Final answer:
Skeletal remains can reveal an individual's age at death, biological sex, health and nutrition status, and cultural practices. They provide crucial insights into past human populations, environments, and significant historical events.
Step-by-step explanation:
Skeletal remains can provide a wealth of information about past human populations and individual specimens. Forensic anthropologists and paleoanthropologists analyze skeletal material to uncover details about a person's life and the conditions of their death. Here are four things that can be determined from skeletal remains:
- Age at death: Various characteristics such as the fusion of bones and tooth wear can provide estimates about the age of the individual at the time of death.
- Sex: Features like the size and shape of the pelvic bones and the cranial characteristics can help distinguish between male and female skeletal remains.
- Health and nutrition: Indicators such as bone density and pathologies, including evidence of diseases or nutritional deficiencies, can reflect the health conditions experienced by the individual.
- Cultural practices: Artifacts such as clothing remnants found with the skeletons, body positioning, and other burial practices can offer insights into the cultural and social norms of the time.
Additionally, skeletal remains reveal information about ancient environments, human evolution, and can sometimes provide evidence of historical events such as crimes or cultural practices like cannibalism as seen in the historic Jamestown colony.