Length and Robusticity of Metacarpals and Metatarsals to Estimate Physiological Sex from Ancient Maya Skeletal Remains In Northern Belize

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Published: Aug 1, 2018

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Seth W. Winstead
Undergraduate student Indiana University East
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9983-0896
Katherine A. Miller Wolf
Indiana University East
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8861-2700
Hannah Plumer
Thomas Guderjan
University of Texas, Tyler

Abstract

For bioarchaeologists, physiological sex estimation based off of skeletal indicators is a crucial element when conducting a biological profile of human remains. While there are several methods for estimating sex, primarily involving examining cranial and pelvic morphology, one method that remains understudied is metric analysis of metatarsal and metacarpal bones. Since human males and females are sexually dimorphic, the ability to discriminate biological sex from metatarsals and metacarpals is possible and has been shown to be valid. For example, the work of Case and co-workers utilize metacarpal and metatarsal to estimate sex of individuals with European ancestry (Case & Ross, 2007) while others have approached this problem elsewhere (Agnihotri, Shukla & Purwar, 2006; Wilbur, 1998; Stojanowski, 1999). Through gathering and analyzing osteometric data on male and female Maya remains from site Nojol Nah in Blue Creek, Belize, this research will show how in population specific instances, osteometric data from metacarpals and metatarsals may prove useful when trying to discriminate biological sex from skeletal remains.

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How to Cite
Winstead, S. W., Miller Wolf, K. A., Plumer, H., & Guderjan, T. (2018). Length and Robusticity of Metacarpals and Metatarsals to Estimate Physiological Sex from Ancient Maya Skeletal Remains In Northern Belize. Journal of Student Research at Indiana University East, 1(2). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/jsriue/article/view/24033
Issue
Vol. 1 No. 2 (2019): Spring
Section
Social Sciences

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Author Biographies

Seth W. Winstead, Undergraduate student Indiana University East

Undergraduate student studying sociology and anthropology with a minor in psychology.

Katherine A. Miller Wolf, Indiana University East

Assistant Professor of Anthropology

Department of Sociology, anthropology, and geography

References

Agnihotri, A., Shukla, S., Purwar, P. (2006). Determination of sex from the foot measurements. The Internet Journal of Forensic Science. 2(1), 1-4.

Case, T.D., & Ross, A.H. (2007). Sex determination from hand and foot bone lengths. Journal of Forensic Sciences 52(2) 264-270. doi: 10.1111/j.1556-4029.2006.00365.x.

Hammond, G. A. (2016). Ancient Maya settlement and the Alacranes Bajo: Landscape and communities in the Three Rivers Region (Doctoral dissertation). University College London (UCL), London. Accessed from http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1505709/.

Harris, S. M., & Case, D. T. (2012). Sexual dimorphism in the tarsal bones: Implications for sex determination. Journal of Forensic Sciences (Wiley-Blackwell), 57(2), 295-305. doi:10.1111/j.1556-4029.2011.02004.x

Stojanowski, C.M. (1999). Sexing potential of fragmentary and pathological metacarpals. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 109(2) 245–52. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1096-8644(199906)109:2<245::AID-AJPA8>3.0.CO;2-T.

Wilbur, A.K. (1998). The utility of hand and foot bones for the determination of sex and the estimation of stature in a prehistoric population from West-Central Illinois. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology. 3. 180-191. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-1212(199805/06)8:3<180::AID-OA421>3.0.CO;2-D.