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Life and Health of Seventeenth-Century Infants Revealed by ‘Virtual Autopsies’

Life and Health of Seventeenth-Century Infants Revealed by ‘Virtual Autopsies’

 


A young child found in an unmarked coffin in an Austrian catacombs is remarkably well-preserved, with bones and organs showing signs of rickets and pneumonia.


human


October 26, 2022

mummy details

Close-up of a mummified child’s hand

A G Nerlich et al/Frontiers

an infant born into an aristocratic Austrian family in the 17th centuryth Century died of being overweight, but may have been deficient in vitamin D, according to researchers who performed a “virtual autopsy” on a mummified corpse.

A remarkably well-preserved body scan revealed a knobby dilation of the rib joint typical of rickets caused by a vitamin D deficiency and a thick layer of fat. This probably helped the tissue to mummify. Findings suggest that the child was overfed and not exposed to sunlight, which led to his death. Andrew Nerick At the German Academic Clinic Munich Bogenhausen.

Nerich and his colleagues examined the body of an infant after an unmarked wooden coffin was found in a basement near a castle in Upper Austria. The cellar had a constant air flow and a steady temperature, which probably helped dry the child’s body. It could be used for scientific research,” he says.

Combining radiocarbon dating of the remains with records of crypt construction, researchers estimated that the child was buried about 400 years ago. Considering the infant’s approximate age at death (10-18 months old) and the silk his wrap indicating aristocratic birth, from 1625 he lived until 1626, the eldest son of Count Starchenberg. It is believed to be one of his Reichard Wilhelm.

Based on computed tomography (CT) scans of the body, researchers confirmed the child was male, and his bone measurements and eruption of teeth were consistent with a child of about one year old.

An infant mummy from Hellmons?dt crypt.Whole body view with silk coat

Infant mummy found in basement

A G Nerlich et al/Frontiers

Scans of his ribs revealed that they showed beaded rosaries, a condition typical of severe cases of rickets. Rickets is primarily caused by a deficiency of vitamin D, which is produced by the body when exposed to UV light. His leg bones were not crooked, a tell-tale sign of rickets in older children. The arm bones appeared slightly bent.

The infant’s lungs became inflamed, suggesting that he may have died of pneumonia.

“The combination of obesity and severe vitamin deficiencies can only be explained by a generally ‘good’ nutritional status, in addition to an almost complete lack of sun exposure.

Whether such a combination of characteristics was common is unknown, but premature infant mortality was generally higher among the upper social classes during the Renaissance than it is today, says Nerlich.

Journal reference: medical frontier, DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2022.979670

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2/ https://www.newscientist.com/article/2344096-17th-century-infants-life-and-health-revealed-by-virtual-autopsy/

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