Small town life in war-torn post-medieval Scania : a bioarchaeological study of human skeletal remains from 16-18th century Ängelholm, and a discussion of the merits of small osteological samples

Sammanfattning: The now Swedish province of Scania has had a long history of violence and unrest, with several wars being fought on Scanian soil. Such tumultuous times must have impacted the common people and their living conditions, yet bioarchaeological research is lacking for post-medieval Scania and much of Sweden. By analysing a skeletal material from a 16-18th century semi-urban cemetery in Ängelholm, for which very few written records are available, I wish to shed more light on the living conditions of this time. In 2011, 35 graves were excavated resulting in the retrieval of the bones from 33 individuals. Five of these were children, two adolescent, and 26 adult. Sexing was problematic due to taphonomic factors such as preservation and representativity, but the bones could nevertheless be assessed for health indicators. As could be expected from a material such as this, the result yielded signs of infection, mild osteoarthritis, healed fractures, linear enamel hypoplasia, and especially in children – vitamin deficiencies. The tooth health was overall poor with a large amount of caries, and periodontitis in all six individuals with intact maxillae and/or mandibles. Compared to other materials from the same period, the individuals from Ängelholm seem to have been slightly taller than the average. This combined with the poor dental health, possible gout, and the graves’ proximity to the chapel, could suggest high social status. Despite the small sample size, this result adds another facet to the image of post-medieval living conditions in Scandinavia. It shows that all osteological samples merit analysis, and that extensive in-field documentation of human remains can add much valuable information.