The Adaima necropolis in the Nile Valley of Egypt has revealed more than
800 morphologically well preserved skeletons (adults, new-borns and
children) dated from 3800 to 3000 BC. This makes it one of the most
important prehistoric human samples in such a good state of
conservation. It provides a unique opportunity to study the coevolution
of man and diseases at this period. A synthesis of the study of funerary
practices at this site takes into account the type of burial, whether
these were primary or secondary burials, the occurrence of multiple
burials, the existence of human sacrifices and differences in funerary
practices between the different sectors of the cemetery. We propose a
methodology to study funerary practices based on the three stages: to
view, hide and sanctify. A paleodemographic study can apportion the role
of the selection of subjects to be buried and the demography of ancient
populations. These studies are then combined with a systematic survey of
lesions in adults and children, whether infectious diseases, traumatic
injuries, growth disorders, osteoarthritis and enthesopathies, DISH,
rheumatologic diseases (spondyloarthritis), oral pathology, non-specific
lesions (cribra orbitalia, endocranial lesion, periostitis, Harris
lines), and pathologies more difficult to study in the past such as
dystocia childbirth, calcified lymph node and bladder stones. This
allows us to derive the frequency of these diseases and lesions in the
ecological context of the Nile Valley, and compare it with that of other
prehistoric populations. In Adaima, the mortality rate was particularly
related to an increase in the number of children per family, and a
tuberculosis epidemic. The natural history of tuberculosis at this
period resembles that in populations with no prior exposure to the
disease during the historical period. A study on dental discrete traits
shows that several populations of different origins lived in the Valley
at this period. Adaima derived from one of these heretofore unknown
populations.
