Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic

The impact of contemporary urbanisation on health has been studied extensively but the study into to the origin and influences of care during prehistoric periods has created debate among scholars. This paper uses the bioarchaeology of care to explore the presence of care in Neolithic Europe and anal...

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Main Author: Knighton, Paul
Format: Thesis (University of Nottingham only)
Language:English
Published: 2022
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/69046/
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author Knighton, Paul
author_facet Knighton, Paul
author_sort Knighton, Paul
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description The impact of contemporary urbanisation on health has been studied extensively but the study into to the origin and influences of care during prehistoric periods has created debate among scholars. This paper uses the bioarchaeology of care to explore the presence of care in Neolithic Europe and analyses the relationship between the adoption of a sedentary lifestyle that utilises agriculture and pastoralism and the advancements of health-related caregiving such as new medicines and surgeries. Studies have argued that kinship plays a significant role in determining the provision of care and supports why individuals in a subsistence economy expended the time and resources to prolong an individual’s life. I also use a case study from three Neolithic Linearbandkeramik (LBK) sites in Central Germany to demonstrate how the poor nutrition obtained from the change in dietary patterns, has also been linked to a reduced immune system and in turn, makes individuals more prone to infections. The Index of Care is applied to three case studies of varying pathologies and quantity of skeletal remains: Neolithic amputation (Burial 416 at Buthiers-Boulancourt, France); skeletal dysplasia (Burial 9 at Schweizersbild, Switzerland); Neolithic trepanation (Eira Pedrinha). The application of the Index of Care in this paper shows both the strengths and weaknesses of the program. The Index of Care provides a universal methodology for the determination of care provision in human remains but can only be accurately applied to articulated remains. The case study of Neolithic trepanation from Eira Pedrinha proves this.
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spelling nottingham-690462022-08-03T04:40:20Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/69046/ Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic Knighton, Paul The impact of contemporary urbanisation on health has been studied extensively but the study into to the origin and influences of care during prehistoric periods has created debate among scholars. This paper uses the bioarchaeology of care to explore the presence of care in Neolithic Europe and analyses the relationship between the adoption of a sedentary lifestyle that utilises agriculture and pastoralism and the advancements of health-related caregiving such as new medicines and surgeries. Studies have argued that kinship plays a significant role in determining the provision of care and supports why individuals in a subsistence economy expended the time and resources to prolong an individual’s life. I also use a case study from three Neolithic Linearbandkeramik (LBK) sites in Central Germany to demonstrate how the poor nutrition obtained from the change in dietary patterns, has also been linked to a reduced immune system and in turn, makes individuals more prone to infections. The Index of Care is applied to three case studies of varying pathologies and quantity of skeletal remains: Neolithic amputation (Burial 416 at Buthiers-Boulancourt, France); skeletal dysplasia (Burial 9 at Schweizersbild, Switzerland); Neolithic trepanation (Eira Pedrinha). The application of the Index of Care in this paper shows both the strengths and weaknesses of the program. The Index of Care provides a universal methodology for the determination of care provision in human remains but can only be accurately applied to articulated remains. The case study of Neolithic trepanation from Eira Pedrinha proves this. 2022-08-03 Thesis (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en cc_by https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/69046/1/Paul%20Knighton%20-%204268318.pdf Knighton, Paul (2022) Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic. MRes thesis, University of Nottingham. bioarchaeology neolithic Europe kinship
spellingShingle bioarchaeology
neolithic Europe
kinship
Knighton, Paul
Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic
title Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic
title_full Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic
title_fullStr Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic
title_full_unstemmed Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic
title_short Examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the Neolithic
title_sort examining evidence for care in the archaeological record, with specific reference to the neolithic
topic bioarchaeology
neolithic Europe
kinship
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/69046/