ABSTRACT The human skeletal remains buried in the cave of Rima Rau on the island of Atiu, have long been a subject of speculation as to their origins. Oral histories of a massacre, battle, famine and cannibal feast surround the sacred site. The local Atiuan community invited a group of bioarchaeologists from the University of Otago to help shed light on the people buried in the cave. We examined nearly 600 skeletal elements and 400 teeth, which represent at least 38 adults and 8 infants and children. This research is the assessment of their oral health, a first for a prehistoric Cook Island population. Oral health was within the range of other tropical Pacific skeletal assemblages, for dental caries, antemortem tooth loss, and supragingival calculus, with low rates of periodontal disease and periapical cavities. Degeneration of the temporomandibular joint was high and this was associated with enamel chipping, possibly linked to diet. Enamel defect prevalence indicates sex-specific health differences, but the population was robust with a good proportion who survived to adulthood despite periods of early childhood stress. Through the consideration of a skeletal census and oral health indicators, we begin to describe the burials in the cave.

中文翻译：

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库克群岛阿提乌史前 Rima Rau 洞穴墓葬的口腔健康

摘要 埋在阿提乌岛 Rima Rau 洞穴中的人类骨骼遗骸长期以来一直是人们猜测其起源的主题。大屠杀、战斗、饥荒和食人者盛宴的口述历史围绕着圣地。当地的 Atiuan 社区邀请了奥塔哥大学的一组生物考古学家来帮助了解埋在洞穴中的人。我们检查了近 600 个骨骼元素和 400 颗牙齿，它们代表至少 38 名成人和 8 名婴儿和儿童。这项研究是对他们口腔健康的评估，这是史前库克岛人口的首次研究。口腔健康在其他热带太平洋骨骼组合的范围内，如龋齿、死前牙齿脱落和龈上牙石，牙周病和根尖周洞的发生率较低。颞下颌关节的退化程度很高，这与牙釉质碎裂有关，可能与饮食有关。牙釉质缺陷的患病率表明性别特定的健康差异，但尽管儿童早期压力大，但仍有很大一部分人存活到成年。通过对骨骼普查和口腔健康指标的考虑，我们开始描述洞穴中的墓葬。