Skeletal lesion assessment of a Neolithic fishing community: Osteological data from Area 43 of Ra’s al Hamra 5, Oman

Abstract

We assess the state of health of individuals recovered from the Neolithic fishing community of Ra’s al Hamra 5 (RH5). The archaeological site is located by the Oman gulf on the Arabian Seacoast near the suburb of Qurum; located near the Omani capital city Muscat. The graveyard dates from 3800 BCE to 3300 BCE. We recorded lesions specific to degenerative joint disease, vertebral osteoarthritis, periostitis, dental and oral defects, and cranial pitting from Area 43 of the graveyard. Lesions are scored simply as presence or absence. Intra-site (Area 43) comparison is done by age groupings (sub-adult and adult). Comparison is also made between the findings of dietary lesions, oral defects and DJD from the 77 burials from Area 43 and 182 non-Area 43 burials of the RH5 site. No differences in these lesion frequencies are found between the two parts of the RH5 graveyard. Critically, we found that most of the sub-adults in Area 43 lacked skeletal indicators of illness, suggesting acute origins for their untimely deaths. A comparison is also made with other Neolithic sites for example, a comparison with the contemporary pastoral community of Jebel al-Buhais 18 revealed no statistically significant differences in most skeletal lesion frequencies, except for DJD, antemortem tooth loss and osteoarthritis. A comparison with several Neolithic farming communities instead documented statistically higher rates of lesions compared to the RH5 fishing community. Both comparisons suggest that a fishing economic strategy provided the RH5 inhabitants with an adequate diet and less stressors than other Neolithic economic strategies.