Palaeodemography and palaeopathology in early mediaeval Säben-Sabiona, South Tyrol, Italy

Tumler, Daniela (2023): Palaeodemography and palaeopathology in early mediaeval Säben-Sabiona, South Tyrol, Italy. Dissertation, LMU München: Fakultät für Biologie

Abstract

The early mediaeval period was characterised by continuous variations of frontiers, leadership, and consequently also socio-economic instabilities. Located in the central Alps, along one of the most important passageways between Germany and Italy, the episcopal see of Säben-Sabiona played a central role and was particularly affected by these fluctuations. The site is located on a mount in the Eisack-Isarco valley, which, starting from the 7th century A.D. was occupied by Germanic groups, such as Bavarians and Longobards. Three archaeological excavations uncovered a palaeochristian church, dated to the 5th-8th centuries A.D., featuring between 366 and 370 graves. Due to the quantity of burials and wealth of some of these, Säben-Sabiona is regarded as the largest early mediaeval burial site in South Tyrol and the only one evidencing an admixture of autochthonous, i.e., local Romans, and allochthonous groups, i.e., Bavarians and/or Longobards. Up to date, only detailed historical and archaeological investigations concerning the palaeochristian church were accomplished, yet the anthropological analysis of these remains was still outstanding. As the first anthropological study ever performed on this site, the present thesis focused on establishing the palaeodemographic composition as well as the living and health conditions of the individuals buried within and surrounding the palaeochristian church. Due to the unavailability of skeletal remains from earlier archaeological investigations and the limited archaeological and historical contextualisation of these, the present anthropological analysis focused on the subpopulation addressed in the publication by Bierbrauer and Nothdurfter (2015). A traditional osteological approach to endeavour this aim was predefined, after consulting with my supervisors. A full anthropological analysis, i.e., consisting of the biological and pathological profile of the human skeletal remains, recovered during the last excavation, i.e., 185 graves, was performed. The biological profile included the estimation of the minimum number of individuals, sex, age at death, stature, body weight and robusticity. These data were used to perform further palaeodemographic analyses, such as estimation of the masculinity index, the probability of dying at a certain age, the average life expectancy at different ages and population size. Additionally, an extensive palaeopathological examination was conducted, concentrating on dental alterations yielding information about diet, dental and skeletal conditions linked to the exposure to chronic stress as well as skeletal lesions used to infer information about activity and lifestyle. Due to the nature of the site and in consideration of the archaeological and historical evidence, identifying Säben-Sabiona as a burial ground of the ruling classes, which appears to have been stratified by rank as suggested by the variations of burial context and location, the sample was subdivided into an elite (n=107), i.e., graves within the church, inside a crypt and/or featuring wealthy material culture, and a non-elite group (n=78), i.e., burials outside the church with poor or no funerary goods. The examined graves featured a minimum number of 226 individuals, which consisted of 94 males, 39 females, 54 subadults and 39 adults of not determinable sex. Based on the previously mentioned classification, 133 individuals were assigned to the elite group and 93 individuals to the non-elite group. In both subsamples, males were overrepresented. The lack of female burials for both subgroups further enforced the notion of a selective burial ground, whereby females appeared to have been interred elsewhere. Both subsamples displayed adaptations to the alpine environment, i.e., high levels of bone robusticity, and palaeopathological profiles consistent with a macronutrient rich diet, fairly frequent exposure to chronic stress and extremely physically demanding lifestyles. Even though osteological disorders were found in similar frequencies in both subgroups, thus, suggesting that social stratification was low, for almost all conditions the non-elite sample was more commonly and/or more severely affected. This thesis provided novel insights into the demographic structure, diet and health of populations associated with early mediaeval Säben-Sabiona. Unique information about the composition of the Säben-Sabiona cemetery, which elucidates socio-cultural values and practices of populations residing in early mediaeval South Tyrol, was generated. The detailed palaeopathological analysis informs about health and living conditions of the people buried at this important site, in consideration of their social stratification. The combination of a thorough palaeodemographic and palaeopathological investigation in conjunction with an evaluation of funerary customs and materials provides a holistic interpretation, not only of the individual life history, but also the population as a whole. Thus, improves the contextualisation of the palaeochristian church at Säben-Sabiona and aids the understanding of early mediaeval social stratification. As for South Tyrol, standardised anthropological research concerning osteological samples is still in its very early stages, the present thesis provides a first step in supplying data, which can be used to establish normal osteological parameters, thus provides a solid foundation for future research.

• Dokumententyp: Dissertationen (Dissertation, LMU München)
• Keywords: early mediaeval, South Tyrol, Palaeopathology, activity reconstruction, burial practices
• Themengebiete: 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik ; 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik > 570 Biowissenschaften, Biologie
• Fakultäten: Fakultät für Biologie
• Sprache der Hochschulschrift: Englisch
• Datum der mündlichen Prüfung: 7. Juli 2023
• 1. Bericht­erstatter:in: Zink, Albert