Casey L Kirkpatrick
I am a Postdoctoral Researcher in Dr. Kirsten Bos' CoDisEASe research group in the Department of Archaeogenetics at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. In this position, I am currently investigating the origins and evolution of treponemal and other infectious diseases through the analysis of ancient pathogen DNA.
I am also the Head of Osteology for the BYU Egypt Excavation Project and an Adjunct Research Professor at the University of Western Ontario, where I am starting up my own excavation in Egypt. In addition to these roles, I am a Co-founder of the Paleo-oncology Research Organization and the associated Ancient Cancer Foundation. Both of these organizations are devoted to encouraging, facilitating, and disseminating information about the study of the history of cancers and other neoplastic diseases.
I aspire to contribute significantly to the world's collective knowledge of the global history of disease and medicine while raising public awareness of these important topics. I also aspire to direct an excavation and work as a professor or museum curator.
Supervisors: Dr. Eldon Molto, Dr. Andrew Nelson, Dr. Ian Colquhoun, and Dr. Kirsten Bos
I am also the Head of Osteology for the BYU Egypt Excavation Project and an Adjunct Research Professor at the University of Western Ontario, where I am starting up my own excavation in Egypt. In addition to these roles, I am a Co-founder of the Paleo-oncology Research Organization and the associated Ancient Cancer Foundation. Both of these organizations are devoted to encouraging, facilitating, and disseminating information about the study of the history of cancers and other neoplastic diseases.
I aspire to contribute significantly to the world's collective knowledge of the global history of disease and medicine while raising public awareness of these important topics. I also aspire to direct an excavation and work as a professor or museum curator.
Supervisors: Dr. Eldon Molto, Dr. Andrew Nelson, Dr. Ian Colquhoun, and Dr. Kirsten Bos
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Additionally, this paper discusses a macroscopic and radiographic diagnostic workshop was hosted by the author, Dr. Bruce Ragsdale, and Dr. Roselyn Campbell at the Paleopathology Association’s 2018 meeting in Austin, Texas. This workshop reviewed the visual and radiographic diagnostic indicators for neoplastic disease that were included in the paleo-oncological article recently published by Ragsdale et al. (2018). Following this interactive instruction, participants were asked to visit workstations in small groups to diagnose neoplastic diseases, or conditions resembling neoplastic disease, as observed in bones, radiographs, or histological slides with known pathologies. These diagnoses were recorded on a team worksheet. During the exercise, the importance of consensus-based diagnosis was emphasized, as well as the value of multidisciplinary collaboration in the differential diagnosis of neoplastic disease. Following the exercise, the correct diagnoses were discussed to ensure that participants understood and recognized the diagnostic indicators for neoplastic diseases. The worksheets were also collected to assess diagnostic accuracy. This paper discusses the preliminary results of this workshop. In an effort to encourage paleo-oncological training on a larger scale, all resources used to host the aforementioned workshop, including images of the lab specimens, were made available at bit.ly/paleo-onc. A list of medical specialists interested in collaborating on paleo-oncological studies (available upon request by paleopathologists) was also introduced at the first “Antiquity of Cancer” colloquium hosted by ESHO. Interested individuals are still encouraged to submit their information at https://www.cancerantiquity.org/collaborate and the Paleo-oncology Research Organization continues to encourage collaboration and consultation with medical professionals. Lastly, the potential for improvements in diagnostic accuracy is viewed in light of a list of “7 S-es” recommended for continued progress in the field of paleo-oncology (Kirkpatrick et al. 2018).
associated with lymphoadenopathy and acquired
Horner Syndrome’s portrayed in a third century CE male
bust housed in the collection of Count Franz I Erbach-
Erbach (1754–1823) at Erbach Castle (Erbach, Hesse, Germany)
(see Fig. 1a–d). The bust depicts an unknown bearded
adult man known as “Single-eyed man”.
Materials: 442 adult sacra from two temporally disjunct samples from the same deme traversing the 3rd intermediate (TIP) and the Roman Periods.
Methods: Sacra were scored for SSBO, excluding the sacral hiatus. Risk of SSBO was calculated with the common odds ratio and statistical significance by X 2. Data were compared to other archaeological SSBO data.
Results: SSBO was present in 15.6% of the sample with a slight, but not significant, temporal increase (TIP to Roman Period) in males, and a significant age-correlated increase in both sexes. Most open sacra occurred in young adults.
Conclusions: Data support that SSBO can be considered as a morphogenetic variant. Dakhleh data fall within the prevalence range for most populations, however inter-population comparisons are complicated by methodolo-gical inconsistencies.
Significance: SSBO can be used in paleogenetic research.
Limitations: Methodological differences in scoring SSBO prevent effective comparative study.
Suggested future research: Future studies require more rigorous and standardized scoring methods. aDNA may be used to corroborate the morphogenetic value of SSBO and determine its clinical significance.
Conference Presentations/Posters
Fourth Dynasty step pyramid (known as the Seila Pyramid), some Middle Kingdom tombs, and the Greco-Roman town of Philadelphia[1].
The first documented survey of the Fag El-Gamous cemetery was conducted by Bernard Grenfell and Arthur Hunt in the early twentieth century, at which time the researchers collected several Fayum mummy portraits from an undocumented location on the site[2]. In the 1970s, interest in the site grew as the Fayum sites were declared endangered by
agricultural expansion and high ground waters. As a result, Dr. Leonard H. Lesko (Project Director and Field Director) and Dr. C. Wilfred Griggs (Field Director) successfully applied for the aforementioned concession with the joint sponsorship of the University of California, Berkeley and Brigham Young University. In 1981, survey and excavation of the concession commenced with Lesko directing the Seila Pyramid investigations and Griggs directing the necropolis efforts. Following some progress in both areas, Lesko accepted a position at
Brown University and the concession fell solely to BYU, and thus the ability to focus on more than one area of the concession at a time subsided. As a result, excavations at the Fag El-Gamous necropolis were subsequently prioritized due to the risks of plundering and encroachment[3].
Griggs continued to direct excavations at Fag El-Gamous most years between 1984 and his retirement in 2011[4]. During this time, it was discovered that the cemetery is densely packed with generally well-preserved human remains in many areas, and that there is a change in
burial orientation over time from head east burials to head west burials[5]. Most of the better preserved skeletal remains were found wrapped in linens without evidence of evisceration; the textiles were removed and examined by textile specialists following excavation. Due to time constraints and the sheer number of human remains excavated at Fag El-Gamous, prior osteological studies focused on preservation, burial treatment, burial context, basic demographic information (age, sex, and stature estimation), and any obvious anomalies or pathologies[6]. During this time, over 1000 individuals were exhumed from the cemetery, analysed under tight time restrictions, and reburied, apart from some of the skulls, which were collected in the site’s storage magazine[7]. Despite the enormous amount of information being gleaned from this site, only a small handful of bioarchaeological publications were released under the directorship of Dr. Griggs.
Following Dr. Griggs’ retirement, Brigham Young University awarded the directorship of the concession to Dr. Kerry Muhlestein, who has made significant efforts to bring the site’s bioarchaeological methods up to date while encouraging transparency in scholarship and publication of the data collected from the site. This presentation is a preliminary analysis of the osteological collection within the Fag El Gamous storage magazine and an assessment of its potential for further analysis and academic contribution to knowledge, which will be published in an upcoming edited volume.
Through this preliminary analysis of the Fag El-Gamous cranial collection, it was determined that this collection, and the further excavation of the Fag El Gamous cemetery, have incredible potential for significant contribution to the fields of bioarchaeology, Egyptology
and the history of occupation in the Fayum. This conclusion was based on the excellent state of preservation, the large number of burials and the large time span during which this cemetery was in use (c. 30-641 CE)[8]. Given the sizable cranial collection, there is also ample opportunity for in-depth bioarchaeological analysis. Unfortunately, the reburial of the
infracranial remains precludes any possibility for their re-examination in association with their crania and known archaeological contexts. Nevertheless, if given the opportunity to expand our bioarchaeological study to use advanced technology in the analysis of the Fag El
Gamous cemetery population, this large site could give unprecedented access to information about changes in the illnesses, diets and lifestyles of the Fayum inhabitants spanning a long period of time, including a period of religious transition.
The twenty-two skeletons that were analysed during the abbreviated 2014 field season, and will be described during this presentation, have already produced information through dental and skeletal indicators of nutrition and illness. However, a large scale paleo-epidemiological
study would further add to our collective understanding of the lives of those interred at Fag El-Gamous and the environmental and cultural factors that contributed to pathology in the individuals interred at this site. Studies of genetically linked non-discrete cranial and dental
traits also have the potential to provide significant information about the genetic composition of the population interred at Fag El Gamous and may contribute to our understanding of how the cemetery was established, through the possible identification of family groups and the
ancestry of the people interred in this cemetery. With the potential for future studies outlined, it is hoped that this preliminary analysis will be the beginning of a new era in bioarchaeological scholarship at the Fag El-Gamous cemetery.
[1] Evans, R. Paul, David M. Whitchurch, and Kerry Muhlestein, “Rethinking burial dates at a Graeco-Roman
Cemetery: Fag el-Gamous, Fayoum, Egypt,” Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 2 (2015): 209–214.
[2] Grenfell, B. P., and A. S. Hunt, “Excavations in the Fayum,” Egypt Exploration Society Archaeological
Report 10 (1900):4-7; Grenfell, B.P., and A. S. Hunt, “Excavations in the Fayum and at El Hibeh,” Egypt
Exploration Society Archaeological Report 11(1901): 2-5.
[3] Leonard Lesko, “Seila 1981.” Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 25(1988):215-235; C.
Wilfred Griggs, “Introduction,” in Excavations at Seila, Egypt, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs, (Provo, Utah: Religious
Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), xi–xiii.
[4] Kristin Hacken South, "Roman and Early Byzantine Burials at Fag el-Gamus, Egypt: A Reassessment of the
Case for Religious Affiliation," BYU Scholars Archive: All Theses and Dissertations, Paper 3534(2012),
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/3534/.
[5] C. Wilfred Griggs, “Excavating a Christian Cemetery Near Selia, in the Fayum Region of Egypt,” in
Excavations at Seila, Egypt, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs, (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young
University, 1988), 74–84.
[6] Vincent A. Wood, “Paleopathological Observations and Applications at Seila,” in Excavations at Seila,
Egypt, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), 31–44;
R. Paul Evans, personal communication, 2014.
[7] Kristin Hacken South, "Roman and Early Byzantine Burials at Fag el-Gamus, Egypt: A Reassessment of the
Case for Religious Affiliation," BYU Scholars Archive: All Theses and Dissertations, Paper 3534(2012),
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/3534/."; Evans, R. Paul, David M. Whitchurch, and Kerry Muhlestein,
“Rethinking burial dates at a Graeco-Roman Cemetery: Fag el-Gamous, Fayoum, Egypt,” Journal of
Archaeological Science: Reports 2 (2015): 209–214.
[8] Evans, R. Paul, David M. Whitchurch, and Kerry Muhlestein, “Rethinking burial dates at a Graeco-Roman
Cemetery: Fag el-Gamous, Fayoum, Egypt,” Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 2 (2015): 209–214.
When palaeopathology was first introduced as a scientific endeavour, visual analysis of the bodily remains was the only available method and studies required the unwrapping and defleshing of mummified remains. These early methods were terribly destructive, and many soft tissue and bone pathologies were overlooked. Thankfully, the fields of palaeopathology and palaeo-oncology have a history of quickly adapting to incorporate state-of-the-art diagnostic tools and methods, resulting in a drastic reduction of destructive studies. For example, the first palaeo-radiological image of an ancient neoplasm was taken only two years after the discovery of x-rays, and one year after the first x-ray of bone cancer. Palaeo-oncological research has similarly incorporated more complex medical imaging techniques and histological analysis following their introduction to the world. Most recently, biomolecular methods of analysis, such as aDNA and proteomic analyses, have begun to make an impact on palaeo-oncological research with promising results. This paper begins with a historical review of the development of the palaeo-oncological toolbox enabling the minimally invasive analysis of physical remains and the limitations of these methods.
Following this history of palaeo-oncological methodology, attention is turned to the quantification of the use of these methods in palaeo-oncological studies to date. This information is gleaned from the CRAB (Cancer Research in Ancient Bodies) Database (http://www.cancerantiquity.org/crabdatabase); a global summary of the published evidence of ancient cancer in humans and early hominins as well as the methods used in these studies. This database was created by Kathryn Hunt for her Masters degree at Durham University, then verified, further refined and published online with the assistance of the Palaeo-oncology Research Organization’s executive team, including the current speaker. Results of an associated article (Hunt et al., 2018), co-authored by the current speaker, are also briefly discussed with regard to the state of the art of palaeo-oncology to date, its limitations, and the need for more multidisciplinary collaboration.
In addition to methodological progress, the role of recent theoretical breakthroughs in the advancement of palaeo-oncology are also discussed in relation to the potential for further discovery in this field. Looking to the future, the unfulfilled potential of palaeo-oncological research is noted, along with its ability to contribute to our collective scholarly understanding of cancer and neoplastic disease in manners not possible through clinical studies.
An experimental mummification project was undertaken by the authors in order to understand how cancerous tissues change in different mummification scenarios. Mice (provided by a cancer research laboratory) that contained human tumors were mummified in four different cultural and environmental conditions: 1) anthropogenic mummification in the ancient Egyptian style, 2) natural desiccation using a controlled heat source, 3) frozen at a static temperature, and 4) naturally preserved in an anaerobic bog environment. Prior to mummification, the mice were documented using a microCT scanner, and they were scanned again at intervals after the mummification process was complete. The size and shape of the tumors were documented in each scan, along with changes in the radiological appearance of different tissues. This research demonstrates the value of experimental mummification projects to paleopathological research, especially regarding the study of cancer in the ancient world.
The importance of research regarding rare neoplastic disease, like salivary gland tumors, will also be emphasized, as it is essential for the development of accurate differential diagnoses. The reliance of differential diagnoses on updated, reliable and relevant prevalence rates will also be discussed, as this study concluded that these rates can vary significantly according to epidemiological methods, differences in epigenetic factors within specific study samples, and advances in medicine and diagnostic technology.
Additionally, sialolithiasis (a condition where a calcified mass, or sialolith, develops within a salivary gland) will be discussed in relation to the difficulties of differential diagnosis and the possibility for confusion between neoplastic diseases and non-neoplastic growths. This study aims to facilitate the improvement of differential diagnosis, while promoting discussion about the challenges associated with differential diagnoses for neoplastic disease.
This study explores the lives and deaths of the individuals interred at Site 117 through a macroscopic analysis of the skeletal collection and a re-examination of archival materials stored at The British Museum. This re-analysis and reinterpretation of the available evidence focusses on archaeological and paleopathological factors indicating possible settlement patterns, subsistence methods, burial traditions, population morbidity and possible causes for the observed evidence of trauma.
The low prevalence of dental and skeletal indicators of physiological stress and malnutrition observed in this study does not support the hypothesis asserting that there was a long-term depletion of nutritional resources, which may have resulted in violent competition between tribes. More technologically advanced studies may, however, reveal additional evidence of physiological stress than that which is observable through macroscopic analysis. While it remains possible that the majority, if not all, of the individuals interred at the site were fatally injured, this study supports the hypothesis that this cemetery was revisited and reused.
Additionally, this paper discusses a macroscopic and radiographic diagnostic workshop was hosted by the author, Dr. Bruce Ragsdale, and Dr. Roselyn Campbell at the Paleopathology Association’s 2018 meeting in Austin, Texas. This workshop reviewed the visual and radiographic diagnostic indicators for neoplastic disease that were included in the paleo-oncological article recently published by Ragsdale et al. (2018). Following this interactive instruction, participants were asked to visit workstations in small groups to diagnose neoplastic diseases, or conditions resembling neoplastic disease, as observed in bones, radiographs, or histological slides with known pathologies. These diagnoses were recorded on a team worksheet. During the exercise, the importance of consensus-based diagnosis was emphasized, as well as the value of multidisciplinary collaboration in the differential diagnosis of neoplastic disease. Following the exercise, the correct diagnoses were discussed to ensure that participants understood and recognized the diagnostic indicators for neoplastic diseases. The worksheets were also collected to assess diagnostic accuracy. This paper discusses the preliminary results of this workshop. In an effort to encourage paleo-oncological training on a larger scale, all resources used to host the aforementioned workshop, including images of the lab specimens, were made available at bit.ly/paleo-onc. A list of medical specialists interested in collaborating on paleo-oncological studies (available upon request by paleopathologists) was also introduced at the first “Antiquity of Cancer” colloquium hosted by ESHO. Interested individuals are still encouraged to submit their information at https://www.cancerantiquity.org/collaborate and the Paleo-oncology Research Organization continues to encourage collaboration and consultation with medical professionals. Lastly, the potential for improvements in diagnostic accuracy is viewed in light of a list of “7 S-es” recommended for continued progress in the field of paleo-oncology (Kirkpatrick et al. 2018).
associated with lymphoadenopathy and acquired
Horner Syndrome’s portrayed in a third century CE male
bust housed in the collection of Count Franz I Erbach-
Erbach (1754–1823) at Erbach Castle (Erbach, Hesse, Germany)
(see Fig. 1a–d). The bust depicts an unknown bearded
adult man known as “Single-eyed man”.
Materials: 442 adult sacra from two temporally disjunct samples from the same deme traversing the 3rd intermediate (TIP) and the Roman Periods.
Methods: Sacra were scored for SSBO, excluding the sacral hiatus. Risk of SSBO was calculated with the common odds ratio and statistical significance by X 2. Data were compared to other archaeological SSBO data.
Results: SSBO was present in 15.6% of the sample with a slight, but not significant, temporal increase (TIP to Roman Period) in males, and a significant age-correlated increase in both sexes. Most open sacra occurred in young adults.
Conclusions: Data support that SSBO can be considered as a morphogenetic variant. Dakhleh data fall within the prevalence range for most populations, however inter-population comparisons are complicated by methodolo-gical inconsistencies.
Significance: SSBO can be used in paleogenetic research.
Limitations: Methodological differences in scoring SSBO prevent effective comparative study.
Suggested future research: Future studies require more rigorous and standardized scoring methods. aDNA may be used to corroborate the morphogenetic value of SSBO and determine its clinical significance.
Fourth Dynasty step pyramid (known as the Seila Pyramid), some Middle Kingdom tombs, and the Greco-Roman town of Philadelphia[1].
The first documented survey of the Fag El-Gamous cemetery was conducted by Bernard Grenfell and Arthur Hunt in the early twentieth century, at which time the researchers collected several Fayum mummy portraits from an undocumented location on the site[2]. In the 1970s, interest in the site grew as the Fayum sites were declared endangered by
agricultural expansion and high ground waters. As a result, Dr. Leonard H. Lesko (Project Director and Field Director) and Dr. C. Wilfred Griggs (Field Director) successfully applied for the aforementioned concession with the joint sponsorship of the University of California, Berkeley and Brigham Young University. In 1981, survey and excavation of the concession commenced with Lesko directing the Seila Pyramid investigations and Griggs directing the necropolis efforts. Following some progress in both areas, Lesko accepted a position at
Brown University and the concession fell solely to BYU, and thus the ability to focus on more than one area of the concession at a time subsided. As a result, excavations at the Fag El-Gamous necropolis were subsequently prioritized due to the risks of plundering and encroachment[3].
Griggs continued to direct excavations at Fag El-Gamous most years between 1984 and his retirement in 2011[4]. During this time, it was discovered that the cemetery is densely packed with generally well-preserved human remains in many areas, and that there is a change in
burial orientation over time from head east burials to head west burials[5]. Most of the better preserved skeletal remains were found wrapped in linens without evidence of evisceration; the textiles were removed and examined by textile specialists following excavation. Due to time constraints and the sheer number of human remains excavated at Fag El-Gamous, prior osteological studies focused on preservation, burial treatment, burial context, basic demographic information (age, sex, and stature estimation), and any obvious anomalies or pathologies[6]. During this time, over 1000 individuals were exhumed from the cemetery, analysed under tight time restrictions, and reburied, apart from some of the skulls, which were collected in the site’s storage magazine[7]. Despite the enormous amount of information being gleaned from this site, only a small handful of bioarchaeological publications were released under the directorship of Dr. Griggs.
Following Dr. Griggs’ retirement, Brigham Young University awarded the directorship of the concession to Dr. Kerry Muhlestein, who has made significant efforts to bring the site’s bioarchaeological methods up to date while encouraging transparency in scholarship and publication of the data collected from the site. This presentation is a preliminary analysis of the osteological collection within the Fag El Gamous storage magazine and an assessment of its potential for further analysis and academic contribution to knowledge, which will be published in an upcoming edited volume.
Through this preliminary analysis of the Fag El-Gamous cranial collection, it was determined that this collection, and the further excavation of the Fag El Gamous cemetery, have incredible potential for significant contribution to the fields of bioarchaeology, Egyptology
and the history of occupation in the Fayum. This conclusion was based on the excellent state of preservation, the large number of burials and the large time span during which this cemetery was in use (c. 30-641 CE)[8]. Given the sizable cranial collection, there is also ample opportunity for in-depth bioarchaeological analysis. Unfortunately, the reburial of the
infracranial remains precludes any possibility for their re-examination in association with their crania and known archaeological contexts. Nevertheless, if given the opportunity to expand our bioarchaeological study to use advanced technology in the analysis of the Fag El
Gamous cemetery population, this large site could give unprecedented access to information about changes in the illnesses, diets and lifestyles of the Fayum inhabitants spanning a long period of time, including a period of religious transition.
The twenty-two skeletons that were analysed during the abbreviated 2014 field season, and will be described during this presentation, have already produced information through dental and skeletal indicators of nutrition and illness. However, a large scale paleo-epidemiological
study would further add to our collective understanding of the lives of those interred at Fag El-Gamous and the environmental and cultural factors that contributed to pathology in the individuals interred at this site. Studies of genetically linked non-discrete cranial and dental
traits also have the potential to provide significant information about the genetic composition of the population interred at Fag El Gamous and may contribute to our understanding of how the cemetery was established, through the possible identification of family groups and the
ancestry of the people interred in this cemetery. With the potential for future studies outlined, it is hoped that this preliminary analysis will be the beginning of a new era in bioarchaeological scholarship at the Fag El-Gamous cemetery.
[1] Evans, R. Paul, David M. Whitchurch, and Kerry Muhlestein, “Rethinking burial dates at a Graeco-Roman
Cemetery: Fag el-Gamous, Fayoum, Egypt,” Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 2 (2015): 209–214.
[2] Grenfell, B. P., and A. S. Hunt, “Excavations in the Fayum,” Egypt Exploration Society Archaeological
Report 10 (1900):4-7; Grenfell, B.P., and A. S. Hunt, “Excavations in the Fayum and at El Hibeh,” Egypt
Exploration Society Archaeological Report 11(1901): 2-5.
[3] Leonard Lesko, “Seila 1981.” Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 25(1988):215-235; C.
Wilfred Griggs, “Introduction,” in Excavations at Seila, Egypt, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs, (Provo, Utah: Religious
Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), xi–xiii.
[4] Kristin Hacken South, "Roman and Early Byzantine Burials at Fag el-Gamus, Egypt: A Reassessment of the
Case for Religious Affiliation," BYU Scholars Archive: All Theses and Dissertations, Paper 3534(2012),
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/3534/.
[5] C. Wilfred Griggs, “Excavating a Christian Cemetery Near Selia, in the Fayum Region of Egypt,” in
Excavations at Seila, Egypt, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs, (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young
University, 1988), 74–84.
[6] Vincent A. Wood, “Paleopathological Observations and Applications at Seila,” in Excavations at Seila,
Egypt, ed. C. Wilfred Griggs (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), 31–44;
R. Paul Evans, personal communication, 2014.
[7] Kristin Hacken South, "Roman and Early Byzantine Burials at Fag el-Gamus, Egypt: A Reassessment of the
Case for Religious Affiliation," BYU Scholars Archive: All Theses and Dissertations, Paper 3534(2012),
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/3534/."; Evans, R. Paul, David M. Whitchurch, and Kerry Muhlestein,
“Rethinking burial dates at a Graeco-Roman Cemetery: Fag el-Gamous, Fayoum, Egypt,” Journal of
Archaeological Science: Reports 2 (2015): 209–214.
[8] Evans, R. Paul, David M. Whitchurch, and Kerry Muhlestein, “Rethinking burial dates at a Graeco-Roman
Cemetery: Fag el-Gamous, Fayoum, Egypt,” Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 2 (2015): 209–214.
When palaeopathology was first introduced as a scientific endeavour, visual analysis of the bodily remains was the only available method and studies required the unwrapping and defleshing of mummified remains. These early methods were terribly destructive, and many soft tissue and bone pathologies were overlooked. Thankfully, the fields of palaeopathology and palaeo-oncology have a history of quickly adapting to incorporate state-of-the-art diagnostic tools and methods, resulting in a drastic reduction of destructive studies. For example, the first palaeo-radiological image of an ancient neoplasm was taken only two years after the discovery of x-rays, and one year after the first x-ray of bone cancer. Palaeo-oncological research has similarly incorporated more complex medical imaging techniques and histological analysis following their introduction to the world. Most recently, biomolecular methods of analysis, such as aDNA and proteomic analyses, have begun to make an impact on palaeo-oncological research with promising results. This paper begins with a historical review of the development of the palaeo-oncological toolbox enabling the minimally invasive analysis of physical remains and the limitations of these methods.
Following this history of palaeo-oncological methodology, attention is turned to the quantification of the use of these methods in palaeo-oncological studies to date. This information is gleaned from the CRAB (Cancer Research in Ancient Bodies) Database (http://www.cancerantiquity.org/crabdatabase); a global summary of the published evidence of ancient cancer in humans and early hominins as well as the methods used in these studies. This database was created by Kathryn Hunt for her Masters degree at Durham University, then verified, further refined and published online with the assistance of the Palaeo-oncology Research Organization’s executive team, including the current speaker. Results of an associated article (Hunt et al., 2018), co-authored by the current speaker, are also briefly discussed with regard to the state of the art of palaeo-oncology to date, its limitations, and the need for more multidisciplinary collaboration.
In addition to methodological progress, the role of recent theoretical breakthroughs in the advancement of palaeo-oncology are also discussed in relation to the potential for further discovery in this field. Looking to the future, the unfulfilled potential of palaeo-oncological research is noted, along with its ability to contribute to our collective scholarly understanding of cancer and neoplastic disease in manners not possible through clinical studies.
An experimental mummification project was undertaken by the authors in order to understand how cancerous tissues change in different mummification scenarios. Mice (provided by a cancer research laboratory) that contained human tumors were mummified in four different cultural and environmental conditions: 1) anthropogenic mummification in the ancient Egyptian style, 2) natural desiccation using a controlled heat source, 3) frozen at a static temperature, and 4) naturally preserved in an anaerobic bog environment. Prior to mummification, the mice were documented using a microCT scanner, and they were scanned again at intervals after the mummification process was complete. The size and shape of the tumors were documented in each scan, along with changes in the radiological appearance of different tissues. This research demonstrates the value of experimental mummification projects to paleopathological research, especially regarding the study of cancer in the ancient world.
The importance of research regarding rare neoplastic disease, like salivary gland tumors, will also be emphasized, as it is essential for the development of accurate differential diagnoses. The reliance of differential diagnoses on updated, reliable and relevant prevalence rates will also be discussed, as this study concluded that these rates can vary significantly according to epidemiological methods, differences in epigenetic factors within specific study samples, and advances in medicine and diagnostic technology.
Additionally, sialolithiasis (a condition where a calcified mass, or sialolith, develops within a salivary gland) will be discussed in relation to the difficulties of differential diagnosis and the possibility for confusion between neoplastic diseases and non-neoplastic growths. This study aims to facilitate the improvement of differential diagnosis, while promoting discussion about the challenges associated with differential diagnoses for neoplastic disease.
This study explores the lives and deaths of the individuals interred at Site 117 through a macroscopic analysis of the skeletal collection and a re-examination of archival materials stored at The British Museum. This re-analysis and reinterpretation of the available evidence focusses on archaeological and paleopathological factors indicating possible settlement patterns, subsistence methods, burial traditions, population morbidity and possible causes for the observed evidence of trauma.
The low prevalence of dental and skeletal indicators of physiological stress and malnutrition observed in this study does not support the hypothesis asserting that there was a long-term depletion of nutritional resources, which may have resulted in violent competition between tribes. More technologically advanced studies may, however, reveal additional evidence of physiological stress than that which is observable through macroscopic analysis. While it remains possible that the majority, if not all, of the individuals interred at the site were fatally injured, this study supports the hypothesis that this cemetery was revisited and reused.
The proposed new model involves the formation of new panoramic dental radiographic reference collections with more precise age and sex attributions. A new region-specific, not population-specific, subadult dental aging standard will then be created based on the radiographic study of 1020 modern Egyptian subadults, with 60 subjects (30 males and 30 females) forming a representative sample for each year of subadult life. Volunteers and/or their guardians will also be asked to complete a questionnaire regarding demographic and health history information along with socio-cultural and environmental factors that may affect dental development and dental health.
Following radiographic data collection, the new model requires that dental development be recorded for individual teeth using calcification and eruption scoring systems. Bayesian statistics will then be used to create a region-specific aging standard that compensates for any population distribution bias. During the development of the dental aging standard for Egypt and the Middle East, variations of the Bayes Theorem will be applied and tested using a bootstrapping statistical method in order to determine the most accurate, specific and unbiased statistical method for use in the development of future region-specific dental age estimation standards. The new standard should better represent regional epigenetic factors affecting dental development and provide sex-specific age calculations based on more systematic data collection methods and improved statistical methods. An improved subadult dental age estimation standard will have important applications to forensics, bioarchaeology, paleopathology, dentistry, orthodontics, socio-cultural anthropology and law.
important cultural and archaeological site as well as an area inhabited by Egyptian families. During the New Kingdom, the Theban necropolis was the burial place for elite ancient Egyptians. The area was re-used throughout the Greco-Roman period and was inhabited by Copts prior to the modern occupation. The modern Qurnawis can trace their arrival to the area back several generations; their culture has been influenced by their landscape and the Qurnawis have, likewise, influenced the archaeological landscape. The Qurnawi self-description continues to be based largely on the villagers’ relationships with the archaeological ruins, while they are now infamous to outsiders for their alleged role in the antiquities trade. In recent years, the residents of Qurna have been relocated and the hill-side houses demolished in order to preserve the archaeological features of the landscape.
This paper will examine some of the many relationship dynamics between Qurnawis and their archaeological surroundings, including how the landscape is categorized and by whom, in the context of the rise of archaeology and archaeotourism. Attention will be directed toward issues affecting the categorization of historic and archaeological sites, and the invisible, dynamic line separating modern, historic and archaeological space and objects. The importance of local narratives and engagements with archaeological sites and objects will also be discussed. The Qurnawi’s copious knowledge of the landscape and skilled archaeological work as well as the underrepresentation of that work in archaeological publications will be considered.
This poster details the methods and samples in a paleo-oncological study; a large-scale survey of cancer in ancient Egypt through the use of CT imaging technology and the IMPACT Radiological Mummy Database. Until recently, large-scale investigations into the prevalence of cancer in antiquity were limited due to a variety of factors. Contributions to the field of paleo-oncology have thus predominantly consisted of individual case studies, with little focus on the broader impact of cancer on ancient populations. CT imaging is ideal for the non-invasive analysis of natural and anthropogenic mummified human remains, in which both bone and soft tissue are preserved, increasing the range of cancers that may be detected.
This study will demonstrate the usefulness of paleoradiological diagnosis for the survey of ancient pathologies, such as cancer. Furthermore, knowledge gained through this study will contribute to the general paleopathological knowledge of Egyptian mummies without compromising the integrity of existing wrappings, human remains, and other artifacts of mummification. Lastly, this study will contribute to the field of paleo-oncology through the expansion of knowledge regarding the presence and impact of cancer in ancient Egypt, and by extension, the ancient world.
Essential (i.e. necessary to sustain life) and non-essential cultural aspects were theorized based on the resulting observations in an effort to understand the circumstances of life and death for this population. Ethnographical comparisons were also used to support several of the theories put forth. In addition to their role in forming these theories, the palaeopathological, palaeonutritional and palaeodemographical analyses were used to determine the effects of the environment and the aforementioned cultural adaptations on the nutrition, morbidity and mortality of the population. Together, these observations were used in an effort to reconstruct the settlement pattern, subsistence methods, burial traditions and possible causes for interpersonal violence evident at this cemetery.
This study and reinterpretation of the available evidence suggests that the deceased of site 117 belonged to a semi-nomadic hunter-gatherer-fisher group. The majority, if not all, of the population interred at the site were fatally injured during battle or a massacre. There is no evidence to support the hypothesis that there was a depletion of resources leading to competition between tribes. Instead, the violence was likely a result of personal disagreements or other matters of control or honour. While it has been suggested that all deaths occurred during the same massacre this study suggests that this cemetery was revisited and reused. This cemetery also shows evidence of several possible traditions or rituals which have also been interpreted in an effort to understand the ideology of the population.
This dissertation investigates the use of dental anthropological methods for estimating chronological age-at-death in ancient Egypt, and determines whether these methods can be improved. Tooth calcification, emergence and eruption standards are time honoured in their ability to accurately age subadults though they are compromised by the fact that populations and the sexes vary in their developmental timing. Determining sex in subadults, particularly in the infant and child cohorts, in all populations is not possible, though advances in ancient DNA methods hold promise. This dissertation provides a feasible and ethical model for developing a sex-and region-specific standard for age estimation of subadults for use on ancient Egyptian samples.This method rectifies methodological errors affecting the accuracy of pre-existing standards; and thus, demonstrates that macroscopic subadult dental age estimation methods can be improved.
Moreover, using a photographic sample of occlusal dentition from the Kellis 2 cemetery population in Roman Period Egypt, a new method for adult dental age estimation is designed and tested. To this end, the percentages of exposed occlusal dentine in first and second molars were calculated through photogrammetry, in a technique shown to have little intra- and inter-observer error. These data showed a strong linear correlation with skeletal age estimates, and varied significantly from the popular Brothwell (1963a) standard for age estimation based on dental wear. Dental caries and antemortem tooth loss were similarly tested for correlation with skeletal age, with only antemortem tooth loss showing a strong correlation. As a result, linear regression models were designed and tested for quantified first and second molar wear as well as antemortem tooth loss. Multiple regression models for all combinations of these dental indicators of age were also designed and tested. Although it is also recommended that these models are revised with expanded reference samples, these standards improve the ability to estimate age in individuals from the Kellis 2 cemetery population. It is recommended that these standards are tested and modified for use on geographically- and temporally-diverse populations to determine the boundaries of its application beyond a single population sample.
In summary, this study rejects the null hypothesis (Ho): ‘Current dental age estimation standards cannot be improved’. Consequently, this dissertation serves to encourage the creation of more accurate and precise subadult and adult macroscopic dental age estimation standards.