ABSTRACT
Paleoanthropological and archaeozoological analyses are primary focused on the taxonomic determination of vertebrate remains and the identification and quantification of skeletal elements. It is important to evaluate whether skeletal tissues have been affected by taphonomic processes before performing DNA, protein fingerprinting or isotopic analysis or using histological data to conduct functional analyses. Bone histology has also been used as a tool for functional analysis in archaeozoology, although it features less prominently than in paleontological research. Most pathologies are studied macroscopically, but histological analyses have been useful in identifying certain types of pathology, particularly in humans and allied species. Macroscopic analyses of hard tissues can be used to establish an individual's age and season of death. The use of histological data, therefore, has been promoted as a more precise means of establishing individual age and season of death.
