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Updated: May 31, 2026

Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts
Published on: January 29, 2018
Short review: field recovery and potential information value of small elements of the skeleton
L Ríos1, A García-Rubio, B Martínez
1Comisión Docente de Antropología, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid 28049, Spain. luis.rios@uam.es
Abstract:
The recovery of small elements of the skeleton (e.g. hyoid, carpals, and hand and foot phalanges) is one of the established tasks of the archaeologist and physical anthropologist when working in the field, whether in an archaeological or forensic context. In the present work, we illustrate the field location of ossified laryngeal cartilages, hand sesamoids, and the medial clavicular epiphyses. The potential information offered by these elements is briefly summarized. The frequency of these elements observed in a cemetery dating from 1943 indicates the possibility that these elements could be found in other contexts at a higher frequency than expected.
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