New anthropological research on the urban population inhabiting the city of Iaşi during the medieval age. The necropolis of the Banu Church (16th-19th centuries)

In this article, the authors present the results of a bioanthropological research conducted upon a small osteological series (67 skeletons) unearthed from the necropolis of the old Banu Church, called at the time “The Falling Asleep of the Virgin Mary” Church. According to the information provided by those in charge of the digging (Stela Cheptea, PhD and C.S.I archaeologist and her collaborators), the necropolis was used from the first half of the 16th century to the beginning of the 19th century. The unearthed osteological material is mostly derived from reinhumation tombs and includes 67 skeletons or skeletal remains, of which 18 children (0-14 years: approximately 27%), three adolescents (14-20 years: approximately 4%), two adults, 40 matures (approximately 60%) and four seniles. The average life span, both for the entire series (0-x years) and by gender (20-x years) is similar to that of the late medieval populations who inhabited the Central Moldavian Plateau. The analysis of the conformative and morphoscopic biometric features revealed typological elements which indicate a Dinaric-Mediterranean-Alpine background, with rare Nordoid or East-Europoid influences. The Alpine elements give a distinctive mark to this population group