The working life of Museum of London

During the course of building developments within the museum, some of the conservation boxes with skeletal material in the rotunda store had to be moved from their shelf locations and temporarily stored elsewhere.

Once the building work was complete the boxes could be returned to the store but in turn needed to be located back on to different shelves and the inventory updated.  With the return of the boxes and the gaining of some new space within the store there was an opportunity for a rationalising of the space and re grouping of the boxes from the sites currently curated by the museum. As there are over 17,000 individuals curated that equates to a very substantial number of boxes and a major task.

The moving of the boxes and rationalising of the space within the store needed to take place in July in order to be ready to accept more material from other sites.

The endeavour of moving several hundred boxes to new locations in the store was a task that our curators would need assistance with to be able to complete and achieve the target. Most opportunely help was at hand in the guise of three willing work experience volunteers: Liam, Amelia and Kate.

Jelena Bekvalac, Curator Human Osteology explains more…

We had the pleasure here at the Centre for Human Bioarchaeology during two weeks in July to have three lovely work experience students with us, Liam Bateson, Amelia Stephenson and Kate Marrion. They were all extremely helpful, interested and really ably assisted in our grand task of rationalising the boxed skeletal material in the rotunda, re-labelling boxes and up dating the inventory.

Amelia and Kate although here with us for a shorter time aided in moving material from the lab back to the rotunda, assisted in replacing boxes on to the correct shelves, labelling boxes and listing new locations of the boxes which, are integral to the up keep of the inventory so we know where all the boxes are correctly located.

Liam and Kate were also able to participate in a session about object handling and so saw another aspect and objects in the museum. With the assistance of our plastic cast skeleton Dr W we were able to go through the names of the bones in the skeleton and how they articulate with one another. They all proved to be keen learners and had very good osteological aptitude, young osteologists in the making!

Liam was at the forefront of box moving and relocation being involved for a longer time period. Additionally to moving all of the boxes a record of their new locations had to be listed for the inventory to be updated and new location labels on the boxes. Once again Liam, Amelia and Kate rose to the challenge and diligently labelled the boxes and listed the new locations.  The task took considerable effort, was physically demanding when moving the boxes around and often very dusty. The boxes have now all been relocated, space created and new inventory locations noted, a great accomplishment. This outstanding achievement in the store could not have been reached without the help and hard work of Liam, Amelia and Kate, they were superb.

We try to to accommodate work experience requests when certain suitable tasks such as this reorganisation arise, my best advice if you are interested in helping us is to keep checking the museums website here.

Liam also found the time to write up his thoughts on his work experience for our blog which he shares with you now:

When looking for work experience I did not go out searching for a job in the Museum of London’s Centre for Human bioarchaeology. My specification was simple; something at least vaguely interesting. I tried various jobs; one of these trains of thought was working in a lab. This is the train that lead me into this job.

I had no real presumptions of what exactly it would be like other than the names of the people I would be working with and that there would be skeletons involved. When I told people what I was doing for work experience they stared blankly back at me bewildered. No one I knew prior to the work experience had any idea exactly what was in store for me. Up until now I haven’t actually explained what the department does. It’s simple; it studies human remains from the London area. These are uncovered from archaeological sites mostly from construction sites. The department is host to over 17,000 individuals more than half from one site; Spitalfields (with roughly 10,500 individuals) and so it is a brilliant resource for budding osteologists.

First impressions were good, it was a friendly environment and I was not set menial tasks which could bore me to death (which I have been told happens with lots of work experience). What it has made apparent to me is one, how tiring work is and two, that it is slightly more relaxed than I had previously expected.

For the largest part of my work experience I have been helping rearrange the boxes in the rotunda to create space and a form of organisation. I have also done some work on the human skeleton so I can (slightly unreliably) name all of the bones in the body (saving individual carpals, tarsals, ribs and some bones in the skull). I can now correctly lay out a skeleton and find its gender. And possibly have a rather shaky guess at the age.

Osteology aside, I have picked up some skills in logistics and some invaluable experience in the workplace.  However saying this it has not made much different to my future aims for work (my life plain is still completely indecisive after university).  

And lastly I want to say thank you to everyone who has helped me or let me help them in my work experience, it was a pleasure.

Bring the whole family to Museum of London Docklands on Friday 15th April 2011 to learn about Victorian death and disease and meet those involved in the analysis of the burial grounds and skeletal populations from this era.

The Victorian period was a time of great change.  In London, the expanding city saw massive population growth and the development of new industries that were to alter the shape of the city forever.

With this change came an increased pressure on resources, leading to poor sanitation, overcrowded living conditions, increased pollution, poor diet and working conditions. This was to have a significant affect upon human health and life expectancy, and such squalid conditions would have contributed to the rise of disease. 

Epidemics of smallpox, typhoid and cholera spread through the city and infectious diseases such as venereal syphilis and tuberculosis were rife. Rickets, scurvy, dental disease and many other conditions afflicted the population. The London Bills of Mortality record that approximately 40% of deaths occurred in children aged five or below. In the early nineteenth century, almost half the population would not live past their twentieth birthday.

The excavation and analysis of human skeletons from this period can help us to examine and better understand this changing and diverse population.  How the growing city affected the living and working lives of the rich and poor, and how the affects of poverty, deprivation and disease can be seen in the bones of those who lived during this time.

As part of a programme of events run over Easter, there will be an opportunity to discuss and observe the way diseases affected the bones of people from the Victorian era and learn how the study of a skeleton can provide information about age, sex, lifestyle, diet and illness.

Two sessions will be help at the Museum of London Docklands on Friday 15th April 2011: 11:30 – 12: 15 and 13:30 – 14:15

For more information see..

http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/London-Wall/Whats-on/Events/eventDetails.htm?eventID=2896

Following a paper presented at the 2009 American Paleopathology (PPA) meeting in Chicago by Jelena Bekvalac, Curator, Centre for Human Bioarchaeology, Museum of London, an opportunity arose to work on a digital x-ray project in the crypt of St Bride’s Church nearby the Museum.

Here, Jelena explains more:

“My paper presentation was based around the analysis of the 227 individuals retained in the crypt of St Bride’s Church, Fleet Street, London.

They are a particularly interesting and unique group of individuals as they have a substantial amount of biographical information associated with them provided by coffin plates and detailed parish records.

This provides a mine of information to assist with further research on the individuals allowing access to numerous documentary data such as birth and marriage certificates, all of which aids greatly in building up a more complete picture of individual lives and the times in which they lived.

I mentioned in my paper that during the analysis of the individuals many disease processes and trauma were discovered, further research of which, would be enhanced with radiographic investigation.

The nature and logistics of the skeletal material and the crypt itself did not make taking the elements off site to be x-rayed a feasible proposition and so the only real option available would be for a portable x-ray machine to be brought into the crypt.

Luckily, one of the people listening to my presentation was Jerry Conlogue from Quinnipiac University, USA, who has had many years experience with radiography and archaeological material, particularly mummified remains.

Jerry was fascinated by the crypt individuals and saw the opportunity for a challenge to be overcome in being able to implement an x-ray project at St Bride’s and he secured funding from the School of Health Sciences at his university to be able to come to London and establish a project with us.

The premise of the project was to ultimately create a digital x-ray archive of the individuals which would be available online from our Centre for Human Bioarchaeology website for research purposes.

So in the summer of 2010, Jerry was able to come to St Bride’s and with the assistance of Dr Mark Viner at Cranfield University and Xograph, hired a portable digital x-ray machine.

The Xograph x-ray system was set up in the crypt and Jerry, with the assistance of student Kelly Eggleton, was able to x-ray all the sub adults (those individuals less than 18 years old) and 70 of the skulls and mandibles. 

We quickly established the speed and efficency of having a digital x-ray machine available providing images of excellent clarity.

The following images are from x-rays taken of a young girl who died aged three years, seven months and nine days in 1840.

Due to the success of the first phase of this project, further funding has been secured from the School of Health Sciences to complete, this year, the x-raying of the remaining  skulls and mandibles.

It is hoped that there will be a continuation of the x-ray project and that the next phase will concentrate on the diseases and trauma identified in the bones.

This will then provide a unique x-ray archive and an invaluable resource for research that will hopefully be readily accessible to researchers via our website.

An added bonus to the nature of this project is that it is non destructive and acts in tandem with the skeletal database as a means of conserving the remains without continual handling of them.”

S. Matthews, BA, MSc

This month Sarah Matthews talks about the process of excavating human remains from cremation vessels. Click on the images to see further details of the excavation.

Archaeological investigations in 2010 by the Museum of London Archaeology revealed a number of Roman cremation vessels from a site in Surrey. While many of the vessels had been badly damaged by ploughing, 10 remained intact enough for further study.

The purpose of excavating cremation vessels is to ascertain how efficient the cremation process was, determine the distribution of bone in the vessel, gather knowledge about the pyre, and information about the individual cremated (age, sex and any pathological bone changes) skeleton (McKinley, 2004).

The excavation is carried out by carefully removing the soil from the vessel in spits (2-3cm layers). To begin, a piece of string is placed horizontally across the bucket dividing the vessel into two halves. One half is then excavated carefully and delicately by removing the soil and leaving the bone in place. To do this a variety of small trowels, wooden skewers and small brushes are used. This takes a great deal of patience, even the slightest knock to the bone can cause it to fragment. A plan and section is then drawn before excavating the other half.

The first spit (Picture 2) often contains very little bone, the overall the density of bone increases at the bottom of the vessel. After removing both halves of the spit, any bone uncovered is left in situ, photographed and planned.

Picture 2 (Pot B): Top of Spit two 

Picture 3 (Pot B):  top of Spit Three

Picture 3 shows the bone excavated from spit two revealing a dense quantity of bone. The majority of this bone comprises fragments of long bones, these often fracture in crescent or ‘U shapes’ (McKinley, 2004) running along the shaft. To the lower left corner of the urn a large, flat piece of bone has just been uncovered but is so far unidentified. Due to the density and overlapping nature of cremations often several pieces of bone need to be removed before elements can be uncovered enough to be identified. 

Picture 4 (Pot B): Top of Spit Four

As the excavation continues, the anatomical features of the bone become apparent and the large fragment in the lower left can now be identified as part of a pelvis. Spits are not always easy to keep to an approximate depth and there maybe variations in the depth across the pot. In the centre (Picture 4) the depth could only able to be taken down by 1.5cms due to a large patch of trabecular bone lying just below the surface. It is sometimes necessary to leave soil in place rather than risking destroying the bone.

Picture 5 (Pot B): Top of spit five

Towards the bottom of the pot large pieces of identifiable bone are present. The right side of the pelvis can be seen in Picture 5 with the auricular surface facing towards the centre. Each element is measured, photographed and planned in case it disintegrates further during lifting. Any colour variation is recorded as this may suggest temperature deviations during the cremation. Large identifiable elements are bagged separately with the context and spit numbers marked on the bag. 

Picture 6 (Pot A): Large areas of skull.

Picture six shows the importance of correct planning and excavation. Burning of the bone and shrinkage due to dehydration produces microfractures, these can result in the bone fragmenting during excavation and recovery (McKinley, 2004). The two large areas of skull can be seen in situ and once planned it is possible to tell that a very large piece of skull remained after burning.
 
The most important aspect of excavating cremations is to gain as much information as possible about the bone, the colour and disposition and any finds discovered inside the vessel. Once the bone is washed and dried, further analysis can be carried out to gain further evidence about the individual inside. This helps our understanding of the ritual and processes regarding cremated remains from the past.

For further information see..
Brickley, M. and McKinley, J. 2004. Guidelines to the standard for recording human remains IFA/ BABAO.

Although the bulk of our work during this Volunteer/Visitor Inclusion Project (VIP7) is focused on pottery, every Tuesday in the Archaeology in Action gallery, we have a table of Human Remains out on display too.

The skeletal remains all come from the same site as the pottery – Newgate Street (see earlier blog about the site by clicking here: GPO75). When reaching deposits relating to the early medieval period, the archaeologists found the remains of the parish cemetery of St Nicholas Shambles. The excavation discovered 234 skeletons dating from the 11th & 12th centuries.

This excavation was one of the first major sites that produced human remains from the early medieval period and gives a fascinating insight into the lives of Londoners at this time. Here are five amazing things learnt from studying these remains:

1) There were 6 types of burial practices discovered; (i) the majority were simple burials, probably in coffins (some evidence of wood was discovered but for the most part the wood had rotted away.) (ii) several were buried with stone pillows for the skulls (iii) some were buried upon floors of crushed chalk & mortar (iv) a few were surrounded by mortared stones (v) four were lined with dry-laid stones and tiles (vi) one was laid on a bed of charcoal.

2) The general health of the people seemed pretty good, with little evidence of disease on the bones and 88% of the jaws discovered also showing no disease. However, several of the individuals suffered from nutritional disease such as osteoporosis (probably due to a lack of iron in their diets). Many of the skeletons also suffered from Osteoarthritis, especially the male skeletons, and this may have been due to lifting related activities. (Examples are on display at our table every Tuesday in Archaeology in Action until Dec 7th)

3) By analysing certain bones and comparing individuals (in particular the skulls and teeth of the skeletons) it was possible to suggest that some of them may have been related within families.

4) One individual seemed to have been smashed on the head with a sword! We have a piece of a right frontal skull fragment with a slice of bone slashed into it. Amazingly, it’s thought that the blow may not have proved fatal as the cut didn’t penetrate the full cranium, however, they probably didn’t last too long as the wound never healed properly. (This piece is also on display in archaeology in action every Tuesday until Dec 7th 2010)

5) One female skeleton was found with the bones of a full term foetus in her abdomen. The woman appears to have been around 22-24 years old and sadly, probably died in childbirth.

Burial sites and skeletons such as those found at Newgate Street, offer us fascinating opportunities to connect to the lives of Londoners that went before us; to not only get an idea of what their lives must have been like, but an idea of the care and attention that surrounded their life after death as well.  I like to think that their memories are living on via the work the Centre of Human Bioarchaeology and MOLA Osteology carry out (for more blogs about their work click here: Osteology) and they would be pleased to know that over a 1000 years since they were walking the streets of London, they are bringing such incredible learning and enjoyment to hundreds of visitors each week.

This month human osteologist Don Walker talks about the analysis of nineteenth century trauma victims from the Royal London Hospital.

The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, East London is a venerable institution with a rich history of serving the local community, and was featured in a series of historical medical dramas produced by the BBC (‘Casualty 1906’ and ‘Casualty 1907’). The hospital was founded in 1740, and opened on its current site in 1757.

One of the functions of the hospital was as an accident and emergency department accepting ‘special cases necessary to the preservation of life’. Emergency treatment would have saved the lives of many, but the less fortunate would never leave the hospital alive, with the poorest being buried in the hospital grounds.

MOLA excavated 170 burials from the Royal London Hospital grounds, and some of the skeletons revealed evidence of injuries from which they never recovered.

In one example, the skeleton of a 26–35 year old male had an unhealed spiral fracture of the mid-shaft of the right femur (upper leg) (Fig 1). Such a fracture would have required considerable force, probably causing extensive soft tissue damage. The fracture was probably an open, or compound fracture, where the bone was exposed through the skin. In modern times such injuries are often found in young adult males, due to participation in activities with risks of high impact collisions and falls from height (Galloway 1999, 180). Doctors at the London Hospital would have admitted the man on the basis of this life-threatening injury.

Close inspection of the fracture site revealed the early stages of healing in the form of new bone growth, which represents initial callus formation. This indicated that the individual died within approximately three weeks of receiving the injury (Lovell, 1997, 145) (Fig 2).

There are a number of serious complications associated with femoral mid-shaft fractures, some of which may have contributed to the death of this individual. These include blood loss, arterial injury, fat embolisation, shock, infection, as well as associated life-threatening injuries to the viscera or cranium (Resnick 2002, 2870–2). Prior to the availability of antibiotics, infection was common in open wounds and fractures, and this would certainly be a candidate for the cause of death of this man.

There are frequent contemporary reports of victims of accidents being sent to the London Hospital. In one account from The Times of 11th August 1806, a group of bricklayers who were sitting on top of a newly completed house and celebrating their achievement with a gallon of beer, fell to the ground, “one of whom was killed on the spot, and the others were taken to the London Hospital, one of whom has died since the incident, and the other two are not likely to recover” (The Times, Aug 11, 1806). The study of the skeleton of the young man found within the hospital cemetery tells us he suffered a life-threatening injury from which he unfortunately never recovered.

In a further example of unhealed injuries, a 26–35 year old female from the hospital cemetery had fractures to some of the vertebral bodies of the spine, possibly due to a fall onto the feet or buttocks (Galloway 1999, 95) (Fig 3; Fig 4).

In this case, there was no evidence of healing at all, suggesting that she died immediately or soon after the incident (known as ‘perimortem’ injury). From an osteological point of view, the illustrated vertebrae provide good examples of unhealed bone lesions, with sharp edges and an absence of new bone growth or repair.

Galloway, A (ed), 1999 Broken bones: anthropological analysis of blunt force trauma, Springfield, IL
Lovell, N C, 1997 Trauma Analysis in Paleopathology, Yearbook of Physical Anthropology 40,139–70
Resnick, D, 2002 Diagnosis of bone and joint disorders, Philadelphia
The Times, Aug 11, 1806; pg. 3; Issue 6813; col C

This month osteologist Brian Connell talks about the human skeletons excavated at the City Bunhill burial ground, Golden Lane, London.

Archaeological excavations by MOLAS in 2006 uncovered 239 human skeletons from the City Bunhill burial ground. This nonconformist burial ground was in use from 1833 to 1853 and was very intensively used with over 18,000 burials taking place over a relatively short period of just 20 years. This was located in a poor area, with a high Irish immigrant population, many of whom would have been buried within this ground.

The skeletons provided a fascinating insight into the mortality and morbidity of an early 19th century population and provided a snap-shot of what daily life must have been like in this area, to the north of the City of London. The demography of the assemblage revealed an equal number of adult men and women and a high proportion of children. Just over half the individuals were under 18 years old when they died and the high mortality rate in children aged under five was most striking. Such a high rate is fairly typical for a 19th century urban population, particularly one at the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum. The physical characteristics of the population were also assessed by comparing adult height, this data demonstrated that for both men and women there were no significant differences from other London groups.

The City Bunhill assemblage provided a wealth of information about the diseases from which the buried population suffered including metabolic, infectious, congenital and neoplastic conditions. There were several cases of congenital abnormalities (from birth), but the majority of these were minor and would not have been life-threatening or even symptomatic.

There was an unusual case of spondylolysis (separation of the posterior aspect of a vertebrae) (see picture) in a 7-8 year old child, this condition is normally seen in adults and only rarely in children. It is possible that this was related to occupation, perhaps demonstrating that young children were pressed into physical labour at a young age.

Most notable among the metabolic conditions was the high number of rickets cases.  Rickets is widely reported in urban skeletal assemblages of this period. There was only one case of residual rickets in an adult, most cases were in young children.

A particularly unusual feature observed in the children with rickets was the high number of pathological fractures. Such fractures are not generally reported in other burial groups from London during this period. It is interesting therefore to consider whether these fractures were sustained entirely through a softening of the bones, or whether any other factors – such as harsh physical conditions or child abuse – may have contributed to the broken limbs of these sickly children (see picture).

Further details about this excavation can be found in the recent MOLA publication ‘The City Bunhill burial ground, Golden Lane, London: excavations at South Islington schools, 2006′ available in the museum shop and through the following link..

http://www.museumoflondonarchaeology.org.uk/English/Publications/

The medieval period saw much violence, with warfare, crime and civil unrest rife throughout (Powers 2005). Occasionally, evidence of such fighting is revealed in the bones of past populations, offering a glimpse into the lives of those who lived and died at this time.

The archaeological excavation of a possible 13th century medieval hospital burial ground at St Peter’s Wharf, Maidstone, Kent by MOLA between 2008-2009 revealed one individual who had suffered severe injuries to the skull. These were most likely the result of blows to the head from a bladed weapon (sharp force trauma).

An adult male had a fine, linear cut mark running across the right side of the forehead. Above this, a large rectangular, scooped out flake of bone had become detached revealing areas of underlying polished bone. Similar linear cut marks were observed to the right side of the head (temporal and parietal). These injuries only penetrated the outer surface of the skull and may have resulted from repeated glancing blows that caused the bone to fracture. At the back of the skull there was an extensive deep horizontal wound that had penetrated the internal structures (endocranium) and may have made contact with the brain.

In total this individual had evidence of at least four separate blade wounds. Multiple head injuries appear not to have been an uncommon occurrence. Examples of multiple wounds have been found at several contemporary sites in Britain suggesting that the head was often the main target of attack.

The linear nature of these lesions without large irregularities, absence of terminal fractures, defined clean edges and one surface that was flat and smooth suggested a sharp bladed weapon was used. The cut to the back of the skull had a minimum length of 104mm suggesting a longer blade, possibly a sword (Wenham 1989).

The severity of the penetrating injuries would most likely have ended this individual’s life. There was no evidence of new bone formation that would indicate healing. This suggested that the injuries were received immediately before or shortly after death.

Whether this individual died in the heat of battle, was attacked or even suffered the injuries when already disabled or dead cannot be determined. However, a healed depressed fracture to the top of the skull indicated the survival of an old wound. This may have been received during a previous fight, possibly warfare, and may tentatively suggest a professional soldier who lived to participate in further battles.

Further details of this excavation will be covered in an upcoming article in the journal Archaeologia Cantiana

This month zoologist Alan Pipe talks about the resources for the identification of fish and wild bird bones from archaeological sites in London…

Viewers of ‘Time Team’ and readers of archaeological site reports will be familiar with the recovery of animal bones from a wide range of species, usually dominated by those of domesticated mammals of major economic value for meat, milk, wool or traction. With increased wet-sieving of bulk soil samples, particularly over the past four decades, archaeological recovery of smaller species from all vertebrate groups; fish, amphibians, reptiles, small birds and mammals, continues to expand.

London sites produce particularly diverse assemblages of fish and wild birds and each unfamiliar ‘new’ species presents challenges in identification, indeed some bones are not identifiable to species-level. Museum of London Archaeology holds a useful reference collection used for identification purposes. This concentrates mainly on British fish, birds and mammals and has been built up over the years as a valuable resource in support of MOLA zooarchaeological studies.

Even with access to a reference collection and the increasing availability of reference literature and images, the relatively unfamiliar morphology, fragmentation and often small size, of archaeological fish bones are obstacles to their recovery and identification and this has resulted in their relative neglect by many workers and a reliance on external specialists.

 In an attempt to improve our own internal capability, MOLA Osteology has now established a solid nucleus reference collection of the economically important freshwater (e.g. pike), marine/estuarine (e.g. herring and cod) and migratory (e.g. salmon and eel) species most commonly encountered on London sites.  Researchers interested in studying the fauna of London should contact the LAARC

The growth of industry and advent of new manufacturing techniques brought with it associated occupational hazards for those going to work in the factories, building sites, dockyards and railways of 19^th century London. This could involve fractured bones resulting from falls from heights, amputation of limbs that were caught in machinery, burns and other workplace incidents. Another cause of illness at work was related to the materials and chemicals involved. One example of this was known as ‘phossy jaw’, where the vapor emitted during the manufacture of ‘strike anywhere’ matches could result in gangrene if the poisonous phosphorous fumes penetrated the jaw bone (Picard 2005). This could lead to the formation of an abscess and disfigurment with surgical removal of the jaw bone the only treatment.

The excavation of St Mary and St Michael Church, Whitechapel by MOLA revealed one possible example of this affliction.  The skeletal remains of an adult male aged 26-35 years displayed active, localised bone changes to the mandible (lower jaw). There were areas of fine pitting together with occasional large pits to the buccal (cheek facing) and lingual (tongue facing) surfaces of the jaw. Towards the mandibular rami (posterior jaw) were areas of eroded bone that revealed the underlying spongy bone structure. The outer cortex of the bone also appeared abnormally thickened.

Radiographs of the jaw revealed regions of irregular, thinned bone and also areas of increased thickening towards the mentum (chin). While a diagnosis of ‘phossy jaw’ is difficult to prove conclusively, this helped to identify osteonecrosis of the mandible, a condition where the blood supply to the bone is disrupted resulting in the necrosis (death of bone cells). Such changes may also be caused by a range of other conditions and infections such as syphilis.

The identification of this condition from excavated skeletal remains provides a rare glimpse into the dangers faced in the work place and the changes related to the expansion of cities and industrialisation at this time