Untitled

Funder

Organizational Unit

Publications

A lunate-triquetral coalition from a commingled funerary context from the Chalcolithic Perdigoes ditched enclosures of Portugal

Publication . Godinho, Ricardo Miguel; Santos, Ana Luisa; Valera, António Carlos

Carpal coalitions, resulting from a failure of separation of the cartilaginous precursors of the carpal bones during gestation, may be osseous or non-osseous. Even though lunate-triquetral coalitions are the most common of all carpal coalitions there is only one previous palaeopathological report of such a coalition. This study presents a non-osseous lunate-triquetral coalition found amongst the mostly cremated commingled bones from a Chalcolithic pit at Perdigoes (Portugal). The cremated bones show evidence of burning at varying but mostly at generally high temperatures. The perfect articulation between these right bones and pinpoint pitting in the lunate-triquetral joint were crucial for the identification of this congenital condition. Carpal coalitions are more frequent in African than European populations. Artifacts produced from ivory of African origin were found in Perdigoes, however it is not possible to establish the ancestry of this individual.

2020Journal article

Restricted access