Tumors in antiq uity in East and Middle Europe • 253 



Table 2. Tumors from ancient Russian skeletons 



ABBREVIATIONS: c, century, F, female; M, male; ad, adult; m, mature adult; 

 s, senile adult; j, juvenile; i, infant; I, indeterminate 



SOURCES: Rochlin (1963); data for Kyzyl-Dzar and Kamien from Zacharow 

 et ai. (1983) 



lists the kinds of tumors, their frequency, their location, and 

 time period. The only case of multiple myeloma comes from 

 a Medieval skeleton (7th- 1 3th century) at Libice where there 

 were also eight cases of osteoma. In the Medieval Caslavsky 

 Hradek cemetery one case of metastasis and seven of os- 

 teoma were observed, in the Mikulcice II burial ground one 

 case of metastasis and one of osteoma, and in the Virt ceme- 

 tery two cases of metastases. Other neoplasms were found in 

 Bartcice and Pribice cemeteries, both dating from the Bronze 

 Age. Most of the tumors were benign — 52 (86.6%). They 

 include 45 osteomas (86.5% of all benign tumors), two cysts, 

 one angioma, one meningioma, and one osteoid osteoma. 

 Eight cases (13.4%) are malignant: one multiple myeloma 

 and seven metastases. 



Ancient Russia 



Tlimors from ancient Russia are listed in Table 2. It is very 

 difficult to present these data because some diagnoses are 

 equivocal. In the Sarkiel cemetery (IOth-1 Ith century a.d.) 

 among 294 skeletons there are nine burials (3.1%) with tu- 

 mors, seven benign and two malignant. More malignant tu- 



Zagreb Paleopalhology Symp 1988 



mors are known from the Asian part of Russia. This part of 

 Russia also presents the only case of tumor known to be 

 transmitted in a hereditary fashion; exostoses multiplices 

 (manifesting as multiple exostoses). 



Poland 



Basic data on tumors from Polish cemeteries are presented in 

 Table 3 (and see Gladykowska-Rzeczycka 1978,1982.1985; 

 Gladykowska-Rzeczycka and Mysliwski 1986). Skeletons 

 are found in two Neolithic and eight Medieval cemeteries, 

 but no tumors were observed in two of the Medieval ceme- 

 teries and they are not included in the table. The state of 

 preservation of these bones is not good, but as we have 

 learned, such specimens can still reveal identifiable tumors. 

 Benign tumors include 23 (37.7%) "ivory" osteomas, 19 

 (31.1%) exostoses solitaria, 2 (3.3%) osteoid osteomas, I 

 (1.6%) ameloblastoma, I (1.6%) chondroma, 4 (6.6%) an- 

 giomas, 1 ( 1 .6% ) probable meningioma, and 2 (3.3%) cysts. 

 Malignant tumors were observed in three individuals (4.9%). 

 Five skeletons (8.2%) had changes probably produced by 

 tumors. 



