Erica Williams1; Jaime Ullinger, MA2; Dennis Van Gerven, Ph.D.3; Susan Guise Sheridan, Ph.D.1
1Department
2Department
of Anthropology, University of Notre Dame;
of Anthropology, The Ohio State University;
3Department
of Anthropology, University of Colorado
Table 4. Penrose size/shape distance measures using only premolar & molar (mandibular and maxillary) values
Constantine’s declaration of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire in A.D. 313 resulted in the building of
many ecclesiastical structures in and around Jerusalem. This expansion led to the construction of more and better roads, as
well as increased trade (to which Jerusalem’s location along major trade routes from Europe to Northern Africa also contributed).
“As the news of Constantine’s works in the holy places began to spread, the flow of pilgrims increased” (Wilkinson 1976:84).
Western sources such as Egeria and Jerome, writing during this period, were struck by the number of pilgrims from the east.
Jerome also records origins of travelers from as far away as India, Persia, and Ethiopia (Wilkinson 1999, 2002).
Our study seeks to estimate the impact of these pilgrims on the biological makeup of the Byzantine monastic community.
Gene frequencies are difficult to study directly in archaeological collections; therefore physical traits are often used to assess
biological relationships and microevolutionary trends (Scott and Turner 1988). This is based on the observation that phenetic
distances correspond to genetic variation (Hillson 1996, Stojanowski 2005). Biological traits, such as tooth crown size, can be
useful indicators of genetic distances between populations if a significant component of the trait is genetic (Scott & Turner 1988).
Nearly 65% of adult tooth size is under genetic control (Townsend and Brown 1978). Most studies measure the largest
dimensions of the tooth crown according to the technique developed by Moorrees (1957). The central incisor (I1), first premolar
(P1) and first molar (M1) are the most genetically stable teeth, and are often referred to as the anchor, or polar, teeth. This is
slightly varied in the mandible, where the lateral incisor (I2) tends to be more stable than the central (Alvesalo and Tigerstedt
1974, Kieser 1990, Hillson 1996). Due to their higher rates of heritability, these polar teeth are the most useful for determining
biological distance.
Statement of Purpose: Historical accounts indicate that pilgrimage to Byzantine Jerusalem (5th-7th century CE) was a major
social phenomenon; less clear is the number of individuals that settled in monasteries upon arrival in the “Holy Land.” The
purpose of this study was to study the biological homogeneity of the monks of St. Stephen’s using odontometrics. Dental crown
sizes of the anchor teeth (I1, C, P1, and M1 in the maxilla and I2, C, P1, and M1 in the mandible) were analyzed for within- and
between-group variation. Comparative collection from the surrounding region, and from locations where pilgrims purportedly
originated were used to determine genetic distance. These data were combined with the analysis of dental non-metric traits
(Ullinger 2002), cranial and vertebral non-metric traits (Guappone et al. 2006), as well as strontium isotope profiles (Cooper et al.
2006) to determine the origins of the monks of St. Stephens.
The St. Stephen’s sample consisted of over 1,500 adult teeth. Those with obvious dental abnormalities, excessive occlusal or
interproximal wear, dental caries, broken cusps, partial eruption, or impaction were excluded from study, since these
characteristics interfere with measurement. Exceptions to this included teeth with cupped wear that did not obstruct the
dimensions measured. Mesiodistal and buccolingual diameters (Figure 1) were measured with a needle-pointed calipers
(accurate to .01 mm). Measurements were taken in two separate blind runs to ensure precision.
The mesiodistal diameter was taken at the greatest dimension of the crown parallel to the occlusal and labial surfaces
(Moorrees and Reed 1964). The buccolingual measurements of the premolars and molars were taken at the greatest
distance between the labial and lingual surfaces of the tooth in a plane perpendicular to the mesiodistal dimension. Because
the flare of the tooth (where the greatest distance could be measured) occurs lower on the buccal and lingual surfaces
than on the mesial and distal surfaces, fewer teeth were excluded from buccolingual measurement by occlusal wear.
Matched pairs Student’s t-test was used to compare right and left teeth, and coefficients of variation were
calculated within each tooth type to test for homogeneity. Numerous collections were compared to St.
Stephen’s by tooth type using ANOVA, and Penrose’s size and shape measure was used to establish the
distance among collections.
Historical records describe pilgrims traveling to and often
settling in Jerusalem from Western Europe, Mesopotamia, and
Persia, as well as India and North Africa. Student’s t-test
(one-tailed, unequal variance) was used to analyze
differences between the teeth of St. Stephen’s versus
Italy, Pakistan, North Africa, and the Southern
Levant. Collections from North America and
Southeast Asia were also included as
genetically distinct groups. The Levantine
assemblages included individuals from
the tombs of Tell Dothan (West Bank)
and Qumran (Dead Sea region).
Only comparative collections
from 6000 BC and later were
selected to ensure that
observed differences in
tooth size were due
primarily to genetic
factors rather
than dietrelated
dental
reduction.
Asymmetry : Student’s t-test indicated no significant side variation for the mesiodistal or buccolingual measurements. Due to
the nature of commingled remains from the St. Stephen's collection, the left side is used in all subsequent analyses in order to
avoid the duplication of individuals.
Exclusion of mesiodistal measurements: While teeth with significant interproximal wear were excluded from this study, few
posterior teeth remain completely unaffected, making the mesiodistal measurement less reliable (Coppa et al 1998, Kieser 1990).
Additionally, mesiodistal measurements can be inaccurate when taken on jawed teeth. Therefore, only buccolingual (BL)
measurements are analyzed. Table 1 illustrates the BL measures for mandibular and maxillary anchor teeth from numerous
comparative collections and Byzantine St. Stephens.
Table 1. Descriptive statistics for comparative collections by tooth type
SITE
PERIOD
n
MANDIBULAR BUCCOLINGUAL DIAMETER
PM1
C
n
mean
n
mean
n
I2
mean
M1
mean
n
MAXILLARY BUCCOLINGUAL DIAMETER
PM1
C
n
mean
n
mean
I1
mean
8-7 th C BC
1400-850 BC
108
85
18
9
6.20
6.45
6.17
6.31
± 0.4
± 0.4
± 0.4
± 0.4
115
93
17
15
7.44
8.12
7.49
7.95
± 0.5
± 0.6
± 0.5
± 0.8
173
90
22
13
7.79
8.33
7.63
7.52
± 0.5
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.6
218
85
23
20
11.23
11.30
10.43
10.35
± 0.4 125
± 0.5 72
± 0.6 12
± 0.6 5
7.29
7.51
7.04
7.16
± 0.3
± 0.4
± 0.4
± 0.2
71
78
14
12
7.96
8.68
8.00
8.28
AD 1700-1800
AD 1700-1800
AD 1700-1800
AD 1500-1600
AD 1568-1638
42
3
26
47
125
6.42
6.09
6.28
6.34
6.23
± 0.4
± 0.2
± 0.4
± 0.4
± 0.5
54
-24
77
150
7.84 ± 0.6
-7.75 ± 0.6
7.85 ± 0.5
7.68 ± 0.5
52
-27
95
161
7.88 ± 0.6
-7.81 ± 0.6
8.30 ± 0.4
7.90 ± 0.5
34
12
30
72
181
10.46
11.05
10.78
11.24
10.59
± 0.7 50
± 0.5 2
± 0.6 22
± 0.5 33
± 0.5 154
7.22
7.46
7.18
7.48
7.21
± 0.6
± 0.1
± 0.5
± 0.4
± 0.4
49
-20
55
169
8.46 ± 0.7
-8.46 ± 0.6
8.64 ± 0.5
8.49 ± 0.6
9-7 th C BC
8-7 th C BC
7th C BC
6-4 th C BC
3rd C BC
2nd C AD
2nd C AD
1-2 nd C AD
227
11
10
18
18
24
20
27
6.29
6.39
6.46
6.29
6.02
6.30
6.10
6.13
± 0.4
± 0.7
± 0.3
± 0.5
± 0.2
± 0.6
± 0.5
± 0.4
272
17
11
23
18
32
21
31
7.56
7.56
7.66
7.51
7.20
7.70
7.60
7.62
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.4
± 0.7
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.8
± 0.5
304
23
10
18
18
30
27
31
7.41
7.57
7.95
7.61
7.17
7.70
7.50
7.73
± 0.5
± 0.8
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.4
± 0.5
± 0.5
± 0.6
274
20
14
16
12
31
22
33
10.36
10.55
10.49
10.33
10.19
10.40
10.40
10.48
± 0.5 204
± 0.8 11
± 0.4 10
± 0.5 13
± 0.4 8
± 0.4 23
± 0.4 12
± 0.4 30
7.09
7.21
7.40
7.15
6.95
7.20
7.00
7.01
± 0.5
± 0.4
± 0.3
± 0.6
± 0.2
± 0.5
± 0.4
± 0.4
264
17
13
18
14
23
30
31
8.21
8.53
8.75
8.42
8.00
8.40
8.20
8.22
± 0.6
± 0.4
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.5
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.6
277
19
10
17
17
25
31
36
8.83
9.00
9.07
9.15
8.58
8.90
8.80
8.80
Meroitic Nubians (Egypt)
X-group Nubians (Egypt)
Christian era Nubians (Sudan)
AD 0-350
AD 350-550
AD 550-1400
17
30
16
6.14 ± 0.5
6.15 ± 0.4
6.21 ± 0.4
19
37
16
7.42 ± 0.4
7.46 ± 0.5
7.21 ± 0.5
31
40
16
7.88 ± 0.6
8.02 ± 0.5
7.79 ± 0.5
30
44
6
10.32 ± 0.5
10.57 ± 0.5
10.82 ± 0.6
13
14
6
7.19 ± 0.4
7.09 ± 0.3
7.38 ± 0.3
30
32
10
8.23 ± 0.8
8.21 ± 0.5
8.40 ± 0.4
Jebel Qa'aqir (Israel/Palestine)
Tel Kabri (Israel/Palestine)
Sasa (Israel/Palestine)
Jericho (Israel/Palestine)
Qumran (Israel/Palestine)
En Gedi (Israel/Palestine)
Bedouin (Israel/Palestine)
Samaritan (Israel/Palestine)
Druze (Israel/Palestine)
Alaca Huyuk (Turkey)
Kish (Iraq)
Kish [males] (Iraq)
Tepe Hissar (Iran)
Hasanlu [males] (Iran)
2400-2000 BC
1925-1700 BC
1800-1550 BC
6-4,000 BC
200 BC - AD 68
AD 324-640
Modern
Modern
Modern
6-4,000 BC
6-4,000 BC
2700 BC-600 BC
2000 BC
1000 BC
11
2
20
1
3
----3
26
-9
--
6.00 ± 0.3
6.22 ± 0.4
6.70 ± 0.8
6.00
6.00 ± 0.3
----6.90
6.20
-6.14 ± 0.4
--
16
36
21
4
3
----4
33
----
7.40 ± 0.4
7.69 ± 0.6
7.80 ± 0.6
7.40 ± 0.8
7.56 ± 0.1
----7.20
7.30
----
17
43
19
6
3
-63
100
-6
39
9
-27
7.20 ± 0.5
7.43 ± 0.4
7.70 ± 0.2
7.60 ± 0.3
7.71 ± 0.8
-7.96 ± 0.5
7.50 ± 0.5
7.39
8.90
7.40
7.50 ± 0.6
-7.56 ± 0.6
25
43
16
8
2
-75
90
-9
60
11
35
--
10.30 ± 0.8
10.57 ± 0.5
10.80 ± 0.5
10.30 ± 0.4
10.32 ± 1.0
-10.77 ± 0.5
10.40 ± 0.4
10.99
10.60
10.20
10.80 ± 0.8
10.51 ± 0.6
--
7
25
10
3
3
2
---1
23
-7
--
7.10 ± 0.4
7.24 ± 0.3
7.30 ± 0.7
6.80 ± 0.4
7.50 ± 0.8
6.49 ± 0.2
---6.70
7.00
-7.14 ± 0.7
--
7
27
17
3
3
----5
33
----
1400-1100 BC
34
6.05 ± 0.4
56
7.62 ± 0.5
55
7.44 ± 0.5
58
10.58 ± 0.5
76
7.08 ± 0.4
th
17
6.2 ± 0.4
10
7.6 ± 0.5
27
7.4 ± 0.5
28 10.24 ± 0.5 13
6.9 ± 0.4
Native Jomon (Japan)
Immigrant Yayoi (Japan)
Sarai Khola (Pakistan)
Timargarha (Pakistan)
3000-300 BC
300 BC-AD 300
Pennsylvania [males] (USA)
Alaska (USA)
Oregon/CA Athapaskans (USA)
St. Catharine's/Guale Indians (USA)
Tipu [males] (Belize)
Osteria dell'Osa (Italy)
Laurentina (Italy)
Le Castagne (Italy)
Campovalano (Italy)
Sulmona (Italy)
Lucus Feroniae (Italy)
Rome (Italy)
Grottaperfetta (Italy)
Dothan
St. Stephen's
th
AD 5 -7 C
± 0.5
± 0.5
± 0.7
± 0.6
M1
mean
n
References
± 0.5
± 0.5
± 0.6
± 0.6
189
70
17
14
11.78
12.01
11.33
11.40
± 0.5
± 0.6
± 0.7
± 0.7
Matsumura (2001)
Matsumura (2001)
Lukacs (1983)
Lukacs (1983)
55
9.16 ± 0.6
--24
9.21 ± 0.7
70 10.09 ± 0.5
176 9.38 ± 0.5
54
9
27
77
186
11.45
11.65
11.28
12.14
11.65
± 0.9
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.5
± 0.6
Ubelaker & Jones (2003)
Glantz (1999)
Tasa (1997)
Larsen (1990)
Jacobi (1996)
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.4
± 0.8
± 0.6
± 0.5
± 0.5
± 0.6
249
20
13
16
16
22
19
28
11.34
11.44
11.51
11.34
11.04
11.30
11.10
11.23
± 0.5
± 0.9
± 0.4
± 0.6
± 0.4
± 0.6
± 0.6
± 0.5
Macchiarelli et al (1995)
Macchiarelli et al (1995)
Macchiarelli et al (1995)
Macchiarelli et al (1995)
Macchiarelli et al (1995)
Manzi et al. (1997)
Manzi et al. (1997)
Macchiarelli et al (1995)
36
36
15
9.35 ± 0.5
9.32 ± 0.6
9.36 ± 0.5
40
44
16
11.48 ± 0.6
11.39 ± 0.6
11.46 ± 0.6
Calcagno (1986)
Calcagno (1986)
Calcagno (1986)
8.20 ± 0.5
8.39 ± 0.5
8.40 ± 0.8
8.70 ± 1.0
8.89 ± 1.1
----8.00
8.00
----
4
35
11
7
3
-62
89
-6
36
21
-21
8.90 ± 0.5
8.82 ± 0.6
9.00 ± 0.5
8.90 ± 0.2
9.15 ± 0.6
-9.20 ± 0.7
8.90 ± 0.5
9.59
8.60
8.60
8.81 ± 0.7
-8.70 ± 0.5
12
41
19
8
3
13
78
98
-7
46
16
20
--
11.20 ± 0.5
11.49 ± 0.8
11.40 ± 0.5
11.50 ± 0.4
11.22 ± 0.7
10.55 ± 0.5
11.54 ± 0.7
11.40 ± 0.5
11.79
11.30
10.80
11.24 ± 0.8
11.29 ± 0.5
--
Peretz & Smith (2004)
Faerman et al. (2002)
Peretz & Smith (2004)
Smith (1970)
Sheridan et al. (2003)
Glantz (1999)
Rosenzweig & Zilberman (1969)
Rosenzweig, et al. (1969)
Smith (1970)
Smith (1970)
Smith (1970)
Rathbun (1975)
Glantz (1999)
Rathbun (Iran)
81
8.13 ± 0.6
62 8.968 ± 0.5
44
11.64 ± 0.6
19
8.2 ± 0.6
19 8.85 ± 0.6
22 11.34 ± 0.5
153
84
17
15
9.27
9.76
9.08
9.19
Homogeneity: Coefficient of variation (CV) values between 4 and 10 percent
indicate homogeneity (Thomas 1986). All left polar tooth buccolingual
measurements in the St. Stephen’s collection fall within this range (Table 2). This
indicates that the St. Stephen’s collection is composed primarily of people from a
single region, rather than groups from varied areas.
Byzantine St. Stephen’s collection
n
I2
C
P1
M1
mean
17
10
27
28
1
I
C
P1
M1
6.16
7.58
7.43
10.24
13
19
19
22
6.94
8.19
8.85
11.34
CV
± 0.43
± 0.54
± 0.55
± 0.55
7.00
7.18
7.37
5.35
± 0.41
± 0.57
± 0.62
± 0.52
5.86
6.96
7.04
4.60
Table 3. Statistical comparison of St. Stephen’s to comparative collections
MANDIBLE
I2
df
Native Jamon (Japan)
Immigrant Yayoi (Japan)
Sarai Khola (Pakistan)
Timargarha (Pakistan)
Pennsylvania [males] (USA)
Alaska (USA)
Oregon/CA Athapaskans (USA)
St. Catharine's/Guale Indians (USA)
Tipu [males] (Belize)
Osteria dell'Osa (Italy)
Laurentina (Italy)
Le Castagne (Italy)
Campovalano (Italy)
Sulmona (Italy)
Lucus Feroniae (Italy)
Rome (Italy)
Grottaperfetta (Italy)
Figure 1. Dental crown
measurements
t
3000 BC-300 BC
300 BC-AD 300
8-7th C BC
1400-850 BC
123 0.40
AD 1700-1800
AD 1700-1800
AD 1700-1800
AD 1500-1600
AD 1568-1638
57 2.18
100 2.94
33 0.08
24 0.88
18 0.27
41 0.94
62 1.62
140 0.60
9-7th C BC
8-7th C BC
7th C BC
6-4th C BC
3rd C BC
2nd C AD
2nd C AD
1-2nd C AD
242 1.29
Meroitic Nubians (Egypt)
X-group Nubians (Egypt)
Christian era Nubians (Sudan)
AD 0-350
AD 350-550
AD 550-1400
32 0.13
Jebel Qa'aqir (Israel/Palestine)
Tel Kabri (Israel/Palestine)
Sasa (Israel/Palestine)
Jericho (Israel/Palestine)
Qumran (Israel/Palestine)
En Gedi (Israel/Palestine)
Bedouin (Israel/Palestine)
Samaritan (Israel/Palestine)
Druze (Israel/Palestine)
Alaca Huyuk (Turkey)
Kish (Iraq)
Kish [males] (Iraq)
Tepe Hissar (Iran)
Hasanlu [males] (Iran)
2400-2000 BC
1925-1700 BC
1800-1550 BC
10-8,000 BC
200 BC - AD 68
AD 324-640
AD 1963
Modern
Modern
6-4,000 BC
6-4,000 BC
2700 BC-600 BC
2000 BC
1000 BC
26 1.07
1400-1100 BC
49 0.84
Dothan
26 1.13
25 1.93
33 0.87
33 1.26
39 0.84
35 0.41
42 0.24
45 0.08
31 0.36
17 0.45
35 2.49
--
--
18 0.61
--------
--------
26 0.11
--
--
MAXILLA
C
p
df
t
0.345
0.002
0.468
0.192
123 0.84
0.017
0.395
0.176
0.056
0.277
62 1.30
101 2.89
25 0.46
23 1.26
--
--
32 0.74
85 1.50
158 0.56
0.099
0.132
0.030
0.195
0.106
0.203
0.342
0.404
280 0.11
0.450
0.468
0.359
27 0.88
0.148
0.326
0.008
-0.275
-------0.455
--
24 0.98
0.204
64 0.20
25 0.10
19 0.37
31 0.31
26 1.76
40 0.54
29 0.07
39 0.21
45 0.68
24 1.89
44 0.49
29 0.97
12 0.50
11 0.07
----------
----------
P1
p
0.204
0.003
0.325
0.108
0.102
-0.233
0.070
0.292
df
t
p
df
t
I1
p
df
t
C
p
df
t
P1
p
df
t
198 3.64 3.0E-04
244 11.07 2.4E-17
115 7.49 3.3E-10
111 9.63 9.5E-15
83 5.26 1.3E-06
95 3.58 4.2E-04
24 6.98 2.7E-09
31 4.75 1.3E-05
17 8.82 1.7E-11
27 1.99
0.027
31 9.72
66 1.52
0.070
-0.075
0.001
0.027
72 1.91
47 1.23
38 0.48
77 3.13
--
--
52 2.47
0.430
0.232
49 1.16
46 0.66
0.124
0.255
0.001
-0.008
60 1.41
120 8.60 5.4E-12
136 3.45
0.081
61 1.63
38 4.36 2.2E-05
13 1.74
56 3.73 1.9E-04
33 1.43
98 8.50 1.1E-12
0.001
0.053
0.044
0.079
44 4.09 7.2E-05
88 1.82
--
--
37 1.47
72 3.37
186 4.89 4.7E-06
207 3.33
0.001
165 2.17
0.018
186 2.01
0.007
0.141
0.047
0.141
0.046
0.032
0.303
0.024
300 1.15
0.127
0.053
0.069
0.293
0.384
0.100
0.127
0.027
215 1.07
0.144
0.056
0.002
0.155
0.478
0.054
0.356
0.300
281 0.11
0.002
0.000
0.015
56 0.56
0.290
0.006
0.012
24 1.51
0.069
0.151
0.014
47 0.18
0.086
0.491
0.022
0.231
0.473
--
51 0.31
0.377
0.005
0.001
0.390
0.312
--
18 0.83
0.206
0.009
0.064
0.295
0.038
0.070
------0.202
--
24 0.02
0.149
98 0.4
0.456
0.462
0.356
0.381
0.042
0.296
0.474
0.416
329 0.18
0.193
0.249
0.034
56 3.10
0.166
0.314
0.168
0.311
0.473
----------
42 1.39
0.420
M1
48 0.74
35 2.48
43 1.09
43 1.71
55 1.89
52 0.52
56 2.02
65 4.58
41 2.24
68 0.02
44 2.07
31 0.74
28 0.07
--
--
88 4.62 1.2E-05
46 1.64
40 1.51
42 0.55
38 0.30
57 1.29
48 1.15
59 1.96
70 2.59
32 2.32
69 2.67
42 3.36
34 0.28
28 0.49
--
--
101 4.46 1.5E-05
116 1.70
52 0.83
0.257
---0.371
-0.206
80 0.10
0.461
84 2.81
125 0.66
----
----
34 0.33
--
--
----
----
37 2.45
61 1.91
--
--
0.047
---0.008
0.030
-0.003
22 1.62
21 3.13
24 1.02
19 0.05
34 1.63
23 0.37
41 0.53
25 1.04
17 2.29
36 2.48
21 1.54
14 0.55
14 1.85
13 1.51
-------
-------
18 0.84
--
--
87 1.05
Yayoi
Sarai
Timar
0.000
0.506
0.743
0.835
0.602
0.898
0.351
0.384
1.078
0.582
0.577
0.870
2.058
0.885
0.875
1.176
0.785
0.528
0.222
0.721
0.329
1.402
0.251
0.617
0.945
0.946
0.562
1.241
Penn St Cath Atha
0.000
1.803
1.895
1.312
0.109
1.102
0.811
2.564
1.717
1.273
1.899
4.101
2.109
2.032
2.673
1.343
0.975
0.804
2.123
1.321
3.083
0.785
2.013
2.146
1.918
1.780
2.706
0.000
0.030
0.072
2.292
0.150
0.235
0.101
0.029
0.117
0.013
0.510
0.085
0.034
0.120
0.144
0.204
0.232
0.128
0.131
0.219
0.239
0.201
0.063
0.029
0.129
0.112
0.000
0.128
2.295
0.244
0.252
0.124
0.069
0.202
0.011
0.540
0.204
0.110
0.195
0.143
0.279
0.282
0.172
0.233
0.193
0.337
0.316
0.087
0.057
0.133
0.119
Tipu
34 1.96
30 2.67
35 1.21
31 1.03
40 1.15
47 0.03
48 0.15
49 0.10
27 1.00
44 1.24
34 0.89
20 1.30
20 1.75
----------
----------
0.040
df
t
p
0.001
209 3.96 9.0E-05
101 6.67 7.0E-09
90 4.90 3.0E-06
0.458
0.227
37 7.43 1.2E-10
0.031
-0.035
74 0.52
170 3.51
34 13.46
--
--
41 1.85
87 9.25 5.0E-13
29 1.44
47 0.37
0.301
0.078
0.357
97 6.45 6.1E-09
206 2.47
0.008
0.151
0.107
0.097
0.107
0.097
0.369
0.386
0.397
269 0.00
0.499
0.325
0.163
0.499
0.030
0.407
0.093
0.232
0.001
0.005
0.005
60 0.95
32 0.76
38 0.83
0.435
0.442
0.243
0.411
0.216
-0.021
0.347
---0.431
-0.205
79 0.86
0.198
294 0.11
0.431
0.461
0.164
53 3.20
0.492
0.109
0.188
0.103
0.046
----------
21 0.16
36 0.76
27 1.03
34 1.25
34 1.32
42 0.34
48 0.29
53 0.26
53 2.67
32 2.67
52 0.15
28 0.70
24 0.23
20 0.79
--
--
79 2.08
106 0.40
----
----
38 0.17
--
--
Campo Sulmo Grotta Lucus Rome M Nub X Nub C Nub
Kabri
Sasa Jebel QBedouin Kish
JerichoQumran Dothan
BSS
Abbreviations
0.000
1.751
0.114
0.084
0.307
0.114
0.015
0.088
0.916
0.165
0.106
0.328
0.048
0.052
0.153
0.291
0.152
0.535
0.095
0.363
0.151
0.079
0.241
0.313
0.000
1.573
1.104
3.174
2.241
1.759
2.336
4.877
2.786
2.629
3.352
1.655
1.354
1.161
2.735
1.885
3.662
1.221
2.703
2.692
2.381
2.281
3.294
0.000
0.158
0.420
0.152
0.143
0.215
1.943
0.229
0.217
0.376
0.230
0.096
0.044
0.327
0.059
0.616
0.067
0.224
0.353
0.196
0.296
0.492
0.000
0.585
0.253
0.107
0.245
1.419
0.447
0.349
0.672
0.084
0.063
0.082
0.484
0.241
0.846
0.067
0.575
0.365
0.268
0.333
0.609
0.000
0.085
0.343
0.124
0.192
0.113
0.082
0.049
0.443
0.577
0.561
0.054
0.268
0.060
0.558
0.180
0.057
0.179
0.122
0.013
0.000
0.139
0.069
0.516
0.092
0.057
0.138
0.237
0.270
0.217
0.047
0.070
0.224
0.218
0.117
0.065
0.116
0.044
0.126
0.000
0.150
0.978
0.160
0.118
0.366
0.097
0.073
0.190
0.300
0.151
0.623
0.082
0.371
0.165
0.140
0.259
0.356
0.000
0.530
0.146
0.066
0.160
0.113
0.226
0.282
0.187
0.218
0.218
0.305
0.306
0.072
0.019
0.170
0.113
0.000
0.418
0.423
0.179
1.106
1.321
1.326
0.374
0.810
0.117
1.347
0.489
0.410
0.575
0.576
0.187
Atha
Bedouin
BSS
C Nub
Campo
Cast
Dothan
Grotta
Jebel Q
Jericho
Jomon
Kabri
Kish
Lauren
0.000
0.018
0.064
0.345
0.331
0.408
0.134
0.143
0.287
0.323
0.135
0.102
0.127
0.225
0.140
0.000
0.072
0.230
0.273
0.358
0.120
0.153
0.238
0.295
0.182
0.045
0.064
0.172
0.090
0.000
0.494
0.556
0.585
0.135
0.270
0.104
0.577
0.151
0.137
0.160
0.258
0.068
0.000
0.077
0.222
0.475
0.336
0.640
0.201
0.616
0.244
0.107
0.372
0.414
0.000
0.105
0.531
0.224
0.837
0.065
0.525
0.379
0.184
0.448
0.594
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
0.000
0.420
0.121
0.770
0.054
0.368
0.446
0.298
0.311
0.637
Lucus
M Nub
Oster
Penn
Qumran
Rome
Sarai
Sasa
St. Cath
Sulmo
Timar
Tipu
X Nub
Yayoi
Oregon/CA Athapaskans (USA)
B edouin
St. Stephen's
Christian era Nubians (Sudan)
Campovalano (Italy)
Le Castagne (Italy)
Dothan
Grottaperfetta (Italy)
Jebel Qa'aqir (Israel/Palestine)
Jericho
Native Jomon (Japan)
Tel Kabri (Israel/Palestine)
Kish
Laurentina (Italy)
0.000
0.144
0.173
0.410
0.093
0.094
0.267
0.035
0.110
0.000
0.473
0.109
0.084
0.239
0.240
0.142
0.356
0.000
0.861
0.302
0.205
0.286
0.257
0.066
0.000
0.382
0.383
0.302
0.324
0.624
0.000
0.277
0.336
0.178
0.282
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
Lucus Feroniae (Italy)
Meroitic Nubians (Egypt)
Osteria dell'Osa (Italy)
Pennsylvania [males] (USA)
Qumran (Israel/Palestine)
Rome (Italy)
Sarai Khola (Pakastan)
Sasa (Israel/Palestine)
St. Catharine's/Guale Indians (USA)
Sulmona (Italy)
Timargarha (Pakistan)
Tipu [males] (Belize)
X-group Nubians (Egypt)
Immigrant Yayoi (Japan)
0.000
0.119 0.000
0.108 0.273 0.000
0.049 0.162 0.174 0.000
showing significant differences in mandibular P1 (t=3.10, p=0.002) and maxillary P1
(t=3.20, p=0.001) in the Meroitic Nubians, mandibular P1 (t=4.58, p=1.4E-5), M1 (t=2.59,
p=0.006) and maxillary P1 (t=2.67, p=0.005) in the X-group Nubians, and mandibular C
(t=1.89, p=0.034), P1 (t=2.24, p=0.015), M1 (t=2.32, p=0.012) and maxillary I1 (t=2.29,
p=0.014) and P1 (t=2.67, p=0.005). Because these three Nubian groups are considered
biologically continuous (Calcagno 1986), these statistics indicate that north Africans were
not living at St. Stephen's in significant numbers.
Table 5. Penrose size/shape distances between
Byzantine St. Stephen’s and 2 outliers
Jomon
St. Cath
BSS
Jomon
0.000
0.727
0.730
St Cath BSS
0.000
1.952
0.000
Table 6. Penrose size/shape distances between Byzantine St.
Stephen’s and contemporary and African sites
40 0.46
33 0.99
36 0.002
36 1.92
42 0.24
39 1.34
48 0.74
64 0.33
36 0.68
61 0.83
39 0.37
28 0.78
23 0.36
0.173
0.373
0.249
0.225
0.204
0.356
0.219
0.360
33 4.46 1.2E-10
98 1.32
118 0.47
----
----
36 0.46
40 0.31
--
--
64 2.08
0.095
0.320
---0.324
0.380
-0.021
The odontometric analyses alone are not conclusive,
indicating only that the monks are not genetically distinct
from Western European and Near Eastern groups. Taken
with the other nonmetric and isotopic studies, though, they
contribute to a larger picture of the St. Stephen's community as
comprised primarily of a local population with some amount of
immigration that cannot be quantified. Future directions include
searches for other Byzantine-era collections for comparison, as well
as isolation of individuals from the St. Stephen's collection for direct
comparison to individuals from other communities in order to perform more
rigorous statistical tests.
Byzantine St. Stephen’s Project
Laboratory for Biocultural Studies
University of Notre Dame
Department of Anthropology
Alvesalo L, Tigerstedt MA. 1974. Heritabilities of human tooth dimensions. Hereditas 77:311-318.
Binns J. 1994. Ascetics and ambassadors of Christ: the monasteries of Palestine 314-631. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
Campo
0.000
0.049
0.141
0.147
0.119
Lucus
0.000
0.111
0.197
0.128
Rome
0.000
0.289
0.039
X Nub
0.000
0.315
BSS
0.000
Table 7. Penrose size/shape distances between Byzantine St.
Stephen’s and other Near Eastern collections
Kabri
Jebel Q
Dothan
BSS
Kabri
0.000
0.184
0.083
0.139
Jebel Q Dothan
0.000
0.153
0.082
0.000
0.111
BSS
0.000
Coppa A, Cucina A, Manicinelli D, Vargiu R, Calcagno JM. 1998. Dental anthropology of Central-Southern, Iron Age Italy:
the evidence of metric versus nonmetric traits. Am J Phys Anthropol 107: 371-386.
Cooper AL, Viets ZJ, Sheridan SG. 2006. Sacred elements: assessing Byzantine pilgrimage to Jerusalem using elemental and
isotopic composition of human bone. Am J Phys Anthropol, 129:77-8.
Faerman M, et al. 2002. The Bio-anthropology of the Human Remains. In: Scheftelowitz N, Oren R, editors. Tel Kabri: the 19861993 Excavation Seasons. Tel Aviv: Emery and Claire Yass Publications in Archaeology. p 383-394.
Glanta MM. 1999. A reassessment of the relationship between dental wear, subsistence, and non-masticatory behavior: morphological
considerations in dental wear process. PhD dissertation: University of Pennsylvania.
A few of the European collections are biologically similar to St.
Stephen's. The AD second century Roman remains are especially similar,
both in Penrose statistics (C2H =0.038) and in the lack of significant
difference in any of the polar teeth (Table 6). Italian collections from
Campovalano (6th-4th cent. BC Italy) and Lucus Feroniae, (AD 2nd century
near Rome), also have small biodistance measures (C2H =0.119 and C2H
=0.128, respectively). These similarities may indicate that some of the
inhabitants of St. Stephen's originated in Europe.
Guappone A, Crate J, Ullinger J, Van Gerven DP, Sheridan SG. 2006. Heading to Jerusalem: assessing migration and pilgrimage to a Byzantine
monastery using cranial non-metric traits. Am J Phys Anthropol, 129:187-88.
The similarity between the monks and other Near Eastern groups
(discussed below) suggests that the reason for similarity between St.
Stephen’s and certain European groups is not because the monks are
wholly a European immigrant population. Manzi et al. (1997) suggest that
there was an influx of agriculturalists from the Southern Levant into Italy
during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. Indeed, movements into and out
of Europe and the Near East are ancient and plentiful, and have most
certainly left long-term biological impacts.
Lukacs J. 1983. Dental anthropology and the origins of two Iron Age Populations from Northern Pakistan. Homo 34:1-15.
Like those from Western Europe, Near Eastern
collections show high levels of similarity to Byzantine St.
Stephen's. Collections from Tel Kabri (C2H =0.139), Jebel
Table 8. Penrose size/shape distances between Byzantine St. Stephen’s and other Near
Qa’Aqir (C2H =0.082), and Dothan (C2H =0.111) show the
Eastern collections using only premolar & molar (mandibular & maxillary) values
closest relationships to St. Stephen’s when all eight teeth are
Kabri Jebel Q Bedouin Kish
Jericho Dothan
BSS
used for comparison (Table 7). Additionally, there are no
Kabri
0.000
significant differences in polar tooth size in the Jebel Qa’Aqir
Jebel Q
0.173
0.000
group, and significant differences in only two of the polar
Bedouin
0.410
0.861
0.000
teeth in both Tel Kabri (mandibular M1, t=2.67, p=0.005 and
Kish
0.093
0.302
0.382
0.000
maxillary I1, t=2.48, p=0.009) and Dothan (mandibular M1,
Jericho
0.094
0.205
0.383
0.277
0.000
Dothan
0.035
0.257
0.178
0.178
0.108
0.000
t=2.81, p=0.003 and maxillary M1, t=2.08, p=0.021). Only
BSS
0.110
0.066
0.282
0.282
0.049
0.174 0.000
collections from Sasa (C2H =0.509) and Qumran (C2H
=0.499) show significant biodistance from St.
Stephen's. Both are also genetically distant from the other Near Eastern groups; for Qumran, this may be due to the small
sample size.
34 5.31 6.8E-07
193 4.11 6.9E-05
0.458
0.029
0.006
0.116
0.155
0.128
0.488
0.441
0.343
M1
p
Oster Lauren Cast
Calcagno, JM. 1986. Odontometrics and biological continuity in the Meroitic, X-Group, and Christian phases of Nubia.
Curr Anthropol 27:66-69.
Campo
Lucus
Rome
X Nub
BSS
Although textual records indicate that pilgrims traveled from northern Africa, the distance statistics from the X-group
Nubians do not support this (C2H =0.315, Table 6). Nubians, in fact, are more biologically distant during and after the Byzantine
period: Meroitic Nubians (C2H =0.257) are more closely related than X-group Nubians (C2H =0.315), which in turn are more
closely related than Christian-era Nubians (C2H =0.523). Polar tooth comparisons corroborate these increasing distances,
PERIOD
Jomon
Table 2. Descriptive statistics for the
Comparative study: Each group was compared to the St. Stephen’s collection
(Table 3). Statistically significant differences (p≤0.05) are indicated in bold. The
Penrose size/shape measure (C2H) was used to analyze the relative distances
between St. Stephen's and other collections (Table 4). As expected, populations
chosen as outliers (native Jomon from Japan & Guale Indians from North America)
do exhibit high Penrose values (C2H = 0.730 and 1.953) when compared to the
Byzantine monks. These collections also show significant difference in 6 of the 8
polar teeth (mandibular PI, M1 and all maxillary polar teeth, Table 3).
SITE
Jomon
Yayoi
Sarai
Timar
Penn
St. Cath
Atha
Tipu
Oster
Lauren
Cast
Campo
Sulmo
Grotta
Lucus
Rome
M Nub
X Nub
C Nub
Kabri
Sasa
Jebel Q
B edouin
Kish
Jericho
Qumran
Dothan
BSS
Hillson S. 1996. Dental Anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hillson S, FitzGerald C, Flinn H. 2005. Alternative dental measurements: proposals and relationships with other measurements. Am J Phys Anthropol 126:413-426.
Hunt E. 1982. Holy land pilgrimage in the later Roman empire AD 312-460. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Jacobi KP. 1996. An analysis of genetic structuring in a colonial Maya Cemetery, Tipu, Belize, using dental morphology and metrics. PhD Dissertation, Indiana
University.
Kieser JA. 1990. Human Adult Odontometrics. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Larsen CS. 1990. The archaeology of Mission Santa Catalina de Guale: 2. Biocultural interpretations of a population in transition. Anthropological papers of the
American Museum of Natural History 68: 1-150.
Macchiarelli R, Salvadei L, Bondioli L. 1995. Odontometric variation and biological relationships among Italic (Latins, Samnites, Paeligni, Picenes) and Imperial Roman
populations. Aspects of dental biology: paleontology, anthropology and evolution:419-436.
Manzi G, Snatandrea E, Passarello P. 1997. Dental size and shape in the Roman Imperial Age: two examples from the area of Rome. Am J Phys Anthropol 102:469479.
Matsumura H. 2001. Differentials of Yayoi immigration to Japan as derived from dental metrics. Homo 52:135-156.
Moorrees CFA. 1957. The Aleut Dentition. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Moorrees CFA, Reed RB. 1964. Correlations among crown diameters of human teeth. Arch Oral Biol 9:685-697.
Peretz B, Smith P. 2004. Dental morphology and pathology of Middle Bronze Age populations in Israel: Sasa and Jebel Qa'aqir. 'Atiqot 46: 45*-49*.
Rathbun TA. 1972. A study of the physical characteristics of the ancient inhabitants of Hasanlu, Iran. Miami: Field Research Projects.
Rathbun TA. 1975. A study of the physical characteristics of the ancient inhabitants of Kish, Iraq. Miami: Field Research Projects.
Rosenzweig KA, Mass E, Smith P. 1969. La denture des Samaritains. Bulletin du Groupement international pour la recherche scientifique en stomatologie 12:95-106.
Rosenzweig KA, Zilberman Y. 1969. Dentition of Bedouin in Israel. Am J Phys Anthropol 31: 199-204.
Scott GR, Turner CG. 1988. Dental anthropology. Ann Rev Anthropol 17:99-126.
Sheridan S, Ullinger J, Ramp J. 2003. Anthropological analysis of the human remains: the French collection. In: Humbert J, Gunneweg J, editors. Khirbet Qumran at Ain
Feshkha. Fribourg: Academic Press. p 129-169.
Smith P. 1970. Dental morphology and pathology in the Natufians: the dental evidence for dietary specializations. Ph.D. dissertation, The University of Chicago.
Stojanowski CM. 2005. Spanish Colonial effect on Native American mating structure and genetic variability in Northern and Central Florida: Evidence from Apalachee
and Western Timucua. Am J Phys Anthropol 128: 273-286.
Tasa GL. 1997. Skeletal and dental variation of Pacific Coast Athapaskans: implications for Oregon prehistory and peopling of the New World. PhD Dissertation,
University of Oregon.
Ubelaker DH, Jones EB. 2003. Biological and cultural analysis of human remains. In: Ubelaker DH, Jones EB, eds. Human Remains from Voegtly Cemetery, Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. 2003, Washington, D.C:.Smithsonian Institution Press.
Ullinger JM. 2002. Early Christian pilgrimage to a Byzantine monastery in Jerusalem--a dental perspective. Dent Anthropol 16:22-25.
Wilkinson J. 1976. Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem during the Byzantine period. In: Palest Explor Q n.s: 75-101.
Wilkinson J. 1999. Egeria's travels. Warminster: Aris & Phillips Ltd.
Wilkinson J. 2002. Jerusalem pilgrims before the Crusades. Warminster: Aris & Phillips Ltd.
When only the mandibular and maxillary premolars and molars are compared using the Penrose measure, again Tel Kabri
=0.110) and Jebel Qa’Aqir (C2H =0.066) exhibit close relationships (Table 8). The collection from Bronze Age Jericho (C2H
=0.049), also shows similarity to St. Stephen’s, corroborated by the absence of any significant difference in polar tooth size.
(C2H
These results, combined with the comparisons using all teeth suggest that the majority of individuals from St. Stephen's
probably originated from the local area. These findings are also supported by dental non-metric traits, which also suggested that
the monastery could not be distinguished from Near Eastern and European groups (Ullinger, 2002). It is increasingly clear that
very few immigrants from Africa or East Asia were staying long enough at the monastery to be buried there, if they were arriving
at all. Some historical sources support this. Binns (1994) states that the majority of monks in Byzantine monasteries came from
areas such as Asia Minor. Further directions may include comparison to more groups from Asia Minor and areas north and east
of Jerusalem; however, the lack of odontometric data from these areas makes such comparison difficult.
In addition to the study of dental nonmetrics, other studies of cranial and vertebral nonmetrics as well as stable strontium
ratios on the St. Stephen's collection have also suggested that the individuals originated in the Near East (Guappone et al.
2006, Cooper et al. 2006). While this seems to contradict pilgrimage accounts, scholars also state that that monastic
communities were comprised not only of monks but also indigenous workers (Wilkinson 1976, Hunt 1982, Binns 1994). This
may account for the observed similarities to near eastern groups. However, the homogeneity of the group also indicates that it
is not comprised of distinct groups of foreign monks and indigenous workers, suggesting that the majority of the monks
themselves were from the local area.
•
•
•
•
•
•
National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (SES #0244096)
University of Notre Dame Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts)
University of Notre Dame Undergraduate Intellectual Initiative (Office of Undergraduate Studies)
Paul Sciulli, Ph.D., The Ohio State University
Matthew Tocheri, MA, Arizona State University
L'École Biblique et Archéologique Française de Jérusalem & Couvent St-Étienne
A copy of this poster can be downloaded at the following website:
http://www.nd.edu/~sheridan/AAPAs.html