Reassessing Demography of the Bronze Age Tomb at Tell Abraq (UAE): Using Multiple Bone Elements from a Commingled Context

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

A circular stone tomb at the site of Tell Abraq (UAE) on the southern coast of the Arabian Gulf was used as a mortuary feature for approximately 200 years (2200-2000BC) during the Bronze Age. Both adults and children were buried in the 6 meter wide tomb, causing significant admixture or commingling of the remains. This research reassessed the demography of the children and infants in the tomb by analyzing bones of the arm (humerus and radius) for comparison to previous data from the leg (right femur). Results showed similar age distributions with high rates of mortality for newborns and infants under 2 years of age. Data from the left humerus and right radius were able to account for 7 additional subadults in the tomb, bringing the total minimum number of individuals (MNI) to 134 subadults. The demography presents opportunities for further investigation of morbidity and mortality factors among a commingled skeletal assemblage.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• SAA 2021: General Sessions

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 32510