Medieval Barcelona’s Jewish community: an initial anthropological look at the results of archaeological excavations in 2001 at the Jewish necropolis in Montjuïc (Barcelona)

Abstract

This paper includes the preliminary results of anthropological studies conducted on the skeletal remains recovered during archaeological excavations in 2001 at the Jewish necropolis in Montjuïc (Barcelona). The studies in question are part of a research project on the necropolis which the Barcelona Archaeology Service (Barcelona Institute of Culture) is promoting to further knowledge of this important historical and archaeological site. The anthropological analysis carried out included determining individuals’ sex and age, using classic methods and newer ones, as well as taking different bone measurements and studying bone and dental pathologies. The results suggest that Barcelona’s Jewish community differed from the rest of the city’s population. While the individuals examined showed signs of diseases, particularly those affecting the joints and attributable to age, the group appears to have enjoyed better health than others that were part of Barcelona’s population, probably due to them belonging, as historical documents indicate, to the upper middle class.

Keywords: Jewish necropolis, Montjuïc, Barcelona, Middle Ages, anthropology