Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15260.
Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Human Development in Landscapes, Institute for Prehistoric and Protohistoric Archaeology, Archaeological Stable Isotope Laboratory, Kiel, 24118, Germany.
Am J Hum Biol. 2018 Jul;30(4):e23129. doi: 10.1002/ajhb.23129. Epub 2018 Apr 19.
We tested the hypothesis that the purported unstable climate in the South Urals region during the Middle Bronze Age (MBA) resulted in health instability and social stress as evidenced by skeletal response.
The skeletal sample (n = 99) derived from Kamennyi Ambar 5 (KA-5), a MBA kurgan cemetery (2040-1730 cal. BCE, 2 sigma) associated with the Sintashta culture. Skeletal stress indicators assessed included cribra orbitalia, porotic hyperostosis, dental enamel hypoplasia, and tibia periosteal new bone growth. Dental disease (caries, abscess, calculus, and periodontitis) and trauma were scored. Results were compared to regional data from the nearby Samara Valley, spanning the Early to Late Bronze Age (EBA, LBA).
Lesions were minimal for the KA-5 and MBA-LBA groups except for periodontitis and dental calculus. No unambiguous weapon injuries or injuries associated with violence were observed for the KA-5 group; few injuries occurred at other sites. Subadults (<18 years) formed the majority of each sample. At KA-5, subadults accounted for 75% of the sample with 10% (n = 10) estimated to be 14-18 years of age.
Skeletal stress markers and injuries were uncommon among the KA-5 and regional groups, but a MBA-LBA high subadult mortality indicates elevated frailty levels and inability to survive acute illnesses. Following an optimal weaning program, subadults were at risk for physiological insult and many succumbed. Only a small number of individuals attained biological maturity during the MBA, suggesting that a fast life history was an adaptive regional response to a less hospitable and perhaps unstable environment.
我们验证了一个假设，即在南乌拉尔地区中青铜时代中期（MBA）据称不稳定的气候导致了健康不稳定和社会压力，这可以从骨骼反应中得到证明。
骨骼样本（n=99）来自卡缅尼扬阿玛尔 5 号（KA-5），这是一个 MBA 时期的古墓（2040-1730 年 cal. BCE，2 西格玛），与辛塔什塔文化有关。评估的骨骼压力指标包括眶骨骨肥厚、多孔性骨质增生、牙釉质发育不全和胫骨骨膜新骨生长。牙齿疾病（龋齿、脓肿、结石和牙周炎）和创伤都进行了评分。结果与附近萨马拉河谷的区域数据进行了比较，涵盖了从早期到晚期青铜时代（EBA、LBA）。
除了牙周炎和牙石外，KA-5 和 MBA-LBA 组的病变最小。KA-5 组没有观察到明确的武器伤害或与暴力有关的伤害；其他部位的伤害很少发生。未成年人（<18 岁）构成了每个样本的大多数。在 KA-5，未成年人占样本的 75%，其中 10%（n=10）估计为 14-18 岁。
骨骼压力标志物和损伤在 KA-5 和区域组中并不常见，但 MBA-LBA 时期未成年人死亡率较高表明脆弱程度升高，无法生存急性疾病。在实施最佳断奶计划后，未成年人容易受到生理伤害，许多人因此夭折。只有少数人在 MBA 期间达到了生物成熟，这表明快速的生活史是对较不友好和可能不稳定的环境的一种适应性区域反应。
