Search publications of the members of the Royal Belgian institute of natural Sciences
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Are petrous bones just a repository of ancient biomolecules? Investigating biosystematic signals in sheep petrous bones using 3D geometric morphometrics
- Over the last decade, the petrous bone (petrosum) has become the ultimate repository of ancient biomolecules, leading to a plea for a more ethical curation preventing the systematic destruction of this bioarchaeological archive. Here, we propose to explore the biosystematic signal encompassed in the biological form of 152 petrosa from modern populations of wild and domestic sheep landraces/breeds across Western Europe, South-Western Asia and Africa, using high resolution geometric morphometrics (GMM) and the latest development in 3D virtual morphology. We assessed the taxonomic signals among wild and domestic caprine species and sheep landraces. We also explored the effect of sexual dimorphism and ageing at the population scale. Finally, we assessed the influence of climatic factors across the geographic distribution of our dataset using Köppen-Geiger climate categories. We found that the 3D form of petrous bones can accurately separate wild and domestic caprine taxa and that it is not influenced by sexual dimorphism, post-natal ageing or horn bearing. Recent selective breeding has not induced sufficient diversification to allow accurate identification of the different landraces/breeds in sheep; however, both genetic distance and climatic differences across the current distribution in sheep landraces/breeds strongly contribute to petrosum intraspecific variation. Finally, human mediated dispersal of domestic sheep outside their Near Eastern cradle, especially towards Africa, have greatly contributed to the diversification of sheep petrous bone form and shape. We therefore highly recommend systematic 3D surface modelling of archaeological petrosa with preliminary GMM studies to help target and reduce destructive biomolecular studies.
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De revival van een steen met vele namen. Ledesteen.
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Reconstruction of the diet in a mediaeval monastic community from the coast of Belgium
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Study of human remains discovered in 2001 at Ahu 'o Rongo, Rapa Nui
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A mesolithic case of odontoma ?
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Comparaison et fiabilité de la région du ptérion par rapport aux sutures ectocrâniennes classiques dans l’estimation de l’âge osseux
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Palaeodiet of Mesolithic and Neolithic populations of Meuse Basin (Belgium): Evidence from stable isotopes
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Indicateurs de stress dans un échantillon d’anciens Pascuans
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Ostéobiographie du squelette d’Ahu Motu Toremo Hiva (île de Pâques, Chili)
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Étude anthropologique des sépultures préhistoriques de l’abri des Autours (Province de Namur, Belgique)
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Étude paléopathologique des squelettes de l’Abri des Autours (Province de Namur, Belgique)
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Confrontation de deux méthodes d’estimation de l’âge au décès sur une série de squelettes médiévaux provenant de Coxyde (Belgique) : usure dentaire versus critères osseux
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Sutures faciales et estimation de l’âge au décès chez l’adulte
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Apport de la micro-usure dentaire à la reconstitution du régime alimentaire des anciens Pascuans
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Les sutures crâniennes ont-elles encore une place dans l’évaluation de l’âge au décès ?
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Intérêt de l’ostéométrie du fémur dans le diagnostic du sexe
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Palatine Sutures as an Age Indicator: a Controlled Study in Elderly
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Diet of European Mediaeval populations : evidence from chemical analyses of human remains
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Les aléas d'une enquête anthropologique sur des squelettes de la Première Guerre mondiale
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Pont-à-Celles/Viesville (Hainaut) : une tombe romaine au sein de la nécropole mérovingienne. Étude archéologique et anthropologique
