#bioarchaeology of childhoood

[amentainsularis]

The floor is hella cold but I couldn’t work sitting anywhere else. While I’m reading for my PhD proposal I’m attempting for the fist time to crochet myself a sweater. Crafting is my way to relax after a long day in the lab.

Also, since this is the Archaeology hashtag I’m sharing cute 6th century CE mosaics from the city of Ravenna, which I visited a few weeks ago. I’m a bit of a nerd about late antiquity and the Romano-barbaric interaction, I info-dumped my girlfriend for the whole trip. Bless her she puts up with me and my fascination for the Ostrogoths!

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #art #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood #studyblr #archaeology of childhood #study #crafts #crochet

[amentainsularis]

The fact that everything in archaeology/bioarchaeology is all about the context makes my weird neurodivergent brain very happy! Every bit of information is necessary, and there's always a new thing to learn!

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood #archaeology of childhood #study #studyblr #phdblr #phdjourney #osteoarchaeology

[amentainsularis]

Third day being a "just a girl hanging around to enter a PhD program":

I'm studying new adolescent individuals to continue my graduate research, and the ones I'm currently analyzing are from a Bronze Age site in Italy (my favorite time period to work with!!). One of the skeletons belongs to a young woman who presents signs of a possible pregnancy. Although parturition markers are quite tricky to identify and they cannot tell with absolute certainty that a pregnancy occurred, it still amazes me (even after so many years in this field!) that we can hypothesize such an intimate detail about the life of someone who lived so far away in the past.

On a less uplifting note, I feel like my journey into this phd life will be a lonely one. Usually I’m the one motivating my colleagues but I rarely receive back the same energy back. I’m quite solitary and independent, I don’t mind doing my own thing but sometimes I wish I could receive more external support.

#bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #archaeology #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood #archaeology of childhood #osteoarchaeology #osteology #study #studyblr #phdblr #phdjourney

[amentainsularis]

I have ended up working on three different projects at the same time. Keywords are catch-up growth, teen mums, and stress on the growing bone. My current position in university is terribly precarious and makes me quite uneasy. But my love for this subject is growing, and I can’t help giving in to my unstable life made of books and old bones. My stress levels are way above average, but at least I’m enjoying this ride so far!

Also, I started tutoring students during their practical osteoarchaeology lessons. I LOVE IT! The students were so excited to learn and made brilliant deductions about the individuals they were studying. I hope they keep on with this motivation.

+ Our department also hosts the botanical garden. I often escape there when my coworkers get too annoying.

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood #studyblr #archaeology of childhood #study #phdblr #phdjourney #phd

[amentainsularis]

Ordinary day at the anthropology department

For context: this is a tc scan of a mandible of a child. It was done so I could assess their age with more accuracy. In general anthropological practice we use the grade of eruption of the permanent teeth to estimate an age so radioimaging is not necessary but in my case I’m doing something a little more specific and I look at the mineralization of dental roots.

I’m a graduate researcher and I study children and adolescents from archaeological contexts ☺️

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #physical anthropology #anthropology #studyblr #osteoarchaeology #study #archaeology of childhood #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood

[amentainsularis]

Today I’m collecting data and working on a poster I’m presenting in September. Summing up a year and a half of nonstop research is quite challenging but I’m excited to share it with just anyone other than my supervisor.

+ our department has some cool fossil reproductions on display, can you recognise any of the animals shown in the picture?

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #bioarchaeology of adolescence #physical anthropology #bioarchaeology of childhoood #fossils #palaeoblr #palaeontology #archaeozoology #studyblr #study #on my desk #grad researcher

[amentainsularis]

Last week I took a trip abroad for the first time in five years! I did touristy walks around Antwerp and spent lovely quality time with a dear friend who is now living there (I ate lots of waffles too!).

Today, I went to the library to borrow some books and when I arrived at work I found boxes containing skeletons deposited right by my chair. And this is the Anthropology department for you!!

Now, it's me and my lolita dress against Academia. Time to put on my current obsession (Kælan Mikla = Icelandic post-punk. Very dark and cool, I recommend listening if you're into this genre) and get this manuscript done!

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood #archaeology of childhood #studyblr #study #osteoarchaeology #phdblr #phdjourney

[amentainsularis]

I hate that in the context of bioarchaeology of childhood and adolescence, we must always specify that the individuals we're studying are the non-survivors and therefore cannot be representative of the living population. Like, excuse me, the individuals we study were part of a society, lived in the daily life that we're trying to reconstruct through our job. They may have been the frail part of a population that didn't make it to full adulthood but that doesn't mean those lives have less meaning, even academically speaking.

#bioarchaeology #bioarchaeology of childhoood #bioarchaeology of adolescence #archaeology #physical anthropology #rant

[amentainsularis]

“Archaeology is a sum of human mistakes”

This is a sign we put in our on-site lab during last month excavation. This quote is the result of a particularly hard day and a particularly hard month. I am sharing it on here because this can be read in many ways, my take is that making mistakes is part of the journey and even at the highest levels of education we are never free from it and it’s okay, learning is a process!

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #bioarchaeology of adolescence #bioarchaeology of childhoood #studyblr #study #archaeology of childhood

[amentainsularis]

It’s been a long time since I last posted here on Tumblr.

I had a rough start of the year, both personally and academically, but I’ve kept myself quite busy.

Firstly, I visited a new city to study some very cool Bronze Age skeletons. The work itself was very gratifying but I spent a whole week in a basement working in a complete mess, I wasn’t expecting it but archaeology can be like this sometimes. At least I got the opportunity to study kids that were buried with swords (!!!)

Also, I’m studying for a job opportunity that came up. I can’t say much right now but if I get it I would get to work on completely new topics.

I have an enormous amount of things to do and very little energy to keep up with it but I’m definitely trying my best here. Hopefully, spring will be a little bit better!

I know very few people follow my blog but I promise to myself that I will bring more interesting content on here. Maybe something more educational about my job…?

Any ideas? Requests? Suggestions?

#archaeology #bioarchaeology #anthropology #physical anthropology #studyblr #bioarchaeology of childhoood #archaeology of childhood #bioarchaeology of adolescence #study #osteoarchaeology #phdjourney #student life