Manual of Forensic Taphonomy
by James T. Pokines, Ericka N. L'Abbe, Steven A. Symes
2nd Edition
Publisher: CRC Press
Book Details
| Print ISBN | 9780367774370 |
| eText ISBN | 9781000480702 |
| Publisher | CRC Press |
| Publishing Year | 2022 |
| Edition | 2nd Edition |
| Language | English |
| Pages | 768 |
The Manual of Forensic Taphonomy, 2nd Edition, is a professional manual designed to guide investigators in reconstructing the postmortem history of skeletal remains. It details how taphonomic analyses distinguish natural postmortem processes from human-caused trauma.
The volume examines bone modifications across diverse depositional environments, including terrestrial surfaces, burial sites, freshwater systems, and marine settings. Chapters categorize physical and biological alterations, detailing how to evaluate factors such as faunal gnawing, subaerial weathering, thermal alteration, and bone staining.
Drawing on cases involving large vertebrates and human remains, this manual provides standardized terminology and diagnostic criteria for practitioners across forensic anthropology, archaeology, and related investigative disciplines.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction: The Importance and Use of Forensic Taphonomic Data
Chapter 2: Microscopic Destruction of Bone
Chapter 3: Soft Tissue Decomposition in Terrestrial Ecosystems
Chapter 4: Bone Density and Bone Attrition
Chapter 5: Effects of Burial Environment on Osseous Remains
Chapter 6: Fluvial Taphonomy
Chapter 7: Marine Environmental Alterations to Bone
Chapter 8: Contemporary Cultural Alterations to Bone: Anatomical, Ritual, and Trophy
Chapter 9: Faunal Dispersal, Reconcentration, and Gnawing Damage to Bone in Terrestrial Environments
Chapter 10: Deposition and Dispersal of Human Remains as a Result of Criminal Acts: Homo sapiens sapiens as a Taphonomic Agent
Chapter 11: Subaerial Weathering and Other Terrestrial Surface Taphonomic Processes
Chapter 12: Identifying the Origin of Taphonomic Bone Staining and Color Changes in Forensic Contexts
Chapter 13: Taphonomy and the Timing of Bone Fractures in Trauma Analysis
Chapter 14: Thermal Alteration to Bone
Chapter 15: DNA Survivability in Skeletal Remains
Chapter 16: Avian Taphonomy
Chapter 17: Effects of Recovery Methods
Chapter 18: Invertebrate Modification of Bone
Chapter 19: Reptile Taphonomy
Chapter 20: Laws of Taphonomic Relative Timing
Chapter 21: Laboratory and Field Methods in Forensic Taphonomy
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