The Bioarchaeology of Disability: A population-scale approach to investigating disability, physical impairment, and care in archaeological communities

Abstract

ObjectiveThis research introduces ‘The Bioarchaeology of Disability’ (BoD), a population-scale approach which allows for a comprehensive understanding of physical impairment and disability in past communities through a combination of palaeopathological, funerary, and documentary analyses. MethodsThe BoD consists of three phases: 1) Contextualisation includes period-specific literature review; 2) Data collection consists of palaeopathological re-analysis of all individuals with physical impairment and collation of mortuary treatment data; and 3) Analysis integrates the gathered data, literature review, and theoretical frameworks to explore contemporary perceptions of disability. MaterialsThe BoD is demonstrated through an investigation of physical impairment and disability in later Anglo-Saxon England (c.8th-11th centuries AD) which includes four burial populations (Ntotal=1543; Nimpaired=28). ResultsIndividuals with physical impairment could be buried with normative or non-normative treatment (e.g., stone/clay inclusions, non-normative body positioning), and in marginal, non-marginal, and central locations. ConclusionsThe overall funerary variation for individuals with physical impairment was relatively slight, which may suggest that religious factors were influencing normative funerary treatment of impaired and potentially disabled individuals. The funerary variability that was observed for individuals with physical impairment was probably influenced by individual and community-specific beliefs. SignificanceThis research describes a population-scale approach to archaeological disability studies that can be replicated in other archaeological contexts. LimitationsIndividuals with non-skeletal physical impairment (e.g., soft tissue, mental) are not considered by the BoD. Suggestions for further researchThe BoD should be applied to different archaeological communities around the world to better understand disability and physical impairment in the past.