1st Picture: Left: AÂ skeleton showing the position of the different epiphyseal elements. Right:Â A graph displaying the timing of fusion of epiphyses for various for various human osteological elements. The grey horizontal bars depict the period of time, in ages, when the fusion is occurring.Â
2nd Picture:Â Different stages of epiphysis fusion of human tibias. Ages left to right: Newborn, 1.6 years old, six years old, ten years old, twelve years old and eighteen years old.
Quick Tips: How To Estimate The Chronological Age Of A Human Skeleton – Epiphyseal Closure Method.
One of the methods frequently used by archaeologists/anthropologists to estimate the chronological age of human remains is by studying the level of epiphyseal fusions.
But first what is an epiphysis?An epiphysis is the cap at the end of a long bone that develops from a secondary ossification center. Over the course of adolescence the epiphysis, which is originally separate, will fuse to the diaphysis. The ages of which epiphyseal fusion begins and ends are very well documented, with the majority of epiphyseal activity taking place between the ages of fifteen and twenty-three.
As epiphyseal fusions are progressive they are often scored as either being unfused(non-union),united, andfullyfused (complete union). Females often experience the union of many osteological elements before males, and every individual experience epiphyseal union at different ages.
Click here to read the full post on All Things AAFS!
This is the second of a Quick Tips series on ageing skeletal remains, if you haven’t read the previous post click here. The next in this series will focus on the dentition method of ageing sub-adults. To read more Quick Tips in the mean time, click here!Â
To learn about basic fracture types and their characteristics/origins click here!
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