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Bioarchaeology of Past Epidemic- and Famine-Related Mass Burials with Respect to Recent Findings from the Czech Republic

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Bioarchaeology of Past Epidemic- and Famine-Related Mass Burials with Respect to Recent Findings from the Czech Republic Volume X ● Issue 1/2019 ● Pages 79–87 INTERDISCIPLINARIA ARCHAEOLOGICA NATURAL SCIENCES IN ARCHAEOLOGY homepage: http://www.iansa.eu X/1/2019 Thematic review Bioarchaeology of Past Epidemic- and Famine-Related Mass Burials with Respect to Recent Findings from the Czech Republic Hana Brzobohatáa*, Jan Frolíka, Eliška Zazvonilováa,b aInstitute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Letenská 4, 118 01 Prague 1, Czech Republic bDepartment of Anthropology and Human Genetics, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Viničná 7, 128 44 Prague 2, Czech Republic ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article history: Irrespective of the reason for breaking usual burial customs, mass graves represent a valuable archive Received: 7th May 2019 of population data over a short period, and thus offer a vast amount of information for bioarchaeological Accepted: 23rd July 2019 research. Herein, we present a selective review of research on past epidemic and famine die-offs and of new interdisciplinary approaches in this field of study. We summarize the discoveries of epidemic- and DOI: http://dx.doi.org/ 10.24916/iansa.2019.1.6 famine-related graves that are temporally and spatially restricted to the medieval/early modern Czech territory, paying special attention to recently unearthed mass burials in Kutná Hora-Sedlec. These Key words: burial pits are historically and contextually associated with a famine in the early 14th century and with bioarchaeology the Black Death in the mid-14th century. To our knowledge, they represent the largest set of medieval plague mass graves not only in the Czech Republic but also on a European scale. famine ancient DNA Middle Ages mass burials 1. Osteoarchaeology of epidemic cemeteries and gender imbalances involving increased female survival, suggesting their higher resistance (McIntyre, 2002; Morgan, Mass burials are reported under different contexts and from all 2013). During periods of chronic starvation, the health status time periods. It represents a method for disposing of human of individuals was affected not only by caloric deprivation remains when there are too many bodies to contend with at but also vitamin and mineral deficiencies that weaken the one time. Such graves are typically the result of increased body and increase susceptibility to infections. Thus, death mortality due to epidemic, famine, war, genocide, sacrifice, from infectious diseases (such as typhus or dysentery) was or natural disaster (Beauchamp, 2012; Fornaciari, 2017). To probably more common than dying from hunger per se date, many mass graves have been unearthed throughout (Scrimshaw, 1987; Morgan, 2013). Although children are Europe both in urban and rural contexts and have mostly considered to be most vulnerable, food shortages lasting for been attributed to famines and plague epidemics (McIntyre, months or years are likely to cause skeletal manifestations 2002; Morgan, 2013; Geber, 2014; Bramanti et al., 2018). of malnourishment and generic indicators of systemic stress The field of archaeology has greatly benefited from in all members of affected societies (e.g., rickets, porotic studying epidemic graves, not only through the historical orbital lesions, teeth enamel defects, Harris growth arrest knowledge gained but also through gaining further insight lines, periostitis, stunted growth, or vertebral neural canal into palaeodemographic dynamics and to answer questions reduction) (Morgan, 2013; Watts, 2013). It has further been pertaining to palaeopathology (Beauchamp, 2012). documented that individuals who experienced early life Palaeodemographic investigations of past famines have stress were, irrespective of age or sex, likely to be frailer than revealed both equal representation of males and females their peers, and thus were more likely to die during famines (Yaussy et al., 2016; DeWitte and Yaussy, 2017). Regarding *Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected] the age structure of past starving populations, medieval 79 IANSA 2019 ● X/1 ● 79–87 Hana Brzobohatá, Jan Frolík, Eliška Zazvonilová: Bioarchaeology of Past Epidemic- and Famine-Related Mass Burials with Respect to Recent Findings from the Czech Republic samples have shown an increased mortality in non-adults and mass graves, the level of stress and risk of death can (Geber, 2014), and chronologically younger datasets indicate be determined. Higher prevalence of stress lesions would increased mortality at both extremes of the age spectrum, i.e. be expected in mass graves. However, the relationship children and in elderly persons (Morgan, 2013). between stress lesions and mortality is not straightforward, As for the epidemic mortality, the most lethal killer – demonstrating the osteological paradox phenomenon (Wood plague – was not selective for sex and male/female ratios et al., 1992; DeWitte, Stojanowski, 2015). The presence of of plague burial grounds did not significantly differ from stress lesions does not necessarily mean that the individual pre- and post-epidemic cemeteries (Signoli et al., 2002; was healthier compared with those without lesions, but De Witte, 2009). Less frequently, excess female mortality rather, some individuals without stress lesions died before was documented in both urban and rural contexts (Curtis, the stress was reflected in the skeleton. The most detectable Roosen, 2017). Another of the factors explored and skeletal markers require several weeks to form; thus, we potentially impacting plague mortality profiles was age- can assume that individuals with lesions must have at least at-death, and DeWitte (2010a) has shown that older adults survived this long. Bone is slower to respond to the effects showed somewhat higher risks of dying during the epidemic of stress than soft tissue. Therefore, the presence of stress compared to the younger. indicators indicates severe or prolonged stress. Instead of In general, two different types of mortality can be comparing the prevalence of skeletal stress indicators, they found in skeletal assemblages: catastrophic and attritional should be evaluated in terms of mortality and their effect on (Margerison, Knüsel, 2002). A high percentage of infant survivorship (Temple, Goodman, 2014). deaths, a low number of adolescent deaths, and an increasing In the case of mass graves, cultural or historical context mortality rate throughout adulthood would be consistent can help to understand whether individuals with a higher with attritional (normal) mortality, while an increased risk prevalence of stress were frailer. Although the demographic of death occurring in all age categories reflects a short-term composition of a population suffering a disease epidemic catastrophe (Gowland, Chamberlain, 2005). If the population differs from that of a non-epidemic population, some was affected by an epidemic, deceased individuals were factors can influence the age distribution of examined often buried in mass graves because there was not the time, samples. Taphonomic factors that influence infant skeletal nor space to bury them individually. If the epidemic killed remains can make them invisible in the archaeological people indiscriminately regardless of age and sex, then the record, consequently biasing the final distribution. When mass graves would represent an unbiased sample of the historical and cultural conditions are unknown and only population. However, the results of different studies (e.g. demographic composition is available as evidence of a DeWitte, 2010b; Galanaud et al., 2015; Crespo, Lawrenz, demographic crisis, differences in skeletal preservation 2016) have shown that this is not the case, but rather, that may distort results to resemble attritional mortality susceptibility to death varies during sudden events such as (Margerison, Knüsel, 2002; Kyle et al., 2018). Ageing epidemics, which have been referred to as heterogeneity in presents further problems in bioarchaeological research. frailty (Wood et al., 1992). Recent research has indicated Poorly preserved skeletons, systematic underestimation of that one of the worst demographic crises, the Black Death, old individuals, or circumstances affecting skeletal aging, caused selective mortality and removed the frailest of the are some of the factors that complicate the estimation of population (DeWitte, 2016). The concept of frailty, defined age at death of adults (Cave, Oxenham, 2016). Furthermore, as a state of decreased resistance to stressors (Fried et al., inconsistency in the use of age-estimation methods causes 2001), has been discussed in several recent bioarchaeological problems when comparing burial grounds, or their apparent studies (DeWitte, Wood, 2008; DeWitte, 2010b). Factors normal mortality (Bramanti et al., 2018). Nevertheless, by typically used to evaluate frailty in epidemiological combining methods from social and biological sciences in research are generally not observable in skeletal remains. the study of historical mass graves, we can more thoroughly In archaeological populations, only skeletal and dental interpret the information held in the bones and, thanks to this indicators of stress indicate pathological conditions in an transdisciplinary approach, better reconstruct daily life in individual. Marklein et al. (2016) proposed a method based times of catastrophes. on assessing the frailty of living populations applicable to bioarchaeological populations, the skeletal frailty index (SFI). This method provides a frailty score for everyone in 2. Difficulties in retrospectively diagnosing a population based on the presence
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