A case of bifid rib from the “G. Marro” Egyptian osteological Collection

The present study is part of the "Anthropological Archive" research program that was conceived as a systematic approach to the analysis of ancient human specimens from a historical, palaeodemographic and palaeo-epidemiological perspective. Its aim is the reconstruction of past environments and populations through the selection, recording and analysis of significant biological traits. The epidemiological study of malformations and developmental pathologies is very important in this field. The aim of such analyses is to identify: causal or concausal relationships between the congenital malformations and the environment (natural or artificially modified by man); the daily habits of the population (diet, work activities, exposure to toxins or pollutants); populations with a high genetic load. The present case documents a skeletal malformation rarely observed in archaeological material.