On the paleopathological features of the Sarmatian population of the Lower Volga and the lower don regions in the 4th - 1st centuries b.c

The paper is dedicated to the study of paleopathological features of the early Sarmatians. The bone remains which are the material to this research originate from tombs beneath burials mounds from the area of the Lower Volga and the Lower Don regions. The author applied the technique of analysis of bone remains that was introduce into scientific use by A.P. Buzhilova [2; 3]. As a result of the conducted research, the author found out that the early Sarmatians are most likely to have come from the Lower Volga and the Don regions being migrating population which was not uniform in its composition. Some of the Sarmatians, men, in the first place, were overweight and suffered from obesity. The early Sarmatian population in the Lower Volga region and the Don region experienced the periods of prolonged starvation that resulted in chronic diseases which were exacerbated during winters or in dry years. At the same time, the Sarmatians rarely suffered from specific infectious diseases due to the low density of population. War was an integral part of the Sarmatian that was often reflected on skull bones and post-cranial skeleton as war wounds and traumas due to ritual ceremonies.