Bioarchaeology Laboratory

Penn State University

Welcome to George Milner's Bioarchaeology Laboratory

Current and Recent Projects

Skeletons from the Archaic through Historic periods occasionally show signs of warfare-related trauma.

Undergraduates in the field at the Annis site in Kentucky.  The Field School in 2003 and 2004 found two palisades, a house, and several pits.

Dr. Milner is examining mummy parts in an Egyptian tomb. This work was conducted as part of the Redford's project in CAMS.Dr. Milner is examining mummy parts in an Egyptian tomb.  This work was conducted as part of Susan Redford's ongoing project in CAMS.

The Mound BuildersA recent overview of prehistoric eastern North America includes research results from the lab, and it illustrates how diverse archaeological data can be used to characterize life in the distant past.

George R. Milner
The Moundbuilders
Thames and Hudson, Ltd.

 

  1. Refining skeletal age-estimation methods, and using them to improve knowledge of ancient population structures.
  2. Using skeletal and site data to identify geographical and temporal patterning in warfare in prehistoric eastern North America, and linking that variation in population size, technology, social organization, and environmental conditions.

  3. Estimating late prehistoric Eastern North American population distribution and size.

  4. Identifying processes that led to great accumulations of disarticulated bones and mummy parts in ancient Egyptian (Valley of the Nobles) tombs. Identifying the chemical signatures of eastern Woodlands cooper and its distribution through Middle Woodland (c. 2,000 BP) exchange networks (Matt McKnight's doctoral research)

  5. Clarifying change over time in hunter-gatherer Archaic (c. 10,000 - 3,000 BP) adaptations in western Kentucky, with an emphasis on the demographic and land-use dimensions of early sedentism.

  6. Delineating the spatial layout of a small Mississippian period mound site, Annis, in western Kentucky (c. 700 BP), and investigating the nature and extent of social differentiation indicated by artifacts and structures (Scott Hammerstedt's doctoral research. Archaeological Conservancy's Fall 2003 issue of American Archaeology). Penn State Field School 2003-04.