Sandra Assis

• PhD Biological Anthropology
• Researcher at FCSH, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa

Objectives: Bone trauma is a common occurrence in human skeletal remains. Macroscopic and imaging scrutiny is the approach most currently used to analyze and describe trauma. Nevertheless, this line of inquiry may not be sufficient to accurately identify the type of traumatic lesion and the associated degree of bone healing. To test the usefulness...

When bone is exposed to the burial environment it may experience structural changes induced by multiple agents. The study of postmortem alterations is important to differentiate decomposition phenomena from normal physiological processes or pathological lesions, as well as to assess bone tissue quality. Microscopy is of great utility to evaluate th...

Analyses of entheseal changes (EC) in identified skeletal samples employ a common research strategy based on the comparison between occupations grouped on the basis of shared biomechanical and/or social characteristics. Results from this approach are often ambiguous, with some studies that point to differences in EC between occupational samples and...

During 2002, the extensive archaeological excavations of the ancient Constância necropolis (Centre of Portugal), dated from 14th–19th centuries, resulted in the exhumation of 151 individuals. Among the several paleopathological cases, a middle-aged female skeleton with osteolytic lesions in her skull, axial skeleton, upper limbs and femurs was obse...

This article presents a consensus terminology for entheseal changes that was developed in English by an international team of scholars and then translated into French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and German. Use of a standard, neutral terminology to describe entheseal morphology will reduce misunderstandings between researchers, improve the reliab...

This study investigates a fixed dental bridge and explores the medical management of oral disease in 18th and 19th century Portugal. The bridge, alongside the remains of an adult individual of indeterminate sex, was exhumed from a burial site in Porto, Portugal, which was in use between 1801 and 1869. Although the skeletal remains were well preserv...

An adult individual of indeterminate sex was excavated from the burial site of the Third Order of Our Lady of Carmo in Porto (Portugal), which was in use from 1801 to 1869. The individual is part of a large assemblage (circa 490 individuals, including adults and subadults) excavated between 2006 and 2007, currently under analysis. An ovoid-shaped m...

This paper presents and discusses the palaeopathological profile of a well-preserved and complete possible male adult exhumed from a burial site in Porto, Portugal. These remains form part of a larger collection comprising over 800 primary burials dating back to the early and middle 19th century that is currently under analysis as part of the BeFRA...

This research describes and discusses bone changes observed in a disarticulated adult lumbar vertebra, recovered in one of the multiple assemblages of commingled remains identified in the hospital cemetery of the Third Order of Our Lady of Carmo, which operated between 1801 and 1869. Bone lesions are described in detail through macroscopic observat...

The Last Glacial Maximum brought long-term harsh climatic and environmental conditions. Because of that, human groups had to adapt to such changes, which was done through the development of new technologies, ecodynamics and settlement patterns. Buraca da Moira is a cave in Central Portugal with LGM human occupations in which faunal remains with dif...

Objective This paper aims to: (1) document a rare femoral heterotopic ossification (HO), and (2) discuss its aetiology and impact on the individual's locomotion and daily living activities. Materials Adult female skeleton (SG.14-SK.7) from the village of Constância (Portugal), and dated from the 14th-19th centuries CE. Methods The biological prof...

The invention of the microscope in the 17th century unveiled an extraordinarily rich and previously unimaginable new world beneath the level of our ordinary perception. It therefore marked a turning point in our perception and understanding of disease. Notwithstanding its huge contribution to the diagnosis and investigation of disease, many paleopa...

Throughout prehistory, landscapes were repeatedly subjected to both global and localized climatic fluctuations that changed the regional environments where human groups lived. This instability demanded constant adaptation and, as a result, the functionality of some sites changed over time. In this light, the western coast of Iberia represents an e...

Heterotopic ossification (HO) refers to the abnormal formation of lamellar bone, i.e. ectopic bone, in muscles, ligaments and other soft tissues. This study aims to document an unusual ectopic ossification observed in the right femur of an adult female individual (SG.14-SK.7) exhumed from the former necropolis of São Julião Church (Constância, Port...

Abrigo do Poço is a rock shelter located in the karstic canyon of Ribeira das Chitas in the River Lis basin (Central Portugal). The site has an Epipaleolithic occupation overlying a Solutrean occupation. Despite the multiple available resources in the vicinity, the main activity during the Upper Paleolithic occupation seems to have been the exploit...

Objectives Changes in the joints are believed to result from “wear and tear,” a consequence of activity, as entheseal changes (EC) result from muscle use. However, clinical data showed that activity does not necessarily increase the likelihood of degenerative joint changes (DJC) and that exercise results in healthier joints. We tested whether indiv...

The BoneMedLeg research project was developed to address current research concerns related to the use of skeletal reference collections for forensic purposes. These concerns were partly addressed by amassing a new reference collection which incorporates unclaimed human remains sourced from two municipal cemeteries in the city of Porto, Portugal. Am...

Periosteal new bone formation (PNBF) is a common finding in a large spectrum of diseases. In clinical practice, the morphology and location of periosteal lesions are frequently used to assist in the differential diagnosis of distinct bone conditions. Less commonly reported is the presence of PNBF on the ribs. This contrasts with the data retrieved...

In 2015, several disarticulated human skeletal remains were identified in the top layers of the prehistoric site of Buraca da Moira Rock Shelter (Boa Vista, Leiria), during the archaeological excavation carried out under the scope of the EcoPLis — Human Occupations in the Pleistocene Ecotones of the River Lis project. The recovery of chert, constiq...

O conhecimento em Evolução Humana, se bem que determinante para a compreensão da origem humana, da sua biologia e cultura, assim como da sua estreita relação com outras espécies vivas, designadamente da Ordem dos Primatas, continua a ocupar um peso residual no ensino das Ciências Naturais e Humanas. Essa presença é ainda mais incipiente junto do gr...

Periosteal rib lesions are an occasional finding in clinical settings. This reality contrasts with the data retrieved from the study of skeletonized human remains that show a strong, albeit not specific, association between periosteal rib lesions and pulmonary conditions (e.g., tuberculosis). Taking into account the problematic of the specificity a...

Jogo pedagógico | Para o ensino primário Neste jogo terás que encontrar a letra que está ausente, e com ela construir uma palavra sobre o esqueleto. Informação sobre o jogo Este jogo em Power Point apenas funcionará correctamente se utilizares a versão Power Point 2013 para o Windows, ou uma versão compatível.

Primatas - jogo pedagógico | Para o ensino secundário. "Que primata é?" Neste jogo irás tentar identificar o primata escondido. Link: https://geevh.jimdo.com/jogos-games/primatas-primates/

EvoMemo | jogo pedagógico Para o ensino secundário. Neste jogo irás testar os teus conhecimentos em evolução humana.

Pedagogical activity | Which primate is it? For Secondary/ high school. In this game you will try to identify the hidden primates.

Pedagogical activity | Letters and bones For Primary/ elementary school. In this game, each word is missing a letter. Can you guess which one?

EvoMemo | Pedagogical game For secondary school. In this game you will test your knowledge in human evolution.

Age-at-death estimation is one of the major challenges when establishing an adult skeleton biological profile. The presence of degenerative joint changes − e.g. osteophytes − has been regarded as a good postmaturity age indicator. This study assessed if a clear relationship between age and osteophytes exists. To accomplish this goal, a total of 16...

Cystic and cyst-like lesions of the jaw are a recurrent finding in routine dental radiography but not in paleopathology. This paper describes a large oval osteolytic cavity (23 × 14 mm) observed in the mandible of a middle-aged female unearthed from the Roman necropolis of Quinta da Torrinha/Quinta de Santo António (Almada, Portugal, 3rd-5th centur...

RESUMO A localização geográfica e o enquadramento ambiental ímpares da região de Leiria terão, desde tempos imemoriais, contribuíndo para a fixação de grupos humanos. De facto, várias são as evidências arqueológicas que atestam a presença humana na região desde o Paleolítico Inferior. Contudo, e para o Neolítico Final e Calcolítico, poucos são os d...

Differential diagnosis is a fundamental step in every palaeopathological study. It is a challenging exercise since many intrinsic and extrinsic factors may negatively impact the accurate interpretation of bone changes in human skeletal remains. Among these, the completeness and preservation of skeletal elements plays a significant role. This study...

Enquadrado no projeto de investigação EcoPLis – Ocupação Humana Plistocénica nos Ecótonos do Rio Lis, o Abrigo da Buraca da Moira situa‑se no vale dos Murtórios (Leiria). O sítio corresponde a uma cavidade cársica seccionada por uma pedreira artesanal, com uma sequência com níveis holocénicos e plistocénicos bioturbados. Os níveis arqueológicos hol...

Sixteen years after the major archaeological intervention in Praça da Figueira, data on the funerary universe of the Olisipo Northwest Necropolis starts to emerge. Focussing on a transdisciplinary approach, the archaeo‑ logical and anthropological records were analysed, the human skeletal remains were excavated in laboratory and the funerary struct...

Pedagogical game | Can you identify the bones of my skeleton? For Primary/ elementary school. In this game you will have to identify the different parts of the human skeleton. Game information This Power Point game will only function correctly on PowerPoint Version 2013 or similar for Windows.

Pedagogical Game | The planet of primates For Secondary/ high school. In this game you will learn more about the geographic distribution, habitat, and diet of living non-human primates.

Pedagogical game | Journey to the past For Middle/ secondary school. In this game you will learn more about human origins and evolution.

O Grupo de Estudos em Evolução Humana (GEEvH) é uma associação científica portuguesa, sem fins lucrativos, que tem como principal missão a promoção, o desenvolvimento e a divulgação da investigação no domínio da Evolução Humana. O GEEvH foi constituído por um grupo de alunos do antigo curso de Mestrado em Evolução Humana da Faculdade de Ciência e T...

EcoPLis 2017: Manual de campo EcoPLis 2017: Handbook of field work.

Para compreender a morte é necessário contextualiza-la no tempo e no espaço. É também necessário enquadrá-la em termos culturais, sociais e económicos - a disponibilidade e gestão do espaço sepulcral, a mundivivência e mundividência da morte à época. A estas dimensões de análise, associa-se uma dimensão biológica, expressa nos restos humanos esquel...

Entre 1999 e 2001, a construção de um parque de estacionamento subterraneo na Praça da Figueira (Lisboa) obrigou a uma intervenção arqueológica que colocou a descoberto uma necrópole romana - Necrópole Noroeste de Olisipo. Dezasseis anos depois, no âmbito de um estudo transdisciplinar, são analisados os conteúdos gráficos e fotográficos, as estrutu...

Resumo Durante décadas, a investigação paleolítica em Portugal focou-se princi-palmente nas regiões interiores. Mais recentemente, esse foco virou-se para o litoral após se ter percebido a relevância que as adaptações costeiras tive-ram na evolução e complexificação do comportamento humano. Esta mudança geográfica acentuou o pouco conhecimento exis...

Human skeletal remains associated with the former Royal Hospital of All Saints (RHAS, 18th century), were unearthed at Praça da Figueira, in Lisbon, in the years 1999/2000. A sample consisting of 19 individuals (17 adults – 6 females and 11 males, 2 non adults) with an age at death ranging from 4 to 35+ years was examined with the objective to asse...

Human skeletal remains associated with the former Royal Hospital of All Saints (RHAS, 18th century), were unearthed at Praça da Figueira, in Lisbon, in the years 1999/2000. A sample consisting of 19 individuals (17 adults – 6 females and 11 males, 2 non adults) with an age at death ranging from 4 to 35+ years was examined with the objective to asse...

No ano de 2015, durante a intervenção arqueológica afeta ao projeto EcoPlis: ocupação humana plistocénica nos ecótonos do rio Lis foram identificados vestígios esqueléticos humanos desarticulados à superfície e na camada superior do complexo cársico da Buraca da Moira (freguesia da Boa Vista, Leiria). A recuperação de artefactos em quartzo e sílex,...

Differential diagnosis is a fundamental step in every paleopathological study. It is a challenging exercise since many extrinsic and intrinsic factors may negatively impact the accurate interpretation of bone changes in human skeletal remains. Among them, one may stress the limited range of bone tissue response to injury and disease, as well as the...

Teeth preserve evidences of past populations lives. This study explores caries, dental wear, calculus, as well as signs of alveolar changes as proxy of behavior, health and environment interactions in a roman necropolis of Quinta da Torrinha/Quinta de Santo António (Almada, Portugal), dated 3rd-5th century AD. The sample is composed of 319 teeth, o...

Note: this thesis contains errors that were not noted until after submission. It is presented here in its uncorrected, original form. This thesis presents the findings of the osteological examination of skeletal remains exhumed from the Royal Hospital of All-Saints (RHAS), Lisbon, and constitutes the first comprehensive study of a hospital skeleta...

Conference programme and abstract book

The invention of the microscope revolutionized the course of human knowledge. This instrument changed the face of science and of previous beliefs, expanded the horizons of knowledge, and challenged philosophical and scientific thought, especially in the field of natural sciences and medicine. In the domain of bioarchaeology, the introduction of his...

Anthropology is considered a holistic discipline that studies humans in varied manners, ranging from their social cultural contexts, to their biological makeup both in the past as well as in the present. The complexity of the human species is well present in these various forms of expression. It is, therefore, a knowledge that draws from various di...

No âmbito da iniciativa “Férias Arqueológicas” da responsabilidade da Câmara Municipal de Ourém decorreu, entre os dias 4 e 18 de Agosto de 2014, uma intervenção arqueológica inédita na capela de São Sebastião, em Atouguia, Ourém. Nas sondagens realizadas detetaram-se valiosos elemen- tos, tais como estruturas até então desconhecidas, espólio artef...

Background: The inference of the state of wealth or poverty from human skeletal remains is a difficult task, as the limited number of skeletal changes are mediated by numerous other physiological, biomechanical and pathological events. In recent years, identified skeletal collections have become valuable resources in enabling aetiologies of these...

Identified human skeletal collections and their associated obituary records are useful sources to test many bioarchaeological research questions. However, the documentary evidence available does not necessarily assist in the identification of economic variables, particularly the identification of poverty. These collections do provide evidence of oc...

Between the years of 1999 and 2001, during the excavation of the Praça da Figueira (Lisbon, Portugal), several human osteological remains from various chronological periods were discovered. Amongst them several skeletons are known to be related with the Hospital Real de Todos-os-Santos (Royal Hospital of All Saints – RHAS), which had an important r...

Um dos achados que marcou a história da paleoantropologia e que veio revolucionar a árvore filogenética humana foi a descoberta, no século XIX, dos fósseis de Neandertal. Muitas notas introdutórias apresentam os Neandertais como hominíneos genética e morfologicamente distintos do Homo sapiens sapiens. De facto, e durante muito tempo, os Neandertais...

“Monkey business” Goals: To present the taxonomic classification of the Order Primates; to introduce our closest living relatives; to reveal the importance of knowing nonhuman primates and the need to preserve their habitat. Keypoints focused on: All are primates, but only some are monkeys: nomenclature and taxonomy of Primates. Our closest relativ...

“Monkey business” Goals: To present the taxonomic classification of the Order Primates; to introduce our closest living relatives; to reveal the importance of knowing nonhuman primates and the need to preserve their habitat. Keypoints focused on: All are primates, but only some are monkeys: nomenclature and taxonomy of Primates. Our closest relativ...

“Dance of the skeletons” Goals: To introduce the role of the skeleton in the physiological balance of the human body; to clarify the importance of recovering human skeletal remains from archaeological contexts to reconstruct past populations’ history and evolution. Keypoints focused on: basic notions of human osteology: What is the skeleton? What a...

GEEvH (Group of Studies in Human Evolution) Activities

“Drawings and scribbles—Prehistoric art” Goals: The concept of Art is applied to demonstrate prehistory’s symbolic and social behavior. Being conceived as a “spirit transcends nature,” art expresses itself by creating works with goals other than the satisfaction of subsistence needs. Art allows aesthetic expression linked with symbolic and playful...

Los científicos tienen un importante rol en el desarrollo de interfaces entre el conocimiento científico producido y las escuelas y/o el público en general. En Portugal, sin embargo, la transferencia de conocimiento entre las universidades y el público fue una actividad desvalorizada durante décadas. Con el objetivo de contrarrestar esta tendencia,...

Apart from the estimation of sex, stature and ancestry, the estimation of age-at-death is one of the most important parameters in the early stages of forensic identification, during the reconstruction of the biological profile. Numerous methods have been developed for adult age-at-death estimation from skeletonized and badly preserved human remains...

Several archaeological interventions were conducted, in 2011, at the Castelo de Leiria, namely at the church of Nossa Senhora da Pena/Santa Maria da Pena and surrounding areas, under the scope of an archaeological research project that is being carried out by the Municipality of Leiria and is co‑funded by the municipality, as by maisCENTRO, QREN an...

During the archaeological excavation, carried out in Praça da Figueira (Lisbon 1999-2001), human osteological remains associated with the necropolis of the extinct Royal Hospital of All Saints were exhumed. The hospital was an European reference in the treatment of syphilis, leprosy and other diseases. Its history began in 1492 and ends in 1773, wi...

Abstrac t Several archaeological interventions were conducted, in 2011, at the Castelo de Leiria, namely at the church of Nossa Senhora da Pena/Santa Maria da Pena and surrounding areas, under the scope of an archaeological research project that is being carried out by the Municipality of Leiria and is co‑funded by the municipality, as by maisCENTR...

Scientists play an important role in developing interfaces between the scientific knowledge produced and the schools and/or general public. In spite of its importance, the transference of knowledge between universities and the public has been neglected in Portugal during decades. Aiming to suppress this tendency, a nonprofit scientific organization...

Paleopathology, summarily defined as the study of past diseases, has on the differential diagnosis a major challenge. Histological techniques offered the possibility to look inside the microstructure of both normal and abnormal body tissues to diagnose diseases that affected past populations, leading to the development of a new field of research -...

Studies on identified skeletal collections yield discordant results about the association between osseous changes and activity. These dissonances can be ascribed to several factors: the variability of the osseous changes selected for observation, the inconsistency of their interpretative criteria and the inhomogeneous classification of occupation,...