The taxonomic affinities of fossils from theFrasnian succession of Be lgium previously described asphyllopod and phyllocarid crustacean shields are discussed.The rediscovery of the holotype of Ellipsocaris dewalquei,the type species of the genus Ellipsocaris Woodward inDewalque, 1882, allows to end the discussion on the taxo-nomic assignation of the genus Ellipsocaris. It is removedfrom the phyllopod crustaceans as interpreted originally andconsidered here as an ammonoid anaptychus. Furthermore, itis considered to be a junior synonym of the genus SidetesGiebel, 1847. Similarly, Van Straelen’s (1933) lower to middleFrasnian record Spathiocaris chagrinensis Ruedemann, 1916,is also an ammonoid anaptychus. Although ammonoids canbe relatively frequent in some Frasnian horizons of Belgium,anaptychi remain particularly scarce and the attribution to thepresent material to peculiar ammonoid species is not possible.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2017
Résumé Nous présentons l'étude anthropologique de dix individus provenant d'un cimetière situé sur la colline de Kindoki au Kongo central (RDC). Ils ont été exhumés en 2012 et 2013 dans le cadre du projet KongoKing qui consistait en une approche interdisciplinaire de l'histoire ancienne du royaume Kongo. Ce cimetière contient des inhumations datées du xviie au xixe siècle, très probablement celles de nobles de haut rang. Les défunts étaient accompagnés d'un mobilier funéraire (perles de verre, sabres, bijoux en or, mousquet). Les restes humains sont malheureusement très mal conservés. Certains ne sont représentés que par quelques fragments osseux ou dentaires. Parmi les dix défunts, on note la présence de deux femmes et de huit hommes. Deux individus masculins présentent des usures dentaires qui résulteraient de l'utilisation d'une pipe. Les deux femmes seraient âgées de plus de 40 ans et se caractérisent par des signes vertébraux évocateurs de DISH (diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis). Cette pathologie est actuellement associée à une alimentation riche, à l'obésité et au diabète de type II. Il n'est donc pas surprenant qu'elle touche ces individus de statut élevé. Le DISH n'avait encore jamais été décrit dans une population ancienne d'Afrique centrale. Abstract This paper presents an anthropological study of ten individuals from a cemetery situated on Kindoki Hill in the central Kongo region (DRC). They were excavated in 2012 and 2013 as part of the KongoKing project (2012–2016), which applied an interdisciplinary approach to the ancient history of the Kingdom of Kongo. The cemetery contains graves dated to the 17th–19th century, very probably those of high-ranking nobles. The dead were buried with various grave goods (glass beads, swords, gold jewels and muskets). The human remains were unfortunately very badly preserved. Some were represented only by a few bone fragments and/or teeth. Of the ten bodies, two were female and eight were male. Two of the men showed dental wear as a result of pipe-smoking. The two women were probably more than 40 years of age at the time of death. The vertebrae showed signs that evoke diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH), a pathological condition associated today with a rich diet, obesity and type II diabetes. It is therefore not surprising that these conditions might have affected high-status individuals. Until now, DISH had never been described in an ancient Central African population.
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