J Moggi-Cecchi
Biographic Data
| ID | 101205 |
|---|---|
| NAME | J Moggi-Cecchi |
| GIVEN NAMES | J |
| FAMILY NAME | Moggi-Cecchi |
| SIGNATURE | MOGGI-CECCHI J |
| AFFILIATIONS | Department of Biology University of Florence Florence Italy |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5055-8369 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 27 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 191 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1992 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 7 |
New hominin dental remains from Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania)
International audience
Descriptive catalog of Homo naledi dental remains from the 2013 to 2015 excavations of the Dinaledi Chamber, site U.W. 101, within the Rising Star cave system, South Africa
Comparative morphometric analyses of the deciduous molars of Homo naledi from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa
This research provides another perspective on the morphology of, and variation within, H. naledi. The H. naledi deciduous molars do not consistently align with any genus or species in the comparative sample in either the crown shape or relative cusp analyses. This line of inquiry is consistent with other cranial and postcranial studies suggesting that H. naledi is unique
Exploring late Paleolithic and Mesolithic diet in the Eastern Alpine region of Italy through multiple proxies
Objectives The analysis of prehistoric human dietary habits is key for understanding the effects of paleoenvironmental changes on the evolution of cultural and social human behaviors. In this study, we compare results from zooarchaeological, stable isotope and dental calculus analyses as well as lower second molar macrowear patterns to gain a broader understanding of the diet of three individuals who lived between the end of the Late Pleistocene …
Exploring directional and fluctuating asymmetry in the human palate during growth
OBJECTIVES: Palate morphology is constantly changing throughout an individual's lifespan, yet its asymmetry during growth is still little understood. In this research, we focus on the study of palate morphology by using 3D geometric morphometric approaches to observe changes at different stages of life, and to quantify the impact of directional and fluctuating asymmetry on different areas at different growth stages. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sam…
Contemporaneity of Australopithecus , Paranthropus , and early Homo erectus in South Africa
Dating the Drimolen hominins Fossil hominins from South Africa are enriching the story of early human evolution and dispersal. Herries et al. describe the geological context and dating of the hominin-bearing infilled cave, or palaeocave, at a site called Drimolen in South Africa (see the Perspective by Antón). They focus on the age and context of a recently discovered Homo erectus sensu lato fossil and a Paranthropus robustus fossil, which they d…
Insights on patterns of developmental disturbances from the analysis of linear enamel hypoplasia in a Neolithic sample from Liguria (northwestern Italy)
Environmental correlates of growth patterns in Neolithic Liguria (northwestern Italy)
Dating the funerary use of caves in Liguria (northwestern Italy) from the Neolithic to historic times: Results from a large-scale AMS campaign on human skeletal series
Ages‐at‐death distribution of the early Pleistocene hominin fossil assemblage from Drimolen (South Africa)
Differences observed in frequencies of the age-at-death categories suggest different mechanisms of hominin skeletal accumulation at Drimolen and Swartkrans. Swartkrans' frequency curve reflects mortality in a population subjected to predation and is thus consistent with the carnivore-accumulating hypothesis. In contrast, the Drimolen curve is similar to that of wild populations of living apes. Living primates have been observed exploiting caves a…
Root caries on a Paranthropus robustus third molar from Drimolen
OBJECTIVES: Dental caries is often perceived as a modern human disease. However, their presence is documented in many early human groups, various nonhuman primates and, increasingly, our hominin ancestors and relatives. In this study, we describe an antemortem lesion on the root of a Paranthropus robustus third molar from Drimolen, South Africa, which likely represents another example of caries in fossil hominins. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The molar…
The physiological linkage between molar inclination and dental macrowear pattern
OBJECTIVES: Exact symmetry and perfect balance between opposite jaw halves, as well as between antagonistic teeth, is not frequently observed in natural masticatory systems. Research results show that asymmetry in our body, skull, and jaws is often related to genetic, epigenetic, environmental and individual ontogenetic factors. Our study aims to provide evidence for a significant link between masticatory asymmetry and occlusal contact between an…
Reproducing the internal and external anatomy of fossil bones: Two new automatic digital tools
Both methods demonstrated to be much faster, cheaper, and more accurate than other conventional approaches. The tools we presented are available as add-ons in existing software within the R platform. Because of ease of application, and unrestrained availability of the methods proposed, these tools can be widely used by paleoanthropologists, paleontologists and anatomists
The dawn of dentistry in the late upper Paleolithic: An early case of pathological intervention at Riparo Fredian
Objectives Early evidence for the treatment of dental pathology is found primarily among food‐producing societies associated with high levels of oral pathology. However, some Late Pleistocene hunter‐gatherers show extensive oral pathology, suggesting that experimentation with therapeutic dental interventions may have greater antiquity. Here, we report the second earliest probable evidence for dentistry in a Late Upper Paleolithic hunter‐gatherer …
Dietary continuity vs. discontinuity in Bronze Age Italy. The isotopic evidence from Arano di Cellore (Illasi, Verona, Italy)
Insights on the paleoepidemiology of ancient tuberculosis from the structural analysis of postcranial remains from the Ligurian Neolithic (northwestern Italy)
Brief Communication: An enigmatic enamel alteration on the anterior maxillary teeth in a prehistoric North Italian population
In this paper we describe a hitherto undocumented modification of the dental enamel surface observed in an Early Bronze Age population from northern Italy. The defect, which can be described as a curvilinear groove, is located on the lingual surface of incisors and canines in the upper jaw. This groove, documented both in the permanent and deciduous dentition, is located at approximately 1 mm from the cervix and extends from the mesiolingual to t…
Environmental stress increases variability in the expression of dental cusps
Teeth are an important model for developmental studies but, despite an extensive literature on the genetics of dental development, little is known about the environmental influences on dental morphology. Here we test whether and to what extent the environment plays a role in producing morphological variation in human teeth. We selected a sample of modern human skulls and used dental enamel hypoplasia as an environmental stress marker to identify …
Age estimation in subadult Egyptian remains
Stature in archeological samples from central Italy: Methodological issues and diachronic changes
Stature reconstructions from skeletal remains are usually obtained through regression equations based on the relationship between height and limb bone length. Different equations have been employed to reconstruct stature in skeletal samples, but this is the first study to provide a systematic analysis of the reliability of the different methods for Italian historical samples. Aims of this article are: 1) to analyze the reliability of different re…
Maxillary molars cusp morphology of South African australopithecines
Role of carnivores in the accumulation of the Sterkfontein Member 4 hominid assemblage: A taphonomic reassessment of the complete hominid fossil sample (1936–1999)
New taphonomic data on the Sterkfontein Member 4 (South Africa) fossil hominid assemblage are presented. The previous estimate of hominid individuals represented in the deposit (45) is increased to 87. New minimum numbers of hominid skeletal elements are provided, and incidences of bone surface damage inflicted by prehistoric biological agents are summarized. The hominid sample from Member 4 is composed predominately of gnathic remains and has a …
The mixed dentition and associated skull fragments of a juvenile fossil hominid from Sterkfontein, South Africa
In April–May 1983, the late A.R. Hughes and his field team recovered more than 40 bone fragments and teeth from a single solution pocket of the Sterkfontein Formation. After preparation and reconstruction by JMC, it was recognised that these fragments represent a single juvenile individual (Stw 151), consisting of more than 40 cranial and dental parts, with mixed dentition. It constitutes the most complete set of jaws and teeth of an early homini…
Paleobiology of Etruscan populations
Enamel hypoplasia and age at weaning in 19th‐century Florence, Italy
A sample representing a population of the Florence district of middle 19th century was studied to determine the age of occurrence of enamel hypoplasias. The age interval most affected was that between 1.5 and 3.5 years. Historical sources on weaning habits of 19th‐century Italian populations indicate a weaning period between 12 and 18 months. This is in agreement with the data on enamel defects, showing that children of post‐weaning age are more …
Role of carnivores in the accumulation of the Sterkfontein Member 4 hominid assemblage: A taphonomic reassessment of the complete hominid fossil sample (1936–1999)
New taphonomic data on the Sterkfontein Member 4 (South Africa) fossil hominid assemblage are presented. The previous estimate of hominid individuals represented in the deposit (45) is increased to 87. New minimum numbers of hominid skeletal elements are provided, and incidences of bone surface damage inflicted by prehistoric biological agents are summarized. The hominid sample from Member 4 is composed predominately of gnathic remains and has a …
Enamel hypoplasia and age at weaning in 19th‐century Florence, Italy
A sample representing a population of the Florence district of middle 19th century was studied to determine the age of occurrence of enamel hypoplasias. The age interval most affected was that between 1.5 and 3.5 years. Historical sources on weaning habits of 19th‐century Italian populations indicate a weaning period between 12 and 18 months. This is in agreement with the data on enamel defects, showing that children of post‐weaning age are more …
Reduction of maxillary molars in Homo sapiens sapiens: A different perspective
Crown and cusp areas, and buccolingual and mesiodistal diameters of maxillary molars of complete upper tooth rows (30 males, 30 females) were analysed in order to quantify changes in size and shape from the first to the third molar. Uni‐ and multivariate analyses revealed the mesial cusps, in particular the protocone (mesiolingual cusp), to be more stable than the other cusps. Although there is a gradient in size from the first to third molar, sh…
Stature in archeological samples from central Italy: Methodological issues and diachronic changes
Stature reconstructions from skeletal remains are usually obtained through regression equations based on the relationship between height and limb bone length. Different equations have been employed to reconstruct stature in skeletal samples, but this is the first study to provide a systematic analysis of the reliability of the different methods for Italian historical samples. Aims of this article are: 1) to analyze the reliability of different re…
Environmental stress increases variability in the expression of dental cusps
Teeth are an important model for developmental studies but, despite an extensive literature on the genetics of dental development, little is known about the environmental influences on dental morphology. Here we test whether and to what extent the environment plays a role in producing morphological variation in human teeth. We selected a sample of modern human skulls and used dental enamel hypoplasia as an environmental stress marker to identify …
The dawn of dentistry in the late upper Paleolithic: An early case of pathological intervention at Riparo Fredian
Objectives Early evidence for the treatment of dental pathology is found primarily among food‐producing societies associated with high levels of oral pathology. However, some Late Pleistocene hunter‐gatherers show extensive oral pathology, suggesting that experimentation with therapeutic dental interventions may have greater antiquity. Here, we report the second earliest probable evidence for dentistry in a Late Upper Paleolithic hunter‐gatherer …
The physiological linkage between molar inclination and dental macrowear pattern
OBJECTIVES: Exact symmetry and perfect balance between opposite jaw halves, as well as between antagonistic teeth, is not frequently observed in natural masticatory systems. Research results show that asymmetry in our body, skull, and jaws is often related to genetic, epigenetic, environmental and individual ontogenetic factors. Our study aims to provide evidence for a significant link between masticatory asymmetry and occlusal contact between an…
Ages‐at‐death distribution of the early Pleistocene hominin fossil assemblage from Drimolen (South Africa)
Differences observed in frequencies of the age-at-death categories suggest different mechanisms of hominin skeletal accumulation at Drimolen and Swartkrans. Swartkrans' frequency curve reflects mortality in a population subjected to predation and is thus consistent with the carnivore-accumulating hypothesis. In contrast, the Drimolen curve is similar to that of wild populations of living apes. Living primates have been observed exploiting caves a…
Reproducing the internal and external anatomy of fossil bones: Two new automatic digital tools
Both methods demonstrated to be much faster, cheaper, and more accurate than other conventional approaches. The tools we presented are available as add-ons in existing software within the R platform. Because of ease of application, and unrestrained availability of the methods proposed, these tools can be widely used by paleoanthropologists, paleontologists and anatomists
Comparative morphometric analyses of the deciduous molars of Homo naledi from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa
This research provides another perspective on the morphology of, and variation within, H. naledi. The H. naledi deciduous molars do not consistently align with any genus or species in the comparative sample in either the crown shape or relative cusp analyses. This line of inquiry is consistent with other cranial and postcranial studies suggesting that H. naledi is unique
Exploring directional and fluctuating asymmetry in the human palate during growth
OBJECTIVES: Palate morphology is constantly changing throughout an individual's lifespan, yet its asymmetry during growth is still little understood. In this research, we focus on the study of palate morphology by using 3D geometric morphometric approaches to observe changes at different stages of life, and to quantify the impact of directional and fluctuating asymmetry on different areas at different growth stages. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sam…
Exploring late Paleolithic and Mesolithic diet in the Eastern Alpine region of Italy through multiple proxies
Objectives The analysis of prehistoric human dietary habits is key for understanding the effects of paleoenvironmental changes on the evolution of cultural and social human behaviors. In this study, we compare results from zooarchaeological, stable isotope and dental calculus analyses as well as lower second molar macrowear patterns to gain a broader understanding of the diet of three individuals who lived between the end of the Late Pleistocene …
Root caries on a Paranthropus robustus third molar from Drimolen
OBJECTIVES: Dental caries is often perceived as a modern human disease. However, their presence is documented in many early human groups, various nonhuman primates and, increasingly, our hominin ancestors and relatives. In this study, we describe an antemortem lesion on the root of a Paranthropus robustus third molar from Drimolen, South Africa, which likely represents another example of caries in fossil hominins. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The molar…
Enamel hypoplasias in a 19th century population from Northern Italy
In a sample from northern Italy of the second half of the 19th century hypoplasias in maxillary and mandibular anterior teeth was examined. The maxillary canine is the most frequently affected tooth. Frequencies of hypoplasias show slightly lower figures than other 19th century skeletal populations. The age interval most affected was between 2 and 4 years and suggests an association with stress at weaning and immediately thereafter.
Reduction of maxillary molars in Homo sapiens sapiens: A different perspective
Crown and cusp areas, and buccolingual and mesiodistal diameters of maxillary molars of complete upper tooth rows (30 males, 30 females) were analysed in order to quantify changes in size and shape from the first to the third molar. Uni‐ and multivariate analyses revealed the mesial cusps, in particular the protocone (mesiolingual cusp), to be more stable than the other cusps. Although there is a gradient in size from the first to third molar, sh…
Enamel hypoplasias in a 19th century population from Northern Italy
In a sample from northern Italy of the second half of the 19th century hypoplasias in maxillary and mandibular anterior teeth was examined. The maxillary canine is the most frequently affected tooth. Frequencies of hypoplasias show slightly lower figures than other 19th century skeletal populations. The age interval most affected was between 2 and 4 years and suggests an association with stress at weaning and immediately thereafter.
Enamel hypoplasia and age at weaning in 19th‐century Florence, Italy
A sample representing a population of the Florence district of middle 19th century was studied to determine the age of occurrence of enamel hypoplasias. The age interval most affected was that between 1.5 and 3.5 years. Historical sources on weaning habits of 19th‐century Italian populations indicate a weaning period between 12 and 18 months. This is in agreement with the data on enamel defects, showing that children of post‐weaning age are more …
Paleobiology of Etruscan populations
The mixed dentition and associated skull fragments of a juvenile fossil hominid from Sterkfontein, South Africa
In April–May 1983, the late A.R. Hughes and his field team recovered more than 40 bone fragments and teeth from a single solution pocket of the Sterkfontein Formation. After preparation and reconstruction by JMC, it was recognised that these fragments represent a single juvenile individual (Stw 151), consisting of more than 40 cranial and dental parts, with mixed dentition. It constitutes the most complete set of jaws and teeth of an early homini…
Role of carnivores in the accumulation of the Sterkfontein Member 4 hominid assemblage: A taphonomic reassessment of the complete hominid fossil sample (1936–1999)
New taphonomic data on the Sterkfontein Member 4 (South Africa) fossil hominid assemblage are presented. The previous estimate of hominid individuals represented in the deposit (45) is increased to 87. New minimum numbers of hominid skeletal elements are provided, and incidences of bone surface damage inflicted by prehistoric biological agents are summarized. The hominid sample from Member 4 is composed predominately of gnathic remains and has a …
Maxillary molars cusp morphology of South African australopithecines
Stature in archeological samples from central Italy: Methodological issues and diachronic changes
Stature reconstructions from skeletal remains are usually obtained through regression equations based on the relationship between height and limb bone length. Different equations have been employed to reconstruct stature in skeletal samples, but this is the first study to provide a systematic analysis of the reliability of the different methods for Italian historical samples. Aims of this article are: 1) to analyze the reliability of different re…
Age estimation in subadult Egyptian remains
Brief Communication: An enigmatic enamel alteration on the anterior maxillary teeth in a prehistoric North Italian population
In this paper we describe a hitherto undocumented modification of the dental enamel surface observed in an Early Bronze Age population from northern Italy. The defect, which can be described as a curvilinear groove, is located on the lingual surface of incisors and canines in the upper jaw. This groove, documented both in the permanent and deciduous dentition, is located at approximately 1 mm from the cervix and extends from the mesiolingual to t…
Environmental stress increases variability in the expression of dental cusps
Teeth are an important model for developmental studies but, despite an extensive literature on the genetics of dental development, little is known about the environmental influences on dental morphology. Here we test whether and to what extent the environment plays a role in producing morphological variation in human teeth. We selected a sample of modern human skulls and used dental enamel hypoplasia as an environmental stress marker to identify …
Dietary continuity vs. discontinuity in Bronze Age Italy. The isotopic evidence from Arano di Cellore (Illasi, Verona, Italy)
Insights on the paleoepidemiology of ancient tuberculosis from the structural analysis of postcranial remains from the Ligurian Neolithic (northwestern Italy)
The dawn of dentistry in the late upper Paleolithic: An early case of pathological intervention at Riparo Fredian
Objectives Early evidence for the treatment of dental pathology is found primarily among food‐producing societies associated with high levels of oral pathology. However, some Late Pleistocene hunter‐gatherers show extensive oral pathology, suggesting that experimentation with therapeutic dental interventions may have greater antiquity. Here, we report the second earliest probable evidence for dentistry in a Late Upper Paleolithic hunter‐gatherer …
The physiological linkage between molar inclination and dental macrowear pattern
OBJECTIVES: Exact symmetry and perfect balance between opposite jaw halves, as well as between antagonistic teeth, is not frequently observed in natural masticatory systems. Research results show that asymmetry in our body, skull, and jaws is often related to genetic, epigenetic, environmental and individual ontogenetic factors. Our study aims to provide evidence for a significant link between masticatory asymmetry and occlusal contact between an…
Reproducing the internal and external anatomy of fossil bones: Two new automatic digital tools
Both methods demonstrated to be much faster, cheaper, and more accurate than other conventional approaches. The tools we presented are available as add-ons in existing software within the R platform. Because of ease of application, and unrestrained availability of the methods proposed, these tools can be widely used by paleoanthropologists, paleontologists and anatomists
Ages‐at‐death distribution of the early Pleistocene hominin fossil assemblage from Drimolen (South Africa)
Differences observed in frequencies of the age-at-death categories suggest different mechanisms of hominin skeletal accumulation at Drimolen and Swartkrans. Swartkrans' frequency curve reflects mortality in a population subjected to predation and is thus consistent with the carnivore-accumulating hypothesis. In contrast, the Drimolen curve is similar to that of wild populations of living apes. Living primates have been observed exploiting caves a…
Root caries on a Paranthropus robustus third molar from Drimolen
OBJECTIVES: Dental caries is often perceived as a modern human disease. However, their presence is documented in many early human groups, various nonhuman primates and, increasingly, our hominin ancestors and relatives. In this study, we describe an antemortem lesion on the root of a Paranthropus robustus third molar from Drimolen, South Africa, which likely represents another example of caries in fossil hominins. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The molar…
Contemporaneity of Australopithecus , Paranthropus , and early Homo erectus in South Africa
Dating the Drimolen hominins Fossil hominins from South Africa are enriching the story of early human evolution and dispersal. Herries et al. describe the geological context and dating of the hominin-bearing infilled cave, or palaeocave, at a site called Drimolen in South Africa (see the Perspective by Antón). They focus on the age and context of a recently discovered Homo erectus sensu lato fossil and a Paranthropus robustus fossil, which they d…
Insights on patterns of developmental disturbances from the analysis of linear enamel hypoplasia in a Neolithic sample from Liguria (northwestern Italy)
Environmental correlates of growth patterns in Neolithic Liguria (northwestern Italy)
Dating the funerary use of caves in Liguria (northwestern Italy) from the Neolithic to historic times: Results from a large-scale AMS campaign on human skeletal series
Comparative morphometric analyses of the deciduous molars of Homo naledi from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa
This research provides another perspective on the morphology of, and variation within, H. naledi. The H. naledi deciduous molars do not consistently align with any genus or species in the comparative sample in either the crown shape or relative cusp analyses. This line of inquiry is consistent with other cranial and postcranial studies suggesting that H. naledi is unique
Exploring late Paleolithic and Mesolithic diet in the Eastern Alpine region of Italy through multiple proxies
Objectives The analysis of prehistoric human dietary habits is key for understanding the effects of paleoenvironmental changes on the evolution of cultural and social human behaviors. In this study, we compare results from zooarchaeological, stable isotope and dental calculus analyses as well as lower second molar macrowear patterns to gain a broader understanding of the diet of three individuals who lived between the end of the Late Pleistocene …
Exploring directional and fluctuating asymmetry in the human palate during growth
OBJECTIVES: Palate morphology is constantly changing throughout an individual's lifespan, yet its asymmetry during growth is still little understood. In this research, we focus on the study of palate morphology by using 3D geometric morphometric approaches to observe changes at different stages of life, and to quantify the impact of directional and fluctuating asymmetry on different areas at different growth stages. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sam…
Biology (23 works) · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies (18 works) · Geography (16 works) · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology (15 works) · Archaeology (14 works) · Medicine (13 works) · Dentistry (11 works) · Orthodontics (9 works) · Paleontology (9 works) · Evolutionary biology (8 works)