespective of sex. Our study has limitations regarding the available historical and archaeological information, which restrict our ability to formulate solid research hypotheses or fully contextualize the bioarchaeological results. Nonetheless, it does highlight the importance of critically assessing historical information regarding the role of men and women in the Greco‐Roman society.

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