Papers by michaela spannagl-steiner
This article utilises skeletal evidence (n = 57) from settlement features and graves at Unterhaut... more This article utilises skeletal evidence (n = 57) from settlement features and graves at Unterhautzenthal, Lower Austria, to outline our methodological approach to researching motherhood in prehistory. Unterhautzenthal includes the grave of a pregnant teenager, a triple burial of a woman with two children and a family grave of a man, woman and baby; additional women’s graves include remains of neonates and young children. Comparing archaeological context information with osteobiographical data allows us to draw inferences about the social status of women and the ways Bronze Age motherhood was conceptualised. The archaeological approach includes a gender and age analysis of material culture and Social Index calculations. The osteological analyses include age at death, sex, body height, health indicators, and pathologies, with an emphasis on pelvic changes. Physical traces that may relate to strain through pregnancy and childbirth were explored in detail. In addition to morphological a...
The interdisciplinary analysis of the skeletal remains of 63 individuals from settlement features... more The interdisciplinary analysis of the skeletal remains of 63 individuals from settlement features and graves from Schleinbach in Lower Austria brought new insights into Early Bronze Age social relations, health aspects, signs of stress and trauma patterns. The individuals were buried in two groups of formal graves as well as in former storage pits. Mitochondrial DNA analysis identified genetic relationships between two individuals placed close together in a double grave, and between individuals from a multiple burial. The sex of four children buried in contexts suggestive of violence was revealed by proteomic sex identification. The high incidence of peri-mortem fractures in individuals from formal graves and pit burials suggests conflict within the community and neighbouring groups that were competing for scarce resources. The osteological analysis focused on skeletal and dental markers of deprivation, traumas, degenerative conditions and pelvic changes possibly linked to reproduct...
Anthropologischer Anzeiger
Pany-Kucera D., Spannagl-Steiner M., Maurer-Gesek B., Weninger W.J., Rebay-Salisbury K. 2021. Sac... more Pany-Kucera D., Spannagl-Steiner M., Maurer-Gesek B., Weninger W.J., Rebay-Salisbury K. 2021. Sacral preauricular extensions and notches as parts of a 'Pelvic Pattern' may provide information on past pregnancies and parturitions. Anthropologischer Anzeiger/HOMO - Journal of Comparative Human Biology 79/2.
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 2020
The identification of sex-specific peptides in human tooth enamel by nanoflow liquid chromatograp... more The identification of sex-specific peptides in human tooth enamel by nanoflow liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (nanoLC-MS/MS) represents a quantum leap for the study of childhood and social relations more generally. Determining sex-related differences in prehistoric child rearing and mortality has been hampered by the insufficient accuracy in determining the biological sex of juveniles. We conducted mass spectrometric analysis to identify sex-specific peptides in the dental enamel of a child from a settlement pit of the Early Bronze Age settlement of Schleinbach, Austria (c. 1950–1850 BC). Four perimortal impression fractures on the skull of a 5–6-year-old child indicate an intentional killing, with a co-buried loom weight as possible murder weapon. Proteomic analysis, conducted for the first time on prehistoric teeth in Austria, determined the child’s sex as male. While we cannot conclusively determine whether the child was the victim of conflicts between village grou...
Anthropologischer Anzeiger
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology
Archaeologia Austriaca
Schleinbach, Feature 9A (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27619 Sex: female, female expression of sexual... more Schleinbach, Feature 9A (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27619 Sex: female, female expression of sexually dimorphic traits in the cranium and pelvis Age: 45-55 years, dental wear (> III, oblique dental wear in two maxillary molars, but no intravital tooth loss, mandibular teeth uniformly worn), coronal and sagittal sutures completely fused, lambda suture partially closed (> 50 years) TCA age (counts): 25.5/25.6 ± 5 years Body height: 163 cm Bone surface preservation: moderately eroded Green stains: mastoid process, cranial base of occipital bone, right zygomatic process, right mandible and teeth, 2 cervical vertebrae, both clavicles, right proximal humerus, right distal radius, carpals, metacarpals and phalanges of the right hand Pelvic features: right preauricular sulcus is moderately developed (shape r/l: f-f-f/f-f-, stage r/l: 3/2); some exostoses are located in the anterior/superior part of the iliac auricular facet (stage r/l: 2/2) Stress/bone reactions: none detected (bad preservation of long bone surfaces) Trauma: possible parry fracture in the distal portion of the left ulna, no displacement, but callus formation Degenerative changes: changes on the first phalanx of the right hand Other: granular foveolae on the lamina interna of the frontal and parietal bones Anatomical variation:-Comments: long bone measurements: left femur = 443 mm, 14 C and C/N isotope samples taken from ribs, TCA samples from FDI 22 and FDI 41 Comments: male sex according to Weninger 1954, female sex according to Teschler-Nicola 1992 Schleinbach, Feature 9B (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27620 Sex: undetermined Age: 1.5 years, size of cranial fragments and dental development of maxillary incisor 1 Body height:-Bone surface preservation: moderately eroded (cranial fragments and maxillary incisor 1) Green stains: none detected Pelvic features, stress/bone reactions, trauma, degenerative changes, other, anatomical variation:-Comments: skeletal remains found with a female individual from Feature 9A 3 Appendix 1. Catalogue of Human Remains from Schleinbach Schleinbach, Feature 10 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27621 Sex: undetermined Age: c. 10-12 years, status of dentition and epiphyseal fusion Body height: c. 125 cm Bone surface preservation: slightly eroded Green stains: the right parietal bone is partially stained, both temporal bones, right occipital bone, (C1-7) both clavicles, right scapula, right humerus, both radii and ulnae, numerous ribs, carpals, metacarpals and phalanges of the hands, left knee Pelvic features:-Stress/bone reactions: none detected Trauma: none detected Degenerative changes: none detected Other: persisting right deciduous 2 nd molar (MM2) in the upper and lower jaw; substantial calculus build-up especially in the lower jaw Anatomical variation:-Comments: measurement of the diaphyseal length: left femur = 309 mm, additional skeletal fragments of an adult individual and some animal bones Schleinbach, Feature 11 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27622 Sex: female, female expression of sexually dimorphic traits in the cranium and pelvis Age: 45-55 years, dental wear (> III), cranial suture fused Body height: 156 cm Bone surface preservation: slightly eroded Green stains: temporal bones, mastoid process, occipital bone, left zygomatic bone, left mandible, 1 st and 2 nd cervical vertebra, a fragment of left scapula, left humerus, right radius distal Pelvic features: left preauricular sulcus is wide and y-shaped (shape r/l:-/f-f-f, stage r/l: 0/4); bilaterally developed clearly defined pubic tubercle (stage r/l: 3/2) and a sharp-edged pecten ossis pubis; large and deep lesions present (> 2 mm) in the middle and lower third of dorsal pubic surface (stage r/l: 3/3); slight ventral pubic lesions (stage r/l: 2/2); sharp-edged attachment of medial gluteal muscles; slightly developed sacral preauricular extension on the right side (stage r/l: 2/0) Stress/bone reactions: healed sinusitis maxillaris in the form of remodelled new bone apposition in the left maxillary sinus Trauma: none detected Degenerative changes: signs of osteoarthrosis/osteoarthritis in both knee joints, with large exostotic bone growth especially at the joint margins, in the femora for the most part medially located (only a fragmentary preservation of the right side), in the tibiae mainly in the anterior and medial part of the proximal joint, cystic lesion on the lateral side of the right tibia Other: granular foveolae on the internal layer alongside the sagittal suture; a circular focal lytic lesion on the occipital bone (protuberance region, c. 13 × 13 × 10 mm, contra Weninger 1954b, 55, who interpreted this lesion as a trepanation) Several carious lesions at the dental cervices; strongly developed calculus especially in the lower jaw; asymmetrical abrasion of the teeth in the upper jaw Anatomical variation:-Comments: long bone measurements: left femur = 418 mm Doris Pany-Kucera et al. Schleinbach, Feature 12 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27623 Sex: undetermined Age: 5-6 years, dental development Body height:-Bone surface preservation: slightly eroded Green stains: left side of the viscerocranium and right mandible, right clavicle, right scapula and proximal portion of right humerus, right 1 st rib, phalanges of the right hand Pelvic features: small groove bilaterally visible in the preauricular region Stress/bone reactions, trauma, degenerative changes:-Anatomical variation: none detected Other: intravital chipping of the right 1 st maxillary deciduous incisor Comments: no measurements of diaphyseal length possible; cranium exhibits numerous post-mortem fracture lines Comment 2: 14 C+ C/N sample: rib Schleinbach, Feature 13 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27624 Sex: undetermined Age: 13-15 years, dental development (M2 in masticatory plane, > 14 years), but diaphysis length points to a 10-12-year-old individual Body height: 120-124 cm Bone surface preservation: moderately eroded Green stains: right side of the temporal bone, cranial base, zygomatic process, mandible and teeth, clavicle, scapula and proximal humerus; 1 st ribs; all cervical vertebrae and two thoracic vertebrae Pelvic features:-Stress/bone reactions: bilateral cribra orbitalia visible as foramina in the orbital roofs; local periosteal reaction/new bone apposition (c. 10 × 20 mm) in the dorsoproximal shaft of the right ulna; pleuritis visible as a porous new bone layer on the pleural side of three ribs Trauma: none detected Degenerative changes: none detected Other: LEH (enamel hypoplasia): severity stage 2, 2 fine hypoplastic lines in maxillary first and 1 in second incisors; further, 2 hypoplastic lines in mandibular second incisor and 1 in the right canine, corresponding to a formation age of 2.5 and 3.5 years Anatomical variation: upper 2 nd molar exhibits an accessory protuberance; foramina caeca on all lower molars Comments: measurements of diaphyseal lengths: right humerus = 210 mm, left femur = 300 mm; discrepancy in age estimation between dentition and bone growth 5 Appendix 1. Catalogue of Human Remains from Schleinbach Schleinbach, Feature 14 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27625 Sex: female?, female expression of sexually dimorphic traits in the cranium and pelvis Age: 15-18 years, dentition status (M3 not erupted); epiphyseal fusion in the distal humerus, proximal radius, ulna, and y-shaped epiphysis in the acetabulum Body height: 151 cm Bone surface preservation: strongly eroded Green stains: left side of zygomatic process, clavicle, scapula, radii and ulnae Pelvic features: preauricular sulcus shape r/l: f-i-f/i-if , stage r/l: 2/1; pectineal line is well defined Stress/bone reactions: remodelled periosteal reactions (striations) in the shaft of the femora and tibiae; possible case of rickets-bending in the anterodistal part of both femora and both tibiae exhibit a lateral flexion in the upper part with strong muscle attachments Trauma: none detected Degenerative changes: none detected Other: LEH (enamel hypoplasia): severity stage 3, 1 hypoplastic line in mandibular left second incisor; further, 2 hypoplastic lines in mandibular left canine, corresponding to a formation age of 2.5 and 3.4 years Anatomical variation: none detected Comments: long bone measurements: right tibia = 340 mm, right femur = 399 mm; the surface of some bones are covered with sintering, male sex according to Weninger 1954, female sex according to Teschler-Nicola 1992 Schleinbach, Feature 15 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27626 Sex: male, male expression of sexually dimorphic traits in the cranium, mandible, and pelvis Age: 21-25 years, no cranial suture closure, dental wear (Ic) Body height: c. 161 cm Bone surface preservation: moderately eroded Green stains: none detected Pelvic features: preauricular sulcus shape r/l: mm-/-, stage r/l: 1/0 Stress/bone reactions: cribra orbitalia represented as a cluster of fine foramina in the left orbital roof Trauma, degenerative changes, other, anatomical variation: none detected Comments: long bone measurements: right femur = 435 mm, buried close to individual in Feature 18 (double burial?) Schleinbach, Feature 16 (Group 1), NHM AA Inv. no. 27627 Sex: female?, female expression of some of the sexually dimorphic traits in the cranium. Indifferent expression of pelvic features. Robustness of the long bones Age: 21-25 years, no cranial suture fusion, epiphyseal fusion finished; M3 not fully developed Body height: 164-165 cm Bone surface preservation: strongly eroded Green stains: left temporal bone Pelvic features, stress/bone reactions, trauma and degenerative changes: none detected, severely eroded Other: only isolated teeth, one upper I1, two lower PM1 and two M3 (root not completely developed) Anatomical variation: none detected Comments: long bone measurements: left ulna = 263 mm, left tibia = 394 mm; cranial internal layer and some postcranial skeletal elements are covered with sinter-no evaluation possible; 25-30-year-old male according to Weninger 1954, juvenile adult female according...
Archaeologia Austriaca
This article utilises skeletal evidence (n = 57) from settlement features and graves at Unterhaut... more This article utilises skeletal evidence (n = 57) from settlement features and graves at Unterhautzenthal, Lower Austria, to outline our methodological approach to researching motherhood in prehistory. Unterhautzenthal includes the grave of a pregnant teenager, a triple burial of a woman with two children and a family grave of a man, woman and baby; additional women's graves include remains of neonates and young children. Comparing archaeological context information with osteobiographical data allows us to draw inferences about the social status of women and the ways Bronze Age motherhood was conceptualised. The archaeological approach includes a gender and age analysis of material culture and Social Index calculations. The osteological analyses include age at death, sex, body height, health indicators, and pathologies, with an emphasis on pelvic changes. Physical traces that may relate to strain through pregnancy and childbirth were explored in detail. In addition to morphological assessment of the entire skeletal collection, we applied tooth cementum annulation analysis, 14 C dating, and δ 13 C/δ 15 N isotope analysis to selected individuals. These data, in conjunction with demographic modelling, enable us to draw conclusions about women's age at first pregnancy and the average number of children per woman, as well as the cultural and social context of motherhood.
Archaeologia Austriaca
Anthropological examination of the burials recovered at Gobelsburg, Lower Austria, revealed a tot... more Anthropological examination of the burials recovered at Gobelsburg, Lower Austria, revealed a total of seven individuals: three males, one female and three subadults. Palaeopathological investigations have shown features of periodontal disease and deficiencies of vitamin-C and iron; the latter is indicated by new bone formations (periostitis) on the long bones as well as porotic changes on the cranial vault (porotic hyperostosis). Occupation-induced musculo- skeletal stress markers (enthesopathies) are indicative of heavy physical work; the formation of a “rider’s bone” at the proximal femur points to a particular continuous activity (horseback riding). Moreover, a single traumatic incident, a supination fracture suffered by the male recovered from grave 4, implies a further particular life-historical event. Based on rarely observed (genetically fixed) features of the upper incisors and other epigenetic skeletal traits, a familial relationship between the three males and the subadul...
Tuberculosis, 2015
In recent decades, an increasing number of studies have aimed to shed light on the origin and spr... more In recent decades, an increasing number of studies have aimed to shed light on the origin and spread of tuberculosis in past human populations. Here we present the results of a systematic palaeodemographic and palaeopathological survey of the Early Mediaeval population of Gars/Thunau (Lower Austria), which - at this stage - includes 373 individuals recovered at two archaeological sub-sites: a fortified settlement (including a necropolis) at the top of a hill - probably reserved for social and military elites; and a large riverine settlement at the foot of the hill, a so-called 'suburbium', where burials and an area of 'industrial' character were discovered. We recorded a great number of pathological alterations and a variety of 'classical' features of tuberculosis, such as vertebral destructions (Pott's disease) and joint destructions, and other pathological (unspecific) features probably linked with Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection (e.g. new bone formation at the inner surface of the ribs, endocranial alterations in the form of 'pits', and new bone formation at the cranial base). We hypothesize that the two contemporaneous (∼900-1000 AD) populations of Gars/Thunau differed not only in their social affiliation/condition, but also in the type and frequencies of their population-density-related infectious diseases (in particular tuberculosis). Moreover, we investigated the molecular genetic evidence of the causative organism in a few selected immatures exhibiting pathological changes at the inner wall of the cranium and discuss these findings in regard to the macroscopic features observed. Finally, we analysed carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes of both populations and strontium isotope ratios of the hill-top inhabitants in order to reconstruct certain aspects of diet and mobility to test our hypothesis concerning the specific social…
Archaeologia Austriaca, 2015
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology
Specific changes at the ventrosuperior margin (apex) of the ala ossis sacri-an extension or a not... more Specific changes at the ventrosuperior margin (apex) of the ala ossis sacri-an extension or a notch and respective corresponding structures at the iliac auricular facetwere noted in female skeletons. We suggest terming them sacral preauricular extension (SPE) and sacral preauricular notch (SPN) and propose a recording system. We analysed pelvic remains from Bronze Age female and male individuals for comparison from three different sites in Austria in the course of the ongoing European Research Council-funded project The Value of Mothers to Society. In total, 52 sacral remains from the right side and 34 from the left of female individuals, as well as 30 sacral remains from the right and 24 from the left side of male individuals, were recorded. Commonly addressed pelvic features and the newly described changes were systematically analysed. The sacral preauricular extension occurred uni-and, in some cases, bilaterally in females of all ages, always at the level of the terminal line, the sacral preauricular notch only unilaterally. Corresponding structures at the ilium occurred in 66.7% and 80% of the affected individuals (right/left side, respectively). In total, a sacral preauricular extension was found on the right side in 13.5% and on the left side in 14.7% of the Bronze Age females, and 9.6% was affected by a notch. The observed changes were not found in males. We argue that the observed changes stand in a causal relationship with pregnancy and birth events. The hormonally induced ligament laxening during pregnancies causes an increased movement in the sacroiliac joint. Postural changes encouraged by weight gain can cause balance shifts that may lead to the observed bony extensions at the sacroiliac apex. The sacral preauricular notch may be related to birthing events at an early age. We present a nomenclature, a detailed description of the morphological modifications, and propose a recording system.
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Papers by michaela spannagl-steiner