Digging at the museum : unveiling the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic individuals of Lapa da Bugalheira (Torres Novas) through bioarchaeology

Maximiano Gomes, Helena (author), Rodrigues, Filipa (author), Silva, Ana Maria (author)

Lapa da Bugalheira is a natural cave with a funerary context dated to the Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic period. This cave was excavated in the 1940s, and in 2019. The aim of this work is the osteological study of the human remains recovered from both interventions that correspond to the same funerary context. This assemblage of human bones corresponds to a minimum of 35 individuals, 24 adults and 11 non-adults. The prevalence of pathological conditions is low, and they include oral, traumatic, infectious, degenerative and congenital ones. This research confirms that the re-examination and study of old collections are an essential contribution to our knowledge of past populations.

• Language: English
• Keywords: collective burial, natural cave, museum collection, hypodontia, bioarchaeology
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FF - Faculty of Arts
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: Str. 430-444
• Numbering: Vol. 52
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-180584
• ISSN on article: 1854-2492
• DOI: 10.4312/dp.52.18

Copyright

Podatek o licenci CC BY-SA 4.0 je naveden na pristajalni strani članka (glej zgoraj izvorni URL). (Datum opombe: 11. 3. 2026)

• Publication date in RUL: 11.03.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Documenta Praehistorica
• Shortened title: Doc. Praehistor.
• Publisher: Oddelek za arheologijo Filozofske fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani, Oddelek za arheologijo Filozofske fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani, Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani, Založba Univerze v Ljubljani
• ISSN: 1854-2492
• COBISS.SI-ID: 220673792

Licences

• License: CC BY-SA 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
• Description: This Creative Commons license is very similar to the regular Attribution license, but requires the release of all derivative works under this same license.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Izkopavanja v muzeju : odkrivanje posameznikov iz poznega neolitika/bakrene dobe s pomočjo bioarheologije v jami Lapa da Bugalheira (Torres Novas)

Abstract

V jamskem najdišču Lapa da Bugalheira je bil odkrit grobiščni kontekst iz poznega neolitika/eneolitika. Izkopavanja so potekala v 40. letih 20. stoletja in zatem še leta 2019. V prispevku predstavljamo osteološko analizo človeških ostankov, izkopanih v teh raziskavah, ki pripadajo istemu grobnemu kontekstu. Človeške kosti pripadajo najmanj 35 posameznikom, 24 odraslim in 11 neodraslim. Pojavnost patoloških stanj je nizka, odkrili smo ustne in travmatske infekcije, degenerativna ter prirojena obolenja. Raziskava je potrdila, da ponovna študija in analiza starejših zbirk pomembno prispevata k poznavanju prazgodovinskih populacij.

• Keywords: skupinski pokop, jama, muzejska zbirka, hipodontija, bioarheologija