The Archaeology of Summer Island: Changing Settlement Systems in Northern Lake Michigan. David S. Brose. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Anthropological Papers, No. 41, Ann Arbor, 1970. vii + 238 pp., 17 figs., 35 pls., 31 tables. $3.00. - Volume 37 Issue 4
Abstract Post mortem cracks in bone produced by action of weather or other agencies which cause shrinkage have been shown to be oriented in the same direction as split-lines produced by decalcification and punctures with a needle. Archaeological bone also shows split-lines parallel to weathering cracks in cases where preservation of the collagenous matrix is good. Limb bones of birds tend to have better preservation than mammal bones in the Lasley"s Point site in Wisconsin. Considerable microscopic structure of bone is preserved where decalcification and split-line processing are possible.
Abstract Shafts of human femurs from burials on Washington Island, Wisconsin dated ca. A.D. 200 were in good enough condition to allow decalcification, microscopic sectioning and routine staining. Many histological features of the bone are retained. Such procedures are less laborious than grinding undecalcified sections, allow three-dimensional observation of serial sections, and offer possible uses in age determinations of skeletons and paleopathology. The specimens give initial evidence that prompt burial prevents the formation of weathering cracks in bone.
