Anthropological and Archaeological Investigation of the Necropolis (14th–15th c. AD) Excavated in 2020 at Cape Chirakman / Bizone, Kavarva, Bulgaria
Anthropological and Archaeological Investigation of the Necropolis (14th–15th c. AD) Excavated in 2020 at Cape Chirakman / Bizone, Kavarva, Bulgaria

Summary/Abstract: The present article includes the results of field and laboratory analysis of human bone remains, discovered in 2020, during archaeological surveys at the site “Antique and Medieval fortress at Chirakman cape”, located near present-day town of Kavarna, Northeastern Bulgaria. The funeral ritual of the twelve investigated graves was “inhumation” according to the Christian canon, and they were dated to the 14th–15th centuries AD. A total of 14 individuals were identified, using standard anthropological methods. The results of the analysis of the human skeletal remains in the Late Medieval grave constructions show an almost equal ratio between subadults and adults. The same applies to the ratio between males and females. Male individuals are characterised by very massive and large bones with a corresponding “tall” and “very tall” stature, while females are of “middle” stature. In general, the palaeopathological analysis of adult skeletons shows a very high frequency of degenerative-dystrophic diseases of the spine and joints. Dental and jaw palaeopathological morphological changes are also often identified, and even in a mature male individual (40–50 years) a metastatic bone involvement of the mandible is observed (most likely differential diagnosis).

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