Bioarchaeology of the Near East, 19:17-34 (2025)

A case study of spinal pathology and degenerative joint disease in Udhruh, Jordan

Abdel Halim Al-Shiyab (1), Ahmad Y. Abu Dalou (*1), Aleksandra Grzegorska (2)
(1) Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Archaeology and Anthropology, Yarmouk University,
P.O. Box 21163, 22110 Irbid, Jordan
email: aabudalou@yu.edu.jo (corresponding author)
(2) Department of Bioarchaeology, Faculty of Archaeology, University of Warsaw,
ul. Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, 00-927 Warsaw, Poland

Abstract: This study presents an osteobiographical analysis of an adult male buried beneath the floor of a Byzantine church at Udhruh in southern Jordan. Standard macroscopic methods were employed to determine the biological profile and assess pathological lesions. The individual was male aged between 27 and 66 years with an average of 45.6 years old, and 181.4±3.27cm tall. Vertebral fusion between T7 and T11 exhibited leftsided flowing ossification, consistent with diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH). Schmorl’s nodes and osteophytes were also observed in the spine. Degenerative joint disease (DJD) was identified in the left knee, with accompanying osteophytes and eburnation. Although the spinal lesions are characteristic of DISH, their unusual left-sided distribution may indicate an anatomical variation, such as situs inversus. The observed bone lesions could e.g. suggest obesity or a diet high in protein. However, the unilateral nature of the osteoarthritic (OA) lesions in the knee does not support the hypothesis of obesity. The burial context implies elevated social status—possibly elite rather than clerical—which may, in turn, suggest a protein-rich diet.

Key words: Byzantine period; DISH; OA; osteobiography

https://doi.org/10.47888/bne-1902 | Received 27 March 2025; accepted 6 November 2025; published online 12 December 2025.

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