Forensic Anthropology: Learning From Skeletons

The examination process of human remains by the forensic anthropologist includes three tasks.

One of those tasks is providing a biological profile (age, sex, stature, ancestry, anomalies, pathology, individual features) of the victim.

The second task would be recreating the postmortem period based on the condition of the remains and the recovery environment.

Lastly, they would provide data regarding the death event, including evidence of trauma occurring during the perimortem period (time of the death).

 

How tall was the person?

•By using bones we can get a rather accurate estimate of a
person height.

Female

tibia (cm) x 2.53 + 72.57 = height (cm)
radius (cm) x 3.87 + 73.50 = height (cm)

Male

tibia (cm) x 2.39 + 81.68 = height (cm)
radius (cm) x 3.65 + 80.40 = height (cm)

•Example:

A 41.3 cm Caucasoid male tibia was found in a wooded area.
How tall was the this person?

41.3 cm x 2.39 + 81.68 = 180 cm (5’-11”)