Human Osteology and Forensics Research and Teaching Lab

The Human Osteological laboratory facility, located in (tbd), holds an extensive teaching collection of the human skeleton and focuses on human skeletal biology, paleopathology and the forensic context of human remains. By focusing on modern humans, this lab gives students the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the features of the human skeleton for applied purposes such as human osteology, bioarchaeology and forensic anthropology. This lab is used to teach students the identifiable features of skeletal anatomy, as well as abnormal skeletal changes (trauma and pathology), distinguishing human from non-human skeletal material, differentiating archaeological from forensic contexts, and reconstructing the demographics of an individual through their skeletal variables (age, sex, ancestry, and stature).

The Human Osteology lab is equipped with forensic kits, sliding calipers, spreading calipers, an osteometric board, and now includes a new Hillson-Fitzgerald digital dental caliper. The osteological collection in the lab includes fully disarticulated skeletons of both sexes; various postcrania such as articulated and disarticulated pelvises of both sexes; samples of dental development from infant, juvenile, and adult humans; black bear frontal paw bones for forensic comparison; examples of skeletal pathology and trauma; and more than 20 human skulls of various ancestry and age. The lab is also equipped with a reference collection of textbooks and works related to human osteology.