Cranial Material From a Medieval Collective Burial on Berezan Island

The collective burial on Berezan Island was discovered in 2016. The burial contained 45 human skeletons arranged in 5 layers. Most skeletons were directed with their heads to the northwest or west. The archaeological assemblage is considered closed, and it contains few artifacts: two arrowheads, a ring made of white metal, and a small cross. These finds allowed the researchers to attribute this burial to the Old Rus period. The anthropological material was restored and studied in the laboratory of the Institute of Archaeology by various anthropological programs. A series of 18 male skulls was researched. The series is not homogeneous. On average, the length and width of the skulls is between medium and large values. The group is characterized by an average mesocranial index with a tendency towards dolichocrania. Facial height is small, and the width of the cheekbones is small but tending towards medium. According to the upper facial index, the face is on the border between eurion-meson. Horizontal profiling of the face is sharp at both the upper and middle levels. The face is orthognathic. Orbits are narrow and low, and according to the orbital index, they are mesoconchic. The nose is low, its width is on the border between narrow and medium, and according to the nasal index, it is mesorhine. The protrusion angle of the nasal bones is significant, indicating a high nose. The male sample from the collective burial of Berezan Island can be attributed to the general Eastern Slavic groups. Statistically, it is most closely related to series from rural cemeteries of the Right-Bank Middle Dnieper region. However, it should be noted that, both in terms of statistical analysis and morphological observations, it is located at the border of the Eastern Slavic massif. Such border positions are typically occupied by groups with some ethnic admixture, and in this case, the admixture could be Bulgarian. Unfortunately, we do not have other cranial series from the territory of medieval Berezan. It is possible that the group of people buried in the collective pit belongs to the population living on the island. There was a settlement from the Old Rus period on Berezan, as proved by archaeological finds

Middle Ages · Nose · Radiocarbon dating · Upper Paleolithic · Ancient and Medieval Archaeology Studies · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology