Matskási István (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 95. (Budapest 2003)

Bernert, Zs.: The anthropological data of Kéthely-Melegoldal cemetery's Keszthely-Culture population

the demography of this population because of the uncertain nature of determination of sex and the extremely wide timespan of age estimation. A balance of sexes could be rendered probable within this historical population. We managed to establish the sexual status of 33 individuals: 16 were males and 17 females from them. A higher portion of women died in the adultus age group (80%), as opposed to men, whose majority died in mature age (60%). This was a well-known phenomenon, due to events connected to pregnancies, miscarriages and parturitions that could end in death, which threaten most of all women of adult age. Juvenile and senile dead were completely missing from the uncovered section of this cemetery. In all probability the individuals of these two age groups fell under the headings "age at the time of death undeterminable", "totally expired", and "buried in not uncovered plot". It is worth mentioning here, that the anthropological remains of 38 adults were dug up in the Keszthely-Culture cemetery of Lesencetomaj-Piroskereszt, but only one was juvenile and two lived up to senile age (BÍRÓ 1999). We did not attempt to establish some sort of biological explanation for almost complete lack of juvenile and senile age individuals, however it could well worth the effort to re-analyse this phenomenon when observing other cemeteries. Analysis of morphological characteristics The bad preservation of the anthropological material limited the possibilities of morphological analysis as well. No genuine conclusions could be drawn from the observable morphological characteristics. In top-view the shape of calvaria was eliptical in one case (Grave No. 10), and pentagonal in one case (Grave No. 14). Nape of the neck proved to be arched in two cases (Grave Nos 10 and 14), and conical in one case (Grave No. 31 ) when viewed in profile. The arches of the upper row of teeth were examinable in two cases. It presented paraboloid shape once (Grave No. 44), and hyperboloid shape once (Grave No. 14). Apertúra pyriformis was of the fossa praenasalis kind in both observable cases (Grave Nos 14 and 44). Analyis of metric measurements Measurements could be taken only on 5 skulls out of those of 40 adults (Table 4), and less than 7 measurements could be taken on 4 of them. Only the cranium of the adult woman buried in Grave No. 14 (Figs 2-3) proved to be suitable for metric analysis, and this skull belonged to the medium