Bone Shapes from a Paleopathology Study

Abstract

Archaeologists have conducted a major excavation at St. Peter’s Church, Barton-upon-Humber, in the north of England. They have exhumed the skeletons of about 2000 adults dating mainly from between 1000 and 1500 C.E. A particular way in which the bones have been studied is for paleopathology—the use of old remains to give us information about diseases that people suffered from in the past. Many diseases leave traces on the bones, and special attention was given to osteoarthritis of the knee, both because it is and was a common and painful disease, and because the skeletal remains give us easy access to parts of the knee joint not easily seen on X-rays.