Blue Bridge Lane
&
Fishergate House
Printed from the APC web site: navigation and non-essential images removed.
Please view on-line for full content (URL at end of document).
A large variety of congenital anomalies were observed in the Fishergate House population, including minor defects, such as additional ribs, and more severe congenital anomalies, including hydrocephalus and sacro-iliac fusion. Those individuals with congenital defects usually displayed several of these, suggesting that these individuals had been affected by inbreeding, environmental factors or had simply inherited anomalies, such as congenital hip dislocation.
Notably, the prevalence rates of congenital defects differed considerably between Fishergate House and the adjacent cemetery of St Andrew's, indicating that, as a general rule, the populations interred in the two cemeteries did not share the same familial background.
Evidence for iron deficiency anaemia was observed in almost 40% of orbits, which showed indicative lesions cribra orbitalia. This, together with the fact that not all individuals with iron deficiency develop cribra orbitalia, and that some of the lesions would have remodelled, implies that the number of individuals affected with iron deficiency was substantial, and considerably higher than levels observed in other populations. It is probable that the lesions developed in response to a high pathogen load in this population, although other causal factors must have influenced the prevalence of cribra orbitalia, because only moderate evidence of the lesions was observed in the Hull Magistrates Court population, in which syphilis was endemic.
Further evidence for childhood stress was observed in the form of Harris lines, indicative of arrested growth (ten individuals), and in the form of possible rickets (six individuals). Two further individuals are thought to have suffered from and possibly succumbed to the effects of vitamin C deprivation. The presence of such a large number of metabolic conditions related to infectious disease, inadequate nutrition and lack of sunlight exposure suggests that the children from Fishergate House suffered considerable hardship.
The most commonly observed skeletal manifestations of pathology were those related to infectious disease or non-specific inflammation. A total of 42% of the population showed evidence for non-specific infection in the form of superficial inflammatory lesions, usually affecting the lower limbs. The prevalence rate is considerably higher than in any other medieval population, with the exception of Hull Magistrate's Court, where 64% of the population suffered from these lesions, largely attributed to syphilis. It is probable that the inflammatory lesions at Fishergate House developed as a result of a number of causes, including trauma, varicose veins, ulcers, but also infectious disease, such as leprosy. One case of leprosy was noted in this population and considering that the disease manifests in the bone in between 15% and 50% of cases (Roberts 2002), it is possible that a much higher percentage of individuals suffered from this disease.
Another infectious disease noted in this population was tuberculosis, which affected 4.5% of individuals in the form of inflammatory rib lesions. Tuberculosis manifests in the skeleton in only 5% to 7% of cases, which implies that a much greater proportion of the population may have suffered from the disease. Tuberculosis was also observed in 1.4% of the later medieval population of St Andrew's, and had manifested as similar lesions.
A total of 23.7% of the population suffered from sinusitis. The prevalence rate was slightly lower than that of other urban sites, such as St Helen's-on-the-Walls, but similar to rural sites such as Wharram Percy. However, it was found that children suffered from a higher prevalence of sinusitis than those from other sites, suggesting that children with the infection were more likely to die than those without. Additionally, disparate prevalence rate trends were observed when comparing males and females. Young females had a greater prevalence of sinusitis than mature females, implying that younger females may have been most susceptible to the infection when suffering from a low immune status as a result of other diseases or effects of childbearing, which then caused death at a younger age. Males, on the other hand, were most likely to show evidence for the condition in old age, suggesting that it was caused by the accumulative effects of pollution.
Evidence for degenerative joint disease was noted in the majority of older individuals from this site and has been attributed to functional stress together with increasing age. It was difficult to compare prevalence rates for DJD from different populations, as recording methods vary significantly. Spinal DJD was associated with Schmorl's nodes and intervertebral osteochondrosis, and was thought to be activity-related. The prevalence of the conditions in males and females suggests that although women did suffer from expressions of activity-related wear of the skeleton, a greater number of men were affected by these conditions. Notably, all young male skeletons showed evidence for Schmorl's nodes, which implies that all men who had died at a young age had carried out hard physical labour.
Evidence for activity-related strain was also observed in the prevalence rates of soft tissue trauma and fractures. Although both sexes, as well as many of the children, had suffered repetitive strain injuries at the sites of muscle attachments, males were more likely to be affected and had a greater distribution of the lesions than females or children. Men were also more likely to sustain fractures, although this may not necessarily be related to activities, and could be associated with the theory that men are often greater risk-takers. Although the long bone fracture rate at Fishergate House was lower than that of most other medieval populations, the overall fractures rate was relatively high due to the high prevalence of rib fractures. Fractures of the ribs must be attributed to accidents or to violent attacks. The presence of several fractures of the little finger, which can be attributed to impact using the fist, as well as a 3.7% prevalence rate of weapon trauma, demonstrated that the population of Fishergate House participated in some interpersonal conflicts, which probably included brawls as well as warfare. Many of the victims of attacks with weapons had sustained fatal injuries, including partial decapitation, cranial cuts and stabbing into the abdomen. The severity of the attacks indicate battle-related injury, rather than murder.
Only a small number of individuals from Fishergate showed evidence for tumours, and all of these lesions were benign and would have had no effect on the person's life. It is possible that the prevalence rate of neoplasms was low because of the relatively young demographic profile of this population, or because tumours are more likely to effect the soft tissues, rather than the skeleton.
apc > monographs > blue bridge lane & fishergate house > artefacts & environmental > human bone:
