ABSTRACT
Studies of the human condition, both biological and cultural, often concentrate on the adult segment of a population. However, children undergo rapid growth and development, and they are often more sensitive to physiological stressors. In fact, childhood is considered the ‘bottleneck’ of natural selection; therefore, a group’s ability to supply the means for their survival provides a monitor of adaptive success. Without question, the most surprising finds associated with the Byzantine St Stephen’s skeletal collection was the sheer number of child and adolescent bones. Nearly one-third of the 15,000+ remains are those of young people, from seven months in utero to approximately sixteen years of age. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a detailed bioarcheological synthesis of twenty+ years of research on their skeletal and dental remains, integrated with the Byzantine written and material records for the site and region. While much information appears in the literature of the time about St Stephen’s monastery, no mention is made of the presence of children. A fuller understanding of their presence in a monastic tomb may provide a glimpse of adaptive mechanisms for child-rearing in Byzantine society, and the role of the early Church in their well-being.
