| Macroscopic indicators
|
| Fracture aspects |
Unburnt |
Three broken in wet condition |
Perimortem damage (environment, human) |
Strong application of force before skeletonisation complete |
| Colour |
Burnt |
Black (a few), white to grey-blue; variation within and between bones/individuals |
Thermal manifestation |
Different temperatures, (mostly) between 600° and 800° |
| Texture |
Burnt |
Chalky to firm; see above |
Thermal manifestation |
Different temperatures, (mostly) between 600° and 800° |
| Deformation |
Burnt |
Some warping |
Thermal manifestation |
Different temperatures, (mostly) between 600° and 800° |
| Fracture patterns |
Burnt |
Parabolic, splitting |
Thermal manifestation |
Dry or wet bone? |
| Fragment size |
Both |
90% are >30% complete |
Thermal manifestation, taphonomic disturbance |
Size atypical for funeral cremation |
| Gnawing marks |
Both |
Absent |
Post-mortem damage (environment) |
Human remains were not encountered by scavenging animals |
| Root imprints |
Both |
Present on several bones |
Post-mortem damage (environment) |
Similar late post-mortem damage on all bones |
|
Microscopic indicators
|
| Histological preservation (OHI scale) |
Both |
5 for burnt, 2–3 for unburnt |
Thermal manifestation; post-mortem damage (environment) |
Combustion soon after death; post-mortem diagenesis of original bone |
| Degree of collagen preservation |
Both |
Present in 10 of 10 thin-sections |
Thermal manifestation; bone tissue diagenetic processes |
Different temperatures, (mostly) between 600° and 800° |
| Trapped carbon |
Burnt |
Present in 6 of 7 thin-sections |
Thermal manifestation |
Different temperatures, (mostly) between 600° and 800° |
| Cracks, burst osteons |
Burnt |
Present in 6 of 7 thin-sections |
Thermal manifestation |
Different temperatures, (mostly) between 600° and 800°; wet-bone combustion |
| Microbial attack |
Unburnt |
Present in 3 of 3 thin-sections |
Post-mortem damage (environment) |
Post-mortem diagenesis of original bone |
