Investigating Entheseal Changes of the Arm and Activity Patterns of an Early Bronze Age Group From the UAE

ABSTRACT Entheseal changes have proven useful to reconstruct past activity patterns. This approach was used to evaluate individuals interred within two Umm an‐Nar (ca. 2700–2000 bce ) tombs at the Early Bronze Age site of Shimal in the United Arab Emirates. Tombs Unar 1 and Unar 2 held commingled, fragmentary, and often cremated bones of hundreds of individuals of all age groups and sexes. It was unclear, however, whether differential interment based on status or occupation was practiced. To answer this, entheseal changes on the humerus and radius were recorded to assess potential bilateral asymmetry, sex‐based divisions of labor, and occupational differences both within and between the two tombs. Beyond asymmetrical alterations of the common extensor origin, no significant differences were found to indicate bilateral asymmetry. Additionally, no differences in entheseal severity were identified between tombs Unar 1 and 2, suggesting that interment in either monument was likely not based on occupation. Nevertheless, significant variation among mean composite entheseal scores in the later tomb Unar 2 may point to increased differentiation of activities over time. Overall, similar entheseal alterations in both tombs suggest a lack of labor stratification during this period, despite archaeological evidence for emergent social hierarchies. Because age could not be estimated for isolated adult arm bone fragments, it remains uncertain whether age may account for variation observed among entheses.