The Research On The Human Skeletal Remains From Eastern Zhou Period Tombs Excavated In The Matengkong Site In Xi'an,Shaanxi

In this study,we present the Eastern Zhou period ancient human materials from Matengkong site in Xi'an,Shaanxi Province.To have a comprehensive understanding on the peopling and demographic history of Matengkong people,we conducted a systematic study by adopting multidisciplinary approaches combining demography,cranial morphology and paleopathology.To begin with,we generalize the physical characteristics,health conditions and geographic distribution of ancient populations from the middle Yellow River region based on the published data in the literature.This dissertation consists of seven chapters,and the summary of each chapters shown as follows:Chapter 1 IntroductionFirstly,we will give a brief introduction on the geographic location,nature settings and an overview history of Xi'an.We then describe the archaeological background of Eastern Zhou Period Matengkong cemetery in Xi'an,Shaanxi province and further explain the significance of this study.Chapter 2 Paleodemographic study on Matengkong populationBy identifying the gender and the ages of bone specimens from Matengkong site we estimated the average age of death and the average life expectancy of Matengkong people.This further gains our understanding on the division of labor,social stability,social structure and health status of Eastern Zhou Period of Matengkong people.Chapter 3 Paleopathological Study on Matengkong populationFirst of all,we will introduce the concept of paleopathology and summarize the research history on the current research and future trend of paleopathology both at home and abroad.Secondly,we will diagnose and statistically analyze the paleopathology of both the bone specimens and the teeth excavated from Matengkong site.Tooth pathology mainly includes caries,periapical periodontitis,periodontal disease,prenatal tooth loss and enamel hypoplasia.Whereas bone pathology mainly includes spondyloarthropathy,congenital diseases and dysplasia,supraorbital margin and porous bone hypertrophy,peridotites,degenerative joint disease,trauma and excessive styloid process syndrome.Judging from the overall observation,the ancient residents of the Matengkong site in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty had relatively low survival pressure,good nutritional health,and a stable social environment.Chapter 4 Research on body shape of Matengkong population.To have an overall body statistic of Matengkong people,we measured their height and calculated their body mass.Through those analyses,we found the limb bone strength of Matengkong people is moderate.Then through the comparison of the proportions of male and female and the difference of limb bone development degree in other related populations,we gained further information on the social labor division and male-female sexual behavior patterns of Matengkong people.Chapter 5 Research on cranial morphology and the Anthropological Types of the Matengkong populationThe germline purity test of the cranial measurement traits of the male residents in Matengkong site appear relatively homologous.Our analysis also suggests that the Matengkong population is physically most similar to East Asian type of the Mongoloid,then followed by the South Asian type.Furthermore,the morphological distance of Matengkong people is closest to the modern northern and southern Chinese groups.By comparing the physical characteristics of the ancient ethnic types in various regions of China during the pre-Qin period,this paper considers that the ethnic types of the residents of the Matengkong site in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty are similar to those of the “Ancient Central Plain” type and the “Ancient North China” type,with a mixture cranial facial features between them.Chapter 6 Study on the origin and development of the Matengkong Population.By comparing with other ancient Pre-Qin Dynasty populations,we can trace the origin of Matengkong people and their influence on present day populations.Finally,by combining evidences from archaeological,physical anthropological characteristics and historical literature records,our study gained comprehensive understanding on the historical development of the ancient populations in the middle reach of the Yellow River valley and their connections with other nearby populations.Chapter 7 ConclusionSummarize the contents and the main points of this research.