Lietuvos istorijos institutas

The article is intended to present and analyze bioarchaeological data from the cemetery of Old Panevėžys (Senasis Panevėžys) (dated to the 16th–17th centuries) in terms of paleodemographical and paleoepidemiological aspects. The material is also compared with large simultaneous Lithuanian skeletal collections from rural, town and urban cemeteries. The relationship between life and death was very close in the community of Old Panevėžys, i.e. due to high mortality rates, the population was characterized by high numbers of young and low numbers of older individuals, respectively. Sex differences in the risk of mortality were fluctuating depending on age. Females in reproductive period had a higher risk of mortality; while those who survived it had a lower risk than contemporary males. Based on demographical and height data, community of Old Panevėžys was more similar to rural rather than to urban populations. In addition, skeletal indicators of biological health capacitated for some plausible explanations for patterns of morbidity and mortality.

The children’s footwear that has been discovered during excavations has up until now been poorly investigated, despite it containing demographic, social, and even sociocultural information about the inhabitants of the city and/or its individual quarters. The article’s aim is to attempt to partially close this gap and present a new possibility for comparing palaeoosteological material and archaeological footwear attributed to individuals of a specific age. The advantages and disadvantages of the employed method and the possibilities of interpreting investigation results are discussed by focusing on the investigation of children’s footwear. A synthesis of the material from two Vilnius City archaeological sites (the Bokšto St. 6 cemetery from the second half of the 13th – early 15th centuries and the 14th – early 16th-century layers from the Lower Castle) is presented in the article as an example. The article shows how the results of this synthesis can become a source for the investigation of the most important children in a castle.

The article aims to introduce palaeodemography, the study of the demography of ancient populations based on information estimated from human remains. The article is composed of four parts. First, the basics of demography are briefly described, giving the methodological background of palaeodemography and a couple of examples to illustrate that interest in demography has very deep roots in the study of prehistoric and historic human populations. Next, it defines the concepts of palaeodemography and closely related disciplines. Third, it describes the main developmental stages of paleodemographic studies from their origin to the present, focusing mainly on the scientific experience of Western countries. Finally, it presents the main issues, possible solutions, and research trends in modern palaeodemography.