Ergebnisse
Since the investigations are still ongoing, the results are only preliminary, however, they do show tendencies in the occurrence and frequency of diseases. Some of them were already presented at various conferences in Europe, the US and Russia within the last few years.
So far, the majority of the individuals from the burial mounds were adult males with smaller numbers of adult females and children. We found the spectrum of pathological changes which are typical for Bronze Age populations. Among them are only a few specific infections, such as tuberculosis or leprosy, but many of the skeletons show traces of non-specific infections, e.g. of the respiratory system, of the teeth and related tissues, and of the periosteum of the lower extremities. Fractures were frequently found, but they are more commonly related to accidental incidences than to interpersonal violence. In only a few cases, blunt force trauma to the head was being observed. This is an interesting aspect, since stone or metal axes and other weapons are a frequent gift in Bronze Age graves in the Caucasus. Degenerative diseases were very common, and increased with age. The joints of the spine as well as all the other joints showed severe changes, not uncommonly culminating in eburnation, the polishing of a joint. The masticatory system of these people showed very interesting features. Apart from a significant low number of caries, they had quite a lot of periodontal disease, and high levels of calculus. Apparently, a typical characteristic of these people was the use of devices to create traces of interproximal grooving. Being aware of the discussion on the causes of interproximal grooving, in our cases we think the furrows are due to the use of toothpick like tools, maybe used to remove fibers from the interproximal spaces. An extraordinary feature in our material is the presence of trepanations (see ´Paleopathological research on trepanations of the 5th to 3rd millennia BC in southern Russia: evidence for ritually motivated tradition of cranial surgery?´ on this homepage). The study area has one of the highest trepanation frequencies in the 5th and 4th millennium BC worldwide and can be regarded as a center of such early medical technique.
The discovery of cases of scurvy, predominantly on individuals from the site of Kudakhurt 14, will contribute to the knowledge of the history of this nutritional disease. Another group of interest is the ´wagon drivers´, who are represented in large numbers in our material.
Additionally, a number of other diseases could be observed in the skeletons, but discussing them in detail is outside the scope of this report.
Publications
• Gresky J, Batieva E, Kitova A, Kalmykov A, Belinskiy A, Reinhold S, Berezina N. 2016. New cases of trepanations from the 5th to 3rd millennia BC in Southern Russia in the context of previous research: Possible evidence for a ritually motivated tradition of cranial surgery? Article first published online: 21 APR 2016. DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22996.
• Fuchs K, Gresky J. 2015. The prevalence of caries in Bronze Age populations from the Northern Caucasus. Annual Meeting Issue 2015, Supplement 60, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, p. 138.
• Schwarz L, Berezina N, Gresky J. 2015. Assessment of lesions of the rotator cuff (Rotator Cuff diseases, RCD). Annual Meeting Issue 2015, Supplement 60, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, p. 282.
• Fuchs K, Gresky J. 2014. Malposition, circulatory deficiency and traumata – a multi-affected individual as a special case of Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease. Annual Meeting Issue 2014, Supplement 58, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, p. 122.
• Gresky J, Berezina N. 2014. Clumsiness or hard daily routine? Fractures of hands and feet in Bronze Age people from Northern Caucasus. Annual Meeting Issue 2014, Supplement 58, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, p. 130.
• Gresky J, Hansen S, Reinhold S. 2014. Bioarchäologische Grundlagenforschung an bronzezeitlichen Skelettfunden aus dem Nordkaukasus. Aktuelle Forschungen in Eurasien. Hrsg. Hansen S. Pinguin Druck, Berlin, p. 60-61.
• Gresky J, Berezina N. 2013. Oral hygiene and patterns of use in teeth of six sites in northern Caucasus dating from Eneolithic to Bronze Age. Annual Meeting Issue 2013, Supplement 56, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, p.137.
• Reinhold S, Gresky J, Kantorovich AR, Knipper C, Maslov VE, Petrenko VG, Alt KW, Belinsky AB. 2016. Contextualising innovation. About cattle owners and wagon drivers in the North Caucasus and beyond. In: Maran J, Stockhammer Ph (eds). Appropriating Innovation. Entangled knowledge in Eurasia, 5000-1500 BCE (in press).
Conference contributions
• Gresky J, Tucker K, Belinskiy A, Reinhold S, Berezina N. 2016. Frequency of fractures in Bronze Age people engaged in animal husbandry from Northern Caucasus. 21st European Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, Moscow, August 15-19, 2016
• Berezina N, Dobrovolskaya M, Kalmykov A, Belinskiy A, Reinhold S, Gresky, J. 2016. Grave gifts or lifetime instruments: confirmation of professional activity with anthropological methods. 21st European Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, Moscow, August 15-19, 2016
• Tucker K, Berezina N, Belinskiy A, Reinhold S, Gresky J. 2016. An accident at work? Ante-mortem traumatic lesions in a Bronze Age skeleton from the Northern Caucasus. 21st European Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, Moscow, August 15-19, 2016
• Fuchs K, Gresky J. 2015. Comparative analyses of the mandible. Pathological case studies from the prehistoric North Caucasus and Turkey. Paleopathology Association, Scientific Program & Abstracts, 42th Annual Meeting (North America), St. Louis, Missouri, March 24-25, 2015
• Gresky J, Berezina N. 2015. Pathological changes of the spine in Bronze Age people from the Northern Caucasus. Paleopathology Association, Scientific Program & Abstracts, 42th Annual Meeting (North America), St. Louis, Missouri, March 24-25, 2015
• Fuchs K, Gresky J. 2014. Genetic disorder, chronic inflammation or hormonal dysfunction? Diagnosing bone disease in poorly preserved human remains. Paleopathology Association, Scientific Program & Abstracts, 41th Annual Meeting (North America), Calgary, Ontario, April 8-9, 2014
• Berezina N, Gresky J. 2013. Анализ особенностей зубной системы населения Центрального Предкавказья в эпохи энеолита и бронзы. Физическая антропология: методики, базы данных, научные результаты. Всероссийская научно-практическая конференция. в сборнике Физическая антропология: методики, базы данных, научные результаты. Всероссийская научно-практическая конференция. октября 7-11, 2013г, место издания "Лема" Санкт-Петербург, тезисы, с. 18-20
• Berezina N, Gresky J. 2013. Традиция трепанаций на Северном Кавказе в эпоху энеолита и бронзы. Материалы международной научной конференции «Население юга России с древнейших времен до наших дней». Донские антропологические чтения Ростов-на-Дону, августа 26-30, 2013
• Gresky J, Berezina N. 2013. Гигиена полости рта и характер использования зубов индивидов из шести могильников Северного Кавказа эпохи энеолита и бронзы. Материалы международной научной конференции «Население юга России с древнейших времен до наших дней». Донские антропологические чтения Ростов-на-Дону, августа 26-30, 2013
• Fuchs K, Berezina N, Gresky J. 2013. Malnutrition in the Bronze Age – Scurvy in populations from the Northern Caucasus. Материалы международной научной конференции «Население юга России с древнейших времен до наших дней». Донские антропологические чтения Ростов-на-Дону, августа 26-30, 2013
• Fuchs K, Berezina N, Gresky J. 2013. Scurvy - malnutrition in the Caucasian Bronze Age. Socio-environmental dynamics over the last 12.000 years: the Creation of Landscapes III. Programme and Abstract Volume. Open Workshop, Kiel, Germany, April 15-18, 2013
• Berezina N, Gresky J. 2012. Two cases of possible trepanations in Eneolithic burials from the Piedmont area of Northern Caucasus. 19th European Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, Lille, August 27-29, 2012
• Fuchs K, Berezina N, Gresky J. 2012. Juvenile scurvy in two Bronze Age Caucasian sites. 19th European Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, Lille, August 27-29, 2012
• Gresky J, Berezina N. 2012. Two cases of trepanation in Eneolithic burials from Progress 2 and Voniuchka 1. International Conference The XXVII- Krupnov’s Readings “The Latest Archaeological Discoveries On the North Caucasus: Researches & Interpretations” Makhachkala, April 23-28, 2012