Provider: Moravian Museum, Brno, Czech Republic

TY  - JOUR
JO  - Anthropologie (Brno)
TI  - DENTAL HEALTH AND DIET IN THE MIDDLE
AND LATE NEOLITHIC (4900 –3400 BC):
A STUDY OF SELECTED MICROREGIONS
IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
AU  - Jarošová I
AU  - Fojtová M
AU  - Tvrdý Z
AU  - Kala J
AU  - Beran-Cimbůrková P
AU  - Brzobohatá H
AU  -  Trampota F
Y1  - 2022
VL  - 60
IS  - 2
PB  - Moravian Museum, Brno, Czech Republic
SN  - 0323-1119
SP  - 351
EP  - 378
KW  - Neolithic diet – Dental caries – Antemortem tooth loss – Dental wear – Periodontitis – Buccal dental
microwear – Post-LBK period – Funnelbeakers – Czech Republic – Lower Austria
N2  - 
N2  - The aim of the paper is to evaluate selected dental characteristics during the Middle and Late Neolithic
in the area of today's Czech Republic and extending into Lower Austria. Dental caries, antemortem tooth loss, dental
wear and periodontal disease provided us with valuable information about dental health. With the help of dental
microwear analysis, we were able to evaluate complementary evidence to reconstruct dietary patterns and gain insights
into diet evolution of established farmers and herders. The analysed sample was divided into two newly proposed long
chronological phases which are derived from frequency occurrence of C14 data as a population proxy: Neolithic B
(4900–4000 BC) and Neolithic C (3800–3400 BC). The obtained data were compared with LBK (Neolithic A) and
Final Neolithic samples to provide the actual picture of dental characteristics in Neolithic. As observed, the incidence
of tooth decay tended to decrease during the Neolithic period in the studied area, while the ratio of the meat component
in the diet tended to increase. However, the changes during the post-LBK period did not have a uniform character, as
it might seem at first glance; there was high variability in the studied area caused not only by socio-economic changes
in society, but these changes seem to reflect the approach to the food consumed. This variability was probably influenced
by the chronological and geographical context as well.
ER  -