title: Beyond Taphonomy: Exploring Craniometric Variation Among Anatomical Material.
abstract: Anatomical crania are occasionally encountered in forensic anthropology laboratories when that material is mistaken for forensically significant human remains. Using craniometric analyses and statistical measures of sample homogeneity, we determine whether anatomical material can be described as a single, homogenous group or as a diverse mix of populations. Twenty-one interlandmark distances were collected from 85 anatomical preparations. Distance measures were calculated between all pairs using a pooled within-sample variance/covariance matrix and then subjected to a Defrise-Gussenhoven test between each paired distance to test whether each pair was drawn randomly from the same population. In the Defrise-Gussenhoven analysis, twenty-two percent (n = 66) of the 300 pairwise combinations were significant at the 0.05 level or below. The level of homogeneity suggests a majority of that material originated from the subcontinent of India or West Asia. Therefore, anatomical material can be viewed as a moderately homogenous group, but with a shared taphonomic history.
authors: Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, A420a East Fee Hall, East Lansing, MI, 48824.
authors: Joseph T
authors: JT
authors: Hefner
authors: National Museum of Health and Medicine, 2500 Linden Lane, Silver Spring, MD, 20910.
authors: Brian F
authors: BF
authors: Spatola
authors: Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Western Carolina University, G08B McKee Building, Cullowhee, NC, 28779.
authors: Nicholas V
authors: NV
authors: Passalacqua
authors: Department of Anthropology, Texas State University, 601 University Drive, San Marcos, TX, 78666.|Skeletal Biology Research Lab, The Ohio State University, 333 W. 10th Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210.
authors: Timothy P
authors: TP
authors: Gocha
mesh_terms: D002508:Cephalometry; D018732:Forensic Anthropology; D006720:Homozygote; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D012886:Skull
keywords: Defrise-Gussenhoven; India; craniometric; forensic anthropology; forensic science