Theme:
4. People of the Present – Peopling the Past
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
Far away, so Close - The Current Debates about Post-medieval Cemeteries in Anthropological and Archaeological Studies
Content:
The archaeology of death and the bioarchaeological analysis of cemeteries have now undergone significant developments and account for a large proportion of research. The growing number of rescue excavations resulted in significant human remains covering all periods, including late medieval and early modern times which were not the main focus of the archaeological studies. The recovery, analysis, and different storage standards and ethical issues emerging with the study of these materials make them undoubtedly special in the field.
The research of cemeteries of the post-medieval/early modern period has no less information for us than the burials from earlier times. Bioarchaeological Research of these human remains and their archaeological contexts enriches our knowledge in the same way: we can learn about the social structure, burial customs, migrations, population changes, disease, and health. But opposite to earlier periods, bioarchaeological data often can be testified by a written source about the individual or a community, or even by documented larger historical events. For example, in the case of the study of epidemic periods, the cemeteries of the past 500 years can provide the best opportunity to examine these distressing environmental impacts on human populations in the past. Also, these populations genetically are the most closely related to modern people which is not only important from a biological perspective but also raises important Ethical questions especially if relatives of the buried are still alive.
This session represents a developing but very important field of bioarchaeology. This session aims to bring together researchers who share a similar interest in cemeteries of the post-medieval/early modern period.
Expected papers may include but are not limited to:
- Presentation of excavations and findings.
- Bioarchaeological analysis of the cemeteries
- Paleopathological analysis of the individuals
- Ethical questions
Keywords:
postmedieval, early-modern period, bioarchaeology, archaeology of death, funerary archaeology, osteoarchaeology
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
Main organiser:
Csilla Líbor (Hungary) 1,2
Co-organisers:
Orsolya Mateovics-László (Hungary) 1
Dario Piombino-Mascali (Lithuania) 3
Hubert Lepionka (Poland) 4
Affiliations:
1. Hungarian National Museum
2. Eötvös Loránd University
3. Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Vilnius University
4. Podlaskie Museum in Bialystok
THIS SESSION CAN NOT BE SELECTED AT THIS MOMENT