Paper short abstract:

This paper will explore patterns of dental wear in relation to age at death and burial status. The deciduous (primary) molar teeth of 142 late medieval skeletons were analysed, with results indicating a significant association between dental wear and both age and status.

Paper long abstract:

Rates of dental wear on the permanent dentition are often cited as a way of ageing adult skeletons and as a means of interpreting diet and status. However, the deciduous (primary) dentition appears to have received little exploration in these areas. This paper will discuss the results of a study on the dental wear patterns of 142 skeletons from the English late medieval priory cemeteries of SS Peter and Paul, Taunton, St Oswald, Gloucester, and St Gregory, Canterbury. The deciduous dentition tends to be completely erupted by two years of age, with the permanent teeth erupting no earlier than six years. If the teeth of an individual between these ages are firmly held in the jaw then it can be difficult to assign age, and dental wear may be of use. It is also postulated that if a discernable relationship between dental wear stage and burial location can be seen then this could reflect a difference in diet between those receiving higher or lower status burial. A new method for scoring dental wear stages was devised for use with deciduous molar teeth. No significant difference was seen for the rates of wear on the second deciduous molar, between the three sites, indicating that dental wear on this tooth may be of use as an age predictor. Dental wear stage did appear to be an indicator of status, with those individuals buried within church buildings showing less wear than those of a similar age from other burial locations.