Archaeology

The colonisation of the North Atlantic from the eighth century AD was the earliest expansion of European populations to the west. Norse and Celtic voyagers are recorded as reaching and settling
in Iceland, Greenland and easternmost North America between c. AD 750 and 1000, but the date of these events and the homeland of the colonists are subjects of some debate. In this project, the birthplaces of 90 early burials from Iceland were sought using strontium isotope analysis. At least nine, and probably thirteen, of these individuals can be distinguished as migrants to Iceland from other places. In addition, there are clear differences to be seen in the diets of the local Icelandic peoples, ranging from largely terrestrial to largely marine consumption.

On July 5th 1962 construction workers unearthed a human skeleton in Skarðsvík north of Öndverðanesskagi in Breiðavíkurhreppur. Two days later Þorkell Grímson, then archaeologist at the National Museum of Iceland went to investigate the find, which turned out to be a single human burial with elaborate grave goods (including a sword, a spearhead, a shield-boss, a knife and a bone-needle), dated by the typology of the sword and the spearhead to the 10th century. The human remains, which were exceptionally well preserved, were initially studied by professor Jón Steffensen, who concluded that they belonged to a 14 year old boy.

Subsequent studies of the human remains from Öndverðanes have provided a different picture. When the individual is aged using epiphyseal fusion and union of primary ossification centres, the resulting age at death is between 10-12 years old. However, most of the secondary dentition has erupted, with the exception of the third molars of the maxilla, which are partially erupted, ageing the individual at between 19-21 years. In addition the measured living stature is 176,92,7cm, which is almost 10cm taller than the estimated average height (168,8cm) for adult males in that period, as calculated by Jón Steffensen.

The height of the individual suggests that the age given by the dentition is more accurate then that suggested by epiphyseal fusion, suggesting that the discrepancy is caused by some sort of disturbance in the maturation of the skeleton. It is the opinion of the author that this is caused by hypogonadism, reduced, or even the lack of, testosterone, which stimulates the growth of cartilage and maturation of the skeleton. Hypogonadism can be caused by various genetic causes, for example Kleinfelters syndrome, or males born with an extra X-chromosome and anorchia, males born without testicular tissue. It can also be caused by castration at a young age. If the hypogonadism is not treated it results in eunochoidism; above average height, as skeletal growth continues longer than normal as the epiphyses and primary centres of ossification fuse later than normal, but usually very delicate bones. Puberty is not achieved, which means that facial and pubic hair does not grow, the genitalia does not mature and some may develop female breasts (gynaecomastia). In the cases of genetic hypogonadism, in particular Kleinfelters syndrome, sociopathic behaviour, mental deficiency, homosexuality and transvestitism is not uncommon.

A palaeopathological diagnosis of this kind raises many questions, for example, how was an individuals grave goods determined, was it based on his or hers life achievements or heredity, and were men deliberately castrated in Viking age Iceland? The author does not attempt to answer these questions, but merely use the case study as an example as to the possibilities offered by palaeopathological research in archaeological studies.

Archaeological investigations have been ongoing in the cemetery at Hofstaðir in Mývatnssveit since the summer of 1999. To date, the remains of two chapels as well as 78 skeletons have been excavated, dated to between the 11th and 15th century. A skeleton was excavated in the summer of 2003 which showed
pathological changes indicative of a malignant disease. Palaeopathological cases of malignancies are very rare, and it is therefore important to report on each case.Skeleton HST-027 was a female, aged 45-50 years at the time of death. Standard osteological methods were used to determine the sex, age and stature. Macroscopic analysis was carried out on the skeleton and all pathological changes on each bone described. The cranium, ribs, left os coxa and all left long bones were then radiographed to aid in the diagnosis.The analysis showed lytic lesions in all the flat bones, as well as the vertebrae, ribs and the proximal end of the left femur, all changes indicative of
multiple myeloma. Palaeopathologically myeloma and metastatic cancer (then usually due to breast cancer in the case of women) are often difficult to distinguish. However there is no new bone formation surrounding the lesions, which means that metastatic cancer is unlikely to be the cause.Skeleton HST-027 from Hofstaðir is the first published case of malignant disease in celand, and one of the clearer cases of myeloma in an
archaeological specimen, but to date, approximately twenty cases have been reported world-wide.

Methodologies and legislative frameworks regarding the archaeological excavation, retrieval, analysis, curation and potential reburial of human skeletal remains differ throughout the world. As work forces have become increasingly mobile and international research collaborations are steadily increasing, the need for a more comprehensive understanding of different national research traditions, methodologies and legislative structures within the academic and commercial sector of physical anthropology has arisen. The Routledge Handbook of Archaeological Human Remains and Legislation provides comprehensive information on the excavation of archaeological human remains and the law through 62 individual country contributions from Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America and Australasia.

More specifically, the volume discusses the following:

-What is the current situation (including a brief history) of physical anthropology in the country?
-What happens on discovering human remains (who is notified, etc.)?
-What is the current legislation regarding the excavation of archaeological human skeletal remains? Is a license needed to excavate human remains? Is there any specific legislation regarding excavation in churchyards? Any specific legislation regarding war graves?
-Are physical anthropologists involved in the excavation process?
-Where is the cut-off point between forensic and archaeological human remains (e.g. 100 years, 50 years, 25 years…)?
-Can human remains be transported abroad for research purposes?
-What methods of anthropological analysis are mostly used in the country? Are there any methods created in that country which are population-specific?
-Are their particular ethical issues that need to be considered when excavating human remains, such as religious groups or tribal groups?
-In addition, an overview of landmark anthropological studies and important collections are provided where appropriate.

The entries are contained by an introductory chapter by the editors which establish the objectives and structure of the book, setting it within a wider archaeological framework, and a conclusion which explores the current European and world-wide trends and perspectives in the study of archaeological human remains. The Routledge Handbook of Archaeological Human Remains and Legislation makes a timely, much-needed contribution to the field of physical anthropology and is unique as it combines information on the excavation of human remains and the legislation that guides it, alongside information on the current state of physical anthropology across several continents. It is an indispensible tool for archaeologists involved in the excavation of human remains around the world

Fifteen burials and a minimum number of 22 individuals, dating from the late 18th to early 20th centuries, were excavated during renovation work at the church in Bolungarvík in the summer of 2003. This article presents the results of the analysis on the skeletal remains and grave furniture, with a broader discussion of burial rites in Iceland in the later post-medieval period.

In 2001 Exeter Archaeology carried out archaeological recording at Althea Library, 27 High Street, Padstow (SY 9150 7543). Seventeen graves were exposed, arranged in two rows. They were all lined and capped with slate, and aligned broadly east–west. Most had been disturbed, their capstones either having been removed or broken and collapsed into the graves. Three graves were excavated and the skeletons removed for analysis.
Radiocarbon determinations indicate an eighth- or ninth-century date for the cemetery. The investigations also produced a small but significant pottery assemblage including a sherd of Hamwic fabric 127 and a sherd of a rare class of micaceous pottery from north-west France.

The objective of this study was to reassess the diagnoses of arthritis in skeletons excavated in 1939 at the site of Skeljastadir in Thjórsárdalur, Iceland. In the original palaeopathological report by Professor Jón Steffensen, several cases of polyarthritis were described. The fifty-four available adult skeletons were re-examined using modern terminology and methods. Osteoarthritis was diagnosed where either eburnation or two other criteria such as osteophytes and a porous joint surface were noted. No evidence of inflammatory or erosive arthritis was seen, but osteoarthritis was diagnosed in 31.5% of the skeletons and in 14.8% there were signs of osteoarthritis at more than one joint site. There was a high prevalence of osteoarthritis at the hip and lumbar vertebrae compared to contemporary English skeletons. The term polyarthritis in the original report corresponds with the modern diagnosis of osteoarthritis at more than one site. The joint distribution of osteoarthritis in these skeletons is particularly interesting in view of recent studies indicating a very high prevalence of hip osteoarthritis in Iceland. Genetic factors are of importance in the development of osteoarthritis and these results indicate that further palaeopathological studies may yield valuable information in this field.

This paper presents the results of the analysis of chronic infections and infectious diseases in a total of 142 skeletons from four separate skeletal populations from Christian cemeteries in Iceland. These are the 11th-12th century cemetery at Skeljastaðir in Þjórsárdalur (54); the 11th-14th century cemetery at Hofstaðir in Mývatnssveit (51) and a combined group from the cemeteries in Viðey in Kollafjörður and the old cemetery in Reykjavík (37), all skeletons dating to the 18th-19th century. The results showed that six of the 54 individuals from Skeljastaðir had infections; one case of non-specific osteomyelitis, one case of non-specific lung infection, three cases of tuberculosis and one case of poliomyelitis. Three of the 51 individuals were affected in the Hofstaðir collection, in all cases non-specific lung infections. Nine of the 37 individuals from the Reykjavík collections had infections, five had non-specific lung infections, three had diagnosable tuberculosis and one had syphilis. Although non-specific infections are discussed, the focus is on specific infections, i.e. infectious diseases which are spread by one person infecting another, and how to interpret them in skeletal populations in light of The osteological paradox, as published by Wood et al (1992). The osteological paradox deals with the paradoxical issues involved in using an archaeological skeletal collection, a group of dead individuals, to draw up a picture of the living society to which these individuals belonged. In the discussion it is demonstrated that by keeping in mind the points highlighted in the osteological paradox, that although analysis of infectious diseases within a population might provide information about the health of individuals, it will not necessarily shed light on general health within the population as a whole. On the other hand it can provide information about other features of the society which the cemeteries served, in the collections used here it was for example demonstrated that infectious disease within a group may be reflecting the size and density of the society, and may even be evidence of a temporary change in health, an epidemic. As such, the high prevalence of infectious diseases in the 18th-19th century Reykajvík populations reflects the beginning of urbanisation in Reykjavík during that period, when the number and density of people living in the area becomes large enough for urban diseases like tuberculosis and syphilis to become endemic. Because of the low population density in Þjórsárdalur during the 11th-12th century, when the Skeljastaðir cemetery was in use, the high prevalence rates of tuberculosis in the population is unlikely to reflect the prevalence of the disease for the entire period during which the cemetery was in use. What it most likely represents is a temporary situation, a tuberculosis epidemic in the valley.

Íslenskar fornleifar eru yfirleitt ekki rismiklar eða áberandi. Þær eru þvert á móti lágstemmdar í einfaldleika sínum, falla oft vel inn í landslagið og eru hluti af því. Sumar mannvirkjaleifar eru þó mjög greinilegar og sjást langt að, veggir úr torfi og grjóti enn stæðilegir og undir þeim grænir og gróskumiklir hólar, þrungnir áburði eftir aldalöng umsvif fólks og skepnubeit. Aðrar fornleifar getur verið vandasamt að koma auga á og þarf stundum að hafa sig allan við, hvessa augun og halla undir flatt, klifra upp á hól til að fá nýtt sjónarhorn eða jafnvel bíða eftir að kvöldsólin baði landið með geislum sínum og töfri fram skugga og drætti úr fortíðinni.

Historical osteoarchaeology has not been at the forefront of archaeological research in Iceland. Large-scale excavations of historical cemeteries did not start until the mid-twentieth century, and all excavations of historical cemeteries until the early twenty-first century were development led. This fact means that many of the projects carried out did not have an osteoarchaeological focus, nor asked specific osteological questions of the material, as well as the fact that the state of the publication of these sites is very varied. This paper presents a summary of the larger excavations of historical cemeteries in Iceland alongside discussions of the various approaches to the presentation of the analysis of the skeletal remains of those sites that have been published from Jón Steffensen’s focus on identifying the individuals at seventeenth-to-eighteenth-century Skálholt and Hólar; to the evidence presented for the hospital in sixteenth-century Skriðuklaustur and the influence of increased urbanization in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Reykjavík on the palaeopathology of those buried there.