Brief communication: the collection of identified human skeletons housed at the Bocage Museum (National Museum of Natural History), Lisbon, Portugal (original) (raw)
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Antropologia Portuguesa
Among the several human skeletal reference collections that have been amassed in Portugal, there is one that has remained in nearly anonymity for its almost entire existence. The collection was initiated by Mendes Correia who collected abandoned skeletal remains from cemeteries of the city of Porto circa 1912-1917. Over the years and for unknown reasons its original documentation was lost and the collection has been treated as an unidentified assemblage of specimens for many years. Two previously unnoticed publications from the 1920’s were found to have published basic biographic data for each individual in the collection, thus restituting some of the lost information. The surviving Mendes Correia Collection is currently located at the Natural History Museum and at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto. It is comprised of 99 individuals of known sex, age, and nativity, whose skeletons are found in various states of completeness. They represent a segment of the populatio...
“Not of One’s Body”: The Creation of Identified Skeletal Collections with Portuguese Human Remains
Ethical Approaches to Human Remains, 2019
This chapter will explore how identified skeletal collections are built using unclaimed human remains from modern cemeteries in Portugal. The custom of collecting unclaimed human remains is an old practice in Portugal, dating back to the late nineteenth century. Several institutions in Portugal currently house five identified collections, which contain complete skeletons. These are housed at the Universities of Coimbra, Porto, and Évora, and the Museum of Natural History of Lisbon. The Coimbra and Lisbon collections have become synonymous with scientific excellence in research worldwide. However, the scientific acknowledgment of the importance of these collections contrasts with the almost absent discussion on the ethical and legal issues associated with the collections, and the use of unclaimed human remains from modern cemeteries in science. Therefore, this chapter hopes to highlight the need for conversation on the topic, which is a pressing necessity since this practice, i.e. the collection of unclaimed remains from modern cemeteries, is not limited to Portugal and identified collections worldwide are a valuable resource amongst the scientific community. 23.1 Introduction Portugal has proven to be generous to those that study human remains. Presently the country possesses a significant number of skeletal human remains collections recovered from archaeological excavation, as well as assemblages from modern The original version of the chapter was revised: Citations have been corrected. The correction to this chapter is available at
Forensic Science International., 2014
The purpose of this study is to characterize and contextualize the new collection of identified skeletons housed in the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Coimbra, Portugal. The 21 st Century Identified Skeletal Collection, which is still being enlarged, is currently composed of 159 complete adult skeletons (age at death range: 29 to 99 years) of both sexes. The skeletons consist almost exclusively of Portuguese nationals who died between 1995 and 2008. The state of preservation is good and more detailed antemortem information is presently being collected. This collection constitutes a fundamental tool for forensic anthropology research, including development and validation studies of skeletal aging and sexing methods that target elderly adults. Moreover, this collection can also be used in conjunction with the other reference collections housed in the University of Coimbra to investigate secular trends in skeletal development and aging, among others.
New data about the 21st Century Identified Skeletal Collection (University of Coimbra, Portugal)
International Journal of Legal Medicine, 2020
After the publication of the first article in 2014, 21st Century Identified Skeletal Collection, housed in the Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, Department of Life Sciences at the University of Coimbra, Portugal, has been growing. Currently, the collection is composed of 302 complete adult skeletons of both sexes, which means that in 5 years it has doubled. The collection consists mostly of elderly individuals, with only 12.25% of the individuals aged less than 61 years old. All individuals are Portuguese nationals who died between 1982 and 2012. Ninety individuals exhibit prostheses, other medical devices and signs of surgical procedures. Moreover, a sub-collection of experimentally burned skeletons is under development, and currently includes 56 individuals (18.54% of the collection). The 21st Century Identified Skeletal Collection constitutes a fundamental tool for forensic anthropology research, including the development and validation studies of methods that focus on elderly individuals, as can be ascertained by the numerous scientific publications and academic scholarship that have been produced in previous years.
Antropologia Portuguesa, 2016
This paper presents the osteological analysis of a young adult exhumed from the cemetery associated to Igreja do Carmo, Lisbon, Portugal, during the second archaeological intervention in 2010/2011. Although the cemetery had been used between the beginning of the 15 th century and 1755 A.D., the archaeological context of the burial allows us to gauge its dating between the 17 th and the 18 th centuries. The skeleton is distinguished by a cranial morphology suggestive of an African origin and intentional dental modifications. These consist of the removal of both incisal angles of the upper incisors, which corresponds to a practice related to culture, commonly made in sub-Saharan Africa since prehistoric times to the present. A periapical lesion was associated to the maxillary right central incisor that was apparently healthy but modified. The left clavicle showed bone remodelling along the shaft. Five ribs displayed new bone deposition, and the sternal end of the first left rib was deformed and destroyed. The differential diagnosis of the lesions gave rise to several possible pathological conditions, namely, treponematosis and chronic respiratory disease, particularly tuberculosis. Various macroscopic aspects and the geographical context lead us to consider venereal syphilis as the most probable diagnose. Considering that, during the 16 th century, Lisbon has become a fundamental part of the intercontinental maritime routes it is not surprising that African people were buried in the cemeteries of Lisbon, allowing us to learn more about their lives and deaths.
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 2010
Identified human skeletal collections are those in which basic demographic data (sex, age and biological origin) are known and are crucial for developing and testing osteological methodologies. It is important that the identified collection be contextualised, and in this way the collection will be considered a reference collection. To contextualise a collection requires documentation of the basic demographic data of the individuals (sex, age, year of birth, geographical area) as well as information concerning the socio-economic and temporal context in which the individuals lived. The contextualisation of an identified collection is very important so the researchers can understand the ‘point of reference’ when applying a method to it or developing a new method. The purpose of this study is to contextualise the identified skeletal collection of the Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona (UAB) which currently contains 35 adult skeletons of both sexes. To carry out the objectives of the present study, the information about the individuals was collected from cemetery registers and compared with the information of the demographic and statistic public institutions of Spain. The results indicate that the UAB collection is formed only by Spanish nationals who mainly lived during the 20th century in Granollers (Barcelona, Spain). Both sexes are equally represented and all of the individuals are adults. They reflect the most current adult population structure of Catalonia and be treated as a Catalan reference sample of adults living in the 20th century. This collection offers special opportunities for demographic analysis, including validation studies of skeletal ageing and sexing methods that target adult individuals. The collection can also be used in conjunction with other reference samples to investigate secular and populational change in cranial form, sexual dimorphism and stature. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Forensic Sciences
The estimation of biological sex is of paramount significance for the identification of anonymous skeletal remains in contemporary medico-legal contexts or bioarcheological studies of past societies. Sex estimation techniques are usually affected by population-specific sexual dimorphism. As such, the need for distinctive standards for each population has long been acknowledged. This paper aims to document and critically address sex estimation methods that have been created, or tested, in Portuguese identified skeletal collections in a historically situated dimension. Moreover, the ever-changing landscape of forensic anthropology calls for a deep reflection about a plethora of issues regarding sex estimation in human remains, including the usage of medical imaging methods and innovative statistical approaches, the biological and social resignification of sex and gender, the problems arising from secular change, and the ethics involving the use of human skeletal collections within the...
Antropologia Portuguesa, 2017
This paper presents the osteological analysis of a young adult exhumed from the cemetery associated to Igreja do Carmo, Lisbon, Portugal, during the second archaeological intervention in 2010/2011. Although the cemetery had been used between the beginning of the 15th century and 1755 AD, the archaeological context of the burial allows us to gauge its dating between the 17th and the 18th centuries. The skeleton is distinguished by a cranial morphology suggestive of an African origin and intentional dental modifications. These consist of the removal of both incisal angles of the upper incisors, which corresponds to a practice related to culture, commonly made in sub-Saharan Africa since prehistoric times. A periapical lesion was associated to the maxillary right central incisor that was apparently healthy but modified. The left clavicle showed bone remodelling along the shaft. Five ribs displayed new bone deposition, and the sternal end of the first left rib was deformed and destroyed. The differential diagnosis of the lesions gave rise to several possible pathological conditions, namely, treponematosis and chronic respiratory disease, particularly tuberculosis. Various macroscopic aspects and the geographical context lead us to consider venereal syphilis as the most probable diagnosis. Considering that, during the 16th century, Lisbon had become a fundamental part of the intercontinental maritime routes, it is not surprising that African people were buried in the cemeteries of Lisbon, allowing us to learn more about their lives and deaths. Keywords: Cultural body modifications; venereal syphilis; Modern Age; Africans; Portugal.
Bone weight: New reference values based on a modern Portuguese identified skeletal collection
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 2009
Skeletal weight and/or weight of the different bones of the human skeleton are currently used in a wide range of applications such as archaeological cremations and forensics. Still, few reference values are available that compare the mean weights for the different skeletal parts. In this paper we present new reference values for total skeletal weight, including the weight of the different skeletal bones based on a modern Portuguese Identified Skeletal Collection (CEI) curated in the Museum of Anthropology of the University of Coimbra (Portugal). The mean weight of the entire skeleton for the CEI pooled sample is 3323.8 AE 779.6 g. Sex and age differences were investigated. As expected, males display heavier bones, at a statistically significant level. The mean weight of the male skeletons is 3850 g, and 2797.6 g for the female sample. Age differences were found, especially for the female samples in the 29-39 versus 50-59 and/or >60 age groups, probably as a consequence of age-related bone loss in postmenopausal women. For the male sample, no clear age-related trend was observed but for the unexpected result that the second highest bone weight recorded is in the oldest age group (>60 years). This could result from high mechanical loadings and thus greater bone robusticy and amount of cortical bone.