A preliminary report on anthropological evidence from the Ostian suburbs (Rome, Italy): The human remains of Castelfusano

Between 2019 and 2020, on the southern peripheral slope of ancient Ostia, ten inhumation graves and one cremation tomb were uncovered, yielding a total of twelve individuals (MNI = 12). This discovery further confirms the distinctly funerary character of the area, where inhumation and cremation rites, at least during the early centuries of the Empire, appear to have coexisted within a lower-middle socio-economic context, primarily composed of individuals engaged in physically demanding labor. This interpretation is further supported by anthropological analyses conducted on human remains from nearby contexts previously studied. As this is a preliminary study, the initial findings are presented in the form of osteobiographies, developed using information derived from the archaeological context of discovery, the state of preservation and representativeness of the remains, the biological sex and age at death, as well as the presence or absence of pathological indicators for each individual. Although limited in number, the anthropological data from these burials are nonetheless highly informative and contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the life cycle of individuals from non-elite backgrounds in the Ostian colony, an aspect of Roman society that remains underrepresented and requires further investigation. The types of tombs identified, the observed stress markers, and comparisons with adjacent contexts all suggest that these individuals likely belonged to a modest socio-economic class or were involved in labor-intensive occupations.