INTRAINDIVIDUAL VARIABILITY OF STRONTIUM AND LEAD STABLE ISOTOPES AND ELEMENT CONCENTRATIONS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL SKELETONS FROM ROMAN STETTFELD (CA 150300 CE), BADEN-WURTTEMBERG (GERMANY)

Mereacre, Valeria; Grupe, Gisela; Stallauer, Annette; Huth, Rudolf und Wahl, Joachim (2020): INTRAINDIVIDUAL VARIABILITY OF STRONTIUM AND LEAD STABLE ISOTOPES AND ELEMENT CONCENTRATIONS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL SKELETONS FROM ROMAN STETTFELD (CA 150300 CE), BADEN-WURTTEMBERG (GERMANY). In: Anthropologie-International Journal of Human Diversity and Evolution, Bd. 58, Nr. 1: S. 75-91

Abstract

Strontium and lead stable isotopes, and element concentrations were measured in 12 uncremated skeletons from the Roman Stettfeld site (ca 150300 CE;Baden-Wurttemberg, FRG). Samples were taken from three to five skeletal parts per individual that precipitated and/or accumulated trace elements at different ontogenetic stages, namely enamel of different permanent teeth, compact and trabecular bone, and new bone formations such as active periostitis or fracture callus. Six out of the 12 skeletons turned out to be immigrants to the site according to enamel and/or bone Sr-87/Sr-86 isotopic ratios. By use of enamel precipitation data, bone remodeling and strontium clearance rates from the skeleton, individual age at migration could be refined and showed that residence change took place during infancy or juvenile ages. One female skeleton exhibited negative turnover rates indicating a negative calcium balance. Together with a conspicuous sulcus praeauricularis and her young age-at-death, this is most plausibly interpreted as death shortly after pregnancy and birth. While the residence change of this female could have been due to exogamy, migration during childhood or juvenile age indicates movement of (family) groups of people. In Roman times, also slavery cannot be excluded. With regard to the geological variability at the site, catchment area of the immigrants should however have been small and was most probably restricted to the Black Forest and nearest surroundings. Rich ore deposits of the region, and the dependency of the Roman society from silver and lead, constituted a strong pull-factor that time. All but two individuals that had been identified as immigrants by Sr-87/Sr-86 exhibited skeletal lead stable isotopic ratios that are compatible with this region.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Fakultät: Biologie > Department Biologie II
• Themengebiete: 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik > 570 Biowissenschaften; Biologie
• ISSN: 0323-1119
• Sprache: Englisch