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This study explores the relationship between dietary patterns and social structure in a pre-industrial mining community in Salberget, Sweden c. 1470 to 1600 A.D. using a combination of different research approaches and tools, including archaeology, osteology, bone chemistry and history. The correlation between demographic criteria (sex and age) and archaeological variables (burial type and burial location) shows that Salberget was a highly stratified community.Group diets were investigated through analyses of stable isotopes (carbon, δ 13 C, and nitrogen, δ 15 N) of bone collagen from a sub-sample of individuals buried at the site (n = 67), interpreted alongside data from human dental lesions and deficiencies, animal bone waste and information on eating habits extracted from the extensive historical documents regarding mining activities at Salberget. These integrated analyses provide a clear association between social status and diet and confirm that social status, and to a lesser extent sex, gender and age, likely governed food choice and opportunity in this diverse community.

In 2016, archaeological excavations undertaken by the Ephorate of Antiquities of West Attica, Piraeus and Islands 3.8 km south-west of Athens, Greece, revealed mass burials of 79 skeletons in three rows. The burials are dated to the 7th century BC. The anthropological field documentation was undertaken by The Swedish Institute of Athens, and followed established bioarchaeological protocols regarding taphonomic processes, age, sex, injuries, and pathological changes. The descriptions and interpretations should be regarded as preliminary field observations. A majority of the individuals were young adult or juvenile males, most of them without signs of active disease and with a generally good oral health status, but with corroded iron shackles around their wrists. Cause of death could not be determined although extensive and likely perimortem fractures were observed. The only object related to injury and/or possible cause of death was an arrowhead found in the chest of one of the skeletons. Why and where the individuals were killed is a matter of conjecture; the observations from the field documentation neither validate, nor disprove the hypothesis that these individuals were captives and victims of the so-called “Cylonian conspiracy” in the 7th century BC.

Objectives:Sala silver mine in central Sweden was an important manufacturer of silver from at least the 16 th till the early 20 th century, with production peaking in the 16 th , mid 17 th and 19 th centuries. The job opportunities offered by the mine drew people to the area resulting in the development of a small township with associated cemetery in the vicinity of the mining center.The cemetery served people affiliated to the mine for around 150 years. Written sources reveal that common convicts and war prisoners from the numerous wars fought by Sweden during the time were exploited in the mine, and some of them were likely buried on the cemetery. The cemetery has been excavated on several occasions and the recovered human remains were divided into two different groups based on burial custom, demography and biochemical results.One group was believed to contain war prisoners and the aim of this study was to produce and interpret genomic data from these individuals to test the hypothesis regarding their origins.Materials: Dental material from seven different individuals was sampled. Results: Three of the analyzed teeth contained sufficient amounts of indigenous human DNA allowing for generation of genomic sequence data with genome coverages of 0.04, 0.19 and 0.83. Discussion: The results show that despite this apparent heterogeneity the three individuals fell within genetic variation of modern and contemporary Swedes yielding little support to their hypothetical foreign origin. However, due to the lack of contemporary or modern Danish genomic data we cannot exclude the Danish origin of these individuals.

This chapter addresses children’s lives and living conditions during the early modern period in Sweden. A case study on the population at one of Sweden’s most important historical mines, the Sala Silver mine forms the basis for a discussion about children’s work, their diets, and how gender roles and social status may have affected their health. Two sources provide complementing and sometimes contradicting information about how children’s lives were shaped: the bioarchaeological material (skeletons and graves) and historical sources (archival material). The historical sources show that children were important economic actors in the mining community, and the bioarchaeological material indicates that their health was affected by the socioeconomic status of their families, as well as the unsanitary living and working conditions at the site.