Taphonomy in Bioarchaeology and Human Osteology

Introduction

Classical Taphonomy

Traditionally, taphonomy was studied by paleontologists to interpret the processes that operate on organic remains that comprise a part of the fossil record. A major focus of taphonomy was to understand the effects of those processes in order to reconstruct the past as it pertains to a particular fossil assemblage (Shipman 1981). Years later, archaeologists began to study taphonomy in order to determine how and why floral and faunal remains accumulated and differentially preserved within the archaeological record. Interpretation of the postmortem, pre-, and post-burial histories of faunal assemblages is critical in determining their association with hominid activity and behavior. Archaeologists typically separate natural from cultural processes when identifying evidence of human interaction with faunal remains (Lyman 1994).

Various models of fossil assemblage formation have been proposed, depicting a general taphonomic history. The taphonomic history...