Caratteristiche morfometriche della popolazione sarda dal Neolitico al XIX secolo: craniometria e statura

The aim of this work is to contribute to antropological’ studies of Sardinia from late Neolithic (4000-3200 BCE) to 19th CE, in order to improve the knowledge of history and biological characteristic of the Sardinians. The study of skeletal material has allowed to evaluate morphological changes in time and space, to determinate the variability within population and, when possible, to make comparisons with other past and recent populations. Sardinian skeletal series with radiocarbon dates or from culturally well-defined archeological contexts have been studied. The osteometric measurements have been taken on adult’s bone, who had completed growth and who did not present evident pathological conditions. Craniofacial morphometric variation has been used to obtain information on Sardinian population structure, to investigate the biological distance and to evaluate the possible congruence with the genetic data. Biological relationships with populations of peninsular Italy and Europe, from Paleolithic to Modern period, have been also analysed to detect influences from and towards extra-Sardinian sources The analysis is based on multivariate techniques including R-Matrix analysis, principal coordinate analysis, discriminant functional analysis and cluster analysis. The results have showed a clear separation among Paleo-Meso-Neolithic populations and others more recent European populations. It has also noticed the tendency to a progressive differentiation between Sardinian groups and peninsular Italian groups with the possible exception of a discontinuity showed by the Bonnànaro (Early Bronze Age) Sardinian sample and the Sardinian Punic-Roman and Medieval samples. In fact, these groups show biological affinities with Italian coeval groups and a discontinuity with other Sardinian ancient populations. The morphological results are in agreement with the current genetics evidence for the present-day Sardinian population and ancient DNA of Sardinia sample. These data demonstrate a biological divergence between the Sardinian and peninsular Italian populations; similarity/continuity among Neolithic, Bronze Age and recent Sardinians; and a contribution of a Palaeo-Mesolithic gene pool to the genetic structure of current Sardinians Stature variations in the Sardinian population from the Neolithic to the Modern period has been studied to evaluate the intensity of millennial changes. Analyses of stature variation in prehistoric and historical populations present considerable problems in the reliability of comparisons. To properly compare the results of different studies, it would be necessary to conduct a systematic review of the chronological and cultural contexts of the skeletal series used. Moreover, it would also be necessary to identify the most appropriate method to calculate stature values, since stature reconstruction formulae are specific for certain times and places. The Sardinian samples have showed two different trends for males and females. The results of Sardinian stature variations have been then compared with the values of coeval skeletal series reported in the literature for other Southern European countries (Italy, Spain, Portugal), in order to identify a common trend in millennial changes among the considered populations. The data collected and analyzed indicated that there are no conditions to reliably identify a common trend in millennial changes among the considered populations of southern Europe. In conclusion, the analysis of morphometric characteristics of Sardinian skeletal series from Neolithic to 19th CE, suggest the reliability of a Sardinian biological continuity and their possible derivation from Western European Upper Paleolithic populations through Italian Neolithic samples. The analysis of stature data raise the issue of reliability of the estimated values and consequently the possibility of identifying a common trend in stature.