Unsolved Mysteries...
Forensic Sleuthing in Archaeology
Imagine that you were wandering around
in your back yard when you accidentally uncovered the skeletal remains
of a human being. After your initial reactions of shock and terror
many questions started forming in your head. What was the age of
this person? What was this person's sex and race? Most importantly,
what was the cause of death? These are all questions that forensic
anthropologists ask and seek to answer when they study human skeletal remains.
Forensic anthropology is a type of
applied physical anthropology which specializes in the human skeletal system
and its changes and variations. The knowledge of the skeletal system
can be used to identify victims in crimes and determine the cause of death,
and information acquired from modern forensic cases can be applied to the
study of skeletons that are hundreds or even thousands of years old (DeWitt
1996). "Forensic anthropologists use regression equations to determine
sex, age, stature, and race of skeletal remains; regression equations are
mathematical equations developed from studies of bones of individuals of
known sex, age, race, and stature, and are used to predict such things
of even fragmentary skeletal remains." (DeWitt 1996) An example of
a way to determine the sex of an individual is to study the pelvic bone
and skull. The pelvic bone of a woman is much broader than that of
a man while the skull of a man has more ridges than that of a female.
In general, male bones are larger and heavier than female bones.
Computers are also extremely useful in the identification of skeletal remains.
Experts can use computers to superimpose photographs of a person on top
of x-rays of facial bones to see if the identities match (Dickerson 1993).
Despite all the technology advances, forensic anthropologists never can
be one hundred percent correct when identifying skeletal remains, but their
studies do aid in narrowing the possible identities of victims (DeWitt
1996).
Determining the cause of death is
the most important aspect of forensic anthropology. Anthropologists
can distinguish between marks from the result of a weapon attack and those
resulting from the gnawing and biting of bones by scavenging animals.
They can also determine the exact kind of weapon and animal, and they can
tell if a wound is old or if it occurred at death. Another method
of determining causes of death is by using chemical and nuclear technologies
that can detect traces of poison in the body's remains (Dickerson 1993).
A popular area of forensic anthropology
is forensic sleuthing. Forensic sleuths focus on murders and other
mysteries which can be centuries old. These sleuths will go to the
extremes of exhuming and examining the remains of celebrities and past
presidents. Two outstanding cases of the use of forensic anthropology
to successfully solve unsolved mysteries are the cases of Alferd Packer
and Francisco Pizarro. Many other cases are on the list to be studied
such as the cases of Lizzie Borden and John Wilkes Booth.
Solved:
Alferd Packer
Francisco Pizarro
Unsolved:
Lizzie Borden
John Wilkes Booth
Citations for paper
Links to my other archaeology pages:
1. Archaeology
on the Web
2. General
Augustus Henry Lane-Fox Pitt-Rivers
Created by Amber McIlwain, amcilwain@mail.utexas.edu
April 22, 1998