Talo-calcaneal bridging in an Anglo-Saxon

Abstract

SUMMARYA RECENTLY excavated skeleton from an Anglo-Saxon burial ground in Kent exhibits a pathological right heel. The disorder is identified as a congenital talo-calcaneal bridge, a genetic anomaly which often results in "peroneal spastic flat foot". This 1,300-year-old specimen is presently the oldest reported for this disorder. SITE LOCATION AND DESCRIPTIONAn Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Updown in Kent, consisting of over 300 graves,' was this year partially threatened by construction work. A rescue excavation of thirty-six graves threatened by this development, was undertaken.This 1,300-year-old site2 is situated some 11.5 kilometres north-west of Dover on a prominent chalk hill beside the Roman road which runs from Dover to Richborough. The graves were orientated on an east-west axis and were well dug into the chalk substrata. The stratigraphy of each burial was relatively uncomplicated but several were disturbed by tree roots, or rodent activities. These factors, together with the permeable nature of the chalk, ensured that any surviving skeletal remains were extremely fragmentary.The profile of the population exhumed included sixteen males, thirteen females, and seven individuals of unknown sex.3 All age groups from infancy to post forty-five years were represented, and stature estimates were comparable to those from other nearby Anglo-Saxon populations.4.5 GENERAL PATHOLOGY Most of the pathology detected, such as hypoplasia, dental attrition, and vetebral osteoarthrosis, was typical for this period.6'7'8 However, Grave 12 produced the

Massive tarsal ankylosis in a prehistoric skeleton

“…There is a scarcity of references supporting ancient tarsal coalitions, both in medical and palaeopathological literature. In 1980 [36] there was a report of bilateral talo‐calcaneal coalition in an individual from a Roman cemetery in Colchester (UK) from the 3rd century ace ; and in 1977 [37] there was an isolated case of talo‐calcaneal coalition studied in a subject from an Anglo‐Saxon cemetery from the 6th century ace . In France, in the graveyard of Caen Saint Martin (dated from the 9th–10th centuries ace ) there was another similar and bilateral coalition [38].…”

“…The presence in IP SW64]1 of ankylosis of the metacarpo-phalangeal joint in the fourth digit of the right hand, together with the absence of dysplastic disturbances at the head of the radius bone in the elbow articulation, allow us to rule out the diagnosis of Nievergelt]Pearlmann's syndrome [34,35] There is a scarcity of references supporting ancient tarsal coalitions, both in medical and palaeopathological literature. In 1980 [36] there was a report of bilateral talo-calcaneal coalition in an individual from a Roman cemetery in Colchester (UK) from the 3rd century ACE; and in 1977 [37] there was an isolated case of talo-calcaneal coalition studied in a subject from an Anglo-Saxon cemetery from the 6th century ACE. In France, in the graveyard of Caen Saint Martin (dated from the 9th]10th centuries ACE) there was another similar and bilateral coalition [38].…”

Unilateral non-osseous calcaneonavicular coalition: report of a Portuguese archeological case

“…Both findings are dated around 900-950 AD. Calder and Calder (1977) described a unilateral osseous talocalcaneal coalition in the right foot of an adult male skeleton excavated from an Anglo-Saxon cemetery at Updown in Kent (England). Anderson (1995) published a case of bilateral nonosseous cubonavicular bridging associated with bilateral metatarsal-cuneiform III defect in an adult male (SK31) exhumed from an Iron Age site in Kent.…”

Osseous talocalcaneal coalition in a medieval skeleton (ca. 1050 AD)

“…Although tarsal coalitions (TC) were recognised as human variations in the anatomy dissecting room before 1900, the correlation of these conditions with clinical disorders was observed only in the last century (Harris & Beath, 1948; Harris & Beath, 1950; Charles et al , 2006). Since then only very few anatomical specimens have been described (Rühli et al , 2003; Solomon et al , 2003) including a talocalcaneal (TCC) bridging in an Anglo‐Saxon (Calder & Calder, 1977) post‐traumatic coalitions in early and prehistoric times (Wells, 1976) and in a pre‐Columbian Indian skeleton dating from 1000 AD (Heiple & Lovejoy, 1969). Isidro et al 2000 described a massive tarsal coalition in a prehistoric skeleton from the Iron Age in Majorca and Neves et al 2005 also described a TC in a medieval skeleton from Portugal, involving most of the tarsal bones.…”