Lauren Hosek, Robin James and Will Taylor's Science Advances Article Featured in CU Boulder Today
Professor Lauren Hosek, Robin James (Biological Anthropology PhD in Progress) and Professor Will Taylor publish, Ìý"Tracing Horseback Riding and Transport in the Human Skeleton," Ìýin Science Advances. ÌýThis article was also featured in CU Boulder Today.
Abstract
Among the most widely used methods for understanding human-horse relationships in the archaeological record is the identification of human skeletal pathologies associated with mounted horseback riding. In particular, archaeologists encountering specific bony changes to the hip, femur, and lower back often assert a causal link between these features and prolonged periods of mounted horseback riding. The identification of these features have recently been used to assert the early practice of mounted horseback riding among the Yamnaya culture of western Eurasia during the third and fourth millennium BCE. Here, we summarize the methodological hurdles and analytical risks of using this approach in the absence of valid comparative datasets and outline best practices for using human osteological data in the study of ancient animal transport.
Read the feature and the article below:
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