Stručni rad
Anthropological analysis of the skeleton in the sarcophagus from site Rižinice
Željana Bašić
orcid.org/0000-0002-8327-1978
; Sveučilište u Splitu Sveučilišni odjel za forenzične znanosti, Split, Hrvatska
Ivana Anterić
; Sveučilište u Splitu Sveučilišni odjel za forenzične znanosti, Split, Hrvatska
Sažetak
During the research of Rižinice in Solin in 2011, archaeologists of the Museum of Croatian Archaeological Monuments uncovered two unopened stone sarcophagi with a gabled lid. They were discovered
just south of the room whose north side ends in a semi-circular apse, leading researchers to believe that these are the remains of an older church. These sarcophagi were buried deeper than the foundation of the
assumed church. They were located underneath the walls which were built in the modern era and below the level of late mediaeval graves. They originate in the Roman Era and they were also used for a burial in the
Middle Ages. This was determined by the fact that one of them was placed onto two marble pilasters which belonged to the altar screen of the early mediaeval church. The remains of a decaying skeleton were found in the better preserved and decorated sarcophagus
with the inscription (sarcophagus A). In the residual humus found in its interior, approximately from the shoulder to the knee of the deceased, we discovered gold threads, or spiral coating which remained after
the disintegration of textile. The second sarcophagus (sarcophagus B), whose case and lid were cracked in several places, contained
well preserved remains of skeletons of two adults and the bones of a child. During the laying of the last deceased (the woman), the bones of the previously buried man were shifted to the side by an insignificant
amount. Other than traces of a significantly corroded and disintegrated iron object, there were no other discoveries among the bones. The skeletal remains of the grave that was dug between these two sarcophagi (grave 26) was also chosen for anthropological analysis. This grave contained the remains of an adult and a child, with no other grave goods.
The results of the anthropological study showed that the adults were not subject to neither greater subadult stress, nor intense manual work. The child, who died between the ages of 2 and 2.5, is consistent with
the research results obtained from other similar locations because child death of that particular age in the preindustrial era was the greatest. According to the data from the anthropological analysis, the described
persons were most likely members of a higher social class because their bones did not show any signs that would describe difficult living conditions. This is also evident from the results of the archaeological excavation,
primarily because of the more luxurious manner of burial. However, it is interesting to note, despite the small sample and the lack of all relevant indications of a lower living standard, only one person managed
to reach old age. The child, as we saw, died between the ages of 2 and 2.5, the woman and man from sarcophagus B between 25-35 and 45-60, while the other man from grave 26 died between 25-30 years
of age. This data reconfirms the assumptions previously made on numerous occasions about the difficult mediaeval life which did not spare even the wealthiest members of society.
Ključne riječi
Hrčak ID:
164568
URI
Datum izdavanja:
23.6.2014.
Posjeta: 1.363 *