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Data from: Biomechanical evidence for occupational specialization in Mesolithic-Neolithic hunter-gatherers from Zvejnieki, Latvia

Temple, Daniel1; Zarina, Gunita2; Zagorska, Ilga2; Macane, Aija3

Published Apr 16, 2026 on Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.c866t1gnf

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Apr 16, 2026 version files 110.30 KB

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Abstract

The dataset includes cross-sectional geometric properties from humeri and femora at the Zvejnieki archaeological site. The code includes programs that produce 95 % credibility intervals for individuals with and without burial pendants for femoral and humeral cross-sectional properties, and 95 % credibility intervals comparing Zvejnieki femora to a European database from the Paleolithic through Neolithic periods. In addition, the code also includes programs that produce randomized mean differences in humeral and femoral biomechanical properties between males with and without burial pendants. The humeral code performs this for right and left humeral measurements simultaneously and produces graphs that illustrate 1) the region of practical equivalence surrounding the randomized mean difference for right and left; 2) provides unique shading for the right and left sides; and 3) indicates the location of the observed mean difference relative the randomized permutations for right and left sides using unique symbols. For femora, the code produces randomized differences in femoral biomechanical measurements for females and males, uses unique shading for females and males, and identifies the region of practical equivalence with sex-specific bars. Female and male observed means are imposed with unique symbols to identify their location relative to the region of practical equivalence within the randomized permutations. All graphs are coded to appear in the same image, at publication-ready high resolution (> 600 DPI). Results from this work illustrate unique patterns of manual activity between individuals with and without pendants, emphasizing the increasing dimensions of mortuary practices among Mesolithic-Neolithic hunter-gatherers. In addition, results suggest reduced femoral robusticity among female and male community members at Zvejnieki, consistent with limited mobility and interaction with relatively flat terrain. Data from this study may be used as a comparative sample in future biomechanical studies. Code from this work can be applied to comparative studies interested in producing 95 % credibility interval and randomized permutation comparisons across multiple variables, and the output is structured so that each variable comparison reads into singular graphs in publication-friendly formats.