Juvenile Skeletal Remains: Provenance, Identification and Interpretation

The correct identification of the skeletal components of juvenile remains is fundamental to their subsequent analysis and interpretation. This is true regardless of whether they are of archaeological or forensic origin. A lack of familiarity with immature remains may lead to incorrect classification as either ‘non-human’ or indeed ‘of uncertain origin’. This would have a major impact on the validity and results of any investigation and so a successful outcome will rely heavily on this most basic step of accurate recognition. Without such a confirmation it is virtually impossible to progress with the analysis and establish the number of individuals represented, let alone their identity. In the investigation of human remains, basic biological identity is assessed through the determination of the four principal parameters of sex, age at death, stature and ethnicity. However, it is only the estimation of age at death that can be determined with any degree of reliability from the juvenile skeleton. Sex determination using morphological characters is tentative at best and the age of the individual is so closely linked to stature that it is generally used to predict height. Ethnic identity is difficult to establish in the adult and in the child it is virtually impossible as there are very little data available upon which to base a determination. This basic biological identity is used for different purposes depending on the aims of the investigator. Skeletal biologists, physical anthropologists and palaeodemographers use the information to construct demographic profiles of populations from both historic and prehistoric times and then draw conclusions about lifestyle, death rates and life expectancies. In a skeletal assemblage that includes subadult specimens, the identification and age at death of the juvenile component will be particularly relevant as it is deemed a reflection of the overall health and wellbeing of that population. It is equally important that forensic scientists can also recognize juvenile components of the skeleton and establish age at death to assist in determining, or to confirm, the identity of an individual. Forensic anthropology uses the biological identity to attempt to determine ‘personal’ identity and this demands absolute accuracy, as it is only when the deceased has been given a name that an investigation can proceed. The determination of age has significant clinical applications where it is sometimes more important to assign a child to a particular stage of development regardless of their actual age. In clinical specialties such as orthopaedic surgery, growth hormone treatment or orthodontics, a critical window of time