AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 53:579-587 (1980)

Age, Sex, and Antemortem Loss of Teeth in

Prehistoric Eskimo Samples From Point
Hope and Kodiak Island, Alaska
RAYMOND L. COSTA, JR.
Department of Oral Anatomy, College of Dentistry, University of Illinois at the Medical
Center, Chicago, Illinois 60680

KEY WORDS Dentition, Eskimos, Antemortem tooth loss

ABSTRACT
The incidence of teeth lost antemortem was investigated in 244
archeologically derived dried skeletal specimens from the Ipiutak and Tigara
burials at Point Hope, Alaska, and 83 Koniag Eskimo specimens excavated at
Jones Point, Uyak Bay, Kodiak Island, Alaska. Ipiutak skeletal remains date
from approximately 1500 years B.P. and the Tigara remains from 300-400 years
B.P. The Kodiak Island sample is undated. Specimens were sexed and aged in
five-year groupings using standard techniques. Teeth lost antemortem were
identified as having occupied tooth sockets which showed healing of alveolar
bone following exfoliation. Numbers of lost teeth were calculated as percentages of
total number of tooth sites of each tooth classification for each age, sex, and site
subgrouping.
Tooth loss was very low in the Kodiak Island sample, with little difference between sexes and no identifiable age trends. The Tigara remains displayed
moderate tooth loss, with strong correlations t o increasing age and little differentiation between the sexes. The Ipiutak specimens lost the most teeth antemortem, with notable between-sex differences and strong correlations with
increasing age. In all groups loss of anterior teeth was probably due to accident or
heavy wear, while loss of posterior teeth was due to heavy wear, periodontal disease, or agenesis.
Antemortem loss of teeth is of interest to
anthropologists, dentists, and public health investigators. Teeth are lost in living persons
because of trauma from accident or heavy
paramasticatory usage or because of the
disease processes of caries and peridontal disease. Teeth were sometimes removed in branding of slaves (Hrdlieka, 1940), or for cosmetic
reasons, such as ritual tooth ablation (Moortgat, 1959)or modern orthodonture. The causes
of tooth loss in the living can be determined relatively easily and data concerning loss of teeth
are available for several modern societies
(Brekhus, 1929; Gould, 1965; Grewe et al.,
1966; Jackson, 1965; Krogh, 1958; MacGregor,
1972; Myers and Lee, 1974; Todd and Whitworth, 1974; Sheiham et al., 1969). Tooth loss
per se has rarely been recorded for archeological skeletal samples (Curzon, 1978; Hrdlieka,
1940; Lennon, et al., 1974; Merbs, 1968), but
has often been included in larger works concerning the dentitions of prehistoric people
(Hooton, 1930; Patterson, 1979; Snow, 1948).
0002-9483/80/5304-0579$02.00 6 1980 ALAN R. LISS, INC.

Most interest in tooth loss concerns its

utility in quickly assessing 1)the dental health
of both archeological samples and living populations, 2) the success of modern dentistry in
preventing dental disease, and 3) geographical
areas where there is insufficient dental health
care. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the frequencies of missing teeth in three
prehistoric Eskimo samples whose diets and
archeology are known, and to examine any relationships between diet, paramasticatory use,
dental disease, and tooth loss patterns.
STUDY SAMPLES

During field seasons from 1939 to 1941 at

Point Hope, Alaska, two prehistoric graveyards were excavated by Larsen, Rainey, and
Shapiro. The skeletal remains recovered are
now housed in the American Museum of
Natural History, New York City, New York.
The Point Hope peninsula juts into the ChukReceived July 10, 1979; accepted April 29, 1980.

580

R.L. COSTA, JR.

chi Sea 200 kilometers north of the Arctic

Circle. Excavations were carried out near the
modern settlement at the tip of the peninsula.
Three consecutive archological horizons were
identified, with which three large collections of
skeletal remains were associated. Forty-six
aged and sexed skeletons from the oldest Ipiutak group were used in this study. Point Hope
is the type site of the Ipiutak culture, which is
210 years B.P. 1958 (P-98)
dated at 1619
(Rainey and Ralph, 1959; Ralph and Ackerman, 1961).This date can be corrected to 1659
5 210 years B.P. (Costa, 1980; Ralph et al.,
1973). The Ipiutak culture is conspicuous in
the Alaskan littoral environment in an absence
of artifacts associated with whaling and in the
presence of caribou faunal remains, suggesting
that the Ipiutak people were caribou hunters
(Larsen and Rainey, 1948; Giddings, 1967).
One hundred ninety-eight aged and sexed
skeletons used in this study come from the
graveyard associated with the Tigara horizon.
The Tigara culture was similar to that practiced by modern Eskimos living at Point
Hope. Debetz feels that both the Ipiutak and
Tigara peoples belonged to the North branch
of the Mongoloid stock. Due to minor, but statistically consistent, differences in cranial
measurements between the two groups,
Debetz feels they are genetically distinct and
that the Ipiutak people were not ancestral to
the Tigara people (Debetz, 1959). While this
point may be open to question, it is certain that
the two groups differed culturally and dietarily. The Tigara graveyard is dated at roughly
300-400 years B.P.
The most recent group of skeletons from the
Point Hope peninsula is from Jabbertown
some 10 kilometers south of Tigara. This
skeletal series interdigitates with modern
times and diets, and was not used.
The diets of the Ipiutak and Tigara people
were substantially different. Fish and seal
were staples of both groups, but the Ipiutak
people hunted caribou while the Tigara people
were whalers. The Tigara diet was probably
similar to that of modern Point Hope Eskimos
eating a traditional diet. Bell and Heller (1978)
report that all necessary vitamins and minerals are present in the fat and protein component of the modern Point Hope diet which is
obtained from traditional sources. While 46%
of the calories of the current diet (circa 1974)
come from imported carbohydrates, the traditional diet consisted mainly of fish, eaten fresh
or dried on open racks, and whale meat which
+_

was eaten fresh or kept frozen underground as a

year-round staple (Giddings, 1967). Seal, another staple, was often eaten raw a t the site of
the catch. There is uncertainty concerning the
amount of food preparation practiced by the
prehistoric Point Hope peoples. Driftwood
probably provided cooking fuel. Modern Eskimos cook with driftwood fires or on modern
stoves. Some food is still eaten raw: Seal fat
with skin attached is chewed for prolonged
periods of time and is not cooked (Balikci,
1970).
The third study sample was excavated by
HrdliEka during the 1930s at a site called
Jones Point, on Uyak Bay, Kodiak Island,
Alaska. The exact location of the site is not
known and Jones Point does not appear on
maps. The skeletal remains are now housed at
the Smithsonian Institution, Washington,
D.C. Hrdlieka excavated skeletal material all
over Kodiak Island, but only the Jones Point
series is large enough and complete enough to
yield a suitable sample. Eighty-three aged and
sexed individuals from the superficial levels of
the Jones Point site are used in this study.
Skeletal material from Hrdlizkas deepburials have been deleted. No radiocarbon data
exists for this site, but it is pre-White contact
(Hrdlizka, 1944).
The Jones Point site was not excavated with
care sufficient to recover faunal or detailed
dietary remains. The diet, while reflecting the
littoral environment, differed notably from
that consumed at Point Hope. Kodiak Island
enjoys a much warmer climate than Point
Hope, and is not near whale migration routes
or caribou herds. The diet of Jones Point
Koniag Eskimo was most likely similar to that
of prehistoric Aleuts, consisting of seal, sea
lion, walrus, shell fish, and fish-notably cod
and salmon. The Koniag Eskimo were adept
whalers. The warm climate allowed fishing and
hunting year round (Laughlin, 1963).Like the
Point Hope peoples, the diet was predominantly protein and fat, although the sources differed. Food was probably not preserved by
freezing, nor eaten frozen, but fish was probably dried or preserved in oil using methods
similar to northwest coast Indians (Boaz,
1966).
METHODS

Age
The pubic symphysis is a reasonably accurate indicator of age (Brooks, 1955;McKern and
Stewart, 1957; Todd, 1920). Changes in the

TOOTH LOSS IN PREHISTORIC ESKIMOS

pubic symphysis alone can be used to establish

age at death from 18 to about 50 years within
five-year gradients. Each specimen was
checked and scored for 10 diagnostic pubic
symphysis characteristics and compared to a
master plot. The symphysis in best condition
was used if both innominates were present.

581

established, and third molars were therefore

considered as a separate dental group.
Tables 1,2, and 3 contain data for individual
tooth types, but central and lateral incisors,
premolars, and first and second molars have
been combined for purposes of analysis. Canines and third molars were analyzed separately. Tooth type groups were arranged for both
Sex
sexes and all groups, and separate tables comSex was determined by forehead shape and piled for each study sample containing the
relative size and gracility of the skull number of missing teeth and the percentage of
(Krogman, 1962),the size and shape of the sci- teeth lost in each subgroup. Statistical analyatic notch and birth canal and the angle of the ses indicated that right and left sides and
pubic symphysis in the pelvis. Skulls and upper and lower jaws could be combined in all
pelves were sexed independently. The Kodiak three study samples. Linear regressions, where
Island remains had previously been sexed by X = percent of teeth lost and Y = age, were
Hrdlieka and his assignments were also performed for each tooth group, sex subrecorded. Washburns Pubic index, Exm,groups, and whole samples. No attempt to
where P = length of the pubic bone fromI mid- combine either tooth groupings or sexes was
acetabulum to the inferior border, and I = attempted, since some sexisiteiageltooth sublength of the ischium from midacetabulum to groups combined with a high degree ot statistithe pubic symphysis, was calculated (Wash- cal certainty and others did not. Sufficient
burn, 1948).Final assignment to sex was based data is contained in the tables to allow post hoc
on a consensus of pubic index values and anal- statistical analyses.
yses of nonmetric traits for the skull and inRESULTS
nominate bones. If a specimen agreed on two of
Point
Hope,
Ipiutak (Table 1)
three assessments, it was assigned a sex. Specimens which could not be sexed were dropped
Males are characterized by a very low loss
from the sample. Agreement between skull as- rate for incisors (5.3%),canines (1.0%),and presessments and pubic indices was 68%; agree- molars (4.3%).No linear regression can be perment between innominate assessments and formed for the canines (sample size of one),but
pubic indices was 90%.
loss of incisors and premolars is well correlated
to age. Firstisecond molars show a much highDENTAL STATE
er loss rate: 54.2% lost in the 36-40 year, and
Antemortem tooth loss can be intentional or 63.5% lost in the 41-45 year age groups and
can be the result of trauma or disease. Hrdlieka 20.2% lost overall. Thirty-nine and four-tenths
concentrates on direct and indirect evidence to percent of third molars are lost overall. Molar
identify intentional ablation of anterior teeth loss and age are well correlated. Both firsti
(1940),as does Merbs (1968).The current study second and third molars are lost less frequentconcerns loss of anterior and posterior teeth. ly in the 46 age groups than in the 41-45 or
Antemortem tooth loss was distinguished 36-40 year groups.
from postmortem tooth loss by the presence of
Ipiutak females do not display the same loss
at least some remodeling of the alveolar bone pattern as males. Anterior tooth loss is much
and tooth socket after tooth loss. The excellent higher: 19.4% of incisors, 8.8% of canines and
state of preservation of the Point Hope 1.9% of premolars lost antemortem. Loss of inskeletal material allowed precise identification cisors is poorly correlated with age, while
of such sockets. The Kodiak Island remains canine loss is well correlated with age and prewere also well preserved, since Hrdlieka had molar loss very well correlated. Twenty and
sorted skeletal material on-site and discarded six-tenths percent of firstisecond molars are
specimens in poor condition (Hrdlieka, 1940). lost overall, with a maximim of 75.0% lost in
No attempt was made to identify the cause of the 41-45 year group. Third molars have a
loss for individual teeth. Many apparent 33.8% loss rate and a maximum of 100%lost in
examples of molar agenesis were observed in the 41-45 year group. There is a decline in the
the Tigara skeletal remains. Since radio- 46
group, probably due to a sample size of
graphic equipment was not available, an ab- one: That individual lost only three teeth antesolute rate of third molar agenesis could not be mortem.

582

R.L. COSTA, JR.

TABLE I . Ante mortem tooth loss: Ipiutak

16-20

21-25

Male_

Age
31-35
36-40
No. of individuals
4
5
3

26-30

41-45

46+

Total

26

6
30.0

6
5.8

2
10.0

5
4.8

1
5.0

1
1.o

1
8.3

2
10.0

4
3.8

2
10.0

5
4.8

I1

Number'
Percent2

I2

Number
Percent

Number
Percent

P3

Number
Percent

1
6.3

P4

Number
Percent

1
6.3

1
5.0

1
8.3

M1

Number
Percent

1
6.3

4
20.0

5
41.6

2
50.0

30.0

18
17.3

4
20.0

8
66.7

3
75.0

9
45.0

24
23.1

M2

Number
Percent

M3

Number
Percent

Total

Number
Percent

2
10.0

1
4.4

Correlation
coefficient
A.M. teeth
and age

,971
( I 1 12)

+
-

.706
(P3 P4)

,723
(M1 M2)

2
7.1

7
43.8

10
50.0

6
50.0

4
100.0

12
60.0

41
39.4

,775

3
1.3

10
7.8

21
13.1

21
21.9

9
29.1

40
25.0

104
12.5

,956

No. of Individuals
Female
1
4
7
3
3
1
1
20
Number
1
4
4
2
1
17
I1 5
Percent

17.9

33.3

33.3

50.0

Number
Percent

2
7.1

8
66.7

2
16.7

2
50.0

8.8

Number
Percent

1
3.6

3
25.0

1
8.3

2
50.0

7
8.8

P3

Number
Percent

1
3.6

3
25.0

3
25.0

2
50.0

9.
11.3

P4

Number
Percent

1
3.6

3
25.0

4
33.3

2
50.0

10
12.5

M1

Number
Percent

3
10.7

2
16.7

6
50.0

2
50.0

13
16.3

M2

Number
Percent

4
14.3

4
33.3

8
66.6

2
50.0

18
22.5

M3

Number
Percent

8
28.6

6
50.0

7
58.3

4
100.0

2
50.0

27
33.8

.559

Total

Number
Percent

1
0.8

25
11.2

33
34.4

35
36.5

20
62.5

3
9.4

117
18.3

,463

Grand
total

Number
Percent

4
1.1

34
9.7

54
21.1

56
29.2

29
45.3

43
22.4

221
15.0

.770

I2

6.3

>Number= Number of ante mortem lost teeth per age groupitooth classification
'Percent = Percent of teeth IOSL ante mortern per age groupitooth classificatmn.

25.0

21.3
7

.245
( I 1 I21

.754

,973
(P3 P4)

.985
(M1 M2)

TOOTH LOSS IN PREHISTORIC ESKIMOS

583

DISCUSSION
Point Hope Tigara (Table 2)
Males from the Tigara skeletal sample lost
Hrdlieka believed intentional removal of anfew anterior teeth. Reaching a maximum of terior teeth to be a major cause of tooth loss in
14.3% in the 41-45 year age group, an aver- arctic populations (Hrdlieka, 1940). One of his
age of only 8.8% of incisors are lost. One and study samples was from Kodiak Island, and it
sixth-tenths percent of canines are lost, with a is from this same assemblage that the sample
maximum loss of 10.0% in the 41-45 year used in this study is drawn. Hrdlieka used 283
group. Neither incisor nor canine loss corre- skulls of Koniag and pre-KoniagEskimos,
lates well with age. Premolars also have a low which were divided into males and females,
loss rate: 7.0% with a high of 18.8% in the 41- juveniles, and adults. He diagnosed traumatic
45 year age group. Premolar loss correlates tooth loss of anterior teeth, regardless of loss
moderately well with age. Premolars, incisors, pattern, as intentional ablation. In a detailed
and canines display virtually no loss until the consideration of Hrdliekas ritual ablation hy36-40 age group. Firstlsecond molars are char- pothesis for Eskimo tooth loss, Merbs states
acterized by a steadily rising loss rate which that while Hrdliekas ability to diagnose a
reaches a peak of 38.8% in the 41-45 year age tooth lost by trauma was probably adequate,
group and averages 13.9%. Surprisingly, discrimination between accidental and intenmolar loss is not well correlated with age, pos- tional trauma is not usually possible (Merbs,
sibly because of a marked drop in antemortem 1968). Most ethnological evidence for ritual
loss in the 46
year age group. Third molar mutilation and ablation of teeth comes from
loss is consistently between 15 and 20% from geographic areas outside the Arctic. Moortgat
16 years of age into the middle of the fourth notes that in other areas the pattern of tooth
decade, when the loss rate rises to a maximum loss is important in diagnosing ritual ablation:
The same tooth, or teeth, are generally missing
of 45% in the 41-45 year age group.
Tigara females lost incisors at a steady rate, in all group members above a certain age
with a maximum of 47.2% in the 46+ age (Moortgat, 1959). This was not the case in most
group and an average loss of 16.4%. Canines of the groups Hrdlizka studied, as pointed out
are also lost at an increasing rate well corre- by Merbs (1968), and is clearly not the case in
lated with age, with maximum and average the groups studied here.
Extrapolation of Hrdlitkas data shows that
losses of 16.7%. Premolars are lost at a steadily increasing rate starting at the beginning of adult Koniags lost about 1% and pre-Koniags
the fourth decade. Premolar loss averaged 6,670 of their incisors. The 83 individuals used
7.7%, attaining a maximum of 25.0% lost in in this study for whom age and sex could be rethe oldest age group. Firstlsecond molars have liably ascertained had an incisor loss rate of
a different pattern, showing negligible loss 7.3%, not very different from Hrdlizkas reuntil the 36-40 year age group;then the loss sults. Interestingly, the correlation between
rate jumps to 36.1% in the 41-45 year, and age and tooth loss in the Jones Point samples
43.1Y0 in the 4 6 f year age groups, for a loss is very poor; the only tooth group in which loss
rate averaging 15.0%. Progressively more correlated with age is female incisors. If ritual
third molars are lost with age, starting with no ablation of incisors was practiced, the expected
loss in the 16-20 year group until a maximum result would be a t least a minimum number of
of 66.790 loss is reached in the 46+ year age incisors lost in each age group, not necessarily
group. Tooth loss is very well correlated with correlated with age. No minimum number of
age in all female Tigara tooth types.
lost teeth was found in any tooth category for
males or females from Jones Point. Males disKodiak Island, Jones Point (Table 3)
play fewer antemortem lost teeth than females.
No tooth group from the Jones Point males No tooth category exhibits an identifiable difor females displays a good correlation between ference in tooth loss, and no age trends were
loss and age except female incisors. All other noted.
Jones Point tooth loss figures are erratic
groups vary between being poorly correlated
to being mildly correlated negatively (male and when compared to age, suggesting that ritual
ablation was not practiced and that no identififemale canine loss) with age.
While sample sizes for the subgroups of able oral pathology was responsible for differJones Point males and females are larger than ential tooth loss. This concurs with data that
the Ipiutak samples from Point Hope, loss indicates the Jones Point people had a very low
rates are very low and less predictable since caries rate and little periodontal disease
many individuals, regardless of age, display (Costa, 1977). The skeletal remains from Jones
Point do not represent a random sample. At
very little or no tooth loss.

584

R.L. COSTA, JR.

TABLE 2. Ante mortem tooth loss: Tigara

16-20

21-25

Male

Age
31-35
36-40
No. of individuals
21
7
17

26-30

41-45

46

Total

17

10

87

I1

Number
Percent

2
6.3

1
14.7

6
7.1

3
10.7

9
13.2

7
17.5

10
35.7

38
10.9

I2

Number
Percent

1
3.1

1
14.7

5
6.0

1
3.6

12
17.6

5
12.5

2
7.1

27
7.8

Number
Percent

1
0.6

2
7.1

3
1.8

4
10.0

1
3.6

11
3.2

P3

Number
Percent

2
2.4

2
7.1

3
4.4

7
17.5

2
7.1

16
4.6

P4

Number
Percent

3
4.4

4
4.8

3
10.7

13
19.1

8
20.0

2
7.1

33
9.5

M1

Number
Percent

5
7.4

9.5

3
10.7

13
19.1

15
37.5

7
25.0

51
14.7

Number
Percent

4
14.3

16
23.5

16
40.0

3
10.7

46

5.9

3
3.6

13.2

M2

Correlation
coefficient
A.M. teeth
and age

,359
( I 1 12)

,363

,630
( P 3 P4)

,379
(M1 M2)

M3

Number
Percent

6
18.8

10
14.7

17
20.0

5
17.9

26
38.2

18
45.0

9
32.0

91
26.1

,780

Total

Number
Percent

9
3.5

24
4.4

46
6.8

23
2.1

95
17.5

80
25.0

32
14.3

309
11.1

,756

12

23
4
4.3

No. of Individuals
8
20
9
25
28.1
31.3

18
27
37.5

9
19
59.4

111
85
19.1

3
3.3

F_emajg

~~

I1

Number
Percent

21
1
1.2

12

Number
Percent

3
3.6

,951
(I1 12)

1
3.1

14
17.5

18
25.0

15
46.9

61
13.7

Number
Percent

1
3.1

6
7.5

12
16.7

5
1 3 .9

24
16.7

P3

Number
Percent

1
3.1

3
3.8

10
13.9

4
12.5

18
4.1

P4

Number
Percent

2
2.4

1
3.1

16
20.0

17
23.6

14
43.8

50
11.3

M1

Number
Percent

1
1.2

4
4.3

3
9.4

22
27.5

20
27.7

11
34.4

61
13.7

M2

Number
Percent

1
1.2

3
4.3

7
21.9

17
21.3

32
44.4

20
62.5

80
18.0

M3

Number
Percent

10
11.9

19
20.7

11
34.4

30
37.5

41
56.9

24
66.7

135
30.4

,989

Total

Number
Percent

18
2.7

33
4.5

41
16.0

133
20.8

177
30.7

112
38.9

514
14.5

,989

Grand
total

Number
Percent

9
1.4

42
3.5

79
5.6

64
13.3

228
19.3

257
28.7

144
28.1

823
13.0

,974

!Number = Number of ante mortem lost teeth per age grouptooth classiflcation
Percent = Percent of teeth lost ante niortem per age groupitooth classification.

,873

,950
(P3 P4)

,991
(M1 M2)

585

TOOTH LOSS IN PREHISTORIC ESKIMOS

TABLE 3. A n t e mortem tooth loss: Jones Point, Kodiak Island

Male

16-20

21-25

Age
31-35
36-40
No. of individuals
6
2
8

26-30

I1

Number'
Percent2

I2

Number
Percent

Number
Percent

2
8.3

Number
Percent

4.2

P3

3
10.7
1
3.6

2
7.1

4
16.7

2
25.0

1
3.1

3
37.5

5
15.6

P4

Number
Percent

Total

40

M1

Number
Percent

M2

Number
Percent

M3

Number
Percent

1
3.6

5
17.9

2
8.3

Total

Number
Percent

3
1.3

14
6.3

16
8.3

12

3
2
16.7

1
8.3

Correlation
coefficient
A.M. teeth
and age

6
3.8
1
3.1

1
12.5

17
10.6

3.1

3
1.9

1
3.1

2
1.3

.143
(I1 12)

-1.0

,339
( P 3 P4)

2
6.3

1
12.5

12
7.5

1
3.1

1
3.1

2
25.0

7
4.4

2
6.2

2
6.3

2
25.0

9
5.6

1
12.5

8
50.0

3
9.4

2
25.0

22
13.8

,437

9
14.0

19
7.4

9
3.5

8
12.5

78
6.1

.512

1
4.2

2
4
50.0

13
6
11.5

43
15
8.7

1
4.2

3
31.5

4
7.7

11
6.4

2
25.0

1
1.9

5
2.9

2
25.0

2
3.8

4
2.3

2
3.8

7
4.1

3
10.7

3
12.5

2
25.0

1
3.6

1
4.2

1
12.5

3
12.5

Female

46

1
3.6

41-45

No. of Individuals
3
6

,296
(M1 + M 2 )

I1

Number
Percent

4
2
12.5

I2

Number
Percent

2
12.5

Number
Percent

2
12.5

P3

Number
Percent

F4

Number
Percent

1
8.3

1
4.2

3
37.5

M1

Number
Percent

1
8.3

1
4.2

2
35.0

M2

Number
Percent

2
16.7

2
8.3

4
50.0

1
1.9

9
5.2

3
12.5

2
25.0

8
14.4

21
12.2

.I12

9
4.7

22
34.4

24
5.8

76
5.5

,452

28
6.3

31
9.7

32
6.7

154
5.8

,687

M3

Number
Percent

2
4.2

2
12.5

4
33.3

Total

Number
Percent

2
0.5

8
6.3

11
11.5

Grand
total

Number
Percent

5
0.8

22
6.3

27
7.4

9
5.6

' h u mher = Number af ante mortem lust teeth per age group,tooth classificalioii
'Pcrcent - Percent of twth I mt a n t e mortem per age group:tooth classification

,766
12)

(I1

-.142

,281
P4)

(P3

4
2.3
,099
(M1 M2)

586

R.L. COSTA, JR.

the time of excavation skulls in good condition

were kept; the rest were not (Hrdlieka, 1944).
The results of this study, and the results of
Hrdliekas original study, may therefore be
biased. They may not represent the tooth loss
situation that existed when these people were
living.
The Ipiutak tooth loss pattern differs in
males and females. Females lost teeth of all
types in an age-related pattern, culminating in
the loss of approximately 50% of anterior teeth
and 75 to 100% of posterior teeth in the 41-45
year age group. Ipiutak males lost very few
anterior teeth throughout life but lost molar
teeth at very nearly the same rate as females.
Intentional ablation of anterior teeth can be
ruled out in males, who lost very few incisors
and virtually no canines antemortem. Anterior
teeth are lost too late in life in females to be
associated with puberty or initiation rites. In
later years females lost incisors and canines at
nearly the same rate as all other teeth. The
large number of missing posterior teeth in
males and females suggests a chronic pathologic condition. Caries was not a significant
problem for the Ipiutak people (Costa, 1977).
However, they experienced heavy occlusal
wear, sometimes countered by supereruption
and accompanied by deterioration of alveolar
bone. This condition was most pronounced in
posterior teeth (Costa, 1979) and may have
been the cause of the extensive antemortem
loss of molar teeth in Ipiutak males and
females of advanced age. The marked loss of
anterior teeth among Ipiutak females may be
the result of a sex-role-relatedparamasticatory
pattern. Such behavior patterns of prehistoric
peoples are a matter of conjecture, but Eskimos are well known for using their teeth for a
wide range of strenuous functions besides mastication (Birket-Smith, 1928;de Poncins, 1941;
Gilder, 1881, Merbs, 1968).
The loss pattern in the Tigara skeletal
sample is different from either of the other two
groups. The best correlation between loss of
teeth and advancing age in any of the samples
studied was found in the Tigara females, suggesting that the causes of tooth loss were progressive in effect. Incisors exhibit a sharp increase in loss in the 25-30 year age group. If
this sharp increase took place in a younger age
group it might indicate ritual ablation, but initiation rites are rarely performed in the third
decade of life. Firstlsecond molars also display
a sudden rise in antemortem loss in the 36-40
year age group. Lost molars are usually due to
the effects of caries or periodontal disease,

which were not prevalent in these people. However, progressive heavy occlusal surface wear,
which was very common, could account for this
sudden loss of incisors and molars, since teeth
are usually lost when pulp chambers are
exposed. Tigara females began to expose the
pulp chambers in their teeth at this stage in
their lives (Costa, 1977).
Tigara males also show a progressive loss of
teeth, but the pattern of loss differs from that
found in the females. The most striking difference is in the third molar loss rates. Males lost
a constant 15 to 20% of third molars from 16 to
36 years of age. This could be most easily
accounted for by third molar agenesis. The
much larger number of third molars lost vs.
first and second molars lost in females may
also be due to third molar agenesis. From the
middle of the third decade onwards, males lost
teeth progressively, with more loss evident in
the cheek teeth than in the anterior teeth. As in
females, this is most likely the result of heavy
occlusal surface wear.
All three samples studied here have been
previously shown to have suffered very little
from dental caries or periodontal disease. All
three ate diets high in proteins and fats and
low in carbohydrates, and all three displayed
different patterns of antemortem tooth loss.
For an archeologic skeletal series where some
inferences can be made concerning diet,
patterns of tooth loss can give a general overview of the oral pathologies operating. Tooth
loss can also be used to identify sex-rolerelated paramasticatory behavior. Counting
teeth lost antemortem and deriving loss patterns can be a valuable tool in the analysis of
archeologic skeletal specimens.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Permission to use the Point Hope collections

was generously given by Harry Shapiro of the
American Museum of Natural History, New
York City, New York. The Kodiak Island collection was graciously made available for
study by Lucille St. Hoyme of the U.S. National Museum, Washington, D.C. Alan Mann
and Francis Johnston helped greatly during
the formative stages of this work. Phillip Conrad of the University of Illinois Medical Center
oversaw the proper usage of the English
language in this report.
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TOOTH LOSS IN PREHISTORIC ESKIMOS

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~~