ABSTRACT
Once human remains have been recovered from the fi eld, four initial steps must be performed before osteological analysis can begin. First, all soft tissue remaining on the bone must be removed so that it does not obscure important features that can help in the identifi cation process. Second, broken bones and structures (e.g., skulls) must be reconstructed, sorted into separate individuals, and reassembled into skeletons in the anatomical position. Third, the individual bones of all represented persons must be inventoried. Last, if the remains are fragmentary and incomplete, an inventory of individual bones and calculation of minimum number of individuals (MNI) must be made. Since most labs do not have the facilities or materials (e.g., cadavers) to teach you how to remove soft tissue, only the reassembling of broken bones, sorting of commingled individuals, and placing skeletons in the anatomical position for inventorying will be done in this lab. Before attempting the exercises given here, familiarize yourself with Chapter 6 in the textbook.
