The aim of this study was assessing the prevalence of os trigonum, talo-calcaneal facets and squatting facet variations among pre-Hispanic individuals (around 940 ± 30 BP) placed in the collective burial cave of Punta Azul (El Hierro,... more
The aim of this study was assessing the prevalence of os trigonum, talo-calcaneal facets and squatting facet variations among pre-Hispanic individuals (around 940 ± 30 BP) placed in the collective burial cave of Punta Azul (El Hierro, Canary Islands), and to assess whether prevalence differed among sexes. A total of 149 tali (70 right and 79 left) belonging to adult individuals were found in a comingled context. Sex determination was achieved as following: genetic sexing of a subsample of 35 tali was assessed using paleogenomic procedures. Anthropometric measurements of the genetically sexed bones were used to calculate an accurate discriminant function that was later applied to the remaining 114 tali. We observed marked differences in the os trigonum pattern among male and female tali, whereas no relevant differences were observed regarding the other two traits. A very high prevalence of squatting facets was observed in both sexes, higher than the reported frequencies for other population groups. The summarized conclusions in this study are the following: a) the high prevalence of the squatting facets observed in both males and females could indicate the performance of a similar activity that requires a squatting position, such as shellfishing. b) We observed a predominance of the type C talo-calcaneal facet configuration among the population that indicates a maximal mobility of the talar joint, well adapted to displacement and/or activities such as goat herding in the steep landscape of El Hierro. c) The statistically different os trigonum pattern among sexes may suggest a greater activity associated to jumping and climbing among males, possibly related to goat herding in the steep landscape of the island of El Hierro.
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Abstract There is little direct archaeological evidence as to the agriculture and plant gathering of the Guanches, the indigenous population of the Island of Tenerife (3rd–15th century CE). The current study presents the findings of the... more
Abstract There is little direct archaeological evidence as to the agriculture and plant gathering of the Guanches, the indigenous population of the Island of Tenerife (3rd–15th century CE). The current study presents the findings of the first systematic samplings and analyses of macro-botanical remains (wood charcoals and seeds) from Guanche contexts in Tenerife. The remains come from two recently excavated, well-contextualised sites, Chasogo and Cruz de Tea, ranging between the 13–17th centuries AD. This timeframe coincides with the last phase of the indigenous occupation and the period of colonisation by Europeans. The sites are in the Canadas del Teide National Park, a highland volcanic caldera at c. 2000 m a.s.l. The results of this study, based on archaeobotanical identifications coupled with radiocarbon datings, suggest that most of the finds correspond to wild plants collected for food, fuel, and possibly timber. Noteworthy are the seeds of Cistus cf. osbeckiifolius which certifies the vital role of this local edible plant. Pinus canariensis and Visnea mocanera were also gathered for consumption while woody legumes and pines served for fuel and timber. Spartocytisus cf. supranubius may also have been consumed in the form of seeds. The only evidence of a crop plant consumed by the Guanches is barley (Hordeum vulgare subsp. vulgare). This crop, poorly represented, must have been brought to these sites from the lowlands where it was cultivated. The different data suggest a highly mobile pastoral population taking part in seasonal activities such as rotary quern making.
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Abstract La Concepcion church is the oldest church in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and it was used as a cemetery for over 200 years, during the 16th century and up to the 18th century. Those who were buried there were from multiple ethnic... more
Abstract La Concepcion church is the oldest church in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and it was used as a cemetery for over 200 years, during the 16th century and up to the 18th century. Those who were buried there were from multiple ethnic backgrounds and with different lifestyles. During an emergency archaeological excavation, comingled, poorly preserved bone remains of about 300 individuals were excavated. We here analyze a total of 198 tali, looking for the presence of non-metric traits. The results show that the frequencies of non-metric traits were greater than the majority of previous studies, indicating that a large proportion of the sample had an increased activity in the ankle region. Some traits appeared in the same bone and, more importantly, several tali with uncommon combinations belonged to individuals buried in the same tomb. These results were tested for randomness with binomial distribution tests that resulted in a P
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OBJECTIVES This article presents new radiocarbon and isotopic data to provide further information about the diet of the indigenous population of La Gomera and its possible changes across time. MATERIALS AND METHODS δ13 C and δ15 N of 53... more
OBJECTIVES This article presents new radiocarbon and isotopic data to provide further information about the diet of the indigenous population of La Gomera and its possible changes across time. MATERIALS AND METHODS δ13 C and δ15 N of 53 human and 19 faunal samples from different sites on the island have been obtained and analyzed. Of these, 52 have been radiocarbon dated to provide insight on chronological changes. RESULTS Human dates range from the 3rd to 15th centuries AD, while faunal dates range from the 1st to 17th centuries AD. Stable carbon and nitrogen values are significantly different between the human and goat samples and have also a trophic increase of 3.4‰. Although male and female δ15 N data are not significantly different. Both δ13 C and δ15 N values of both human and animal samples tend to discretely decrease over time. DISCUSSION Radiocarbon dates from humans correlate with other dates obtained in the rest of the archipelago. Animal radiocarbon dates generally coincide except for one date, which requires further study. Isotopic δ15 N data suggest a mix of marine and terrestrial protein consumption in humans, the latter being more abundant given the seasonality of the first. δ13 C data also suggest a possible mixed diet in humans, with a predominance of C3 plants, like Hordeum vulgare, the only grain found in archaeological sites so far. Variations of both δ13 C and δ15 N over time suggest a slight modification on the diet, which could be related to environmental changes.
Research Interests: Evolutionary Biology, Archaeology, Anthropology, Stable Isotope Analysis, Stable Isotopes, and 10 moreMedicine, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Population, Radiocarbon Dating, Canary Islands, Radiocarbon Dating (Archaeology), Canary Islands Archaeology, La Gomera, Isotope analysis, and C Isotopes
Prehispanic burials from the Canary Islands are often well preserved. Many of the bodies are mummified, most of them were not interred, but deposited in caves. Bone histological and trace element analysis of 117 skeletons of the... more
Prehispanic burials from the Canary Islands are often well preserved. Many of the bodies are mummified, most of them were not interred, but deposited in caves. Bone histological and trace element analysis of 117 skeletons of the prehispanic period of the Canary Islands was performed. In some of the islands we have found a high prevalence of osteoporosis, whereas in others, histomorphometrically assessed trabecular bone mass (TBM) (in undecalcified iliac crest specimens) was in the normal range. Bone trace elements analysis have shown high bone S(r), Mg and Mn, and low Fe, Zn and Cu in those skeletons with a more reduced TBM. These facts speak for a relative protein-calorie malnutrition and a consumption of a mainly vegetarian diet. This is especially marked in the skeletons from Gran Canaria.
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In bare bones, transverse lines may have several origins. Defleshing of a prey generates cutmarks, which can also appear in relation with traumatic events, post-mortem changes such as marks of animal teeth, rodent gnawing, or impact of... more
In bare bones, transverse lines may have several origins. Defleshing of a prey generates cutmarks, which can also appear in relation with traumatic events, post-mortem changes such as marks of animal teeth, rodent gnawing, or impact of stones, or even bone decoration. We hypothesize that in some instances they may be due to hyperplastic vessels beating on the bone surface, as expression of increased blood flow demand imposed by hypertrophied muscles. We analyzed 140 well-preserved tibiae which belonged to pre-Hispanic individuals from El Hierro, in the Canary Archipelago, currently kept at the Department of Archaeology and Prehistory of the University of La Laguna, and determined robusticity indices. Tibial marks were found in 53 out of 140 cases. Epiphyseal and diaphyseal robusticity indices were significantly higher in the first case among those with marks than among those without marks (T=3.13; p=0.002), and nearly significantly in the latter case (T=1.88; p=0.063). Considering o...
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Assessment of skeletal robusticity is an important tool for the archaeologist and anthropologist, since it may be related to the intensity and type of activity performed by ancient population groups. Development of computed tomography... more
Assessment of skeletal robusticity is an important tool for the archaeologist and anthropologist, since it may be related to the intensity and type of activity performed by ancient population groups. Development of computed tomography (CT) allows determination of biomechanical properties of long bones. However, CT technology may not be easily available and is a relatively expensive procedure. Therefore, it is pertinent to estimate whether any of the parameters which can be easily measured in bare bones by simple anthropometry are useful to assess the torsional strength and bending strength of these bones. We included twenty one well preserved tibiae corresponding to prehispanic adult individuals (13 men) of El Hierro. These bones were anthropometrically measured following classical methods, and also subjected to CT analysis, and further calculation of minimum and maximum second moments and polar second moment of area, both at midshaft and at the nutrient foramen levels, using the so...
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This study was performed to determine the levels of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) in 63 bone samples of the prehispanic population of the island El Hierro, comparing them with the values obtained on 98 prehispanic samples from Tenerife,... more
This study was performed to determine the levels of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) in 63 bone samples of the prehispanic population of the island El Hierro, comparing them with the values obtained on 98 prehispanic samples from Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, and La Palma, all of them in the Canary Islands, and with eight modern samples who served as controls. Prehispanic individuals from El Hierro showed the lowest bone Pb values of all the archipelago (0.72+/-1.01 mg/kg), significantly different (F=6.9, p<0.001) from the values obtained for the population of other islands such as Tenerife (4.87+/-5.36 mg/kg) or Fuerteventura (4.45+/-7.85 mg/kg) and also from those of the modern population (30.53+/-14.62 mg/kg). On the other hand, bone Cd, although slightly lower in the ancient population groups, was not significantly different when compared with the modern one. In addition, no differences were observed in bone Cd among the ancient population of the different islands. Bone lead but not cadmium kept an inverse significant relationship with the distance of the burial site both to south Spain (r=-0.31) and Atlantic Morocco (r=-0.28, p<0.001 in both cases).
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Research Interests: Geography, Chemistry, Calcium, Molecular Genetics, Adolescent, and 14 moreMedicine, Spain, Humans, Strontium, Copper, Tibia, Female, Canary Islands, Male, Zinc, Iron, Trace Elements, Adult, and Barium
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Sex determination using mandible parameters is population dependent. In order to assess which measurements better characterize sex in prehispanic individuals from the Canary Islands, we blindly contrasted the results obtained by visual... more
Sex determination using mandible parameters is population dependent. In order to assess which measurements better characterize sex in prehispanic individuals from the Canary Islands, we blindly contrasted the results obtained by visual inspection and osteometric measurements with those obtained by molecular sexing using amelogenin ancient DNA analysis on teeth from the same material. Unambiguous sex classification was achieved by amplification
Research Interests: Archaeology, Geochemistry, Archaeological Science, Biology, Molecular Genetics, and 15 morePopulation, Molecular sexing, DNA Extraction, Ancient DNA, Canary Islands, Canary Islands Archaeology, Sex Determination, Logistic Regression Analysis, Arqueologia y antropologia forense y fisica, Discriminant function analysis, Amelogenin, Indexation, Sexing, Visual Inspection, and Discriminant Function
Teide National Park is a geographic space that has unique geological and natural characteristics, which validated its declaration as World Heritage Site in 2017. However, human activity has been recorded since pre-hispanic times, whose... more
Teide National Park is a geographic space that has unique geological and natural characteristics, which validated its declaration as World Heritage Site in 2017. However, human activity has been recorded since pre-hispanic times, whose actions left their mark in the territory, this has allowed archaeology to understand how “guanche” human occupation has been articulated in the high mountain contexts of Tenerife. Nowadays, high school teachers have the inconvenient of a severe lack of visitable archaeological sites in Tenerife. Spaces in which the students can elaborate their knowlege about the aboriginal cultures of The Canaries. Therefore, in this article we intend to analyze the educative potential of this geographic space for the teaching of the Social Sciences, and especifically for History. We present an educative proposal which integrates Teide National Park in the education methods of the pre-hispanic period, specially having in mind the use of archaeological ítems, guided vi...
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The Canary Islands’ indigenous people have been the subject of substantial archaeological, anthropological, linguistic and genetic research pointing to a most probable North African Berber source. However, neither agreement about the... more
The Canary Islands’ indigenous people have been the subject of substantial archaeological, anthropological, linguistic and genetic research pointing to a most probable North African Berber source. However, neither agreement about the exact point of origin nor a model for the indigenous colonization of the islands has been established. To shed light on these questions, we analyzed 48 ancient mitogenomes from 25 archaeological sites from the seven main islands. Most lineages observed in the ancient samples have a Mediterranean distribution, and belong to lineages associated with the Neolithic expansion in the Near East and Europe (T2c, J2a, X3a…). This phylogeographic analysis of Canarian indigenous mitogenomes, the first of its kind, shows that some lineages are restricted to Central North Africa (H1cf, J2a2d and T2c1d3), while others have a wider distribution, including both West and Central North Africa, and, in some cases, Europe and the Near East (U6a1a1, U6a7a1, U6b, X3a, U6c1)....
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The prehispanic population of Tenerife (Guanches) buried their dead in caves. Many corpses are totally or partially mummified. Embalming procedures are largely unknown, besides some information recorded by chroniclers and the general idea... more
The prehispanic population of Tenerife (Guanches) buried their dead in caves. Many corpses are totally or partially mummified. Embalming procedures are largely unknown, besides some information recorded by chroniclers and the general idea that environmental conditions in some areas may favour natural mummification. Detailed observation of burial caves containing mummified corpses revealed the presence of a white mineral in form of crusts or powder that was not present in the vast majority of non-burial caves, especially in basaltic and trachybasaltic lava flows. We analysed these crusts and they consist of natrium carbonate salts. Therefore, we conducted a search visiting 30 caves, 3 of them harbouring mummified corpses, and made analyses if there were natrium salts in these caves and their amount. One burial cave was located in trachyphonolitic lava flow, and two further caves in trachybasaltic and basaltic lava flows. There was a significant association between presence of natrium...
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espanolEl objetivo de este trabajo es dar a conocer las principales caracteristicas del espacio sepulcral excavado en el interior de la iglesia de La Concepcion de Santa Cruz de Tenerife, asi como presentar los primeros resultados de las... more
espanolEl objetivo de este trabajo es dar a conocer las principales caracteristicas del espacio sepulcral excavado en el interior de la iglesia de La Concepcion de Santa Cruz de Tenerife, asi como presentar los primeros resultados de las investigaciones bioantropologicas realizadas en los restos humanos recuperados pertenecientes al siglo XVIII. (776 individuos, 158 inhumaciones primarias). EnglishThe aim of the present study is to describe the main characterists of the excavations carried out in the floor of the church La Concepcion, in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, a complex funerary site. We also describe the preliminary results of some of the ongoing anthropological studies performed on the skeletal remains belonging to the 18th century, which include 776 individuals and 158 primary inhumations.
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It is generally believed that auricular exostoses are due to prolonged exposure to cold water, so their existence in ancient remains may inform us about economic activities in the past. This study was performed to analyze the prevalence... more
It is generally believed that auricular exostoses are due to prolonged exposure to cold water, so their existence in ancient remains may inform us about economic activities in the past. This study was performed to analyze the prevalence of auricular exostoses among 150 pre-Hispanic individuals of different islands of the Canary archipelago. Individuals from Gran Canaria (6/26), Fuerteventura (1/15), and Tenerife (2/64), but not from El Hierro (0/45), showed auricular exostoses, thus supporting the hypothesis of a greater reliance on fishing and shellfishing in the former 3 islands.
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The present-day population structure of La Gomera is outstanding in its high aboriginal heritage, the greatest in the Canary Islands. This was earlier confirmed by both mitochondrial DNA and autosomal analyses, although genetic drift due... more
The present-day population structure of La Gomera is outstanding in its high aboriginal heritage, the greatest in the Canary Islands. This was earlier confirmed by both mitochondrial DNA and autosomal analyses, although genetic drift due to the fifteenth century European colonization could not be excluded as the main factor responsible. The present mtDNA study of aboriginal remains and extant samples from the six municipal districts of the island indeed demonstrates that the pre-Hispanic colonization of La Gomera by North African people involved a strong founder event, shown by the high frequency of the indigenous Canarian U6b1a lineage in the aboriginal samples (65%). This value is even greater than that observed in the extant population (44%), which in turn is the highest of all the seven Canary Islands. In contrast to previous results obtained for the aboriginal populations of Tenerife and La Palma, haplogroups related to secondary waves of migration were not detected in La Gomer...
Research Interests: Genetics, Human Genetics, Genetic Drift, Population Genetics, Biology, and 15 moreMolecular Genetics, Ancient DNA Research, Medicine, Cytogenetics, Phylogeny, Mitochondrial DNA, Humans, Human Migration, Canary Islands, Clinical Genetics, Canary Islands Archaeology, Ethnic Groups, Reproductive Isolation, Genetic variation, and Inheritance Patterns
This study was performed in order to analyze the relationships between hair zinc, lead, and cadmium with the kind of diet consumed (by recall of the diet consumed the previous 14 days), living area (urban or rural), tobacco smoking, and... more
This study was performed in order to analyze the relationships between hair zinc, lead, and cadmium with the kind of diet consumed (by recall of the diet consumed the previous 14 days), living area (urban or rural), tobacco smoking, and body mass index (BMI) among 419 individuals of the Canary Archipelago. Median values and interquartile range were 43 μg/g (18.50-132.50) for zinc, 4.09 μg/g (2.19-8.38) for lead, and 0.128 μg/g (0.05-0.30) for cadmium. We observed that hair zinc was markedly elevated among those consuming fish more frequently and, to a lesser amount, among those who consumed meat frequently, among those living in urban areas, and among those with BMI over 25 kg/m(2), keeping a significant relationship with BMI. Hair lead was also higher among fish consumers, showed a trend to higher values among inhabitants of urban areas, and was lower among obese individuals. Hair cadmium was higher among those who consumed less vegetables and fruits. By multivariate analysis, intr...
Research Interests: Obesity, Diet, Multivariate Analysis, Humans, Smoking, and 15 moreHair, Female, Animals, Meat, Male, Lead, Fishes, Young Adult, Zinc, Fruit, Body Mass Index, Vegetables, Cadmium, Adult, and Environmental Exposure
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Research Interests: Archaeology, Geochemistry, Computed Tomography, Archaeological Science, Hydroxyapatite, and 13 moreImage Analysis, Trabecular Bone, Cancellous bone, Antropología Física, Canary Islands, Bone Density, Clinical Study, Computerized tomography, Soft Tissue, Software Tool, Academic, Control Group, and Bone mass
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Research Interests: Archaeology, Geology, Geochemistry, Archaeological Science, Trabecular Bone, and 12 moreStable Isotope, Canary Islands, Nitrogen, Reference Data, Arqueologia y antropologia forense y fisica, Nitrogen Isotopes, Hydrogen isotopes, Carbon Isotope, Trace element, Academic, Wild animal, and Domestic animal
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Research Interests: Genetics, Human Genetics, Ancient DNA Research, DNA, Colonization, and 15 moreCytogenetics, Mitochondrial DNA, Humans, Colonisation, Haplotypes, Female, Ancient DNA, Canary Islands, Clinical Genetics, Canary Islands Archaeology, European, Molecular cloning, Haplogroup, Genetic variation, and Human mtDNA variation
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Research Interests: Evolutionary Biology, Archaeology, Anthropology, Forensic Anthropology, Anthropometry, and 10 moreMedicine, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Humans, Fossils, Bone Density, Arqueologia y antropologia forense y fisica, Sensitivity and Specificity, lumbar vertebrae, Atlantic Islands, and Bone mass
Research Interests: Evolutionary Biology, Archaeology, Anthropology, Phylogenetics, Population Genetics, and 15 moreBiology, Molecular Genetics, Ancient DNA Research, Medicine, mtDNA, Mitochondrial DNA, Humans, Haplotypes, Fossils, Paleodontology, Canary Islands, American, History of the Canary Islands, Genetic variation, and Human mtDNA variation
The trabecular bone mass (TBM) of the proximal epiphyses of right tibiae belonging to 273 prehispanic inhabitants of Gran Canaria (60. 81% males and 35.53% females) were assessed by histomorphometrical analysis of undecalcified samples... more
The trabecular bone mass (TBM) of the proximal epiphyses of right tibiae belonging to 273 prehispanic inhabitants of Gran Canaria (60. 81% males and 35.53% females) were assessed by histomorphometrical analysis of undecalcified samples and compared with that of 41 samples from El Hierro (52.63% males and 47.37% females). Among the prehispanic population of Gran Canaria 19.05% showed TBM values below 13.5% and 30.40% below 15%, although individual variability was high (range 6.71-35.4%). In sharp contrast with these results, only one case (2.44%) from El Hierro showed a TBM value below 15%, whereas mean TBM (23.50;+/- 5.60%) was significantly higher than that of the population of Gran Canaria (17.88 +/- 5.20%). The high prevalence of osteoporosis on Gran Canaria may reflect protein-calorie malnutrition. Prehistorically Gran Canaria exhibited a relatively high population density (30-40/km(2)) and a strong reliance on agriculture, in contrast with a lower population density (4/km(2)) on the island El Hierro, where the population consumed mainly marine products.
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RESUMEN El objetivo de este trabajo es dar a conocer las principales características del espacio sepulcral excavado en el interior de la iglesia de La Concepción de Santa Cruz de Tenerife, así como presentar los primeros resultados de las... more
RESUMEN El objetivo de este trabajo es dar a conocer las principales características del espacio sepulcral excavado en el interior de la iglesia de La Concepción de Santa Cruz de Tenerife, así como presentar los primeros resultados de las investigaciones bioantropológicas realizadas en los restos humanos recuperados pertenecientes al siglo XVIII. (776 individuos, 158 inhumacio-nes primarias). ABSTRACT The aim of the present study is to describe the main characterists of the excavations carried out in the floor of the church La Concepción, in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, a complex funerary site. We also describe the preliminary results of some of the ongoing anthropological studies performed on the skeletal remains belonging to the 18 th century, which include 776 individuals and 158 primary inhumations.